University of Connecticut
3-4-1, 1-2-1
Merrimack College
5-1-2, 1-0-2
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | OT 1 | OT 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UConn | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Merrimack | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
10/31/2026 7:29:00 PM | Men's Ice Hockey
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. — No. 17 UConn men's hockey rallied from five separate deficits to earn a 5-5 tie and a shootout win over No. 16 Merrimack Saturday afternoon, to close the weekend series. The Huskies tied the game late in the third period, and Ethan Whitcomb scored the shootout winner.
Merrimack struck first, when a Warriors skater collected a loose puck following a blocked shot and beat freshman goaltender Veeti Louhivaara on a breakaway 1 minute into the game. UConn didn't stay down for long. Freshman Cole Davis battled along the boards and found Carter Sproule, who roofed the puck past the Merrimack goaltender to tie it 1-1. The Huskies kept the pressure on and drew a penalty, but Merrimack goaltender Ryan Keyes held firm through a barrage of shots on the power play. Merrimack got a power play of its own soon after, and UConn's penalty kill shut it down. With time running out in the period, the Warriors took the lead again when Alex Mercier found Mavrick Lachance in front for a tip-in goal, sending Merrimack into intermission up 2-1.
Merrimack came out of the break the same way it started the game, scoring 1 minute into the second period to make it 3-1. UConn cut into the lead about 6 minutes later on the power play, when Joey Muldowney was left alone in front of the net and cashed in a rebound to make it 3-2. The Warriors pushed their advantage back to two goals on an odd-man rush, pouncing on the rebound after UConn saved the initial shot, to make it 4-2. The Huskies kept pressing, and after an extended offensive shift, freshman Colin Frank collected the puck at the blue line and fired a shot into the back of the net to make it 4-3. Late in the period, a slashing penalty followed by a faceoff violation handed UConn a 5-on-3 advantage for the rest of the period, and Whitcomb made it count, ripping a one-timer past the Merrimack goaltender to tie the game 4-4.
Both teams continued to battle in the third period. Midway through, Merrimack regained the lead at 5-4 when Louhivaara saved the initial shot but the rebound bounced off a Warriors forward and into the net. The Huskies kept fighting, and it paid off when junior Mike Murtagh fought through contact to find Anthony Allain-Samake, who ripped a one-timer from the point to tie it 5-5. With 8 minutes remaining, a hooking penalty on Alexandre Blais gave Merrimack a power play, but UConn's penalty kill kept the Warriors off the scoreboard, and neither team scored again in regulation.
The teams also failed to score in overtime, leaving the game a 5-5 tie, but a shootout determined the extra point in the Hockey East standings. UConn got goals from Jeremy Loranger and Whitcomb, and Louhivaara stopped three of four shots to secure the shootout win.
