The St. Lawrence University Men’s Hockey team took on the Clarkson University Golden Knights on Friday and Saturday night in the 2024 edition of the famed Route 11 Rivalry between the neighboring institutions. I was on the scene for both games: Friday night in Potsdam on Clarkson’s home ice and Saturday night in Canton at Appleton Arena. I was even able to sit in both student sections during the two games.  

For the first game on Friday night, St. Lawrence got off to a good start, with Philippe Chapleau ’25 scoring in the first few minutes of the second period and giving the visiting Saints a 1-0 lead. However, the game shifted later in the second period, as Clarkson notched three quick goals in less than three minutes to take a 3-1 lead into the third period.   

Unfortunately, some credit should be given to the Golden Knights’ student section, as they had a good community atmosphere in that they knew their chants well, and their student section knew almost all the player’s names. They had specific chants for when each player was doing well or scored a goal. They also had a lot of signs in their student section.   

Clarkson added one more goal in the third period, and the game ended with a 4-1 Golden Knights win. Their student section went home happy, while we ventured back to St. Lawrence with revenge on our minds.  

On Saturday night, I arrived at the game early to secure a seat in what was likely to be an electric St. Lawrence student section. Our fans, along with the Saints on the ice, didn’t disappoint. The Saints scored two goals in the last two minutes of the first period and jumped out to a 2-0 lead.   

While Clarkson did have better chants than us, I still believe our student section was superior overall. Our student section at the St. Lawrence home game was definitely bigger and louder than the Clarkson student section was, even though they have 500 more students on campus than SLU does. Also, the students at Appleton Arena were a lot more close-knit. For example, when we scored our two goals, I was hugging people who I have never seen before, showing how Saints Hockey can really bring the campus community together.   

With a 2-0 lead after the first period, the arena was buzzing with excitement. In the second period, although the Saints didn’t score another goal, their defense held strong and didn’t allow a goal, bringing the game into the third period still at a 2-0 score. Toward the start of the third period, about five minutes in, Clarkson scored to make it 2-1, and there was a lot of nervous energy in Appleton.  

For the last 15 minutes, the Saints held strong and didn’t allow a goal, with the crowd going wild to celebrate the victory as the final seconds ticked off the clock. This year’s edition of the Route 11 rivalry certainly didn’t disappoint, and here’s to hoping that next year will be just as fun.