Weekend Reax: What prevented the Warriors from sweeping Quinnipiac and LIU?

Trevor Hoskin (Photo: Tyler McMahon)

From a results standpoint, it was a true Jekyll-and-Hyde weekend for Merrimack on the ice.

The exhilaration of Friday night’s win over Quinnipiac was quickly tempered by the sting of Saturday’s loss to Long Island. But make no mistake, as noted in the weekend preview — and during the broadcasts — LIU is far better than its early record suggests. Their NPI ranking entering the night (No. 23) told the real story.

They outplayed Boston University and deserved a better fate. They outplayed Penn State as well and again came up empty. Those are the growing pains of a team still finding its way.

So, in a strange way, there’s encouragement to be found in Merrimack’s performance on Saturday. It was the Warriors’ best Net xG game of the season (+1.14) … and they still lost. That doesn’t erase the frustration, but it does underline that the process was strong.

As I’ve said and written about a million times … you can play well and lose a game. You can play poorly and win a game. That’s hockey.