NORTH ANDOVER — Since the schedules were released last summer, the Sheen family has had the date circled on the calendar.
For the first time ever, brothers Elliott (Merrimack sophomore) and Everett (Holy Cross junior) were going to be opponents.
The Sheen brothers, who are two years apart, had been teammates since youth hockey. Last night's 3-1 victory for Merrimack over Holy Cross was the stage for the first-time sibling rivalry.
The brothers from Lethbridge, Alberta, both suited up for the Okotoks Oilers, where they were teammates and even sometimes linemates.
"My mom called me right away," Elliott said. "She was pretty excited. I think the whole family was pretty excited. This is probably the one and only time we'll ever play against each other, so it's a fun night."
A large contingent from Alberta made their way to North Andover, including their parents, grandmother and sister.
The brothers weren't on the ice much together, but did line up next to each other near the end of the game. In the second period, Elliott gave Everett a little shove from behind as he came over the boards for a shift.
"I heard some chirping, I didn't know it was him," Everett joked. "I turned around and saw him skating away."
After the game, the brothers stayed on the ice after the teams' handshake so their mother could take a picture from the bench.
"We talked a bit earlier in the week coming into the game," Elliott said. "It was strange seeing him on the other side.
He continued, "He took a scholarship to Holy Cross and I was still in juniors. Then, when I got my scholarship to Merrimack, we noticed that the schools weren't that far away from each other. And we looked at it closer and saw that the schools play non-conference against each other sometimes, so it got me excited.
"I was hoping that before we both got done in college we'd see a game against each other. It was just a blast. I'll remember this game, for sure."
Da Costa debuts
He didn't figure in the scoring, but Merrimack freshman Stephane Da Costa came as advertised. The flashy forward played all three positions, including time on both special teams and penalty kill. A near sellout crowd at Lawler Arena had a charge of electricity each time the speedster touched the puck.
"We were wrong about him," said head coach Mark Dennehy. "He's even better than we thought he was."
Da Costa had missed the first two games of the season (losses at North Dakota) while his eligibility was sorted out by the NCAA.
"I have to prove to the coaches now that I belong," he said. "It was good to be on the ice. It felt good knowing that I can play."
Merrimack 3, Holy Cross 1
At Lawler Arena, Merrimack College
Holy Cross (0-2-0): 0-0-1—1
Merrimack (1-2-0): 0-2-1—3
Second Period: 1. MC Chris Barton 4 (Jesse Todd, Kyle Bigos).
Third Period: 2. MC Jesse Todd 1 (J.C. Robitaille, Adam Ross); 3. HC Jordan Cyr 1 (Brodie Sheahan); 4. J.C. Robitaille (unassisted).
Shots: MC 6-11-11—28; HC 8-7-12—27
Saves: MC Cannata (1-1-0) 8-7-11—26; HC Tysowsky (0-1-0) 6-10-9—25
Next: Hosts Army tonight, 7 p.m.
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