The No. 17 University of Connecticut Huskies traveled north for a weekend series against No. 16 Merrimack College. The first matchup consisted of five lead changes between the two sides, going back and forth throughout the night.
Special teams carried the Huskies through the contest after winning a penalty in the first two minutes of the game. UConn capitalized on the opportunity when Joey Muldowney found Ethan Gardula for a one-timer, putting the Huskies on the board first. The lead stayed for about three minutes before the Warriors evened the score courtesy of Justin Gill netting one past UConn goaltender Kam Hendrickson.
The rest of the period consisted of constant back and forth between the two sides, but the score remained deadlocked, finishing the period 1-1.
Merrimack jumped out first in the second period after a goal by Nolan Finland gave the Warriors their first lead of the game. Within a minute, the score leveled out once more when Muldowney recorded his second goal of the game.
The power play continued to fuel the Huskies, drawing another penalty halfway through the period. This time, Jeremy Loranger slotted one past Warrior’s goaltender Linards Feldbergs, giving UConn the lead 3-2. In the final two minutes of the period, Merrimack responded on an odd-man rush after Mavrick Lachance found David Green, sending the teams into the final period knotted at 3 apiece.
In the third, the Huskies again took charge early, with Mike Murtagh finding the goal on a wraparound shot. The pressure played a crucial role in this matchup, pushing the Warriors’ defense back and capitalizing on mistakes. UConn’s defense couldn’t stop the attack as Ty Deneault evened the score once again after an assist from Alex Mercier.
With under five minutes to play, the Warriors notched the final goal after the Huskies failed to clear the zone and Green netted the eventual game-winner.
Hendrickson finished the game with 27 saves for UConn, allowing five goals. Meanwhile, Feldbergs earned the win with 19 saves, allowing four goals.
The Huskies responded in game two, rallying back after trailing five times in the contest.
Merrimack struck first only one minute into the game when Nick Pierre found the back of the net, putting the Warriors up early. UConn responded four minutes later thanks to Carter Sproule, who evened the score after beating junior goaltender Ryan Keyes. The power play proved pivotal for the Huskies yet again in this matchup, but a first-period power play was held off by Merrimack’s defense.
The Warriors followed this with their own power-play advantage, but the Huskies defended well and prevented the deficit. This would change as time ran out in the opening period when Mavrick Lachance slotted one home in the closing minute.
UConn was beaten early again in the second period when Pierre secured his second goal of the game, scoring in the opening minute of the second period. Again, the Huskies were forced to battle back, and a power play five minutes later gave them just that. Joey Muldowny was left alone and cashed a putback shot, cutting the lead to just one. Pierre then responded for Merrimack, completing his hat trick and extending the lead back to two for the Warriors.
Seven minutes later, William McIsaac found Colin Frank for the Huskies, finding the back of the net and bouncing back once again. Then the shorthanded game assisted UConn once more in the closing minute of the half when Ethan Whitcomb put in the equalizer on a five-on-three power play. Both teams went into the final period, even at four.
The battle continued hard into the third between the two ranked opponents. Within the opening seven minutes, Merrimack jumped to their fifth lead of the game after Caden Cranston beat UConn’s Veeti Louhivaara for the Warriors’ fifth goal of the game. The Huskies kept fighting back, keeping the pressure on Merrimack. The intensity paid off when junior Mike Murtagh connected with Anthony Allain-Samake, who sent a one-timer into the net, deadlocking the score for a third time.
Both teams failed to find the back of the net in overtime, forcing a decisive penalty shootout. UConn converted twice from Jeremy Loranger and Whitcomb. Louhivaara stopped three of four shots for the Huskies, securing the shootout win.
UConn ended the game with a shot advantage of 39 compared to Merrimack’s 33. Louhivaara saved 28 shots, while Keyes denied 34. The hard-fought series between the two opponents came down to the wire in both contests, allowing for quality Big East Hockey play.
The Huskies are back in action next week facing a familiar rival, No. 5 Providence College. That series takes place with a home-and-away matchup between the two sides.