Marcus Antonelli & Pat Casey – Sports Contributors
Photo by Nate Tacey (@natetaceyphotography)
BOSTON, Ma — Merrimack (3-7-1 / 2-4-1 HEA) came into Agganis Arena to take on the #13 Boston University Terriers (6-5-1 / 3-2-1 HEA) in a Friday night Hockey East matchup. This lone game of the weekend for MC had some juice to it.
Not just because it was BU, but also, because of other reasons. The Warriors came off a bye week, looking to gain back momentum after a disappointing OT loss to Stonehill at Warrior Ice Arena. In a game before the Friendship Four Tournament in Northern Ireland, a win would put the team in good spirits for their rematch, which is a week from this game’s date.
THE RECAP
A minute into the opening frame, it was a hectic start to say the least. Terrier winger, Brandon Svoboda, came out flying, he found a short side opening over the shoulder of MC goaltender Max Lundgren and the score read 1-0 BU.
Shortly after that, Merrimack answered, and in a commanding fashion. A seeing eye shot from the point, courtesy of Merrimack Defenseman Ivan Zivlak, snuck through Terrier netminder Mathieu Caron and we were tied at 1, not even 3 minutes into the first.
Midway through the start, the Warriors thought they went up 2-1, but the play went to review and the puck was determined to have never crossed the line.
Soon after, it never mattered. A great forechecking shift by Merrimack’s top line led to opportunity. Sophomore forward Ty Daneault found Micheal Citara, in his first game back from injury, his shot went top shelf to gain the lead for the Warriors. The ‘Dog Pound’ student section’s barks had gone silent.
Heading into the second frame, BU started the same way they did the first; with Brandon Svoboda scoring a goal. It was back to a tied game, thanks to Svoboda’s efforts in the early stages.
As time went on, both teams would trade chances. A bit past the eight minute mark of the second, a strong offensive shift led to a turnover and benefited in Merrimack’s favor. Freshman Caden Cranston scored a nice little chip shot over the shoulder of Caron, the lead was 3-2 MC.
“I was really happy with our lines tonight,” said Coach Borek, “I thought they each did a good job, I really liked 25’s (Luke Weilandt) line tonight, they created a lot of good stuff until the very end–Ethan Bono’s line also did a really nice job so, I was really happy with the lines today.”
Merrimack, up to this point, had the game well under control against a struggling Terrier squad. They took no penalties in the first 40 minutes of hockey, had forechecked extremely well, and notably led the shot count 30-17. These three factors were a huge confidence booster.
BU was known for having bumpy starts. Notably, they had been turning pucks over in other games, it wasn’t just a unique coincidence tonight. Their mistakes through the course of this year have added up to 42 goals against, which gives them an even goal differential.
The final period began and it was evident that the Terriers were playing a little more desperate. Desperate times call for desperate measures. Cole Eiserman, the Islanders draft selection, was raised to first line duties and it paid dividends.
Five minutes into the third, the Freshman Eiserman fired a rocket off the rush and while Max Lundgren got a piece of it, he didn’t catch the whole puck. His shot would trickle through and the game was tied at three.
Later in the third, it was Cole Eiserman again. His second goal of the game came off a pass behind the net that found him in the slot. Eiserman, known for his shot, rifled this puck in and gave BU its lead back. The score read 4-3 and momentum had shifted.
“We understand we’re playing one of the most talented rosters in the country, and you just can’t give them that much free ice,” Coach Borek told, “We just gave them free ice in the third period, and that obviously let the game get away from us. But you know, we appreciate how talented they are. Just wish we played a little bit smarter in the third.”
The game had gone in a complete 180 for Merrimack. A power play was given to the Warriors but the events that followed, did not go how you’d expect. Matt Copponi, the former Merrimack man, gave his new Terrier teammates a big cushion with a short handed goal, then he inflated the lead to 6-3 off another 2 on 1 opportunity.
“We made the game really easy (for BU)— we can be a really good team, but we’re not really good individuals.” said Borek on his team, “We have a lot of talent on our team, that work really hard, but when you start playing outside of our game, we’re in trouble, especially against a team like BU. They were struggling. They were frustrated. We made it an easy third. They weren’t frustrated by the end of the game.”
A four goal final period for the Terriers ripped the game out of Merrimack’s hands. The Warriors would drive up I-93, disappointed again. The final score, 6-3, BU won.
The next time they’ll head into Boston, however, will be for a flight across the Atlantic. The Warriors have a chance at some payback, set to face this same BU team, a week later, for the Friendship Four Tournament in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
Aside from the obvious game being played, Scott Borek sees the trip as a chance for deeper goals. “The hockey is a great thing, obviously, three great teams we gotta go over there with, but that piece of it (learning about the history), I think we can’t lose that, and it’s really important that our guys appreciate that,” Borek elaborated, “So I’m looking forward to that opportunity to build our team and get them to understand what really matters.”
