BOSTON — Perched on the TD Garden home bench with the Billerica faithful on its feet behind him, Jim Egan watched Nolan Dawson and Danny Viscione — the Indians’ two best players — race down the ice in double overtime in Sunday’s Div. 2 state championship game against Canton.

He had a gut feeling the sequence would result in victory.

And when he saw Dawson’s shot sail into the netting with 4:38 to play, he hoisted his arms above his head to signal the pulsating 3-2 victory.

Already anxiously standing, the Billerica fans lining the lower bowl on Causeway Street erupted. Half of the Indians darted to Dawson to celebrate his heroics, while the other half bolted for the Billerica student section to greet netminder Steve MacIntosh.

They were the sights and sounds of a proud hockey town claiming a state title for the first time since 1977.

On the winning play, Viscione carried the puck down left wing. Just after cross the blue line, he floated a pass to his right which Dawson skated into. Calmly skating with the puck, Dawson sent a wrist shot into the right corner of the net for the winner.

“I said, ‘There go our two best players on a two-on-one. So, this could be it right here.’ And it was,” Egan said after the thrilling 3-2 victory.

Dawson, who also assisted on Viscione’s first of two tallies, said his goal and the state title haven’t sunk in yet.

“It’s just insane,” Dawson said. “It’s really insane. I loved it — loved every second of it.”

It’s been a long time coming for a Billerica hockey community without a state championship since a three-year run from 1975-77. But the top-seeded Indians (23-1-1) had all the ingredients necessary to make history.

MacIntosh made 38 saves ahead of the second overtime period, while Viscione’s game-tying goal with 2:28 left in the third was his 40th goal of the winter. Billerica overcame two defects on Sunday to down No. 3 Canton (23-2-1) — characteristic for an Indians team which pulled out an overtime thriller against Tewksbury in a state semifinal at the Tsongas Center in Lowell.

The formula was there. But it came down to putting it together under the bright lights at TD Garden, a responsibility Viscione embraced.

“I knew our best players had to be our best players,” he said. “I knew I had to step up for our team and for our town.”

Viscione wreaked havoc on the ice all game, ignited by his first tying goal in the second period after Canton nursed a 1-0 lead into the middle frame thanks to a power-play goal by Travis Thomas with 2:38 left in the first period.

He uncorked a blast from the top of the right circle to knot the game at one, blasting a one-timer from Dawson that deflected off the top bar and in.

“We just know where each other are every single time,” Viscione said. “We don’t even have to talk — we just know where we are.”

Canton nearly retook its lead to start the third, but MacIntosh flashed the leather as Teddy Shuman attempted a backhander on a Billerica power play.

Egan said MacIntosh “just did the same exact thing” he did in his 27-save outing against Tewksbury.

“He gave us more life,” Egan said. “He gave us a chance to win this game.”

Ryan Elrick provided Canton with a 2-1 lead with 2:56 left in the third, but Viscione responded 28 seconds later to knot the game at two.

Canton outshot Billerica, 7-5, in the four-on-four overtime, but the Indians had enough left in the tank to pot the game-winner in the three-on-three double overtime.

“We had so much support throughout the whole week getting ready for this game, and we saw it in the crowd,” Viscione said. “They were loud, and we can’t thank them enough. We can’t thank this town enough, and we’re so happy to get it done for them.”