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Dennehy Postgame Comments
DURHAM, N.H. – The Merrimack College men's ice hockey team withheld a late charge by host and No. 13/15 New Hampshire to earn its first win at the Whittemore Center since 2013, as the Warriors upended the Wildcats, 4-3, Sunday afternoon in Hockey East action. Merrimack closes the first half against Northeastern at Lawler Rink next Saturday at 4 p.m.
The Basics
Score: Merrimack 4, New Hampshire 3
Records: Merrimack (4-9-3, 2-6-1 HEA) | #13/15 New Hampshire (9-7-1, 4-5-1 HEA)
Location: Whittemore Center | Durham, N.H.
Game Duration: 2:12
Rapid Recap
- New Hampshire opened the scoring just 34 seconds into the game, but Merrimack responded with the next three goals to build a 3-1 lead. Derek Petti, Sami Tavernier and Alfred Larsson all lit the lamp for the visitors, while UNH outshot Merrimack 14-9 in the period.
- Merrimack made it a three-goal lead thanks to Tyler Irvine, which stood as the only goal of a second period that the Warriors controlled. Merrimack outshot the hosts by a 11-6 margin in the frame and barely missed on a number of other chances, but would take that 4-1 lead into the locker room after 40 minutes.
- The Wildcats scored twice in just over 90 seconds to bring the home crowd to life early in the third, but that was ultimately the closest they got despite two more power plays. Merrimack would hold on for its first win at the Whittemore Center since February of 2013.
Scoring Summaries
- Goal #1 (UNH, 0-1): Michael McNicholas put the hosts in front just 34 seconds into the game on a bit of a broken play. Jason Salvaggio threw the puck on net from the center point; McNicholas was stationed in front of the crease, allowing him to gain possession off the rebound before tucking it past an extended Craig Pantano (Bridgewater, Mass.) on the forehand.
- Goal #2 (MC, 1-1): Junior Derek Petti (Tewksbury, Mass.) continued his dominance against UNH with his sixth career goal against the Wildcats in nine games, as his second tally of the year drew the Warriors even at 6:57 of the first. Classmate Ludvig Larsson (Malmo, Sweden) started the play from the defensive zone by chipping the puck up to sophomore Cole McBride (Kindersley, Saskatchewan); the latter gained the zone and shoveled the puck off to Petti at the left circle, who walked in alone on UNH netminder Daniel Tirone, waited him out and used a backhand deke to score blocker side.
- Goal #3 (MC, 2-1): Sophomore Sami Tavernier (Morzine, France) gave the Warriors their first lead of the game less than two minutes later, potting his sixth of the year at 8:52 of the first. Tavernier started and ended the play by forcing a turnover in the UNH zone; he played the puck back to rookie defenseman Evan Bell (Livonia, Mich.), who thread a perfect pass to Tavernier, who sped into the offensive zone and used some flashy stick work to sneak a backhander through Tirone's five-hole.
- Goal #3 (MC, 3-1): Senior Alfred Larsson (Malmo, Sweden) pushed the Merrimack lead to two at 16:36 of the first thanks to a bit of a broken play. After Bell carried the puck into the zone from the left side, circled all the way to the right half wall and threw the puck behind the net, freshman Laine McKay (Thunder Bay, Ontario) got a stick on the it and pushed it toward the slot. Sophomore Logan Coomes (Northville, Mich.) got just enough of the puck to push it further on to Larsson, who ripped home a wrister from the slot to push the lead to 3-1.
- Goal #4 (MC, 4-1): Sophomore Tyler Irvine (Livonia, Mich.) just got enough of a rebound to net his third of the year and add to the Warrior lead at 6:43 of the second period. Senior Brett Seney (London, Ontario) took a pass end entered the zone on the right wing before centering the puck for Bell, who was denied by Tirone on the one-timer chance, but Irvine was there to sneak in the rebound at the glove side post.
- Goal #5 (UNH, 4-2): Marcus Vela buried a behind-the-net feed to get the Wildcats within two at the 2:17 mark of the third. Ara Nazarian carried the puck down low and sent a well-timed pass to Vela, who tipped it by Pantano to make it a 4-2 game.
- Goal #6 (UNH, 4-3, PP): The Wildcats made it a one-goal affair after a power play strike from Patrick Grasso at 3:50 of the third. Max Gildon and McNicholas cycled the puck in the offensive zone before the latter set up Grasso at the far dot, and his one-timer found the twine to cut the deficit to one.
Notes and Notables
- Sunday's win marked the second straight for the Warriors, who had not won consecutive games all year coming into the weekend.
- Alfred Larsson netted his first goal of the season and first in nearly 14 months; the last time he found the back of the net was on Oct. 22, 2016, at home against Colgate.
- Bell was Merrimack's lone multi-point performer on Sunday, finishing with two assists, which were both of his first collegiate points.
- New Hampshire would outshoot Merrimack by a 28-23 margin overall despite the Warriors holding an 11-6 edge in shots on goal in the second.
- Pantano finished with 25 saves to improve to 4-4-1 on the season, while Tirone had seven stops before giving way to Mike Robinson, who made 12 saves over the last 32:17 of regulation.
- Merrimack was 0-for-4 on the power play while the penalty kill went 5-for-6.
- Merrimack improved to 24-74-11 all-time against UNH and won for the first time at the Whittemore Center since Feb. 2, 2013, snapping an 0-3-1 stretch.
- Merrimack posted its sixth three-plus-goal game on the year and remained undefeated (4-0-2) when surpassing that three-goal threshold.
Merrimack Lineup
Hennig | Seney | Irvine
Petti | L. Larsson | McBride
Babcock | Kramer | Tavernier
Coomes | A. Larsson | McKay
Kolquist | Cook
Biega | Carle
Dockery | Kovacevic
Pantano
Vogler
Halladay
Up Next
Merrimack concludes the first half of the season at home against Northeastern next Saturday afternoon, with puck drop at Lawler Rink set for 4 p.m.
