Bulldogs Fall 3-2 In OT

CANTON, NY – A blocked shot from the point bounced off a Saints player's foot and found a path to the net with 2:17 left in OT and give St. Lawrence a 3-2 win over No. 13 Yale at Appleton Arena.

Brian Ward's shot from the point caught a Yale player's stick in the high slot and then hit a teammate's foot before bouncing wildy past Alex Lyon.

The Bulldogs (11-5-2, 6-4-1), after erasing a 1-0 deficit, had plenty of chances to put this one away. What looked like it could be a 2-1 road win quickly turned with a late penalty, a power-play tally and a crazy bounce of the puck in extra time.

"We had our chances to extend the lead," said Keith Allain '80, Yale's Malcolm G. Chace Head Coach, whose team snapped a three-game win streak. "We just were not efficient enough on offense to sustain the lead."

The Elis had two super scoring chances to make it a two-goal lead late in the third but SLU kept dodging the bullets.

The Saints may be winning more games on the road than at home this season, but they are starting fast in both. They outshot the Elis 11-7 in the first and got on the board with the only tally of the period, which was a good sign for SLU (outscoring opponents 25-8 in opening frame), which entered the game 10-4-2 when scoring first.

Yale's only grade-A chance in the first came on a one-timer from the right circle by Mike Doherty, who had an open right side of the net. The opening closed in a split second as an SLU defenseman dove in front of the shot and knocked it aside.

The Blue broke through midway through the second when Doherty popped in a rebound from the slot, following up a Nate Repensky shot that bounced off goalie Kyle Hayton. Ryan Hitchcock set up the play by carrying over the blueline and leaving it on the left for John Hayden, who sent it across to Repensky. The tally was a team-high seventh for Doherty.

Lyon, who had 29 saves, kept the visitors even after two periods. The sophomore made a pair of top-notch glove saves, including a change-of-direction stop on a grade-A shorthanded opportunity.

The Bulldogs came out of the second intermission buzzing with a ferocious fore-check and a number of scoring chances. There were three very close calls in the first five minutes before the guys from New Haven went ahead at 8:19. Matt Killian, in the middle of a pack in the high slot, smacked a loose puck through traffic and into the net for the 2-1 lead. Chris Izmirlian and Rob O'Gara picked up assists on the goal.

The home, which allowed the Blue to come so close to putting the game away with a pair of great shorthanded chances, took advantage of a Yale penalty with 2:59 left in the third to tie the score and send it to OT.

The Christian Horn goal came with 1:13 left and 14 ticks remaining on the advantage.

filed by Steve Conn, Yale Sports Publicity Director