NORTH ANDOVER – Merrimack snapped a four-game losing streak Friday night with a 4-1 win over Yale at Lawler Arena, marking its first win over Yale since 1998.
Nolan Flamand scored twice for the Warriors, while Mark Hillier And Nick Pierre goals added. Max Lundgren turned aside 30 shots to earn his sixth win of the season.
For Merrimack head coach Scott BorekIt wasn’t a flawless performance, but it was one his team desperately needed to stop the slide and get back in the win column.
“It’s nice to come out on the right side,” Borek said. “We have played better games in the last four games we have lost, so it was good to come out on the right side.
“We said after the match: it wasn’t pretty, but that doesn’t matter. It only says 4-1.”
The Warriors also won the third period for the first time in nearly a month, after beating Long Island 4-1 in the final frame on Nov. 21. It was a remarkable step forward for a team that had struggled to close out games.
The third period in particular was a source of frustration. It remains the only period this season in which the Warriors have a negative goal difference.
“In the third period we had a goal that we thought might have been thrown away, but it counted,” Borek said. “We had to deal with some setbacks during that period and we came to the other side. I was very happy with that.”
“It’s been tough here, and the third was a struggle for us,” the graduated captain added Mark Hillier. “There’s a lot of belief in our room. That’s all that matters. I’ve tried to keep that message with the group. Stay with it. A win like this is super important.”
Mark Hillier scored his third goal of the season for the Warriors, continuing a nice trend: he has found the back of the net in three separate games, all of which Merrimack wins.
After missing all of last season due to a lower-body injury, Hillier is starting to rediscover his rhythm.
“Luckily I’ve never really had many injuries in the past, so that was tough,” he said. “It took a while for it to feel the same to me. Sometimes I still feel it around my edges, it just doesn’t feel exactly the same yet, but I’m trying to get through it.”
Caelan Fitzpatrick lined up on the left wing for the first time in a Merrimack uniform. The Merrimack co-captain, along with Hilier, said it was probably the first time he had played on the wing since his freshman year of junior hockey.
“I thought it would give Fitzy a little more offense on the outside,” Borek said. “He’s so responsible when he plays in the middle of the rink. He plays hard in all three zones. Sometimes I think that takes away from his offense a little bit. I wish everyone played as hard as he did, but it’s just who he is. You saw some dizziness from that line tonight. He was able to come in on the forecheck, which was great because when he’s on the forecheck, he’s at his best.”
Fitzpatrick finished with a modest effort of two shots and one shot on target, but was bounced down the left side several times after stretch passes during breakouts. The adjustment seemed to put the puck on his stick in transition more often than when he was deployed centrally.
“It’s been a while since I played there,” he said. “Hockey is hockey, though. In the first period it felt like a little change, but you get used to it pretty quickly. I’m just happy that we played well tonight and got the win. I’ll do whatever it takes to help us win. If it’s on the wing, I’m happy to do it.”
NOTES:
Parker Lalonde (9–6) and Justin Gill (11-8) were the only Warriors to post positive winning percentages at the faceoff dot.
Joey Henneberry continued his strong recent play, scoring an assist on Flamand’s empty-netter and finishing the night with two shots on target.
The Warriors also won another challenge, erasing a potential Yale goal in the third period.
Max Lundgren was fantastic again, missing 30 shots and conceding just one goal Ronan O’Donnell.
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