Friday, November 18, 1994 at Matthews Arena, Boston, MA
HOCKEY EAST GAME
Merrimack Warriors (1-8-1, 1-4-1 1 HE 8th) 0 0 2 - 2
Northeastern Huskies (6-2-1, 3-1-1 1 HE t3rd) 1 1 2 - 4
FIRST PERIOD NU-MC
1. NU1, Dan McGillis 3 (Jordon Shields), 17:25. PPG 1-0
SECOND PERIOD
2. NU2, J.F. Aube 5 (Mike Collett, McGillis), 11:03. PPG 2-0
THIRD PERIOD
3. NU3, Jason Melong 5 (Dan Lupo), 6:17. SHG GWG 3-0
4. NU4, Shields 7 (Francois Bouchard, McGillis), 8:12. 5x3 4-0
5. MC1, Rob Beck 5 (Steve McKenna, Eric Weichselbaumer), 9:40. 5x3 4-1
6. MC2, Tom Johnson 2 (Martin Laroche, Claudio Peca), 13:16. PPG 4-2
SHOTS ON GOAL: Merrimack 13--9-13 = 35
Northeastern 14--8--8 = 30
SAVES: MC, Martin Legault (L, 1-7-1, 59:30, 30 sh-26 sv).
NU, Mike Veisor (W, 5-0-1, 60:00, 35 sh-33 sv).
POWER PLAYS: MC 2 for 6. NU 3 for 8.
PENALTIES: MC 8/16. NU 6/15.
REFEREES: Jeff Bunyon, Jim Doyle. LINESMAN: Chuck Wynters.
ATTENDANCE: 1,956 (capacity 6,000).
THREE STARS: 1. D Dan McGillis, NU (1-2--3).
2. G Mike Veisor, NU (W, 35 sh-33 sv).
3. LW Tom Johnson, Merrimack (1-0--1).
Northeastern built a 4-0 lead on the strength of four special teams goals,
three PPGs and one SHG, and held off visiting Merrimack for a 4-2 win.
Defenseman Dan McGillis contributed a goal and two assists, and
unbeaten goaltender Mike Veisor stopped 33 of 35 shots to key the win.
Playing without three of its better forwards, Merrimack still gave the
highly ranked Huskies all they could handle and outshot the hosts for
the game, 35-30. But the Warriors were devastated by a second period
injury to Mark Cornforth, as the senior captain and emotional leader
limped off the ice with an apparent leg injury and did not return.
Cornforth entered the game as the leading HE scorer among defensemen,
and although the extent of his injury is unknown, it had to be serious
to keep him off the ice the rest of the way in a close game. This left
the Warriors with no experienced playmaker from the defensive position
and would prove costly on NU's 3rd goal, a shorthanded game winner.
In addition, with six minutes left in the game, third line center Ziggy
Marszalek crashed into the boards and had to be helped off after being
down for several minutes. Marszalek, who had been shifting in and out
of the lineup, was finally getting a chance at normal ice time with the
other injuries and had a superb game until his injury, which also
appeared serious.
When it rains, it pours...this makes five serious injuries in the last
week, as forwards Mark Goble, Daryl Krauss, and Gaetan Poirier also
missed tonight's game. This is the last thing that Merrimack needs,
as the Warriors are 1-8-1 and have suffered their last seven losses by
two goals or less.
Penalty killing continued to be a thorn in Merrimack's side, as NU
scored 3 PPGs on 8 attempts. At even strength, the teams were 0-0.
Both goalies played well tonight, helping to keep the score 2-0 for NU
after two periods with both goals coming on the power play. McGillis
started things off late in the first when his shot from the point was
deflected by a Merrimack defender and wound up beating Martin Legault.
Halfway through the second, NU made it 2-0 when Legault made a glove
save off a shot from the point by McGillis, but the goalie could not
hold onto the puck and Jean-Francois Aube was able to easily deposit
the rebound for his 5th goal.
The third period saw both teams apply several minutes of pressure,
keeping the puck in the zone, but Veisor and Legault made big saves
and got a bit of luck too on shots that went just wide. The eventual
game winner for NU came on the shorthand as the injury to Cornforth
caused problems on the power play breakout. Eric Weichselbaumer and
freshman Chris Silvestro were paired on D, as Silvestro had started on
the fourth line but was pressed into service after Cornforth left the
game. NU's Jason Melong and Dan Lupo pressured the inexperienced Ds,
forcing them to turn over the puck, and Lupo quickly fed Melong in front
for a big goal that made it 3-0 at 6:17.
NU picked up its 4th goal on a 5x3 situation after a good call on
Claudio Peca and a not so good call on Tom Johnson. Johnson was called
for hitting after the whistle when he put his arms up to defend himself
with an NU player coming right at him; the NU SID called it "the worst
call I've seen this year." Jordon Shields then scored his 7th of the
year right off the draw to make it 4-0, and the game appeared over on
the strength of NU's special teams.
But it became interesting when the Huskies were called first for a
delayed slashing penalty on Francois Bouchard, and then a spearing
major on Mike Collett (which I did not see). Collett was given a
game DQ and will miss tomorrow night's game. This gave Merrimack a
5x3 advantage for 2 minutes, and the Warriors broke the shutout at
9:40 when Rob Beck tipped a shot by Steve McKenna past Veisor for
Beck's 5th of the year.
Bouchard came out of the box, and Merrimack proceeded to score on the
remainder of the major at 13:16 when Johnson took a long pass from Peca
on a line change and went in to beat Veisor on a breakaway, cutting
the lead to 4-2.
The Huskies successfully killed off a late penalty, with a little help
coming on a too many men call against Merrimack that baffled everyone,
including the teams, and evened things up. After Silvestro broke
up a shorthanded bid, knocking the puck away, the whistle was blown
and no one seemed to know why. The teams lined up for the faceoff
and then one of the referees skated over to the Merrimack bench, then
to the scorers' bench where he called the too many men penalty - odd
since no one from Merrimack had touched the puck until Silvestro poked
it away. This call is usually only made when the extra member of the
guilty team touches the puck while he is the sixth skater, but for some
reason, the call was made without Merrimack having an extra man
involved in the play. It didn't affect the outcome, but it was very
strange.
On paper, this game appeared to be a mismatch, but Merrimack has been
in every game except for one right to the end, and this was no
exception. Given the number of injuries the Warriors have suddenly
suffered recently, the play of their forwards was surprisingly good,
as head coach Ron Anderson went with only three lines much of the way
until the injuries to Cornforth and Marszalek forced him to shuffle
things up a bit. Much of the offense came from the inspired play
of the forwards, with Beck, Marszalek, Laroche, and Johnson all creating
interesting plays. But Veisor played well in net, and his defense
broke up a number of plays at the last second - along with Merrimack
just being unable to put the puck in the net when they had good chances.
NU is a very balanced and well rounded team, getting good play from
the goaltender, defense, and all four lines. Legault had to make
several outstanding stops to keep the game close, as players like
Shields, Aube, Petersen, and Campbell created good opportunities.
Still, it seemed that NU's offense was stifled a bit at times, yet
when they got going, it was easy to see why they are so highly regarded.
It will be interesting to see how the teams respond in the rematch
Saturday night at Merrimack. Merrimack has played well at home despite
being 0-2-1, with both losses coming by one goal. The injuries have
forced reliance on some of the quieter players who responded well in
that situation. But NU is a much better team on paper, and opponents
will have to work hard as Merrimack did tonight to contain them for
60 minutes.
The teams meet again Saturday night at Merrimack in the last Hockey
East game for both until December 2nd.
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Mike Machnik [log in to unmask]
Cabletron Systems, Inc. *HMM* 11/13/93
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