NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. -- The phrase “making history” is thrown around often in sports, but it’s not often that something actually does happen for the very first time.
Brothers David and Alex Carle did make a little history on Friday night as Merrimack hosted Denver. The game at Lawler Rink is believed to be the first-ever college hockey game in which one brother is a head coach and the other played for the opposing team.
David, the Pioneers’ first-year head coach, earned family bragging rights with a 3-1 win over Alex’s Warriors.
The game was exciting for Merrimack’s senior defenseman and assistant captain. But after all, it was about getting a win just like any other night.
“Playing against any family member ― it doesn’t matter whether he’s a player or coach ― is special,” said Alex, who played in his 100th career game as a Warrior. “The emotions are a bit heightened, especially with the whole family in the building. At the end of the day, we were both here to win a hockey game and we didn’t get the result we wanted.”
David is the youngest head coach in Division 1 college hockey at 28 years old. He spent the last five seasons as an assistant coach at Denver under Jim Montgomery, who the Dallas Stars hired to be their head coach prior to the start of this National Hockey League season.
Thus, David was on the bench for last season’s first reunion of the brothers from Anchorage, Alaska. The Dec. 29, 2017 meeting in Denver ended differently, though, as the Warriors took the 2-1 victory, becoming the second New England team in as many games to defeat the Pioneers as defending national champions.
David attended Denver and graduated in 2012, though being diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy ended his playing career at Minnesota prep power Shattuck-St. Mary’s. He was a student assistant coach during his undergraduate tenure as a Pioneer.
“We went to a ton of UAA games back home growing up, but we spent most of the time going to DU to watch Matt (Denver’s first-ever Hobey Baker Award winner and a former defenseman for four NHL teams) play,” said Alex. “For me to be able to play in Denver last year was kind of a childhood dream, and for them to come out here and experience the other side was pretty cool.”
It was a surreal experience for David to watch his younger brother while running the opposing bench, especially after Alex overcame major adversity in the form of three surgeries before setting foot on campus at Merrimack.
Alex played three prep seasons at Kimball Union Academy in Meriden, N.H., before moving to juniors in the USHL and NAHL. He spent his final year prior to Merrimack with the NAHL’s Lone Star Brahmas.
“Leading up to it, I can honestly say I didn’t think about it too much,” the Denver head coach said of having his younger brother on the opposite bench. “But (Alex) had the puck on his stick a few times around the point and I was hoping he wasn't going to put it in the back of the net. … He’s been through a lot in his career, so I’m really happy for him and proud of him that he’s able to contribute to this team and wear a letter as a senior.”
Though Scott Borek is in his first season as Alex’s head coach at Merrimack, he has a long history with the family having recruited David during his long tenure as an assistant under Dick Umile at New Hampshire.
Borek sees a lot of David’s characteristics translating on the ice in Alex, who has been a key cog in back for the Warriors all season and was again an improved, 60-minute team effort despite the defeat, taking three shots on goal.
“His brother is a world-class guy … and I’ve had that relationship with him (since coaching at UNH),” said Borek. “Alex is the same way. He works his tail off. I’m sure he was excited for the game. I’m not sure you’ll see a brother coach against a brother playing because it’s so unusual.
“I thought Alex did a really nice job managing their speed and pace. That team has a lot of pace and a lot of skill. Our feet are not as good as they sometimes could be, but I thought we worked really hard off the puck.”
For David and the Pioneers, their weekend in New England continues with a Saturday night visit to UMass Lowell. Playing two different opponents during the same weekend is uncommon in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference, so seeing two Hockey East teams with differing styles will be a benefit going forward as the 9-4-2 Pioneers shoot for another NCAA bid.
And it will be especially helpful because that second team is Lowell, which hunts the puck defensively in a way that the Denver coach says is unlike anything his team has seen.
“I think (the benefit of this weekend) is the mental preparation for our guys seeing teams that do things differently than in our league,” said David. “Lowell plays a very different defensive zone than anything we’ve ever seen, so it will be good for our players. …
“Our guys will have four different guys that have pressured if they can actually carry the puck from one corner to the other. … That’s what makes them so different. I think they’re a bigger team and usually an older team as well.”
Alex and the Warriors look for their fifth win of the season when another NCHC foe, Colorado College, visits North Andover on the final day of 2018.
Until then, the buzzer-to-buzzer effort against Denver is one from which Merrimack can build.
But the memory of another Carle vs. Carle showdown will live on forever.
