In a game that No. 16 Boston University had controlled for a large majority, it was No. 4 Merrimack that added another win to its season total, rising to 8-0-1 and 6-0-1 in Hockey East.
Merrimack freshman Justin Mansfield got the Warriors off to a quick start with his first career goal at the 6:22 mark in the first period. However, it was BU that took control of the game from that point on.
Five minutes after the first goal, the Terriers’ Garrett Noonan netted his third goal of the season, BU’s only power-play conversion for the game. Five minutes later, junior forward Justin Courtnall netted his first goal of the season.
The score remained at 2-1 in favor of the Terriers until late into the third period.
While still on a power play, BU committed a penalty of its own which set up a strong opportunity for Warriors to pull even once it returned to full strength. With a little under two minutes to play, Merrimack called a timeout to set up their power play.
The stoppage worked into their favor. Seven seconds after they went to 4-on-4, the Warriors took possession of the puck and tied the score at two. Terrier goaltender Joe Cannata had been pulled to set up a six-man attack for BU, but the move that resulted in an empty net backfired and sent the game into overtime.
The extra period lasted only 12 seconds before Connor Toomey grabbed the winner. Following the 3-2 overtime loss, the Terriers fell to 3-4-1 and 2-3-1 in HEA.
Terriers shut out BC
If there was any aggravation following the loss to Merrimack, the Terriers took it out on Boston College as they won, 5-0. The Eagles (9-3-0, 7-2-0 HEA) junior netminder Parker Milner posted a .750 save percentage, facing 20 shots and letting five of them find the back of the net.
Corey Trivino scored the first goal just 54 seconds into the contest, netting his sixth tally of the season. Wade Megan also chipped in and scored his first goal of the game with 46 seconds remaining in the first period while the Terriers were on the power play to make the score, 2-0.
BU ran the score to 3-0 with a second power play goal, this time by Alex Chiasson, who scored on a two-man advantage. Almost six minutes later, the Terriers grabbed their fourth goal from sophomore Matt Nieto on his seventh strike of the season.
Megan added the final tally for BU on a shorthanded opportunity for his fourth goal of the year. Megan skated in unassisted and slotted one past Milner on the breakaway to cap off the scoring.
For BU, it was the first time since 1983 it had shut out BC. The Eagles converted on any of their eight power-plays, and led in the shots department, 21-20.
Cats stave off Wildcats
After leading 3-1 at one point, Vermont (1-5-1, 0-4-1) needed every second to salvage a 4-4 tie against New Hampshire last weekend.
The Wildcats opened the night’s scoring early into the contest when Grayson Downing fired a shot past senior netminder Rob Madore, earning his second goal of the season.
The Catamounts got onto the scoreboard later in the period with an effort from sophomore Matt White on the power play. With the period winding down, UVM took the lead after Drew MacKenzie batted a loose puck out of the air and into the net to make the score, 2-1.
Vermont opened an even larger gap when H.T. Lenz scored a shorthanded goal just three minutes into the second frame.
The Wildcats came storming back, however. Dalton Speelman got his third goal of the season on a power play and Damon Kipp netted the equalizer later in the period. Stevie Moses then scored on a breakaway to open the scoring in the third period and take a 4-3 lead.
But the Catamounts captured a draw at the end of the third when Lenz scored just five seconds after climbing onto the ice after a change. Madore had been pulled by UNH for an extra skater, but the move backfired for the Wildcats and allowed UVM to escape with a 4-4 tie.
Jeffrey Okerman can be reached at [email protected] and followed on Twitter @MDC_Okerman.
