Men's Ice Hockey Blanked at #9/10 BU, 4-0
Links: Box Score | Dennehy Postgame Comments
BOSTON – The Merrimack College men's ice hockey team was forced to settle for a season split against Boston University, as the No. 9/10-ranked Terriers won the home leg of the series on Friday by handing the Warriors a 4-0 shutout setback at Agganis Arena.
The Basics
Score: Boston U. 4, Merrimack 0
Records: Merrimack (7-14-5, 2-8-5 HEA) | #9/10 Boston U. (14-7-4, 8-4-3 HEA)
Location: Agganis Arena | Boston, Mass.
How It Happened
Hoping to end its nine-game losing streak coming into the night, Merrimack made the trek to Boston on Friday looking to take the season series against BU for the second time in three seasons.
Merrimack enjoyed an early power play chance just 22 seconds into the game, but came up empty, allowing the hosts to grab the lead at the 7:06 mark of the opening stanza. BU's Robbie Baillargeon netted his fifth of the season off a tic-tac-toe sequence that ended with a Baillargeon one-timer from the near dot to give the Terriers a 1-0 lead that stood through the remainder of the first.
Penalties continued to rack up for both sides, but it was the Warriors who found themselves with six man advantages through 40 minutes, with three coming in each period.
The second saw the Warriors put 12 shots on BU netminder Sean Maguire and three more power play opportunities, but the visitors would fail to find the back of the net each time.
In the later portions of Merrimack's fifth man advantage of the night, BU's Danny O'Regan stole the puck in the neutral zone and scored on a shorthanded breakaway at 15:52 of the second to double the Terriers' lead, as the hosts carried a 2-0 lead into the final frame.
The Terriers tripled their edge on a tough-luck bounce midway through the third. Matt Lane fired one on net from the middle of the far circle that sophomore Collin Delia (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.) got most of, but the puck trickled through, ricocheted off a body and over the goal line to make it a 3-0 BU advantage.
BU would add one more on an empty net goal from Ahti Oksanen and Maguire would hang on to preserve the shutout, as Merrimack fell to 2-19-2 all-time at Agganis Arena.
How They Scored
BU #1 | P1 7:06 – Baillargeon one-timer from the center of the near circle over Delia's blocker and in.
BU #2 (SH) | P2 15:52 – O'Regan picks off the puck in the neutral zone, skates through the defense before beating Delia over the glove for a shorthanded breakaway tally.
BU #3 | P3 11:57 – Lane holds and fires from the middle of the far circle; Delia gets a piece of it, but it trickles through him and the crease before ricocheting off a Merrimack skater and across the goal line.
BU #4 EN) | P3 18:42 – Oksanen one-timer from the bottom of the far circle.
Notes and Numbers
- Merrimack suffered its 10th straight loss, which ties the fourth-longest losing streak in program history; the last 10-game skid was back in the 2004-05 season
- The Warriors were also shut out for the fifth time this season, and third on the road; Cornell (Jan. 8) and Dartmouth (Jan. 3) also handed Merrimack consecutive 3-0 shutouts earlier this month, while Union blanked the Warriors, 4-0, at Lawler Rink back on Nov. 28
- After tonight's result, Merrimack has been held off the board in its last two trips to Agganis Arena; last year, in Game 2 of the Hockey East Quarterfinal series, the Terriers blanked the Warriors, 5-0, to sweep the series
- Lane finished with three points (1g, 2a) to lead all skaters, while BU defenseman Brien Diffley added two assists for the home side
- Goaltenders: L – Collin Delia (26 saves, 6-11-5) // ND – Sean Maguire (27 saves) // W – Connor LaCouvee (7-3-3)
- Power Plays: Merrimack (0-6) | BU (0-4)
- SOG (MC-BU): 6-10 // 12-8 // 10-12 // 28-30
Up Next
Merrimack will enjoy an off day Saturday before concluding the non-conference portion of its schedule at home on Sunday (Jan. 31), when it takes on the newest Division I college hockey program in Arizona State. Puck drop is set for 4 p.m.
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