As March approaches and playoffs for most winter sports draw near, one Terrier team stands at the edge of uncharted territory.
It’s been an eventful season for coach Brian Durocher’s women’s ice hockey team, one filled with firsts. Milestones have been reached, progress has been achieved and, despite the occasional pitfall, the Terriers are in position to do what no BU women’s team has done before – qualify for the Hockey East playoffs.
Hockey East playoffs? Big deal, says the uninformed fan, casually dismissing the relevance of making the playoffs in an eight-team league. After all, don’t eight teams qualify for the Hockey East playoffs?
Oh, wait.
Only four teams make the playoffs in the women’s Hockey East. One of those teams is the No. 2 University of New Hampshire, whose Wildcats hold a 36-game unbeaten streak in conference play. The University of Connecticut Huskies also rank in the Top 10.
Add in a dangerous Providence squad and a Boston College team that boasts both strong goaltending and last year’s Hockey East Player of the Year in Kelli Stack, and suddenly a third-year varsity program finds itself with a difficult road to the playoffs.
Given the difficulties presented to him, Durocher has done an excellent job recruiting, coaching and leading the Terriers to respectable records in his first two years as a varsity coach. This season has seen his best work yet. BU overcame early losses to top competition, but finished the calendar year with a dominant 11-1 victory over Sacred Heart. BU also won its Beanpot semifinal against BC, 3-1, and played well against No. 1 Harvard before succumbing.
However, achievements in non-conference play are secondary for a team striving for its first playoff berth. Though unable to match the firepower of the top teams, the Terriers have taken care of business against the cellar dwellers of Hockey East, earning 13 of 14 points against the three worst teams in the conference. Based on its performance against the bottom feeders, BU has separated itself from the dregs of Hockey East.
Still, with four other strong teams in the conference, the Terriers need to outperform one other opponent to earn the fourth-place berth they currently occupy. Perhaps Boston College would be willing to cooperate?
It hasn’t been easy by any means, but the Terriers’ two conference wins over the rival Eagles have been instrumental to this season’s success. The first win, BU’s only overtime triumph of the season, was also the Terriers’ first conference victory this year against a team eligible for the playoffs. The second was BU’s first-ever road victory against the Eagles, and gave the Terriers sole possession of fourth place with one week left in the regular season.
To appreciate the magnitude of the Terriers’ current position, consider the Hockey East program that entered the conference under the most similar circumstances – Vermont. Unlike the Terriers, Vermont women’s ice hockey has had varsity status for more than three years, but the Terriers and the Catamounts both entered Hockey East in the same season. While BU has improved since 2005-06, Vermont is languishing in last place for the third consecutive year.
With only two games left in the regular season, Durocher’s squad has a two-game series against Northeastern this weekend and a chance to lock up a playoff berth with a three-point performance. Should BC manage to sweep Providence, BU and Providence would emerge from the three-way tie for third place. BU leads BC by a point, owns all relevant tiebreakers and has an easier remaining schedule. I suspect those three advantages should be substantial enough when the dust settles.
Even if the Terriers collapse down the stretch, there is a lot to be proud of this season. Melissa Anderson’s hat trick in Chestnut Hill last weekend helped the Terriers break their Conte curse. BU reached its second straight Beanpot final. Against highly-ranked opponents such as Harvard, UNH and Mercyhurst, the Terriers put forth admirable showings – even in defeat. For a program still in its infancy, those are positive steps.
No, a fifth-place finish would not be an absolute disaster for BU women’s ice hockey. Frustrating? Certainly, but not disastrous. For a team that has yet to graduate a four-year scholarship player, reaching the playoffs is not a necessity. And with such a program, it remains within the realm of possibility the Terriers could fall flat this weekend.
I wouldn’t bet on it.
Matt Whitrock, a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences, is a weekly columnist for The Daily Free Press. He can be reached at [email protected].