Nov 6, 2009

Inside College Hockey: Strong Start Adjusts Mindset at Merrimack

By Jeff Howe / Read complete article here

The goals have changed in North Andover, Mass., and the attitude adjustment sounds so crazy it just might work.

Those in the Merrimack locker room are thinking big. Despite five consecutive last-place finishes in Hockey East, the Warriors have their sights set beyond minor improvements. It’s not just about getting to the playoffs for the first time since 2003-04. Nope, Merrimack wants its banner hanging from the TD Garden in March.

“I’d say in years past, [the season's goals have] been mainly to make the playoffs,” Merrimack junior forward Chris Barton said. “As of this year, our goal right off the bat is we want to win a championship. I think we believe we can do that in our dressing room. We have the skill set and the hard work to do that. We’re striving a lot higher than we have in the past years that I’ve been here. We just really believe in this group.”

Merrimack (5-3-0, 2-1-0 HEA) has won two of its first three Hockey East games for the first time in 11 seasons, and the Warriors are 5-0-0 at home for the first time in their Hockey East history. They’re coming off of a 5-3 victory against Boston College, which snapped a 20-game winless streak (0-16-4) against the Eagles, a dry spell that dated back to Feb. 15, 2003.

Plus, Barton leads all Hockey East players with seven goals, and freshman forward Stephane Da Costa is second in the league with six goals and first among freshmen with 10 points. Barton said the team’s scoring depth has been a major factor for the team this season, as Merrimack is second in Hockey East with 3.75 goals per game.

“I thought we were strong last year, as well,” Barton said. “We just needed that second punch, or that second line to give us a little more depth to get over the top in a few of those games.”

Granted, the season is only a month old, but it’s a stark turnaround for the Warriors, who were 38-115-19 in the last five seasons. Merrimack is 18-100-14 in that span against Hockey East competition but has actually managed a winning record against non-conference opponents (20-15-5).

Barton thinks the major difference with the Warriors this season is having a group of players who understand how to win - not just games, but championships. Fifth-year Merrimack coach Mark Dennehy has made it a point to recruit winners such as Barton, sophomore forward Jesse Todd and sophomore defenseman Karl Stollery, who all won the Alberta Junior Hockey League championship together with Camrose in 2007. Plus, freshman defenseman Kyle Bigos won the Royal Bank Cup last with with Vernon of the British Columbia Hockey League.

“I think it’s very important,” Barton said about having a collection of players who understand the winning mentality. “What we’re trying to do now is, basically, when we put our jersey on, we want to put it on like [Boston University] would put their jersey on. A lot of teams, when they put that jersey on, they think they’re going to win. We’re trying to bring that here. If you’ve won in the past, you start to believe that. Once you start winning, that will happen.”

It’s obviously not an easy process, but Dennehy knows how to turn around a program, as he was an assistant coach for Don Cahoon at UMass from 2000-05. While Barton and the team’s veterans are hoping this is the dawn of a new era at Merrimack, he refuses to ignore the dark ages they’re still trying to emerge from, and that remains the root of their motivation.

“We will never forget the past and what’s happened,” Barton said. “I think that’s why - what Dennehy has done over the years - he’s brought in so many different guys and changed the face of the program. We want to get it back to where it used to be, 20 years ago, I guess. We’re never going to forget it or forget the guys and all of the hard work they’ve put in. To see the hard work paying off now is great.”


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