The home cooking hasn’t been any good, so the Boston University women’s hockey team is hoping for a taste of something better when it takes to the road for the first time in nearly a month tonight.
After a disappointing seven-game homestand during which the Terriers (2-8-2, 0-2-0 Hockey East) went 2-4-1, they will attempt to right themselves in a pivotal conference matchup at the equally disappointing University of Maine (1-11-1, 0-3-1).
The Terriers picked up their first two wins on the year against Union College and Quinnipiac University during the extended stretch of home games, but the team was left unsatisfied after two disheartening losses to St. Cloud State University this weekend. The Huskies outplayed BU in every facet of Friday’s 5-0 win, and the Terriers coughed up a lead in Saturday’s rematch by giving up three unanswered goals in the third period to fall, 3-1.
“I don’t think there’s any question that we’ve got to get ourselves ready to swallow this bitter pill and get ready to win a big league game,” said BU coach Brian Durocher.
Tonight marks BU’s third Hockey East game, but there is a sense of desperation making this game against a struggling Maine team all the more important.
“We’re definitely not happy with how it’s gone so far,” said junior co-captain Sarah Russell. “We’ve been in a lot of games, and it’s definitely getting frustrating. We’ve been in some games that we could have won.”
A brutal early-season schedule that included six games against Top-10 nationally ranked opponents has left a once hopeful Terrier squad searching for answers. A win against Maine would go a long way toward instilling confidence into a team hungry for success.
The Black Bears started their season with a convincing 6-1 victory over Sacred Heart University, but Maine has been winless in its last 12 games, managing just a tie against Providence College. In 13 games, the Black Bears have been outscored by a total of 42-18, numbers that fall in the Terriers’ favor as they seek their first Hockey East points of the year.
“Any time you go on the road, those points are valuable. This is a team that on paper, we might have a slight advantage on, but going to their rink it doesn’t mean that much. We’re going to have to go up there and get over the hump,” Durocher said.
Junior Vanessa Vani has recorded three goals and five assists while sophomore Taryn Peacock has six helpers to go with a pair of goals to share the team lead in points.
The struggling Terrier special teams may find solace in the Black Bears’ inabilities to shut down the power play. Maine has allowed 16 goals on the man-advantage and has just a .795 percentage on the penalty kill. The Black Bears have also scored on only five percent of their power plays, so the special teams should be heavily in the Terriers’ favor.
“Maine is a huge game for us. We’ll need to get really fired up,” Russell said.
After the contest, BU will have nearly a two-week layoff before a road matchup against the University of New Hampshire.
“We’re going to have to make sure that we assert ourselves and get it done – get a win,” Durocher said.
