Merrimack rallied to tie Maine with a Ludvig Larsson extra-attacker goal at 18:31, but Maine sent the home crowd happy with a Patrick Holway goal just 20 seconds into overtime.
The see-saw battle saw Maine take a late first-period lead, then Merrimack tie it a minute into the second. A Brendan Robbins goal on a penalty shot gave the Black Bears back the lead, then after Merrimack’s Brett Seney tied it on the power play, Robbins put Maine back ahead with a shorthander.
With the win, Maine pulls ahead of UMass Lowell into fifth place, a point behind BU, over which it holds a game in hand.