Merrimack opens the second half with a resounding 5-1 win over Brown

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Is Merrimack back on track?

After entering the semester break on a three-game losing streak, Friday's 5-1 win at Brown was a much-needed step in the right direction for the Warriors, who got back to .500 in regulation (7-7-1-2) with the victory.

Merrimack came out firing from the drop of the puck. Ethan Bono scored just three minutes into the game, and the Warriors had three more high-quality chances, but Brown goalie Lawton Zacher made several acrobatic saves to keep the score close in the opening minutes.

Late in the first period, the Warriors cashed in twice on the power play. Alex Jefferies scored on a 5-on-3, and Ty Daneault found the back of the net just under two minutes later.

"We haven't had great starts so that was much needed," Scott Borek said. "Our team answered that tonight. It’s great to see the power play get going.

"(Bono) has been playing very well. Devlin (O'Brien) and Mark (Gallant) did a great job ... that whole line looked good, which was good to see. They generated chances early and that got us going."

The Warriors kept their foot on the gas in the second period. Trevor Griebel scored on a wraparound to give them a 4-0 lead, and Merrimack outshot the Bears 14-6 in the second period.

"This felt like a get-right game," said captain Ben Brar. "All of these games are important. We learned last year after the break that we needed to come out strong. We wanted to make sure we were as prepared as possible coming into this stretch.

"We didn't have the first half of the sesaon that we were looking for, so now all of these games are extra important. We needed to right the ship."

The Warriors had so much possession in the second period that there was only one faceoff in their defensive zone.

"It was important for us just to get some positive energy going," Borek said. "The things we did best in this game was how we played without the puck. We were tracking pucks and re-loading. Our effort defensively was high. That's going to be winning hockey as we move forward."

Citara returns, Sacco plays with Copponi and Jefferies

Michael Citara returned to the lineup after missing the last two weeks before the break with an upper-body injury. His return balanced the forward lines, and freshman David Sacco was promoted to the right wing alongside Alex Jefferies and Matt Copponi.

"David will grow into that role," Borek said. "He gives them a different element. It gives them a physical component to that line and you don't want Matt and Alex always going below the line to get the puck, and David is very good at that."

All four forward lines were a scoring threat for the Warriors on Friday.

"Going into the break, depth was an issue for us," Borek said. "We have some guys working their way back now. We wanted to try to create four full lines. I thought we did that."

NOTES: Merrimack goaltender Hugo Ollas missed the game with an illness. Borek said that a few players are dealing with illness coming off the break. ... The Warriors went 37-25 on faceoffs. Copponi (11-6) and Mac Welsher (14-7) were the leaders for the team. ... Merrimack blocked nine of Brown's 40 shot attempts (22.5%).

NEXT: Merrimack will host Stonehill on Sunday at 2 p.m.

Merrimack 5, Brown 1
at Meehan Auditorium
Merrimack    (7-7-1-2):    3-1-1--5
Brown        (4-5-1-3):    0-0-1--1
First Period
1. MC Ethan Bono 3 (Liam Dennison, Christian Felton), ev, 3:00
2. MC Alex Jefferies 9 (Zach Bookman, Matt Copponi), pp, 14:55
3. MC Ty Daneault 4 (Christian Felton, Mark Hillier), pp, 16:41
Second Period
4. MC Trevor Griebel 2 (Michael Citara, Mac Welsher), ev, 11:42
Third Period
5. BRN Tyler Kopff 2 (unassisted), ev, 17:00
6. MC Frank Djurasevic 2 (Matt Copponi), ev, 17:29
Shots: MC 8-14-9--31; BRN 8-6-7--21
Saves: MC Borgiel (60:00) 20/21; BRN Zacher (32:46) 10/14; Shea (27:14) 16/17
Power Play: MC 2 for 4; BRN 0 for 2
Penalties: MC 2-4; BRN 4-8
Attendance: 610