NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. — Cornell coach Mike Schafer said his team started off a bit rusty in it’s first game of the season. Merrimack coach Mark Dennehy watched his squad show some fatigue as the struggled through the third period of their fourth game in six nights.
There is your explanation for an outcome that saw Merrimack jump out to an early 3-0 lead but had to hang on for a one-goal victory against the surging Big Red.
Until Schafer called a timeout just past the halfway point of the game, his team was getting completely beaten by the faster Merrimack squad. They were losing almost every battle, they couldn’t solve the potent forechecking that was in their faces everywhere they looked, and they couldn’t solve Merrimack goalie Drew Vogel, who made 33 saves overall.
“Their goalie played very well and as a team we started out a bit antsy,” Schafer said after the game.
Starting in the Cornell goal, veteran Mitch Gilliam epitomized what Schafer meant by “antsy.” He was dropping rebounds in front of the net and the Merrimack’s scores were shots that he might have stopped on one of his usual good nights.
“We brought in Hayden Stewart and I thought he played very well,” said Schafer.
Stewart shut out Merrimack the rest of the way, making 15 saves and perhaps earning himself a start in Cornell’s next game, next Friday at Dartmouth, according to his coach.
This coincides with the turnaround from the players in front of Stewart.
“We finally got it going,” Schafer said. “We started to win battles, we were getting good opportunities and we even hit the post on one shot.”
The renewed effort wasn’t enough, however, and on the other side of the ice coach Dennehy had praise for his team, now 3-3-1 in the young season.
“We came out strong,” he said. “We are now getting comfortable with close games and we are more comfortable with our systems, although after tonight I would say we still need a smarter, more efficient effort from our forwards.”
“Cornell is a big, strong team,” he said. “Look how many guys they have who are six foot three and over. They lean on you like a heavyweight boxer. Tuesday night we tied Boston College and it was a fast, up and down game. Tonight was a different type game. Fortunately we can play many ways.”
For Cornell, this was their first time playing under the stricter rules interpretations which have resulted in many games so far being dominated by power plays and penalty kills. Cornell ended up with 27 minutes in the box and Merrimack had just 12.
“Like everyone else, we will have to learn to play with it,” Schafer said. “I won’t say I like it, but we have to adapt to it. We will have to figure it out”
ECAC roundup
Union4, Rensselaer 1
Mike Vecchione had a goal and an assist as Union beat Rensselaer 4-1 in Troy, N.Y. Jared Wilson scored the lone goal for Rensselaer at 13:44 of the third.
No. 13 Minnesota 4, Clarkson 3 (OT)
Leon Bristedt scored his second goal at 1:57 of overtime as twelfth ranked Minnesota came back from a three goal deficit to beat Clarkson in Potsdam, N.Y.
Maine 2, Colgate 2
Colgate came back from a 2-0 deficit with two third period goals to tie Maine in Hamilton, N.Y. Bobby McCann had a goal and an assist for the Red Raiders, who remain winless on the year.
Holy Cross 3, Brown 0
Scott Poole had a goal and an assist and Dalton Shelly had two assist as Holy Cross spoiled Brown’s season-opener, 3-0, in Worcester, Mass.
Michigan State 6, Princeton 2
Six different players found the net for the Spartans in a 6-2 win over the Tigers. Alex Riche scored both goals for Princeton in its season-opener.
Wisconsin 5, No. 18 St. Lawrence 2
Luke Kanin scored twice, including an empty-netter, and Wisconsin broke a 2-2 tie with three goals in the third period for a 5-2 win over No. 18 St. Lawrence in Canton, N.Y. Gavin Bayreuther had a pair of assists for the Saints.
No. 13 Harvard 7, at Arizona State 0
Tyler Moy and Ryan Donato score two goals each as No. 13 Harvard began the season in strong fashion with a 7-0 victory over Arizona State. Merrick Madsen turned away 23 shots to earn the shutout.
