SHAY COSTA REPORTING…CATCHING UP ON PAST COLLEGE AND WOLF PACK 

EDITOR’S NOTE: Shay Costa worked hard covering these games and deserved to have them published. my full-time job has caused me to have to work close to 100 hours a week, and I haven’t had the time to post them. Getting them all posted here is important. She deserves respect for the effort she put in… – Mitch Beck

All stories by: Shay Costa – Howlings

BOSTON, MA – On Friday, Ryan Greene tallied twice, and Mathieu Caron made 32 saves on 33 shots to lead #2 Boston University (26-8-2, 18-4-2 HE) to a 4-1 win over #7 Maine (23-11-2, 14-9-1 HE) in their semifinal win of the Hockey East playoffs at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, in front of a sold-out crowd of 17,850.

‘It’s obviously a big win tonight,” Boston University Head Coach Jay Pandolfo said. “At the end of the day, our power play was really good, and our goaltender was excellent.”

Greene scored the game’s first goal at 8:59 of the first period. Winger Quinn Hutson recovered the puck on a failed Maine clearing attempt and passed it to the front of the crease, where he found Greene, who put it past the stick of Black Bear’s goalie, Albin Boija, for the 1-0 Boston lead.

Maine had an opportunity to tie early in the second period when Boston d-man Lane Hutson tripped Black Bear’s captain, Lynden Breen, with just 12 seconds left in the first. The two-minute man advantage did not result in anything more significant for Maine than a rung post.

It would be Boston University to the man advantage next when Maine center Nolan Renwick is called for holding at 11:04 of the second. The Terriers would capitalize just twenty-five seconds later. With Shane Lachance screening Boija’s vision, the Maine Netminder could not see the shot from Lane Hutson, who sunk a glove-side goal for Boston, putting them up 2 goals at 9:21.

Even with another power play opportunity when Boston’s Nick Zabaneh was called for hooking, Mathieu Caron remained impenetrable through the second frame, and the period ended 2-1 in favor of the Terriers.

The third period gave Boston University a chance to pull ahead 3-0 when Maine center Cole Hanson hooked Boston defenseman Tom Wilander at 3:30, but the would-be goal potted by Shane Lachance was called off the boards after being challenged for offsides. Making matters worse for Boston, the Black Bears would have the next penalty when Cade Webber’s stick came up high on Josh Nadeau.

In the ensuing Maine power play, Black Bears’ captain Breen picked a corner and found a gap in Caron’s defenses, cutting Boston’s lead in half. This goal, coming in at 6:48, was a quick shift in momentum away from the Terriers, whose lead fell from three to one over just a few minutes.

Luckily, a careless holding penalty from Maine defenseman Liam Lesakowski would return the Terriers to the power play. The goal that followed, scored by Greene, was almost the exact play that Shane Lachance nearly scored on earlier in the period. Two Boston forwards got positioning behind the Maine defensemen and made a pass in front of the net to beat the goalie to the other side. Instead of a goal,  Lachance got the secondary assist on Ryan Greene’s goal at 10:43, with the primary assist from Macklin Celebrini.

Desperate for a chance to make it to the Hockey East Championship, Maine pulled their goalie in exchange for the extra skater. Despite over three minutes of six-on-five skating, neither team would create another opportunity to score until the final twenty-seven seconds, when defenseman Sam Stevens made a 200-foot bid at the net and secured the win for Boston University.

“It’s obviously a big win for us. We get to go to the finals here and have an opportunity to defend the Hockey East Championship,” Pandolfo remarked after the game. BU took home their tenth Hockey East title in last year’s championship and Pandolfo’s first with the team. They will be looking to defend that title in the final match against Boston College. “We have some talented offensive players… We have really good depth on all four lines, we have good D that can move the puck. When you have that, you’re gonna be able to make plays.”

Boston University and Boston College will match up on Saturday, March 23rd, at 7 pm to decide the Hockey East championship title for 2024.

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Hartford Wolf Pack gets shut out in a 6-0 loss to the Providence Bruins in Game Two

Providence Bruins goalie Brandon Bussi stops all 34 shots made by the Hartford Wolf Pack on Friday night in Game Two of the Atlantic Division Semifinal series at the Amica Mutual Pavilion in Providence, Rhode Island, in front of 3,765.

“The game kind of got away from us,” said head coach Steve Smith after the game. “Once it got away from us, it was really hard to catch.”

The game-winning goal, courtesy of forward Vincent Arseneau, was, unfortunately, the very first one Providence scored. Brett Harrison’s faceoff win put the puck on Jared McIsaac’s stick, whose shot through the slot deflected off Arseneau’s stick and past Wolf Pack netminder Dylan Garand just 2:43 into the game.

Providence continued their pressure, but Hartford made some dangerous errors to help the Bruins extend their lead. A rough line change sent the Wolf Pack scrambling to regain possession of the puck in their defensive zone, but Bruins alternate captain Patrick Brown recovered the puck along the boards. His centering pass found Jayson Megna crashing towards the net, who launched a rocket past the glove of Garand, putting the Bruins up 2-0 at 13:44.

Still reeling from the last Providence goal, the Wolf Pack errors compounded. Matthew Robertson failed to connect with a Hartford forward in the neutral zone, and the puck was intercepted by Providence forward Trever Kuntar. Chipping it back into the Wolf Pack zone, the Providence fourth line rushed 3-on-1 against Hartford defenseman Nikolas Brouillard. Unable to break up the pass from Arseneau to Brett Harrison, the Bruins winger had an easy shot into the open side of Garand’s net. Coming in at 14:08, the Wolf Pack were looking at a deficit of three headed into the first intermission.

“[The Bruins] started on time tonight,” Smith remarked. “They were a better team in the first period. … They seem hungrier, and they won a lot more battles.”

The Wolf Pack continued to struggle through the second period. At 1:44, Jayson Megna’s high sticking penalty gave Hartford a power play opportunity, but they failed to generate any goals to chip away at the Bruins’ lead.

Continuing to make mistakes, both of Hartford’s starting d-men were sent to the box in quick succession—Brouillard for interference at 6:55 and Robertson for tripping at 7:22. With over 90 seconds of 5-on-3 play without either defensemen, it’s no surprise when the next Providence shot lit the lamp. Garand was righting himself after a scramble in front of his net when Ian Mitchell went top shelf, lifting the puck over Garand’s blocker and the score to 4-0 at 7:38.

The fifth Providence goal of the night came in the late second period, as Harrison fed the puck to an open Arseneau at the left circle. Holding the puck momentarily, waiting for an opening, he fires the puck under Garand’s glove to bump Providence to 5 at 15:49.

The final goal of the evening would cross the goal line at 0:52 of the third period while the Bruins were on a power play. Hartford winger Brennan Othmann was sent to the box for high sticking at the end of the second period and was still serving his penalty time when Ian Mitchell’s shot from the blue line rang the post on its way into the net.

While the Bruins dominated the scoreboard, the Wolf Pack had several opportunities that they failed to capitalize on. Halfway through the second period, the point leader from Game One, Tyler Pitlick, had a breakaway opportunity he couldn’t get past Bussi. They also had five power play opportunities, including a full two minutes of 5-on-3 in the third period when Vincent Arseneau and defenseman Dan Renouf were called for roughing and hooking, respectively.

“We got a little bit away from what got us to this point in the playoffs,” said Smith. “We got a bit more complicated. We tried to make plays that weren’t available to us. [Last game] we made a lot of simple plays coming out of our zone. … Especially early on, tonight we got away from that.”

Both teams have five days of rest before Game Three in Hartford. After a day to rest, Smith knows how to prepare his team for the rest of the series. “We need to work on special teams. They scored a couple of power-play goals tonight and our powerplay wasn’t as sharp as it needed to be… Getting back into a rhythm and being more predictable as a group will help us over the next few days as well.”

The series is tied 1-1 as we head into Games Three and Four in Hartford on Wednesday, May 8th, and Friday, May 10th at 7 PM both nights, where the Wolf Pack can win the series at home if they take both games.

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Boston College takes NCAA Regional Championship 5-4 in overtime over Quinnipiac, advances to Frozen Four

Jack Malone’s overtime game-winning goal sends #1 Boston College Eagles (33-5-1) to the Frozen Four after defeating last year’s NCAA champions #8 Quinnipiac Bobcats (27-10-2) in the NCAA Regional championship at the Amica Mutual Pavilion in Providence, Rhode Island, in front of 5,835.

This win was a huge accomplishment for the BC Eagles. “It’s a goal that we set for ourselves at the beginning of the year and something that we worked for continuously, ” said Malone. “It’s a pretty impressive tradition here at BC. It’s tough to live up to, but this group we have here is pretty special.”

Despite making three OT saves, including the preceding shot from Colby Ambrosio, Bobcats’ netminder Vinny Duplessis lost track of the puck on the rebound. Boston College alternate captain Jack Malone found it first, shooting it through the mess of bodies in front of the net and into the goal to win the game for the Eagles.

“Colby [Ambrosio] did a great job getting a piece of it and creating some chaos in front. I just tried to follow to the net and pick up the change, and the shot bounced out to me,” Malone said about the game-winner after the game. “I saw it and just tried to rip it. Luckily it went in.”

It took until the second period for either team to break the ice with a goal, though the game’s first goal started with a penalty drawn with 21 seconds left in the first period: Boston College’s Will Smith drew a careless cross-checking penalty while trying to unfreeze the puck from a pile-up along the boards.

Pinning BC in their zone on the power play, the Bobcats had the control to set up a quality bid, and that came from starting center Jacob Quillan as he redirected the shot-pass from Travis Treloar past BC goalie Jacob Fowler and into the Eagle’s net at 1:19 of the second.

Quinnipiac continued the pressure in the Eagles defensive zone. Recovering the puck on a Boston clear attempt, blueliner Iivari Räsänen sniped the top corner of Fowler’s net, catching him on his heels and doubling their lead just thirty-five seconds later.

Despite the sudden two-goal deficit, the Eagles played it cool, waiting for their moment, which came as a Czerneckianair’s stick to the face of Gabe Perrault, sending Boston to the power play. In a set-up nearly identical to Quinnipiac’s first goal, Cutter Gauthier’s feinted shot drew Duplessis towards him, leaving the net open for Ryan Leonard’s deflection. Coming in at 2:20, it put BC on the board and the score at 2-1.

The Eagles continued pushing to even the score, and they found it in the vulnerable minute after Christophe Fillion’s slashing penalty expired mid-way through the period. Moving cleanly through the Bobcat’s zone, it appeared that Lukas Gustafsson’s pass to Oskar Jellvik was setting up a give-and-go, but Jellvik instead passed it back towards the blue line as Andre Gasseau rotated in behind Gustaffson. Gasseau’s one-timer beat Duplessis glove-side, knotting the game 2-2 at 11:35.

The Bobcats made quick work of reclaiming their lead. They didn’t capitalize on the power play earned after BC’s Smith was called for hooking but kept the puck in their offensive zone after it expired. Fowler blocked the long shot from Charles-Alexis Legault, but it rebounded right in front of the net and back into play. Fillion was the first to the puck, kicking it out to his stick and lifting it over Fowler’s right pad to put Quinnipiac ahead at 15:59.

In true BC fashion, their response wasn’t far behind either. Just a minute later, Quinnipiac alternate captain Collin Graf was sent to the box for indirect contact with the head of Ryan Leonard. The hit did not shake Leonard too badly, as his wrap-around goal on the power play tied the game again at 17:55.

Boston made the mistake of giving Quinnipiac another power play right at the end of the second, giving the Bobcats a man advantage at the start of the next period. Defenseman Drew Fortescue was called for cross-checking at 18:18.

Just sixteen seconds into the third period, Jacob Quillan put Quinnipiac ahead for the third time, pulling the rebound of Collin Graf’s wide shot off the boards and sending a low-angle shot in behind Fowler.

As the end regulation approached, the Bobcats were doing what they could to prevent another tying goal from BC, slowing down rushes and preventing BC from transitioning too quickly. With less than five minutes remaining, Quinnipiac stopped forwards Gauthier and Jellvik’s rush attempt at the blue line but did not get back into their defensive position as defenseman Aram Minnetian entered the zone. Empty ice ahead of him, Minnetian’s rocket sailed past Duplessis, whose goal was the equalizer Boston College needed, which sent the game into overtime.

“It’s always hard to play a team that won,” said head coach Greg Brown, happy to have come out on top of last year’s NCAA champions. “They know what it takes. They don’t beat themselves. You have to do a lot of things right.”

Boston College heads to Saint Paul, Minnesota next, where they play Michigan in the Frozen Four and hope to advance to the NCAA championship.

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Quinnipiac’s 3-2 OT win against Wisconsin advances them to NCAA regionals second round

Victor Czerneckianair scores two goals, including the overtime game-winner, in the #8 Quinnipiac Bobcats (27-9-2) win over #9 Wisconsin Badgers (26-12-2) at the Amica Mutual Pavillion in Providence, Rhode Island, in front of a crowd of 6,988 on Friday night.

“We battled the whole game, including overtime. There was no panic, no worry on the bench,” said head coach Rand Pecknold. “We really felt like we were going to win.” Quinnipiac is the defending NCAA champion, winning in 2023, and is hoping to protect that title.

Quinnipiac drew first blood at just 2:12 of the first period after Wisconsin defenseman Mike Vorlicky failed to extract a loose puck from between the skates of the ref, missing the opportunity to clear. Christophe Tellier recovered the puck and connected with Christophe Fillion, redirecting the pass into the net of Badgers’ netminder Kyle McClellan, giving the Bobcats an early lead.

Wisconsin had their answer in the second period. They started the period on the penalty kill, as Anthony Kehrer was called for tripping with just 25 seconds left in the first period. Their PK was successful, and favor turned drastically in favor of the Badgers when Quinn Finley intercepted an outlet pass intended for Travis Treloar with velocity toward the Bobcat’s net and goaltender Vinny Duplessis. Finley’s wrist shot would find the back of the net, tying the game 1-1 at 1:46 of the second frame.

Wisconsin defenseman Joe Palodichuk leveraged the momentum shift from Finley’s goal to score his own just over a minute later. Still rattled from the last error, Duplessis failed to get across and block Palodichuk’s wrap-around attempt after he recovered his own rebound, and Wisconsin took the lead at 3:01.

Despite the two goals against them in less than two minutes, Quinnipiac settled themselves and played cleaner through the rest of the second period. “You just gotta reset,” Czerneckianair said about moving past mistakes. “Goldfish memory. Forget about it and move on to the next shift.”

The Bobcats did reset and even managed to tie it before the end of the period. A faceoff win from Zach Tupker set up Iivari Räsänen to take a shot from the blue line. McClellan’s save bounced dangerously back into play, where Victor Czerneckianair was ready to send it right back over McClellan’s shoulder to tie it at 2-2 at 18:28 of the second.

Either team did not score a goal in the third period despite a penalty called on Tellier for high sticking at 14:47, sending Quinnipiac to the penalty kill. At a crucial time of the game, the Bobcats killed the penalty, sending the game into overtime.

As the game approached the 60-minute mark, it was clear that Wisconsin was outmatched. Icing the puck several times as they struggled to move it up the ice and eventually drawing a penalty when defenseman Mike Vorlicky was called for slashing, fatigue was a bigger factor in the Badgers’ late game.

Despite their exhaustion, Wisconsin killed Vorlicky’s penalty but got sloppy on the line change afterward. “I saw [Travis Treloar] lifting his stick to [Davis Pennington], alerting him that they made a bad change,” described Czerneckianair after the game. “From there, [I] just [had to] stay onside and find a lane to the net.” Czerneckianair quickly settled the pass and sent it flying past McClellan’s blocker and into the net to secure the win for Quinnipiac, bringing the Bobcats one step closer to the Frozen Four.

Coach Pecknold had a good reason for describing this game as their best of the season. “We were all in. The guys had blind faith in the coaches. We put a specific plan in place: ‘Here’s how we need to win this hockey game.’… We asked them to have blind faith… and they did it.”

Even as defending champions, they have one more team between them and a repeat appearance in the Frozen Four: the top-rated Boston University Eagles. “We’re going to digest this [win], enjoy it for about an hour, and then we’ll reload and figure out how to attack Boston College.”

Their matchup is at 4 pm on Sunday, March 31st, where it will be decided which team advances to the Frozen Four.

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Boston College defeats Michigan Tech 6-1 in NCAA tournament regionals 

Ryan Leonard scores two goals and two assists for #1 Boston College Eagles (32-5-1) against Michigan Tech Huskies (19-15-6) in the first round of the NCAA tournament regionals held at the Amica Mutual Pavillion in Providence, Rhode Island.

“It was much closer than the score at the end. It was a good game,” said BC head coach Greg Brown. “[Michigan Tech] did so many things right.”

It took exactly thirty-six seconds for Boston College to claim an early lead. Captain Eamon Powell cleared the puck out of the Eagle’s defensive zone and ahead to the stick of Oskar Jellvik, moving swiftly into transition. Running out of ice as he entered the offensive zone, Jelllvik made a spin pass to BC leading scorer Cutter Gauthier, whose shot passed under the pads of Huskies’ netminder Blake Pietila and put BC ahead 1-0 at 0:36.

I saw that [Jellvik] had a boatload of speed,” Gathier said about the play’s development. “[There was a guy in front of me], and I just tried to get the correct body position on him, use my speed to open up a lane… The goalie wasn’t ready for it.”

Boston had an opportunity to extend the lead when Michigan defenseman Chase Pietila was called for tripping on another Boston breakaway. The resulting power play did not go as the Eagles would have liked, struggling to enter cleanly into the Huskies’ zone. On one such attempt, Michigan center Max Koskipirtti’s poke-check at the blue line awarded him a breakaway opportunity at BC goalie Jacob Fowler. Koskipirtti’s rocket beat Fowler’s glove, knotting the game 1-1 with a shorthanded goal at 12:55.

It wasn’t until the second frame that Boston reclaimed their lead. Aidan Hreschuk passed to Jack Malone, camped at Pietila’s doorstep. While the defense prevented Malone from taking a shot, they couldn’t clear the puck away from the crease before Ryan Leonard got his stick on it, potting Boston’s second goal. The goal came across at 6:57, putting the Eagles ahead 2-1 through the second period.

Despite the lead, the Eagles did not skate comfortably in the second. At 12:43, winger Gabe Perrault was issued a five-minute major and a game misconduct for contact to the head. Down a player for five minutes and a top-six forward for the rest of the game, the Eagles focused on and killed the penalty without losing their lead.

“[From Gabe Perrault]’s penalty on, our [compete] level rose,” reported Brown about the impact of the successful kill. “We started to play a little faster, a little sharper. We were connecting on more passes. The third period was our best period. We were able to finish some chances… and come away with the win.”

The game opened up in favor of Boston in the third, scoring another four unanswered goals.

The first came at 4:47 when Jack Malone passed through Pietila’s crease to Connor Joyce, who had gotten behind the Huskies’ defense and scored easily into the open side of the net.

The next tally for Boston College came less than two minutes later on another high-speed transition play from the Eagles. Cleared by Leonard to Will Smith, a 2-on-1 rush turned into a breakaway as Oskar Jellvik skated ahead of Huskies’ defenseman Chase Pietila, receiving the puck from Smith and scoring another goal through Blake Pietila’s five-hole at 6:24.

As the Eagles took control, the temperature rose, coming to a head in a scrum less than a minute after Jellvik’s goal. Thirty-three penalty minutes across seven different penalties resulted, and play continued 5-on-4 in favor of Boston with a five-minute major against Tyrone Bronte, starting at 7:06.

Boston capitalized quickly, and a pass from Gauthier lined up Leonard for his second goal of the match, sending the puck top shelf on Blake Pietila and boosting the score to 5-1 at 7:58.

Michigan Tech caught a break when Boston centerman Mike Posma was called for cross-checking less than two minutes into the penalty kill, skating 4-on-4 for two minutes. When Posma exited the box with over a minute remaining on Bronte’s major, the Huskies were unprepared to return to the PK.

In the final minute of Bronte’s penalty, Gauthier scored his second goal of the night, assisted by another beautiful pass from Jellvik. This brought the score up to 6-1, which remained through the end of the game, putting Boston College one win away from a trip to the Frozen Four.

Boston College’s fast-paced transition playstyle undeniably made a difference in the score. “We try to be fast in transition,” said Brown. “These guys like to play that way… Our defense has been pretty great all year moving pucks up quickly, and when they’ve got some space, they’re able to get pretty creative and make some great chances.”

With a first-round win under their belts, the Eagles continue to move up toward the Frozen Four, and while the competition level is high, BC knows where they stand. “The NCAA tournament is no joke. The opponent on the other side is always trying to take you down,” said Leonard, whose four points led the night. “We know once we stick to our game plan and play how we’re supposed to, we know there’s not a team that can stop us.”

The next team to try will be Quinnipiac, who they face Sunday at 4 pm at the Amica Mutual Pavillion in a game that will decide who moves on to the Frozen Four.

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Boston College steamrolls UMass 8-1 in Hockey East Semifinals

Gabe Perrault and Cutter Gauthier both with two goals and two assists for #1 Boston College (30-5-1, 20-3-1) against the #13/12 University of Massachusetts Minutemen (20-13-3, 12-10-2) in an 8-1 win in Hockey East Semifinal matchup on Friday night at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts.

“We had good legs tonight,” said Boston College head coach Greg Brown. “The guys were really skating.”

It was the University of Massachusetts that drew first blood. Boston College was caught in transition as the Minutemen rushed. Ryan Lautenbach passed to Lucas Mercuri, whose rocket deflected off Boston defenseman Aidan Hreschuk’s stick and bounced past Eagles netminder Jacob Fowler at 6:33.

Despite the early deficit, Brown noticed how the Eagles’ bench reacted. “The guys stayed really positive. Not one person hung their head.” He described this positive reaction to adversity as “one of the best parts of [their] game.”

UMass would give BC an opportunity to tie the score when Aydar Suniev was called for tripping at 7:15. In just under a minute, the Eagles would tie the game. Boston winger Ryan Leonard took a juicy rebound off the pads of Minutemen netminder Michael Hrabal and knocked it into the net. Assisted by Will Smith and Cutter Gauthier, Leonard’s goal tied the match 1-1 at 8:02.

After challenging a hit from Boston’s Mike Posma for an illegal check to the head major penalty, Massachusetts would have the next man advantage. The challenge was successful, and Massachusetts had five minutes on the advantage starting at 14:34. Their power play unit generated a few opportunities but ultimately couldn’t reclaim their lead before the penalty and period expired.

In the second period, the Eagles would open up the game with an aggressive offense. The lead came in the form of winger Gabe Perreault. Leonard’s long shot from the blue line deflected off Hrabal and towards the corner, but Perrault recovered the puck and stuffed it into the corner of the net, putting Boston ahead at 4:41 of the second period.

Just over two minutes later, Boston would light the lamp again. Massachusetts defenseman Scott Morrow nearly defended against the odd-man rush from the Eagles, preventing a shot from BC scoring leader Gauthier, but was unable to disrupt the pass to Andre Gasseau, who came crashing behind and sent the puck into the Minutemen’s net for the third time at 6:43.

Boston would continue to extend their lead through the second period. The next goal would come from Smith when a deflected pass off his stick bounced over the helmet of Hrabal, down his back, and into the net at 16:03. “We got a lucky bounce there,” Smith admitted, though the opportunity didn’t come from nowhere. “It was hard work there on the forecheck.”

Just forty-three seconds later, Gauthier would pot yet another for Boston College, snapping a juicy rebound stick-side and bumping the score to 5-1, which remained through the second period’s end.

Even with a four-goal lead heading into the third period, Boston didn’t take their foot off the gas, scoring three more goals in the final period. The first of the period came from defenseman Aram Minnetian on a shot through traffic just three minutes into the period, beating Hrabal’s glove.

The second of the period would come just over two minutes later at 5:03, with a five-hole goal from Gabe Perreault on a rush with Smith, tallying his second goal of the match.

The eighth and final goal for the Eagles came from Gauthier, also his second goal. He shot from his preferred spot near the face-off circle and slipped the puck under Hrabal’s left pad, setting a record for the most consecutive goals scored in a Hockey East semifinal.

Despite being his first game after an injury, Gabe Perrault’s four points were a major factor in the win over UMass. Perrault missed five games due to injury but contributed to the win in more ways than points. His return to the second line shuffled friendly linemates back together. “Our lines look much better. We went a long time without any injuries, so the lines got comfortable together…With everyone slotting back, they were more comfortable tonight,” described Brown.

Despite eight points between Gauthier and Perrault, nine other players had points against UMass. “You need depth scoring in playoffs,” Brown said. “The other teams have a hard time picking who they want to shut down.”

They hope to bring this offensive style of play to Boston University on Saturday, March 23rd, at 7 PM, when the teams face each other in the Hockey East Championship.

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Boston University advances to the Hockey East Championship after a 4-1 win over the University of Maine

On Friday, Ryan Greene led #2 Boston University (26-8-2, 18-4-2 HE) with two goals over #7 Maine (23-11-2, 14-9-1 HE) in their semifinal win in the Hockey East playoffs at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, in front of a sold-out crowd of 17,850.

‘It’s obviously a big win tonight,” says Boston University head coach Jay Pandolfo. “At the end of the day, our power play was really good, and our goaltender was excellent.” Mathieu Caron made 32 saves on 33 shots.

The Terriers were the first to break the ice, with a goal from centerman Green at 8:59 in the first period. His winger, Quinn Hutson, recovered the puck on a failed Maine clearing attempt and passed it to Greene, who was in front of the crease and got it past the stick of Black Bear’s goalie, Albin Boija, giving Boston the early lead.

Maine would have an opportunity to tie it in the early second period when Boston d-man Lane Hutson tripped the Black Bear’s captain, Lynden Breen, with just 12 seconds left in the first. The two-minute man advantage did not result in anything more significant for Maine than a rung post.

It would be Boston University to the man advantage next when Maine center Nolan Renwick is called for holding at 11:04 of the second. The Terriers would capitalize just twenty-five seconds later. With Shane Lachance screening Boija’s vision, the Maine Netminder was unable to see the shot from Lane Hutson, who sunk a glove-side goal for Boston, putting them up 2 goals at 9:21.

Even with another power play opportunity when Boston’s Nick Zabaneh was called for hooking, Mathieu Caron remained impenetrable through the second frame, and the period ended 2-1 in favor of the Terriers.

The third period gave Boston University a chance to pull ahead 3-0 when Maine center Cole Hanson hooked Boston defenseman Tom Wilander at 3:30, but the would-be goal potted by Shane Lachance was called off the boards after being challenged for offsides. Making matters worse for Boston, the Black Bears would have the next penalty when Cade Webber’s stick came up high on Josh Nadeau.

In the ensuing Maine power play, Black Bears’ captain Breen picked a corner and found a gap in Caron’s defenses, cutting Boston’s lead in half. This goal, coming in at 6:48, was a quick shift in momentum away from the Terriers, whose lead fell from three to one over just a few minutes.

Luckily, a careless holding penalty from Maine defenseman Liam Lesakowski would return the Terriers to the power play. The goal that followed, scored by Greene, was almost the exact play that Shane Lachance nearly scored on earlier in the period. Two Boston forwards got positioning behind the Maine defensemen and made a pass in front of the net to beat the goalie to the other side. Instead of a goal,  Lachance got the secondary assist on Ryan Greene’s goal at 10:43, with the primary assist from Macklin Celebrini.

Desperate for a chance to make it to the Hockey East Championship, Maine pulled their goalie in exchange for the extra skater. Despite over three minutes of six-on-five skating, neither team would create another opportunity to score until the final twenty-seven seconds, when defenseman Sam Stevens made a 200-foot bid at the net and secured the win for Boston University.

“It’s obviously a big win for us. We get to go to the finals here and have an opportunity to defend the Hockey East Championship,” Pandolfo remarked after the game. BU took home their tenth Hockey East title in last year’s championship and Pandolfo’s first with the team. They will be looking to defend that title in the final match against Boston College. “We have some talented offensive players… We have really good depth on all four lines, we have good D that can move the puck. When you have that, you’re gonna be able to make plays.”

Boston University and Boston College will compete on Saturday, March 23rd, at 7 p.m. to decide the Hockey East championship title for 2024.

HARTFORD WOLF PACK

HOWLINGS