NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – The Merrimack College men's ice hockey team closes out the regular season with an important home-and-home series against rival UMass Lowell. The series begins Friday at Lawler Rink and concludes Saturday at the Tsongas Center. Friday's game will be broadcast live on NESN and NESN National.
Hockey East Playoff Picture
All teams qualify; seeds 1-5 receive byes in the opening round; seeds 6-8 host opening round playoff series; winners advance to quarterfinals. Opening round and quarterfinals are best-of-three series.
Conference records/points shown below (as of Feb. 22).
1. Boston College (16-6-0, 32 points)
2. Providence (13-6-4, 30 points)
3. Northeastern (13-6-3, 29 points)
4. Boston U. (11-8-3, 25 points)
T5. Maine (10-8-3, 23 points)
T5. Connecticut (11-11-1, 23 points)
7. UMass Lowell (10-12-0, 20 points)
8. Vermont (6-11-5, 17 points)
9. Massachusetts (7-13-2, 16 points)
10. New Hampshire (5-12-5, 15 points)
11. Merrimack (6-14-2, 14 points)
PARKING AND SECURITY ADVISORY
Due to enhanced security regulations in place on campus, fans are encouraged to arrive to Lawler Rink
EARLY on game nights. The Lawler Rink security staff reserves the right to check
ALL bags and ask guests to leave inappropriate or prohibited items in their car or outside of the gates.
All guests are subject to search.
Please note the following parking restrictions for Saturday night's game:
- Lot F (MAC) is reserved for hockey season ticket holders
- Lot G (Deegan/Fenton Road) is reserved for reserved parking.
Click here to view campus map.
WEEKEND PROMOTIONS
- SENIOR NIGHT: Join us as we honor the seven graduating Warriors from the Class of 2017-18 and recognize their accomplishments from their careers! The special pregame ceremony will begin at approximately 7 p.m., just prior to puck drop.
- FAN APPRECIATION NIGHT: The BEST fans in Hockey East call Lawler Rink their home venue…and now it's time to pay it back to you! Tickets to Friday's game are just $15! Don't wait! This deal ends on Friday at 12 p.m.
- SEASON TICKET, LUXURY SUITE & SIGNED JERSEY DRAWING: All fans in attendance on Friday will automatically have their tickets entered into a drawing for three fantastic prizes! Prizes include a luxury suite experience for one game of the 2018-19 season; one reserved season ticket package for the 2018-19 season; and a signed Merrimack jersey!
- FAMILY DISCOUNTS: Bring your family to the game and take in the many family-friendly amenities of Lawler Rink! Enjoy discounted pricing of $13.50/ticket (NOTE: minimum of four tickets must be purchased)! Each ticket includes a seat to the game, nachos, candy and drinks from the concession stand.
- DOMINO'S DISCOUNT: As a thank you for the fans, our good friends at Domino's are offering a FREE order of Bread Twists with the purchase of any large pizza at menu price. Following the game until midnight, simply stop by their Andover store with your ticket stub to redeem your FREE order of Bread Twists! Valid on Friday, February 23. Limit one per customer.
- TRADING CARD GIVEAWAY #5: Collect them all! The FINAL installment of the 2017-18 Warrior Hockey Trading Card Series hits Lawler Rink this Friday night. Get your pack while supplies last and try to collect every player card this season!
Inside the Series
- Meeting for the 124th and 125th this weekend, Merrimack and UMass Lowell have been battling since 1971 back in both sides' Division II days.
- UML leads the series, as Merrimack has gone 39-74-11 against the River Hawks.
- Merrimack's last win overall against UMass Lowell was on Jan. 30, 2015, at Lawler Rink (2-1), while the Warriors will be looking for their first win at the Tsongas Center since Nov. 19, 2010 (4-3). Merrimack is 0-3-2 in its last five games against the River Hawks overall and is also 0-5-2 in its last eight meetings in Lowell.
- Last year, the River Hawks skated to a pair of wins over Merrimack, topping the Warriors 4-1 at the Tsongas Center and 5-1 at Lawler Rink.
- Merrimack is 20-31-6 at home and 17-39-5 on the road against the River Hawks.
'Mack Facts
- Merrimack is just 2-7-0 in its last nine games after a 5-2-1 stretch and enters the weekend at 9-18-4 overall with a 6-14-2 mark in league play.
- Senior Brett Seney has moved into the team lead with 27 points on a team-high 11 goals and is tied with junior Ludvig Larsson in goal-scoring.
- Two other seniors have passed the 20-point barrier in Jace Hennig (23) and Jared Kolquist (21). Eight total Warriors are in double-digit scoring figures on the year.
- Kolquist is the highest-scoring defenseman on the team and has dished 17 assists.
- Seney ranks ninth in Hockey East in overall scoring and third in power play points (18); he also ranks fifth with seven power play goals.
- Kolquist, Hennig and sophomore Sami Tavernier rank sixth and ninth with 15 and 13 power play points, respectively.
- Goaltender Craig Pantano has seen the bulk of the time in net and started 20 of the team's 30 games; he is 8-10-2 with a 2.39 GAA and .916 SV% on the year.
- Goaltender Craig Pantano has seen the bulk of the time in net and started 19 of the last 23 games; he is 7-10-2 with a 2.41 GAA and .914 SV% on the year.
Lowell Lowdown
- UMass Lowell enters the weekend at 16-16-0 overall with a 10-12-0 league mark.
- It's been an up-and-down year for Lowell, which is riding a four-game losing streak coming into the weekend and is 3-7-0 in its last 10 games overall.
- Sophomore Ryan Lohin leads the River Hawks in scoring with 25 points (9g, 16a), while classmate Kenny Hausinger is also at 20 points with a team-high 10 goals.
- Senior Tommy Panico is the top-scoring defenseman on the team with 19 points.
- The River Hawk offense is quite balanced, with 13 players in double-digit scoring figures on the season. UMass Lowell has seen 20 different players score at least once.
- Junior Christoffer Hernberg has started the majority of the games for UMass Lowell in net and is 13-8-0 with a 2.18 goals against average and .918 save percentage.
- UMass Lowell ranks 29th nationally in scoring offense (2.88) and 29th in scoring defense (2.81); their power play ranks 42nd (16.9) while their PK ranks 42nd (79.2).
- Norm Bazin is in his seventh season at UML and was 151-68-21 at the start of the year.
Up Next
Merrimack Merrimack will be playing in the Opening Round of the Hockey East Tournament starting next weekend. The best-of-three series begins Friday at a to-be-determined site.
