Ice Hockey, Sports

BU showing great offensive success

For the first time in program history, six players on the Boston University women’s hockey team have scored more than 10 goals in the same season.

The line of freshman Sarah Lefort (15 goals), junior co-captain Marie-Philip Poulin (12) and senior Jenelle Kohanchuk (13), combined with the line of junior Louise Warren (10), senior Isabel Menard (10) and sophomore Kayla Tutino (12), has established an offense that is the second best in Hockey East in conference games with a 4.19 goals per game average in such contests.

“[They] have a great chemistry,” said BU (18–3–3, 13–2–1 Hockey East) coach Brian Durocher. “That’s not slighting the other two lines, but it’s just those six kids playing at a real high level.”

In the 2010-11 and 2011-12 seasons, five players reached the 10-goal mark. However, this is the first year since the women’s hockey program was established at BU in 2005 that six players accomplished such a feat.

“It definitely says a lot that we have a full roster and a lot of players that are very skilled,” Kohanchuk said.

Warren is the most recent Terrier to cross over into double-digit goals, as her 10th goal of the season came just 45 seconds into the game against Northeastern University on Saturday afternoon.

BU went on to win the game by a score of 4–2, aided by goals from Lefort, Tutino and Kohanchuk. Menard also added three assists on the day, giving her 22 on the season and putting her just two assists shy of 100 on her career.

Kohanchuk and Tutino said that communication among their respective lines was the key to their success.

“We work really well together,” Kohanchuk said about her linemates Lefort and Poulin. “We have a lot of chemistry both on and off the ice. We communicate very well with one another, so if we have something that we want to work on, we just tell one another … we use our skills and we use our strengths to get the puck in the back of the net.”

The line of Warren, Menard and Tutino has produced especially well in the past few weeks, with the three combining for 13 goals since the new year began. Their chemistry was never more apparent than during the sequence that led to Tutino’s goal against Northeastern (14–10–2, 8–7–1 Hockey East).

Warren carried the puck into the offensive zone and fell to her knees while sliding towards the boards behind the net. Not only was she able to send the puck to the front of the net, but she also sent it right onto Tutino’s stick. Tutino took advantage and put the puck in the net for a goal.

“I didn’t know if the puck would go through but luckily … she found a way to get a stick on it and put it through anyways, and get it onto my stick,” Tutino said. “We communicate really well.”

Durocher also credited the defensemen, particularly defensive partners junior Shannon Doyle and sophomore Shannon Stoneburgh, in the well-rounded scoring from his forwards.

“They keep it simple, they get pucks to the net,” Durocher said. “That’s when rebounds and deflections and tips go in, and all of a sudden your numbers start to go north.”

Kohanchuk and Tutino said the well roundedness of the scoring between these two lines is a testament to the depth of the team.

“We have four solid lines,” Kohanchuk said. “The fact that everyone can put the puck in the net just shows that we have a lot of skill and a lot of depth within our team.”

“Everybody has confidence, and everybody believes they can put the puck in the net,” Tutino added. “It’s nice that it comes from more than one player, that it comes from six, and it shows that our team has a lot of depth.

“Obviously it’s a positive thing for our team.”

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