The UMass Lowell men’s ice hockey team lost 5-3 to Merrimack on March 11 in the Hockey East Opening Round. The River Hawks, ranked No. 9, ended their season with a record of 13-22-0 after falling short against the No. 8 Warriors at Lawler Rink.
This game marked the end of UMass Lowell’s postseason hopes as they were unable to overcome an early deficit despite a late push in the third period.
Senior Jack Collins, senior Dillan Bentley, and sophomore Dominic Payne each scored for the River Hawks. Sophomore Chris Delaney and freshman Nate Misskey both recorded two assists, while freshman David Adaszynski added another assist and led the team with three blocked shots. Senior goaltender Samuel Richard made 25 saves during the contest.
Head Coach Norm Bazin said, “Not the result we were looking for tonight. I was expecting a little bit of a different game from some of our guys, but it did not quite go as planned and you have to tip your hat to the opponent. They played a hard game, and I thought we were getting better as the game went on. I thought we made a push in the third period, and it was not enough.”
Merrimack took an early lead just over one minute into play before Collins tied it up late in the first period. However, Merrimack regained control shortly after and held a 2-1 advantage at intermission. The Warriors extended their lead with two more goals in the second period.
In the third period, Bentley scored soon after a power play ended to spark momentum for UMass Lowell. Payne followed with his second goal of the year three minutes later to bring his team within one goal with just over three minutes left in regulation. Merrimack sealed their win with an empty-net goal late in the game.
