Prd | Time | Team | Score | Type | Scored By | Assists |
1st | 13:25 | DAR | 1-0 | EV GW | Grant Opperman (2) | - |
1st | 19:08 | DAR | 2-0 | PP | Brett Patterson (3) | Brad Schierhorn/4, Nick Bligh/5 |
2nd | 11:03 | DAR | 3-0 | EV | Nick Bligh (6) | Ryan Bullock/4 |
Scoring | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final |
Merrimack | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Dartmouth | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
Shots on Goal | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | SOG |
Merrimack | 5 | 11 | 6 | 22 |
Dartmouth | 9 | 11 | 9 | 29 |
Team Stats and Records | PP | PIM | SHGF |
Merrimack (7-7-5) | 0/3 | 4/8 | 0 |
Dartmouth (5-7-1) | 1/4 | 3/6 | 0 |
Merrimack Goaltending | MIN | GA | 1 | 2 | 3 | Saves |
Drew Vogler (L, 1-3-0) | 57:57 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 9 | 26 |
Empty Net | 2:03 | 0 |
Dartmouth Goaltending | MIN | GA | 1 | 2 | 3 | Saves |
Charles Grant (W, 2-3-0) | 59:42 | 0 | 5 | 11 | 6 | 22 |
Empty Net | 0:18 | 0 |
HANOVER, N.H. - Host Dartmouth captured the 27th Annual Ledyard Classic, as the 20th-ranked Merrimack College men's ice hockey team suffered a 3-0 defeat against the host Big Green in the tournament's final game on Sunday night at Thompson Arena.
The Basics
Score: Dartmouth 3, Merrimack 0
Records: #20 Merrimack (7-7-5) | Dartmouth (5-7-1)
Location: Thompson Arena | Hanover, N.H.
How It Happened
After falling in the tournament's opening game yesterday against Union, and after the Dutchmen secured no worse than a second-place finish with an earlier victory against Robert Morris on Sunday, Merrimack took on the host Big Green looking to play spoiler for the hosts of the Ledyard Classic.
Play was back-and-forth over the course of the first, with Dartmouth generating a few more quality chances than Merrimack, but a turnover, an odd-man rush and a bit of puck luck led to the Big Green's first goal, as Grant Opperman scored on a wrist shot from the middle of the near dot that caromed off the pad of Merrimack goaltender Drew Vogler (Florissant, Mo.), out into the crease and off a Merrimack skater and in for the opening marker of the contest.
With less than a minute to go in the period, Dartmouth doubled the lead while on the power play, as Brett Patterson got his own rebound to go at 19:08 to give the Big Green a 2-0 lead after 20 minutes.
Merrimack had two power play chances in the second but was unable to convert on either; meanwhile, Dartmouth stretched it lead to three on a deflection goal midway through the period, as the Big Green skated into the third with a 3-0 edge. Neither side found the back of the net in the third, as Dartmouth came away as tournament champions with two wins on the weekend and a +7 goal differential.
How They Scored
DC #1 | P1 13:25 - Dartmouth enters the zone on a 3-on-2 rush, and Opperman scores from on a wrist shot from the near dot that deflects off Vogler's pads, off a Merrimack skater and into the net.
DC #2 | P1 19:08 - From behind the net, Patterson tries a quick wraparound shot on Vogler's trapper side, was initially stopped by jams in his own rebound.
DC #3 | P2 11:03 - Bligh tips in a shot from the point near the edge of the circle and a few feet away from the crease.
Inside The Numbers
- Sophomore Brett Seney (London, Ontario) was named to the Ledyard Classic All-Tournament Team after finishing with one goal over the course of the weekend
- Dartmouth's Charles Grant became the first goaltender since former Merrimack All-American Joe Cannata ('12) to post a shutout in a Ledyard Classic game after turning away all 22 shots he faced on Sunday night; Cannata blanked Holy Cross with an 18-save performance in a 3-0 Merrimack victory on Dec. 31, 2011
- Bligh led Dartmouth with two points (1g, 1a), and was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player
- Dartmouth finished with a 29-22 edge in shots on goal
- Dartmouth also was 1-for-4 on the power play, while Merrimack came up empty on its three man advantages
Up Next
Merrimack will conclude the non-conference portion of its schedule with two more games against the ECAC next weekend, as the Warriors head to Ithaca, New York, to take on No. 9 Cornell University in a two-game weekend series starting Friday, Jan. 8, at Lynah Rink.