Merrimack takes down Pairwise No. 1 BC, extending winning streak

CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. — Merrimack extended its winning streak to four games after Friday’s 5-2 win over Pairwise No. 1 Boston College at Conte Forum.

The Warriors fell behind 2-0 in the second period, but Antonio Venuto scored just over one minute later. That sparked a stretch of five unanswered goals and four minutes in which the Warriors scored three times.

Harrison Roy, Zach Bookman, and Ivan Zivlak scored for the Warriors. Vann Yuhas scored the go-ahead goal in the second period, his first collegiate goal.

Nils Wallstrom made 27 saves to win his second game in a row. BC received goals from Oskar Jellvik and Brady Berard.

BC and Merrimack will complete the weekend home-and-home series at Lawler Arena on Saturday night.

Storylines

Merrimack battled back after falling behind 2-0

Merrimack trailed 2-0 after Brady Berard’s shorthanded goal in the second period, but the Warriors were still competitive against the Eagles. Despite BC’s prowess as the No. 1 team in the Pairwise, it didn’t feel like an insurmountable deficit on the Merrimack bench.

That speaks to how far the Warriors have come in the last few months.

“Our team settled into the game really well,” said Merrimack coach Scott Borek. “Even after we were down 1-0 and 2-0, our bench was really good. Our guys kept looking forward the whole time, which is why we were able to come back. It also helped that got that first goal quickly after they went ahead 2-0, our guys kept believing.”

Wallstrom wins second in a row

Nils Wallstrom started his second straight game and picked up his second straight win, making 27 saves. Wallstrom has a 1.50 goals-against average and a .936 save percentage over his last two starts, stopping 44 out of 47 shots.

“He knew he was going to be busy tonight against [BC] and he was busy,” Borek said. “But he was square to the puck and really simple. He played a simple game. He’s really athletic and sometimes he’ll tend to rely on that, but today he kept it simple and played very well.”

The Warriors’ defense has been better as a whole. Merrimack has only allowed six goals in this four-game stretch. The Warriors allowed two goals or less four times in their first 13 games. Merrimack has allowed two goals or less in five out of the last six games (all wins).

Warriors score a power-play goal against BC’s No. 1 penalty kill

BC’s penalty kill entered the night nearly perfect, surrendering just one power-play goal all season. Merrimack scored on its first power play against the Eagles.

“Merrimack entered the zone well on the power play and played with pace,” Brown said. “They attacked the net.”

BC looks to clean up mistakes heading into the rematch

BC coach Greg Brown was unhappy with how his team managed the puck against the Warriors on Friday night. Bad turnovers led to scoring chances for the Warriors.

“We clearly weren’t as sharp as we need to be,” he said. “After we scored, I thought our choices became very suspect. All of a sudden, we were trying to force things that were low-percentage plays. We turned over too many pucks and that got Merrimack going in the right direction with their game.

“Credit to Merrimack. I thought they were really smart. They managed the puck well and they managed the game well. We have to do a better job in all areas [on Saturday].”

Credit an assist to Merrimack equipment manager Brian Stoya

Vann Yuhas scored his first collegiate goal in the second period. Maybe not officially, but credit Merrimack equipment manager Brian Stoya with an assist.

Yuhas broke his stick in the defensive zone before the play transitioned. He went to the bench, picked up his new twig (hanging over the boards at the perfect angle), took a few strides, and banged in his first goal at Merrimack.

“Brian did a great job there,” Borek said. “And what a goal by Vann Yuhas. He seized an opportunity. He hasn’t played a lot, but he played well when we played him last game. Then he scores his first goal. I’m really happy for him. That’s how it’s supposed to go for a freshman. You get better as the year goes on. He’s done a great jo of sticking with the process.”

Reactions

— Even when the Warriors trailed 2-0, I didn’t hate how they played. I thought Merrimack was competitive despite trailing in the game at that point. I can’t say I expected the Warriors to score five unanswered goals, but they weren’t playing poorly despite the deficit.