Hockey Remains Perfect at Home with 5-3 Win over #12 Boston College
NORTH ANDOVER, MA. - The Merrimack hockey team, who earned
votes in the USCHO National poll for the first time since 2007,
improved to 5-0 at home with a decisive 5-3 victory over #12 Boston
College Sunday afternoon in front of 2,660 fans at Lawler Arena.
With the win, Merrimack improves to 5-3 overall, 2-1 in Hockey
East, while the Eagles drop to 2-2 overall, 1-2 in Hockey East.
Merrimack will be idle next weekend before taking on Boston
University in a home-and-home series beginning Friday, November 13
at Lawler Arena. Boston College will visit New Hampshire on Friday
for a 7 p.m. faceoff.
The win is the Warriors' first in 20 games (0-16-4) against the
Eagles, dating back to February 15, 2003.
The Eagles jumped on the board first as Ben Smith notched his
third of the year on the power play at 4:39 of the first. But just
as they did Friday night, the Warriors responded immediately, as
John Jamieson (Billerica, MA) put home a rebound
off an Elliott Sheen (Lethbridge, AB) shot for his
second of the season 45 seconds later.
Merrimack pushed its lead to two goals with tallies 1:31 apart
early in the second with goals from the Hockey East freshman
scoring leader Stephane Da Costa (Paris, France)
and the Hockey East goals leader Chris Barton (Calgary,
AB).
The line of Da Costa, Brandon Brodhag (Brooklyn Park,
MN) and Jeff Velleca (Waterbury, CT)
cycled the puck beautifully around Eagle goaltender John Muse, with
Da Costa finishing the play off with his sixth of the year on a
pretty feed across the crease from Brodhag at 4:08 of the second.
Barton picked up his seventh of the season, taking feeds from
J.C. Robitaille (Des Ruisseaux, QE) and
Pat Bowen (Marshfield, MA) and wristed it past
Muse to give the hosts the 3-1 advantage 91 seconds later.
The Warriors killed off two straight minor penalties midway
through the second and cashed in on a power play chance of their
own after Joe Whitney was given a major and game misconduct for
checking from behind. Again, it was Brodhag, who tallied his second
goal and fourth point of the weekend, as he redirected a
Simon Demers (St. Etienne de Lauzon, QC) blast
past Muse at 17:54 of the second.
Velleca made it a three-goal advantage 22 seconds into the third
with the teams skating four aside, as the sophomore took a pretty
feed from Da Costa and buried it past Muse for his second in as
many games.
"We just feel like we've got more depth than we've ever had,"
said head coach Mark Dennehy. "If you ask me, we've got three #1
lines."
The Eagles crept back in the game as Brian Gibbons and Jimmy
Hayes added third-period strikes, but Andrew Braithwaite
(Kingston, ON) withstood a late third-period onslaught as
the senior netminder stopped 13 shots in the final frame for his
third straight victory in goal.
"It's a balancing act with the goalies, but they respect each
other a great deal and push each other every day," said Dennehy.
"They've become a great 1-2 punch for us so far this year."
Braithwaite recorded 29 saves in all, while Muse stopped 23 in
the loss. Merrimack's power play scored for the sixth straight
game, netting one goal in four tallies and killed off six of eight
short-handed situations.
Gibbons led the Eagles, tallying a goal and two assists, as the
visitors outshot Merrimack 32-28.
Barton, Brodhag, Da Costa and Velleca all recorded a goal and an
assist in the victory.
