Poulin propels Canada to gold medal

At this time last year, forward Marie-Philip Poulin and the Boston University women’s hockey team were on a run that eventually saw the Terriers reach the Frozen Four and National Championship Game in Minnesota. Today, Poulin is an Olympic hero for Canada.

After Poulin scored the tying goal with 54.4 seconds remaining in the third period and a another goal in overtime, the Canadian national women’s hockey team beat a stunned United States squad for a thrilling 3-2 win for its fourth consecutive gold medal.

BU coach Brian Durocher said he was thrilled to see Poulin succeed at the grandest of stages.

“It was amazing,” Durocher said after the game. “To have a BU representative, someone like Marie-Philip Poulin, made it real extra special for us. She’s great on the ice, but she’s that much better of a person, teammate and someone who leads by example all of the time.”

Poulin was not the only one on the winning squad, as the Terriers were well-represented on Team Canada. Joining Poulin were BU graduates Catherine Ward, Jenn Wakefield and Tara Watchorn. Durocher said he was proud to see so many former Terriers donning a different scarlet and white sweater.

“I don’t want to diminish the efforts of everyone else,” Durocher said. “We’re proud of all four [BU representatives] that are a part of that team and will all be gold medal winners. They are great part of Boston University the hockey program.”

The BU women’s hockey team has been one of the strongest in college hockey since its inception in 2005-06, with the team reaching the Frozen Four in both 2011 and 2013. The four representatives in Sochi added more to an already impressive program.

“It’s certainly a great thing for Boston University, a way to develop our program and it’s something that has generated a lot of positive press and media over the past year, year and a quarter,” Durocher said. “I’m pretty proud to have them succeed on the big stage. It’s great to have Olympians come out of our program.”