BOSTON — If there was any resolution for Northeastern to start 2025, it was probably to find some depth scoring in the new year.
And on Friday, they delivered with a multi-goal, high shooting, complete game effort in their 3-1 win over Merrimack.
The first period did not start out as well rounded, however. The frame was a low event, quiet, and frankly boring 20 minutes of hockey – somewhat unsurprising after a month off for both squads following the semester break.
The puck was constantly tangled up along the boards, trapped between various skates and sticks before being dug out and thrown the other way to clear. The Huskies did fire off 12 shots on goal to the Warriors’ six, with the majority coming from right in front of junior netminder Calli Hogarth’s net.
The second highlighted more of a back and forth style of play, with bursts of offensive dominance from Merrimack followed by solid sustained pressure from Northeastern. The Huskies doubled their shot count in the period, but were finding more open spaces throughout the ice for those chances instead of solely taking them in front of the blue paint.
Before the game even started, the biggest story, regardless of the outcome, was going to be this: the return of center Allie Lalonde to the lineup for the first time since March of 2024. The now-sophomore slotted into the second line for the Huskies alongside the dynamic wings of freshmen Éloïse Caron and Morgan Jackson, and Lalonde looked as though she hadn’t missed a step even with her extended time out.
“I thought [Lalonde] did a great job going to the front of the net, battling in corners. She’s always handled pucks really well,” said associate coach Nick Carpenito after the game. “The next step for her is just finding scoring space off the puck a little bit better.”
Outside of the importance for Lalonde herself returning to the lineup – and potentially adding more offensive weapons up front – it gives Northeastern a bit more flexibility with the lines throughout the forward group. Tonight, they showed that newfound flexibility, as senior Taze Thompson was swapped down to the left wing on the third line for the Huskies alongside Lily Brazis and Holly Abela. While the third line overall has seen strong offensive numbers individually throughout the season, together their work as a unit could pay off in spades.
And it did at the end of the middle frame.
“It was a great feeling, but it was a team effort,” Brazis said. “With Beanpot coming up, this is a great first push.”
Dave Flint and co. opted to send sophomore Ella Blackmore out for the right wing instead of Abela at the end of the period, and on the last shift Thompson found herself alone in front with the puck. The captain deked around the three Merrimack skaters in front of her to get a shot off from the left side of Hogarth, which was turned aside. However, right on top of the blue paint was a waiting Brazis, who shoveled the puck in under the arm of the sprawling netminder and into the back of the net for her third goal of the season.
The Warriors weren’t going down without a fight however, and capitalized on a Kristina Allard turnover along the goal line in Northeastern’s end early in the third period. The defender was stripped of the puck, which allowed junior captain Sophie McKinley to swoop it up and slide it home on a wrap-around to beat Lisa Jönsson to tie the game at one with 18:17 remaining.
From there, the chippiness in the game intensified, leading to a penalty taken by senior defender Hayley Chang, after she tripped up Caron in the Northeastern offensive end.
There’s no way to sugarcoat it: the Northeastern power play unit has been abysmal this season. Coming into the night, the Huskies were sixth-worst in the NCAA with a 9.4% conversion rate on the advantage, with just six goals overall.
After tonight however, the luck might just be changing.
Off the draw, Merrimack sent the puck the length of the ice which forced junior Jules Constantinople to retreat and scoop it up behind the NU net. The defender then skated it out, before connecting with Skylar Irving along the boards in front of Merrimack’s bench. The senior, and leading scorer for the Huskies, broke around the two Warriors back to drive to the faceoff circle, where she lifted the puck up and over Hogarth’s shoulder and into the corner of the cage for the 2-1 score.
Was it a perfect set play? No. Was it even a play the Huskies have drawn up? No.
Did it work? Yes.
It will be a work in progress to see if this luck continues, but if there was any part of the Northeastern game that needed the monkey lifted off its back, it was the power play. And no better time of the year for it to start clicking than now with Beanpot in just a week and a half, and the last stretch of the regular season right behind it.
Following the goal, the chippiness only intensified, leading the Warrior bench to call for further calls – a theme throughout the game from both sides was the lack of whistles for infractions on the ice. The officials arms stayed down though, and the teams stayed at five-on-five until Merrimack opted to pull the goaltender with under two minutes left.
In the last five minutes before Merrimack was able to get the extra skater on the ice, Northeastern did an incredible job of maintaining puck possession and keeping the Warriors hemmed in their defensive end. It forced multiple minutes off the clock, and allowed the Huskies to wield off the Warriors offensive pressure. After a clean zone entry, Hogarth skated for the bench, and Merrimack finally was able to set up shop.
Following a few key blocks in front of Jönsson’s net, fellow Swede Tuva Kandell corralled the puck on her stick to find an open Jaden Bogden at center ice. The grad student then skated the puck down the ice and put it home for her fourth empty net goal of the season, and to secure the 3-1 win for the Huskies.
“[Bogden’s] just got size and speed. She’s got the ability to find open space in situations like that,” Carpenito said. “We just got to get her to start scoring goals with the goalie in the net… She had really good opportunities today, but yeah, if she wants to keep producing in situations like she’s going to get plenty of time to do it.”
Even with the win to open 2025, there’s still a lot to look forward to, including a turnaround game against Holy Cross within 23 hours of the final buzzer on Friday. Holy Cross, of course, has given Northeastern headaches this season: NU had to come from behind to beat the Crusaders in their first two contests of the season. It’ll be a tough matchup, especially with the tight turnaround, but the Huskies already have turned from the win Friday to what it will take to get the next one Saturday.
“We’re going to have that grit from tomorrow to every game,” Brazis said. “That’s just our main focus: one game at a time – and we’re not going to stop.”
Northeastern is right back on the ice for a contest against Holy Cross on Saturday. Luke Graham and Amelia Ballingall will have full coverage on WRBB 104.9 FM with puck drop scheduled for 7 p.m.