North Andover Mass.- The Merrimack Men's Ice Hockey team exploded for three goals in the first 12 minutes and scored in every period as they cruised to their first Hockey East win Tuesday night at J.Thom Lawler Rink.
The Basics
Score: UNH: 1 RV/RV Merrimack 6
Records: Merrimack (2-1-0, 1-0-0 HEA) | UNH (2-2-0, 0-2-0 HEA)
Attendance: 2814
How it happened:
The Warriors got on the board early, with New Hampshire holding possession in the Merrimack zone, Matt Copponi blocked the initial shot attempt and found himself on a break away where he scored from close in to get the contest's opening goal unassisted at 7:33.
The Warriors would get their second just over three minutes later, with a forced turnover, and an odd man rush as Alex Jefferies took the give and go pass and went five hole from just inside the hash marks for the Warriors second and his first of the season.
But Merrimack still wasn't done yet in the first period, with the Warriors pushing for more, Mac Welsher's centering pass was deflected by Tristan Crozier, and the rout was on with two goals in a minute and a half and the 3-0 advantage.
In the second. Merrimack wasted no time continuing their domination over the Wildcats, just over three minutes in, Merrimack got their fourth of the game when Jefferies scored on a rebound from a Matt Copponi shot, to make the score 4-0.
The goals just seemed to keep on coming for the Warriors when Will Calverley scored goal number five, making the crowd of 2,824 get up to their feet once again. The goal was his first as a Warrior and came just 66 seconds after the Jefferies goal.
This goal also forced New Hampshire to make a goaltending change.
New Hampshire got their consolation goal at 4:23 of the third, breaking Hugo Ollas' bid for the shutout.
Ben Brar put the capper on this one at 9:14 of the third, scoring on a point shot rebound to finish the games scoring.
Notes & Numbers
- 12 Warriors recorded points in the victory.
- Christian Felton picked up an assist on the final goal, and led the team in blocks with six.
- Ben Brar and Alex Jefferies tied for the lead and shots with five, and combined for three goals on the night (Jefferies with two, Brar with one)
- Matt Copponi had a goal and two assists and won six draws at the dot.
- Merrimack's top line combined for six points on the night.
- Hugo Ollas made 30 saves to capture his first win of the season.
- The Warriors have also scored six goals in their last two home appearances, in their last home game last season, in the first round vs Maine, they were victorious 6-2 in that game.
Stats:
Power Plays: MC 0-2 | UNH 0-2
Shots on Goal: MC 7, UNH 6| MC 15, UNH 11 | MC 9, UNH 14| MC 31, UNH 31
Faceoffs: 24 MC | 31 UNH Blocks: 23 MC | 8 UNH
UP NEXT:
The Warriors will have a quick turnaround as the will face the Colgate Raiders in non conference action on Friday October 21st and 22nd, with both games taking place at Lawler Rink. Puck drop for both of those games is a 7 p.m. and both games can be seen on ESPN plus.
