Links: Box Score
Postgame Comments:
Dennehy
LOWELL, Mass. – The Merrimack College men's ice hockey team dropped its final game of the regular season at UMass Lowell on Saturday night at the Tsongas Center, falling to the River Hawks by a 5-0 tally. The two sides will play at least two more times next weekend after Merrimack finished as the No. 10 seed, drawing seventh-seeded UMass Lowell in the process in the best-of-three Hockey East Tournament Opening Round series.
The Basics
Score: UMass Lowell 5,
Merrimack 0
Records: Merrimack (10-19-4, 7-15-2 HEA) | UMass Lowell (17-17-0, 11-13-0 HEA)
Location: Tsongas Center | Lowell, Mass.
Game Duration: 2:27
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. 17).
1. Boston College (18-6-0, 36 points)
2. Northeastern (15-6-3, 33 points)
3. Providence (13-7-4, 30 points)
4. Boston U. (12-8-4, 28 points)
5. Connecticut (11-12-1, 23 points)
6. Maine (10-11-3, 23 points)
7. UMass Lowell (11-13-0, 22 points)
8. Massachusetts (9-13-2, 20 points)
9. Vermont (6-12-6, 18 points)
10. Merrimack (7-15-2, 16 points)
11. New Hampshire (5-14-5, 15 points)
Rapid Recap
- Neither side would find the back of the net in a scoreless first, one that saw each side have a power play chance apiece. Lowell outshot Merrimack in the frame by an 11-4 margin.
- The hosts took control with three goals in a span of 5:17 early in the second frame, with one coming on the power play, which eventually prompted a relief appearance in net from freshman Logan Halladay, which was just his second appearance of the season. He turned away all six shots he saw over the final 13:29 of the frame, as Merrimack entered the second intermission trailing by three.
- Merrimack had some carry-over power play time from the end of the second to start the third but could not capitalize and then had to fend off two more Lowell power plays. The hosts converted on one of them and also scored at even strength to pad their lead, while Christoffer Hernberg posted his fifth shutout of the season in stopping all 21 shots he faced on the other end.
Scoring Summaries
- Goal #1 (UML, 1-0): Tommy Panico started Lowell's scoring spurt with his eighth goal of the year at 1:14 of the second. John Edwardh picked up the puck in the left circle, sent it to the left point for Chris Forney, who went to the right point where Panico fired a one-timer through traffic that found the back of the net.
- Goal #2 (UML, 0-2): Ryan Dmowski's second goal of the weekend and 10th of the year doubled the River Hawks' lead at 5:15 of the second. He scored off a faceoff win on a one-timer that ricocheted off the pads and in.
- Goal #3 (UML, 0-3): Connor Sodergren scored UMass Lowell's third goal in the span of just over five minutes at the 6:31 mark of the second. His fourth of the year came off a turnover at the far corner, as his backhander snuck in over the shoulder.
- Goal #4 (UML, 0-4): Chris Forney increased UMass Lowell's lead to four at 6:57 of the third. He fired a slapper from the right wing circle that hit off the stick of a Merrimack skater and went in.
- Goal #5 (UML, 0-5): Dmowski's second of the game also came on the power play to make it a 5-0 UML lead at 10:49 of the third. He fired a one-timer from the slot off a feed from the right goal line extended by Connor Wilson.
Notes and Notables
- Merrimack saw its all-time record against the River Hawks slip to 40-75-11, including 17-40-5 in Lowell. The Warriors are now winless in their last eight road games against UMass Lowell (0-6-2); their last win at the Tsongas Center since Nov. 19, 2010.
- Merrimack felt to 5-14-0 when surrendering the first goal and remained winless (0-17-2) when being held to fewer than three goals. Merrimack also suffered its second shutout loss of the season.
- Goaltenders: Craig Pantano (15 saves, 9-12-2) & Logan Halladay (10 saves) // Christoffer Hernberg (21saves, 14-8-0)
- Power Plays: Merrimack (0-3) | UMass Lowell (2-6)
- Shots on Goal (MC-UML): 4-11 // 9-13 // 8-6 – 21-30
Merrimack Lineup
Forwards
Hennig | Seney | Tibbet
Petti | L. Larsson | Tavernier
Coomes | A. Larsson | Irvine
Babcock | Drevitch | McBride
Defense
Kolquist | Cook
Biega | Carle
Kovacevic | Lööf
Goaltenders
Pantano | Vogler | Halladay
Up Next
Merrimack, which finished the regular season seeded 10
th in the league standings, will take on seventh-seeded UMass Lowell in the 2018 Hockey East Tournament Opening Round starting next Friday at the Tsongas Center. Puck drop is set for 7:15 p.m. in Game 1, 7 p.m. for Game 2 and – should it be necessary – 4 p.m. for Game 3.
