Northeastern men’s hockey (12-10, 7-7 HE) fell to the Merrimack College Warriors (11-12, 5-9 HE) 4-1 in the opening game of the weekend series Jan. 22.
The Huskies started off hot, shooting six shots within the first two minutes. However, the momentum shifted , in the second minute when freshman forward Matthew Maltais was sent to the penalty box for tripping.
Within 46 seconds of the power play, Merrimack scored its first goal, courtesy of sophomore forward Caden Cranston.
The teams were back and forth, matching each other shot for shot before the Warriors claimed theirits second goal of the night eight minutes in. Junior defenseman Cam Kungle played a backward pass to sophomore defenseman Nathan King at the blue line, who sniped the shot into the net.
This goal caused Northeastern to slow down, letting Merrimack take six shots in the next minute and a half. After a timeout, the Huskies started to get back into the game, taking shots and winning more faceoffs, but it was not enough.
Fifteen minutes into the first period, the Warriors scored their third goal. Sophomore forward Caelan Fitzpatrick curved behind Northeastern’s net and tried to push it in shortside, but the puck hit off junior goaltender Lawton Zacher’s pads for freshman forward Parker Lalonde to net the rebound.
A minute later, Northeastern earned its first power play of the night from freshman forward Nolan Flamand’s slashing penalty. The Huskies could not find a single shot during the two-minute advantage, while the Warriors had one.
Thirty-five seconds into the second period, freshman defenseman Dylan Compton was sent to the sin bin for slashing, putting Northeastern in defense mode. The Huskies killed the penalty, only allowing three shots and having one of their own.
The teams went shot for shot for the next 10 minutes before a tripping penalty on Merrimack’s freshman defenseman Filip Nordberg gave Northeastern a power play.
A minute into the power play, freshman forward Giacomo Martino scored the lone goal for the Huskies.
From inside the blue line, junior forward Dylan Hryckowian passed to sophomore forward Joe Connor, who was between the right faceoff circle and the crease. Connor passed between a Merrimack player and another Warrior, who was covering freshman forward Jacob Mathieu, to Martino, who shot it in the upper left corner. This was Martino’s eight goal of the season.
After Martino’s goal, Northeastern ramped up the pace, desperate to find another goal to cut Merrimack’s lead.
With a minute and a half remaining in the period, junior forward Andy Moore got called for roughing, giving the Warriors a power play. A minute into the advantage, Merrimack’s sophomore forward Trevor Hoskin was called for slashing, putting the teams in a 4-on-4.
The third period began with 30 seconds remaining on Northeastern’s power play, but it did not lead to any scoring. Still, the Huskies did not stop being aggressive, taking five shots in two minutes with no shots from Merrimack.
Nine minutes into the final period, Cranston was sent to the sin bin for hitting from behind, putting Northeastern on another advantage it failed to capitalize on.
Two minutes after the power play ended, the Warriors sealed the deal with Fitzpatrick scoring an unassisted goal to make the score 4-1.
This goal deflated the Huskies as Merrimack doubled Northeastern’s shots on goal, eight to four.
The game ended with Merrimack on top in faceoff wins, blocked shots, shots on goal and the score.
The Huskies will have an opportunity to avenge themselves tomorrow, Jan. 23 at 7 p.m.
