The Warriors survived a series of chances from the Northeast in the opening minutes on Thursday night, then scored three straight goals on their way to a 4-1 victory over the Huskies.
After Northeastern recorded seven of the game’s first nine shots, the Warriors found themselves in the game. Caden Cranston scored on the power play, while Nathan King And Parker Lalonde goals added. Caelan Fitzpatrick rounded out the scoring with a third period count.
“That’s a big win for our group,” said Fitzpatrick, who scored his fifth goal of the season. “Everything is starting to look more like the playoffs this time of year.”
Fitzpatrick struck in the third period after tapping a puck past a Northeast defenseman and racing away alone Lawton Zacher. He also had a good look earlier in the match and shot over the crossbar.
“The room feels good with our response after last week,” LaLonde said. “We talked about it all week, that we had to come back strong.”
The Warriors were without Justin Gill (one match suspension) and Ty Daneaultwho was injured during training earlier this week. His absence could be long-lasting.
“We had a lot of challenges this week,” said the head coach Scott Borek. “Last week we had some tough results, a guy gets suspended and then we lose Ty for what could be this year, and he’s really been a glue guy for us. There was a lot to overcome. We talked a lot this week about overcoming that adversity, and I’m happy for our guys with the way we handled ourselves.”
The Warriors will host Northeastern in the final of the two-game set Friday night at Lawler Arena (7 p.m.).
Mark Hillier played in his 100th career NCAA game for the Warriors on Thursday. The benchmark is a milestone for any player, but it was especially notable for Hillier, who missed all of last season due to injury and returned for his fifth year of eligibility this season while wearing a “C” for Merrimack.
“Everyone knows how I feel about Mark,” Borek said. “We talk about [Daneault] As a glue man, Mark is the ultimate glue man. He’s had to fight through a lot in his time here, but I’m so happy for him that he’s coming back this season. He is a quiet leader, but the boys follow his example. I couldn’t be happier for him.”
Hillier wasn’t the only one to reach a triple-digit milestone. Borek won his 100th game as Merrimack head coach on Thursday, becoming the fifth coach in program history to reach the mark.
Borek joins a list that also appears Mark Dennehy (168), Ron Anderson (255), J. Thom Lawler (218), and Bruce Parker (100).
Of Borek’s 100 wins, 79 have come in the past five seasons.
“I wish there was more to come in our first three years here,” Borek joked. “I’m really proud of the work we’ve done here as a staff. It’s not just me. I didn’t even know this was the 100th until someone said it after the game. It’s special to do this with this team.”
Borek is on pace to produce one of the best five-year windows in program history in the Hockey East/Division I era. He has averaged 15.8 wins over the past five seasons (79 total, including this year), but there are at least 12 games left and more opportunities to add to that tally.
Dennehy’s current best five-year stretch is from 2008 to 2012, when he averaged 16.6 wins (83 total).
Lalonde achieved his twentieth point of the season. He becomes the first Merrimack freshman to reach the 20-point mark since Daneault in 2023 (21 points).
Lalonde is averaging 0.91 points per game, while Gill is averaging 0.95. If either (or both) can keep up that pace, this would be the best season by a Merrimack freshman since then Stephane Da Costa in 2009-10, when he recorded 45 points in 34 games (1.32 points per game).
Northeastern Tyler Fukakusa dominated the face-off, going 13-3. Merrimack’s best performers on draws were Nolan Flamand (9-8) and Daniel Astapovich (7-5).
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