Eight days ago, on the final day of the regular season, the Boston University hockey team stumbled in an ugly 4-2 loss at Northeastern University.
So, for eight days, the Terriers have processed the loss, really letting it sink in.
“The guys are eager to get back after it after a long time off,” said senior winger Kenny Roche. “We were left with a sour taste in our mouth, and guys are excited to get back and get rid of that taste and get back to winning ways.”
Tonight, when the third-seeded Terriers (18-7-9, 13-6-8 Hockey East) take on the sixth-seeded University of Vermont in the Hockey East quarterfinals at Agganis Arena (7 p.m.), it seems, at first, like they’ve got a great deal working against them. Two straight losses. An offense that’s been less reliable than vending machines. A defense that’s let up three goals in three of its last four games, after allowing 1.70 per game leading up to then. Not to mention the nasty history of miserable home performances.
It makes you forget that this team, at 11-3-4, posted the best record since January in an extraordinarily close Hockey East. It’s a team ranked second in the nation in defense, allowing 1.82 goals per game, with a goalie ranked first in save percentage (.933) and third in goals-against (1.86), in John Curry.
Maybe that’s why the vibe outside the locker room yesterday afternoon was so . . . bubbly. Coach Jack Parker cracked jokes and the players walked around donning wide smiles. The scene screamed confidence, a trait that has been much more subtle and understated in this year’s BU squad.
But it’s not arrogance or foolish bravado. This is a team that realizes it’s lost twice to the Catamounts (17-14-5, 12-10-5) this year – once in Burlington in November, once at Agganis on Feb. 24 (after BU won the previous night). It’s just energy, a restlessness that comes from wanting to prove something.
“I’m sure we’ll be ready to go, and they know what’s at stake,” Parker said. “We had a step back, arguably, the last game of the year on the road. We didn’t play as well as we could, but in general, if you look at our last games, we won the Beanpot, got three of four from UNH and we beat Vermont first and lost to Vermont after almost coming back. I’m not concerned.”
The Terriers learned a lot from the last two losses, Parker said, and practices have been “terrific” this week. They’ve been everything the Terriers need to be – and that is, in a word, quick.
“We weren’t mentally ready [in the second Vermont loss],” Parker said. “And more than anything else is we need to skate, move our feet. If we’re skating, we’re a good hockey team. If we’re standing around reacting instead of initiating, then we’re gonna be on the wrong side of the score.”
“Our scoring lines are out there, going back and forth with drills, guys are hitting, just playing game-like,” said captain Sean Sullivan. “If the games are any resemblance to our scrimmages, then I think we should play pretty well.”
Those lines have been tweaked in the hopes of sparking the offense that’s started to come alive. The Red Line will go back to its early season formation, with Roche, Pete MacArthur and Boomer Ewing teaming up. The White Line will look like it did last year, with Chris Higgins, Brandon Yip and Jason Lawrence manning the offensive zone.
Vermont, at its best, almost mirrors BU in execution. Joe Fallon is one of only two goalies to have a better goals-against average than Curry, and shares the national lead in shutouts with Curry (6). Fallon leads a defense that’s allowing only 1.97 goals per game. He stole the early-season win over BU for the Catamounts and kept BU from mounting a full comeback in the win two weeks ago.
On offense, Torrey Mitchell leads a unit that’s picked up speed over the course of the year. His 35 points place him eighth in Hockey East, while Dean Strong’s 27 land him at 17th.
But Vermont is still only scoring 2.28 goals per game, making BU’s 2.62 per game seem explosive. So this series should be decided, on two or three nights, by about one goal.
That is unless BU looks as energetic as it did yesterday.
“We haven’t given the home fans much to be happy about this year,” Roche said. “But with these two games, we’re ready to play. If we come out skating the way we have to skate, I think we’re gonna put on a show for our fans.”
HOCKEY EAST
TOURNAMENT BREAKDOWN
Years like this don’t come often in Hockey East or any other conference, for that matter. Not to take anything away from the conference, perennially one of the best in America, but rarely do the playoffs begin without any sort of clear favorite. There are barely favorites. This is a conference that has six teams in the top-20, five in the top 15. And from top to bottom, each one of the eight teams could be playing two (or three) Saturdays from now.
“It’s a new season, it’s a new chance, not only for us but for everybody,” Parker said. “Everybody needs to realize that there’s no upset in this quarterfinal round. If any of the four visiting teams win, it wouldn’t be an upset, and if any of the four home teams win, it wouldn’t be an upset.”
No. 1 New Hampshire (23-9-2, 18-7-2) vs. No. 8 Providence
(10-21-3, 9-15-3)
This would have been a clear-cut matchup had Providence not ransacked UNH, 7-1, on Feb. 24. The Friars have won three in a row, with the final two coming against Merrimack College. A team that looked like it was flat-lining, with a 1-6-2 stretch before the UNH win, has now shown signs of life. Lots of it.
But it’s important to remember that UNH has been one of the most dominant teams in the country for the entire season and comes into the playoffs at fifth in the nation in offense (3.62) and eighth in team defense (2.35). At times, the Wildcats look like they can score at will, and Kevin Regan is third in the nation in save percentage (.931). Up in Durham, though, the Wildcat faithful tend to get jittery this time of the year, dreading some sort of disappointment.
No. 2 Boston College (22-11-1, 18-8-1) vs. No. 7 Northeastern
(13-16-5, 9-13-5)
For BU fans, there’s no team more terrifying to see heating up this time of year than Boston College. And right now, the Eagles are scalding. They’ve won eight of nine, including a two from UNH to end the season, with the only loss coming to the Terriers in the Beanpot final. Also, most dangerously, they’ve found their scoring form, netting at least four goals in five of their last six games.
But the Huskies, fresh off a clean win over BU, are always a tough opponent for BC. The teams split the season series this year, at 1-1-1. However, without a whole lot of firepower, the Huskies look to be currently out-gunned. Captain Mike Morris has 13 career points against BC, but has been out with a hip injury.
No. 4 UMass-Amherst (18-11-5, 15-9-3) vs. No. 5 Maine
(21-12-2, 14-12-1)
The teams go head-to-head for the second-straight weekend after UMass capped its regular season with a two-game sweep of Maine to clinch home ice. The Minutemen haven’t been playing at this level in a long time; the last time they were even nationally ranked was 2003-04, and they’ve spent 12 weeks there this year. Jon Quick has been impressive in net and the offense has come from everywhere.
UMass is probably the best-kept secret to casual hockey fans, with all the noise made by UNH this season. But the other noise that’s been heard is the sound of Maine falling. After BU swept the Black Bears in Orono on Jan. 12-13, Maine lost five of seven. Though the team can still score, and does often (10th nationally at 3.43 gpg and first in power plays, at 25.2 percent), it’s hurting on defense. Starting goalie Ben Bishop’s injuries have opened the spot to Dave Wilson, who’s gone 2-4.