Paul Smith’s Collin Trapiss shoots on net before scoring during a home game against UAlbany on Nov. 8. (Provided photo — PSC/Marco Napoleone)

BUFFALO — The Paul Smith’s College men’s hockey team continued its hot start to the season.

This past weekend, the Bobcats narrowly took down the tenacious Buffalo State Bengals team, escaping the Buffalo State Hockey Arena, with a 5-4 victory. The team then followed that game with a 3-1 victory over SUNY Geneseo on Saturday and a 5-2 win over the Niagara University Purple Eagles on Sunday.

During the weekend’s opening contest — on Nov. 14 — against Buffalo State, Paul Smith’s got on the board first as Liam Berger of Geneseo buried a well-placed shot from the point on the power play, with Collin Trapiss of Macedon and Dylan Sauve of Wappingers Falls assisting.

With 1:06 left in the opening period, the Bengals’ Bailey Bartholomew, a Saranac Lake native, evened the contest, but then, just 20 seconds later, Bobcats’ captain Colin Palmer of Clifton Park deposited a 2-on-1 into the back of the net on passes from Attila Quesnel of Montreal, Quebec and Omar Uqdah of North Adams, Massachusetts.

PSC’s AJ Dennett of Franklin, Vermont, made it 3-1 before the Bengals came roaring back to tie it at 3-3. Nick Ogden of Queensbury regained the lead for the Bobcats before Palmer netted his second of the evening on the power play, with Quesnel and Ogden assisting.

Buffalo State pushed the score to 5-4, but good goaltending from PSC’s Ethan Stefaniak of Franklin, Vermont, slammed the door shut as the visitors squeaked out the win. Tony Pinski of Perrysburg, Ohio, had an assist and was named Player of the Game for his dogged work at both ends of the ice.

“This past weekend we had to work hard and continuously improve as a team,” Pinski said. “Every shift we had to earn every play, every shot and every save to secure three wins.”

On Saturday against the SUNY Geneseo Knights, the Bobcats fell behind early, before Quesnel buried a backhand deke on a setup from linemates Palmer and Caden Doran of West Newton, Pennsylvania.

Doran then scored on another odd-man rush with Quesnel and Palmer assisting to make it 2-1 Bobcats. A gritty third period resulted in Ogden burying his third goal of the season as Palmer picked up his third assist of the game. Kevin Zamazal of Opava, Czech Republic, had 34 saves as he continues to build back his starter position after suffering a midseason injury.

“It felt good to get back on the ice and get a win for the boys,” Zamazal said. The Czech native picked up his third win of the season and 31st overall in his career. His .923 save percentage is the third-best in the nation — with a minimum of four games played.

On Sunday, Palmer got the Bobcats on the board early on a setup from Quesnel and Doran, to lead Niagara 1-0.

The Purple Eagles then got one back at the end of the period, but a dominant middle frame from PSC resulted in a 3-1 lead. The Bobcats’ Trapiss connected on a play out of the corner from Sean Wright of Wappingers Falls and Julien Shafer of Queensbury at the 2:54 mark, pushing the score to 2-1.

Then, less than a minute later, Larry Parece of Woburn, Massachusetts, scored following solid plays by Pinksi and Ryen Janus.

“That goal doesn’t happen without Tony and Janny working at both ends of the ice,” Parece said. “They were battling together, and I was in the right place at the right time and just finished off a great play from them.

The Boston-area native has worked hard to return to form after suffering a lower-body injury in the first week on the ice.

“Coming back from my ankle took a lot of work, but everyone in the locker room helped me stay focused and positive about coming back,” he said. “It feels good to be out there again helping the team.”

The Bobcats netted two more early in the third before the Purple Eagles scored late to make it 5-2. Palmer buried his second of the night with Quesnel and Doran assisting once again at 13:08. Just 24 seconds later, Oak Haslett of Grimsby, Ontario, sent the Purple Eagles packing on a net-front goal that he slammed into the back of the net.

“It felt great to start and score in front of a passionate crowd,” Haslett said, who was essentially playing a home game, having grown up just across the Canadian border on the other side of Niagara Falls. His parents were in attendance and went wild when the first-year player scored.

James Kircaldie of Londonderry, New Hampshire, earned his fifth win of the season, recording 20 saves.

At 14-1, PSC currently sits atop the Upstate New York Collegiate Hockey League East Division standings. They have the most points of any UNYCHL team, have the most wins in the country, and they have the best goal differential in the nation at +46.

Up next, the Bobcats compete in the Keystone Classic in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, this coming weekend. On Friday, they took on York College (Pennsylvania) before facing SUNY Cortland at 3:10 p.m. on Saturday. The Red Dragons are undefeated at 7-0 and sit atop the UNYCHL Central Division. The Bobcats finish their road trip on Sunday at 11 a.m. against Penn State Harrisburg, the tournament hosts.