Three Best Games From Friday Night’s NCAA Slate

Friday night delivered plenty of excitement across the NCAA hockey landscape, with overtime drama, a goaltending duel and a late comeback highlighting an entertaining slate. Here are three games that stood out.

The best game of the night belonged to Merrimack and UConn, as the Warriors pulled out a 5-4 victory in a back-and-forth battle between two Hockey East rivals.

UConn held leads of 1-0, 3-2 and 4-3, but Merrimack continued to find answers. Ty Daneault scored the equalizer early in the third period before freshman defenseman David Green delivered the closer with 3:46 remaining.

Green had a remarkable night, recording four points, including his first two collegiate goals. The win extended Merrimack's unbeaten run to six games (5-0-1), making this one of the more impressive performances of the young season.

Boston College and Northeastern provided plenty of drama in their Hockey East opener. The Eagles jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the opening 2:24, with Matias Vanhanen and Ryan Conmy finding the back of the net.

However, Northeastern responded with two second-period goals from Miguel Marques and Amine Hajibi to force overtime.

Dean Letourneau needed just 45 seconds of the extra frame to settle things, beating the Huskies for a 3-2 Boston College victory. Northeastern goaltender Lawton Zacher was outstanding, stopping 45 of 48 shots despite the loss.

Not every great game needs a pile of goals. Minnesota Duluth and Colorado College delivered a defensive battle worthy of the spotlight.

After 57 minutes of scoreless hockey, Ty Hanson finally broke through, scoring with 2:56 remaining in regulation. UMD goaltender Carl Axelsson stopped all 20 shots he faced, while Colorado College's Jackson Unger made 19 saves.

This win for the Bulldo