Courtesy St. Michael’s Sports Information

CANTON, N.Y. — First-year Jeremy Routh (Hamden, Conn./New Hampshire Junior Monarchs) scored his first college goal 3:17 into overtime on Tuesday to lift the undefeated Saint Michael’s College men’s ice hockey team over the State University of New York at Canton, 3-2, in Roos House. The Purple Knights, who received a tying shorthanded goal from junior Paul McAuliffe (Newton, Mass./Kimball Union Academy) with 47 seconds left in regulation, moved to 2-0-1, their best start since going 3-0 in 2010-11.

RECORDS
· Saint Michael’s (2-0-1), SUNY Canton (1-1-1)

SAINT MICHAEL’S LEADERS
· Junior Paul McAuliffe (Newton, Mass./Kimball Union Academy), 1 goal, 1 assist, +2
· Sophomore Colin O’Connor (North Haven, Conn./Connecticut RoughRiders), 1 goal (1st career)
· First-year Jeremy Routh (Hamden, Conn./New Hampshire Junior Monarchs), 1 goal (1st career)
· First-year Alec Lindberg (Bedford, N.H./Hampton Roads Whalers), 40 saves (college debut)
· Senior William Santangeli (Oakville, Ontario/Saint Mark’s School), 6-for-10 faceoffs
· Junior Tyler Dorval (Liverpool, N.Y./Liverpool), 2 blocks

OPPONENT LEADERS
· Junior Jesse Farabee, 1 goal
· Sophomore Corson Green, 1 goal
· Senior Austin Washkurak, 29 saves

GAME FACTS
· Sixteen of the Purple Knights’ last 17 games dating back to last January were decided by two goals or less. Each of their three contests this year was determined by a goal or less, with the past two extending to overtime.
· Saint Michael’s moved to 2-1 in an all-time series that began in 2012-13. The teams met in Canton, N.Y., for the first time.
· SUNY Canton went 14-9-2 last year and had been unbeaten in its last six games entering tonight, including tying nationally-ranked Utica College, 3-3, on Saturday.
· At 2-0-1, the Purple Knights are off to their best start since going 3-0 in 2010-11.
· Each of the Purple and Gold’s three goalies played a full contest during the season-opening three-game non-conference schedule, combining for a 1.59 goals-against average.
· Four different Purple Knights have scored their first college goals this season, including O’Connor and Routh doing so on Tuesday.

THE ACTION
· The teams played through a scoreless first period, during which Lindberg made 13 stops in his first college frame.
· Nearly midway through the second stanza, junior Brandon Mitchell (North Scituate, R.I./Pomfret School) fired a shot from the left circle that Washkurak turned away, but the puck took a weird bounce off the glass behind the net and ricocheted back into the crease for a trailing O’Connor, who tapped the rebound into the net with 9:39 gone.
· Farabee tied the game at 17:18 during a 5-on-3 power play, firing home a shot from the left circle.
· Green gave the Kangaroos the lead 5:28 into the third period, skating from the neutral zone through the left circle before wrapping the puck around the far side of the net.
· With SUNY Canton on a power play, Lindberg left his net in the closing moments of regulation to put the teams at five skaters apiece. In the final minute, McAuliffe had a shot from the right circle saved behind the net, where junior Ethan Hendrickson (Budd Lake, N.J./New Jersey Rockets) fished out the loose puck and put it back in front for McAuliffe, whose second attempt was also stopped, but he nabbed the rebound himself and potted the tying shorthanded goal into the left side of the net from out front at 19:13.
· The hosts’ power play carried into overtime, with the man advantage ending just before Lindberg made back-to-back stops, including on a redirection from out front 45 seconds in.
· Sophomore Kyler Matthews’ shot from the point was denied by Lindberg at 2:04 with other Kangaroos buzzing the net looking for a rebound.
· A little more than a minute later, McAuliffe forced a takeaway at the Saint Michael’s blue line before breaking up the left wing into the SUNY Canton zone and centering for Routh, who outraced his defender into the slot and finished backhanded from near the right post for the winner at 3:17.

NEXT SAINT MICHAEL’S GAME
· Saturday at Saint Anselm College, 4 p.m.