NORTH ANDOVER — Mark Dennehy called it the biggest tie of his coaching career.
Merrimack College evened-up Providence College last night, 1-1, clinching the program's first playoff berth in six seasons.
The Warriors, thanks to a tie-breaker win with UMass, finish in sixth (out of 10 teams) in the league, and will play a best-of-three series at Boston University starting on Friday at 7 p.m.
"I'll be fine not having a spring break, I've had enough spring breaks," said senior defenseman Brandon Sadlowski. Merrimack College is on break next week.
"I usually just go home back to Alberta, but I'm sure my parents won't miss me too much."
Matt Bergland scored just 1:09 into the game to give the Friars the early 1-0 lead. That put a scare into the Warriors, who still feared missing the playoffs.
But Adam Ross' blast just 3:16 later knotted the score.
With teams three through nine separated by just four points entering the night, the list of opponents for the Warriors was changing with every goal scored around the league.
At one point Merrimack was slated to play UMass Lowell, then Maine, then Lowell again. Halfway through the night, Merrimack was going to BU, but after Northeastern scored to tie that game, Merrimack was going back to Maine.
A few minutes later, the Terriers took the lead again and Merrimack was back to playing BU.
"After the second period I asked (Glenn) Stewart (Merrimack assistant) to check on the scores," said head coach Mark Dennehy. "But I told our guys who weren't dressed not to tell our players what the score was, we needed to focus on our game."
It's Merrimack's second-highest finish ever in Hockey East. The Warriors finished fifth in 1994-95 and hosted a playoff series after Maine was disqualified from postseason play.
Friday's 5-0 win at Providence set a program record for Hockey East wins.
"I think it's safe to say that I'm still breathing a little heavy," said senior captain Pat Bowen. "There is still a lot of work to do, but to get in feels good. It's a bit of a relief. But, it just means we have more work to do and we have to come back here on Monday and get it done."
On Thursday, BU head coach Jack Parker told BU's Daily Free Press that he thought Merrimack was one of the most dangerous teams heading into the postseason.
Merrimack 1, Providence 1
at Lawler Arena, Merrimack College
Providence (10-20-4, 5-18-4 HE):¬�¬� 1-0-0-0—1
Merrimack (15-17-2, 12-13-2 HE):¬�¬�¬� 1-0-0-0—1
First Period: 1. PC Matt Bergland 12 (Mark Fayne, John Cavanaugh), 2. MC Adam Ross 2 (Stephane Da Costa, Chris Barton), 4:25.
Shots: Merrimack 10-16-11-1—38; Providence 7-9-5-2—23
Saves: M — Andrew Braithwaite 22; PC — Alex Beaudry 37
Power play: Merrimack 0 for 5; Providence 1 for 2
Attendance: 2,173
Next: at Boston University (Hockey East Playoffs) Friday, 7 p.m.
Karma?
The last time Merrimack played Boston University in the Hockey East playoffs (1997-98 season), the Warriors eliminated the Terriers, who were No. 1 in the country.
It also happens to be the only time that the Warriors won a playoff series.
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