Merrimack Dominates UMass Amherst...Again

The Warriors showed up on NESN tonight, winning their 2nd road game of the year. This time, they took down the Minutemen in Amherst by a final of 3-0. It didn't look great for The Mack during the 1st period, getting outshot 13-5, yet they went into the 1st intermission in a scoreless tie. They were again outshot in the 2nd period, but Merrimack took advantage of a breakdown in the Amherst defensive end, leading to a great cross ice pass to 4th liner Ryan Flannigan for the GW goal. They put in another goal in the 2nd on a power play...pretty standard for this team this year. Over 25% on their power play. In the 3rd, Stephane Da Costa put in his 14th of the year to bury the Minutemen. Joe Cannata picked up his 1st shutout of the year, stopping all 42 Amherst shots.

Merrimack definitely had the better opportunities in this game, but they didn't control play. That is a little concerning if they do in fact make the playoffs. Merrimack has been outshot in nearly every Hockey East game since they began play in the D-1 conference, but this year they are finding a way to win. Unfortunately, it is tough to win in the playoffs if you get outshot by 20 every night. Hopefully they can turn this negative part of their game around, before they take on one of the conference's top seeds.

Winter Olympics Ten Days Away

The countdown is on for the start of the Winter Olympics in Vancouver. The slate of activities begins on February 12th. For some reason a ski jumping qualifying event is being held at 10am, and the opening ceremonies are being held at 6pm to kick off the action. Nothing like starting off the games with ski jumpers that WON'T qualify for the olympics!

Here are a few highlighted events and times for week 1 that I am looking forward to. Will post separately about week 2 events next week.

2/15 - Pairs Figure Skating Medal Event. Back off I am not a freak for liking this. I wonder if Chazz Michael Michaels and Jimmy MacElroy will place in this event? Just kidding, this sport is pretty awesome, and the possibility of huge accidents is great. I want to see a pair that is skating a perfect routine to go up to their last lift, and then fall on their asses. Get the judges all in a panic. This team was on the path to the Gold, and now they have to rethink the scoring. Classic awesomeness.

2/16 - Men's Round Robin: Curling, The United States versus Germany. Will the US be able to keep the swagger they gained with a bronze medal finish in the 2006 Winter Olympics? This should be a W for the States, as Germany finished 3rd to last in 2006 with just a 3-6 record. But, don't forget that the Germans had 12 stolen ends in 2006.

2/16 - Men's Hockey, The United States versus Switzerland. The US didn't place in 2006, they look to avenge that issue this year. They finished in the 8th position in 2006. In game 1 they are up against a team that finished 6th, the Swiss. This is a rivalry to end all rivalries. The Americans sport a team with our good friend Phil Kessel, Chris Drury, Patrick Kane, and our very own Tim Thomas, among others... For Switzerland, the household names of Andres Ambhul, Goran Bezina!, Thibaut Monnet lead the charge. Certainly this will be a big challenge for the States.

2/20 - Short Track Men's 1000m Medal Event. Totally awesome if you have never seen this. Here's a description of the event: "Short track speed skating takes place on a 111.12-metre oval track within a hockey rink. Tight corners make it difficult for skaters to maintain control. A boardless padding system is now used replacing the stand-alone board system. This ensure an increased safety for the athletes.Short track speed skaters compete against each other, rather than the clock. The competition consists of a series of heats with four or six athletes. The first two athletes in each heat advance to the next round until only four skaters remain for the final."

This event is sick, and the crashes are awesome. I am sure we will see some crazy stuff go down in this event!

Wish We Had A Shortstop

Jimmy Rollins hits a remarkable 2-out 2-run walkoff double against the Dodgers, Phils 5-4 winners. Phils lead 3-1. On their way to the Series. Wish we had a shortstop like that. Wish Broxton could have closed the door. Who wants a five game NLCS?

Wish we had a catcher like this. Jeff Mathis slams an rbi walkoff double to sink the Yanks, 5-4 in 11 innings. Thank God, because after Mo got out of a bases loaded jam with no outs, I thought the series was over. Still pissed about Arod and Jeter hitting homers tonight. Am I being too negative? Should be more positive after a 59-0 win over the Oilers/Titans and a Merrimack hockey player being named Hockey East Player of the Week. Jeez!

Huge Weekend For Merrimack Warriors Hockey

It's the home opener on Friday night for your Merrimack Warriors. The Warriors, picked to finish deadlast in Hockey East, will have their work cut out for them as Holy Cross and Army invade Lawler Arena on Friday and Saturday night respectively. Mack is fresh off 5-2 and 3-2 losses in North Dakota. The Warriors are 18-2 all-time against the Crusaders at home, although current coach Mark Dennehy is 0-1-1 against HC as coach of Merrimack.

Tickets are $5. What a bargain! It's either watch that game, or watch the Yankees. You choose.

Merrimack Swept By UND

No one expected Merrimack to win in Grand Forks but they were probably surprised to see how close the Warriors played the #6 Fighting Sioux. In the season opener played on Friday night Merrimack fell 5-2. Despite the lopsided score the Warriors played a close game. UND began the scoring on their first shot of the season but it was MC that tied the game at 2 as the first period came to a close. The Sioux potted two goals just 41 seconds apart midway through the second on their way to the win.

Saturday night saw Merrimack play another close game but lose 3-2. Captain Chris Barton scored two goals and Andrew Braithwaite made 32 saves in the losing effort. Merrimack returns home to North Andover to face Holy Cross on Friday.

For more pictures visit Merrimack's athletics site.

How Can Merrimack Compete With This?

Does anyone really expect that Merrimack College can compete with the bog boys from Alaska? How are the Warriors supposed to get recruits when UAF is using this? Imagine being a recruit, unsure if you should sign with the Nanooks and then this video comes on? Amazing. I'm thinking about going to Alaska just to see if I can have my picture taken with the bear. It will be my new Facebook profile picture.

Thoughts on the Bruins

Not bitter or anything - just wondering how the B's are going to blow it this year. Questions on this year:

Will another Scott Walker beat us?

Will Tim Thomas give up weak goals in the playoffs?

Will Patrice go down with a season ending concussion?

Where is the B's offense going to come from?

Will Tuukka Rask make an impact?

How bad are the Leafs going to be? Draft picks depend on them sucking.

Will Steve Montador get cut? He deserves to be.

Will the Bruins look old and slow like they did in game 7 last year?

At what point in the season should I start caring about the B's? Even if they finish in 1st, won't they just get bounced early?

After all of these questions, I have come to the conclusion that I have no confidence in this team. I am sorry. Bruins get stonewalled by the Devils in round 1 of the playoffs. That's my predicition.

Or, even worse, can you imagine Phil Kessel ending the season on the Bruins?