Last season, Liam McLinskey led Holy Cross through a Cinderella playoff run, tallying nine goals in seven games, before the Crusaders eventually fell to Canisius for the Atlantic Hockey Championship.

McLinskey had at least one tally in each of the six postseason games before the final, including upsets over No. 1 seed RIT and No. 2 seed AIC. His late-season surge led to a second-place finish for him in Atlantic Hockey goal totals.

ICYMI: Congratulations to sophomore Liam McLinskey on breaking the record for most goals scored in an Atlantic Hockey playoff!

Liam's nine goals eclipsed the previous record of seven, set four times.#GoCrossGo pic.twitter.com/m4frrHQhU8

— Holy Cross M. Hockey (@HCrossMHockey) March 20, 2023

The junior’s late breakout certainly was a factor in Holy Cross’ fourth-place finish in the AHA Preseason Coaches’ Poll, a major shift from the program’s last-place position in the 2022-2023 poll.

The Crusaders currently sit tied with Niagara for third place in Atlantic Hockey with a 3-4-1-2 record (6-5-2 overall); Niagara holds a game in hand.

Catch every Holy Cross game, and all Atlantic Hockey action, live on FloHockey, all season long.

After the memorable campaign last year, the Crusaders got out to a hot start this season, winning their first four contests.

However, the winning streak was halted by a shootout loss to Robert Morris, which led into a six-game regulation winless drought (0-5-1-0), before a recent weekend sweep over Bentley with two 2-0 shutouts.

Hear from head coach Bill Riga and junior Liam McLinskey following tonight's win over Bentley!#GoCrossGo pic.twitter.com/krrMfAr6nF

— Holy Cross M. Hockey (@HCrossMHockey) November 19, 2023

As the Crusaders are rediscovering their game as a team, McLinskey is finding his, too.

Through 13 games, he has recorded seven assists and 11 points. He is second in scoring for the Crusaders.

With three of his four goals coming over the past five games, his influx in shooting – 23 shots over his past eight games – has the offense trending in the right direction.

During his two years with the Jersey Hitmen of the National Collegiate Development Conference (NCDC) McLinskey was a playmaker. The New York native posted consecutive 40-assist seasons and finished his career with 36 goals, 83 assist, and 119 points in 94 games.

McLinskey finished the 2022-2023 season with 21 goals and 25 points in 40 games for the Crusaders. With just four assists through 40 games as a sophomore, McLinskey left a lot on the table for his vision and passing.

But his late-season goal scoring seemed to cultivate some confidence that has translated to the current season, as he now brings some more unpredictability with his goal touch and playmaking.

The Crusaders host Army (1-9 overall) for a single conference matchup Tuesday ahead of Thanksgiving and then host Brown for a nonconference game (3-5 overall) Friday.

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Have a question or a comment for Jacob Messing? You can find him on Twitter @Jacob_Messing.