POTSDAM, N.Y. - The Saint Michael's College men's ice hockey team scored the opening goal before yielding four unanswered tallies in a 4-1 loss to the State University of New York at Potsdam on Friday evening in Maxcy Ice Arena, as both squads began their 2016-17 campaigns.

Junior Eric Salzillo (Johnston, R.I./Boston Bandits) scored while going 11-of-18 on faceoffs for the Purple Knights, sophomore Sam D'Antuono (Hingham, Mass./Dexter School) also won 11 draws, and classmate Chris Johnson (Duxbury, Mass./Pomfret School) had 33 saves. It was his 13th career 30-save outing. Saint Michael's outshot the hosts 40-37.

First-years Bryce Ferrell and Nate Zweig both recorded a goal and an assist for the Bears, while senior Tommy Telesca and junior Dylan Vander Esch also scored. Junior Brendan McMenimen made 39 saves.

Johnson made a stop during a four-on-four situation a little more than three minutes into the game, as he recorded nine of his saves in the first period alone and 28 through the opening 40 minutes. After senior Josh Dickman (Kapaa, Hawaii/Saint Paul's School) was stopped by McMenimen during the latter portion of the opening frame, Salzillo followed on the same shift with the initial tally at 15:29. Senior Stephen Inman (Coventry, R.I./Odessa Jackalopes) sent the puck from the left point toward the net, but it was knocked down out front, where Salzillo backhanded a shot from high in the left circle. Junior defenseman Nathan Foice (Essex, Vt./The Winchendon School), who was back on the ice after missing most of last season due to injury, also earned an assist.

After Johnson made a pair of stops soon after Salzillo's tally, SUNY Potsdam scored twice in 2:50 to take the lead. Only 1:51 following the Purple Knight marker, Ferrell knotted the contest, and Saint Michael's had three go-ahead attempts stopped by McMenimen before the period's final horn while another hit the post.

Just 10 seconds into the second stanza, Telesca put his team in front. Senior defenseman Danny Divis (Media, Pa./Minnesota Wilderness) fired off two of his team's four saved shots in a pair of second-period power plays, and Johnson denied two shorthanded bids midway through the period to keep it 2-1. Shortly following senior Shawn Morrow's (East Greenbush, N.Y./Kent School) tying try was turned away, the Bears doubled their lead when Zweig scored with 12:10 gone. With his team two men down after a pair of penalties, Johnson recorded a pair of stops late in the second frame, but Vander Esch made it 4-1 with a five-on-three goal 48 seconds into the third.

Saint Michael's outshot SUNY Potsdam, 22-6, in the final period, taking 10 of those shots in one mid-period power play and another three on a man advantage that began three seconds after the first one ended, but McMenimen stopped them all.

The Purple Knights begin a three-game homestand next weekend by opposing Daniel Webster College on Friday at 7 p.m. on Cairns Arena's second ice surface.