Max Newton had two goals and one assist and Filip Forsmark added one goal and two assists on Wednesday night, leading the Merrimack College Warriors to a 6-2 win over the Maine Black Bears in a first round (preliminary) men’s Hockey East playoff matchup at Lawlor Rink in North Andover, Massachusetts.
Steven Jandric opened the scoring for the hosts with a powerplay goal at 12:23 of the first period. Merrimack added to that in the second on a marker by Filip Forsmark at 34 seconds, and it was 3-0 when Matt Capponi tallied the eventual game winner at 4:07. Lynden Breen scored for Maine at 13:49 of the period, before Newton pushed it back to a three goal advantage when he scored at 3:45 of the third period. Liam Walsh at 11:06 and Newton with an empty netter at 17:02 ended the scoring for the Warriors, while Matthew Fawcett scored the final goal of the game and of the season for the Black Bears at 17:37.
Matthew Thiessen made 19 saves in net in the loss for Maine. Jack Quinlivan, Ben Poisson, and John Mulera had one assist each. The Black Bears end their season with a final record of 7-22-4 under first year head coach Ben Barr. Jandic, Capponi, and Walsh each added a goal and an assist in the win for Merrimack College. Hugo Ollas made 26 saves between the pipes, as the #6 seeded Warriors (19-14-1) now advance to the Hockey East quarterfinals on Saturday to face #3 UMass-Lowell.
