MANCHESTER, N.H. – Mike Richard (Derry, N.H.) netted the game-tying tally and Liam McKillop (New York, N.Y.) scored the game-winning goal at 18:03 of the third period to help the Saint Anselm College men's ice hockey team to a 5-3 come-from-behind win over Franklin Pierce University on Tuesday evening at Thomas F. Sullivan Arena.
With the win, the Hawks improve to 6-2-1 overall and 3-0-0 in the Northeast-10 conference, while the Ravens drop to an even 4-4-0 for the 2012-13 campaign and 2-1-0 in league play.
The game-tying goal came at 11:19 of the third period on a Richard tip-in. After receiving a pass from Greg Crovo (Melrose, Mass.), Tim King (Weymouth, Mass.) sent a shot, from the top of the right circle that was tipped in by Richard at the post.
The Hawks' go-ahead tally arrived when Richard took an initial shot on net that bounced off Dave O'Brien's pads and onto the stick of McKillop, who sent it into the back of the net with just under two minutes left in regulation.
The final dagger came when Daniels sunk an empty netter at 19:53 on a feed from Crovo.
At the start, Saint Anselm was first to score – right off the bat – just 3:26 into the game when Joe Tebano (Glastonbury, Conn.) centered a pass from the bottom of the left circle, to Daniels in the slot, who sent a wrister into the top corner of the net. Tucker Mullin (Andover, Mass.) also picked up a helper on the play.
The Ravens wasted no time on the answer, just 25 seconds into the second frame when Adam Dellaire drove up the right side of the ice and picked up Sean Dunn. Dunn beat Saint Anselm goalkeeper Robert Kang (Glen Rock, N.J.) to the open side.
The Ravens bookended the second period with goals, as they netted another tally with just two seconds remaining on the clock thanks to Michael Carr. Wes Russell sent a pass from right to left across the top of the circles, to Carr, who blasted a shot from the point past an extending Kang.
Just 2:10 into the final period of play, Franklin Piece put the Ravens up 3-1 when Brendan McCarron took a shot that was initially saved by Kang. Carr picked up the loose puck on the rebound and sent it home for the two-goal lead.
Saint Anselm would begin its comeback at 9:52 of the third – with the Hawks' first answer of the game – as Tebano scored his second goal of the season on a pass from Mullin. Alex Pascal (Blue Bell, Pa.) picked up the secondary assist on the play.
Tebano's goal started a four-goal scoring streak – that sparked the Hawk offense and brought the eventual win.
Kang made 21 saves to earn the win, while O'Brien made 48 stops in the loss.
The Hawks held a 53-24 advantage in shots on goal. The Ravens were 1-2 on the power play, while Saint Anselm was 0-5 on extra skater opportunities.
The Hawks return to action Friday, Jan. 4 at 7 p.m. when they travel to Upstate New York and begin a five game road stint starting with Fredonia State College. Stay up-to-date with the latest news, including game previews and recaps, directly from the Saint Anselm College athletic department by liking us on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/STAHawks) and following us on Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/STAHawks).
