In many ways, junior Joe Pereira and sophomore Ross Gaudet are mirror images of each other.
They both came to Boston University with very little hype surrounding them. They weren’t considered elite recruits like many incoming Terriers are. They weren’t National Hockey League draft picks. They hadn’t competed in any major international competitions. If they worked hard and established themselves as fourth-line grinders in their time at BU, no one would’ve been disappointed.
But they’ve done more than that this season. On a team filled with returning players who have not stepped their games up, and some who have even seen their games regress, Pereira and Gaudet have battled through injuries, exceeded everyone’s expectations and become key contributors in an offense that needs all the help it can get.
Last season, Pereira and Gaudet watched their teammates’ run to the national championship from the sidelines. Pereira suffered a ruptured spleen in the Hockey East championship game and watched the Terriers’ next two games from his hospital bed in Massachusetts General Hospital before getting out just in time to travel to Washington, D.C. with the team for the Frozen Four.
Gaudet missed his entire freshman campaign with a recurring shoulder injury that prevented him from ever getting healthy enough to crack the lineup.
So, then they both got healthy and had breakout seasons, right? Wrong.
Pereira had a hernia pop up in his lower back just before this season started. He decided to put off surgery until December so he could play the first half and hopefully return in time for BU’s showcase matchup against archrival Boston College at Fenway Park. The West Haven, Conn. native did make it back in time, missing just two games and returning in just four weeks, a timeframe his doctor told him was almost unheard of for an athlete recovering from hernia surgery.
Gaudet, who BU coach Jack Parker had already penciled in as the fourth-line center for opening night, separated the same shoulder that held him out last year just two days before the season started. Because he had already suffered the injury so many times, he was able to recover quicker than most. The Burlington native missed just three games, and has been in the lineup every game since.
Their determination to battle those injuries off the ice is perhaps only matched by their determination to battle the opponent on it.
The 5-foot-10 Pereira has continued to play with the energy, grit and hustle that has made him a fan favorite, but he’s also played with much more control this season. After placing third on the team with a staggering 74 penalty minutes last season, ‘Bulldog’ has gone to the sin bin just once this season. He’s also already tallied career highs in goals (5), assists (8) and points (13).
If ‘Joe Pereira’s play’ were an entry in a thesaurus, ‘Ross Gaudet’s play’ would be listed as a synonym. Like Pereira, Gaudet is aggressive on both the forecheck and backcheck, he’s a good penalty killer, he’s unafraid to battle down low against bigger defenders and he’s producing more than anyone could’ve asked for.
Gaudet is tied with Pereira and three other players for fourth on BU with five goals. He’s also, along with Pereira, one of just seven Terriers to have a positive plus/minus rating. And he too has been smart with his pugnacity. Aside from a four-penalty anomaly on Jan. 2, Gaudet has made just two trips to the penalty box this season.
Given all this, it should come as absolutely no surprise that Pereira and Gaudet have meshed seamlessly since Parker put them on opposite wings on BU’s third line three games ago. With sophomore Corey Trivino at center for most of those first two games and freshman Wade Megan in the middle Saturday night, that line has recorded four goals in the last three games.
Also unsurprising were the compliments doled out from all parties after Saturday’s two-goal effort from that line in BU’s 6-4 win over Merrimack College.
‘I think we kind of feed off each other,’ Pereira said. ‘As much as we say we’re skill players, we know that we’re grinders. We wanna work it down low. We both use our speed. We’re starting to develop a little chemistry.’
‘It’s been great playing with Joe the past few games,’ Gaudet added. ‘He’s a hard worker. If you get the puck deep, you know he’s gonna go in there and get it and look for the open guy. If I get open, I know I’ll have a chance to score every time. I played with Wade tonight and a little bit last night, and he’s a great playmaker. He works hard, too. And with Corey, he’s another great playmaker. But I can’t say enough about Joey. He works really hard, and playing with him makes it easier for me.’
‘They have a lot of energy out there,’ Parker said. ‘Whether it’s Trivino, who was with them most of the time the last couple games, or Megan now, I like what I see from them. I like what I see from Gaudet, and I’ve always loved what I’ve gotten from Joe Pereira since the day he arrived.’
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