If you ain’t runnin’ game say my name, say my name. You actin’ kinda shady. Ain’t callin me baby. Better say my name. -Destiny’s Child
Public Service Announcement: Ok, here we go! Hockey Krishnas rejoice! Hockey hockey! Krishna Krishna! That’s right, hockey talk. Merrimack College Warriors hockey talk. Stephane Da Costa hockey talk. You may never have heard of Merrimack College. Never a word of Merrimack College. Not what you preferred, Merrimack College. But, on Oct. 16, when Stephane Da Costa debuted against Holy Cross, all of a sudden, the Warriors became relevant.
For the uninitiated, Da Costa is a nineteen year-old center sensation from Paris, France. The kid has everything you want in a hockey player. He has a skill set that makes you drool. Yes, he needs to get bigger. Yes, he needs to get stronger. But that will come. There are some things he does right now on the ice, with and without the puck, that are making folks step back and take notice.
Things like his five-goal performance against Army. Just so you know, that marked the first time since Merrimack joined Hockey East 21 years ago that a Warrior tallied five goals in a contest. Just so you know, that made Da Costa the first player in the league to score five goals since Boston College’s Brian Gionta had five in the first period against Maine back in 2001. Just so you know, Da Costa is also the first player to have his first goal in Hockey East be part of a natural hat trick and a five-goal game. Just so you know, his three power play goals are the tied for the second most in NCAA history and the most since 2005. How about that?
How about this? Against perennial powerhouse Boston University, Da Costa picked up his seventh goal of the year in the first minute of the second period as Merrimack College Warriors beat the defending national champions scoring five straight goals. Or this: With sixteen points in just nine games, Da Costa leads the nation in points scored per game. His nine goals are third in the country. The leader, Justin Fontaine, of Minnesota-Duluth, has eleven goals in eleven games.
Da Costa was recently named Hockey East Rookie of the Month for October. My question is, how long before he is named Rookie of the Year in the NHL?
Peace out homies. Six two and Even!
Need More? Merrimack College, NCAA, NHL, Stephane Da Costa
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