Icedogs win four of five, one OT shy of perfect

There are a number of reasons why the Boston University hockey team was tabbed as the preseason favorite to win Hockey East.

Eighteen veteran lettermen. Thirteen NHL draft picks. A reputation as one of the most physical teams in the conference, if not the country.

Yet at the start of the season, inconsistency and a lack of discipline dragged the Terriers toward mediocrity, which apparently resides in Amherst, the site of BU’s 5-4 loss to the University of Massachusetts that left the Icedogs just a game above .500 at 7-6-2.

But, finally, it appears the brawn has met the brain.

No. 11 BU won four of five games over winter break, building a six-game winning streak by cutting down its penalty minutes, finding offensive reliability throughout the lineup and playing physically between the whistles not after them.

‘We had a meeting after the UMass loss,’ said senior defenseman Mike Bussoli. ‘We basically went back to the drawing board and sort of figuratively started our season over. Just recommitted ourselves to playing as a team, not selfishly. Not looking for points. Being disciplined positionally, but most importantly not yapping after the whistle.’

The meeting paid immediate dividends, as just one night after the Dec. 6 loss to the Minutemen, the Icedogs recovered with a 3-1 win and committed just five penalties, splitting their season average in half. The discipline carried over to a win over Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute three nights later, and eventually to BU’s triumphant trip to the Great Lakes Invitational and its sweep of a home-and-home series against Northeastern University.

‘Everyone basically aired their dirty laundry,’ senior defenseman John Cronin said of BU’s reassessment. ‘We talked about what we thought was going wrong. Problems between coaches, players; what we thought needed to change. By the end of the meeting, I think every single kid on the team was on the same page. We hadn’t been previously. The meeting was huge. We came out really positive I think.’

Attitude-adjusted, the Terriers headed to the current home of the Stanley Cup and came home as champions. In the GLI opener, BU wasted no time in proving it could play with Michigan State University in a battle of perennial powers, with senior center Brian Collins notching his second goal of the season just 13 seconds into the game.

From there, the rout was on. Frantisek Skladany (two goals and two assists) and Kenny Magowan (goal, three assists) led the Terrier attack, with ample assistance from Cronin (goal, two assists) and goalie Sean Fields, who made 28 stops.

Fields again bolstered an opportunistic Icedog offense a night later, turning aside 37 University of Michigan shots for a 5-4 win and tournament MVP honors.

Mark Mullen’s shorthanded goal gave BU a 4-3 lead in the third before setting up Justin Maiser for the winner just moments later. For the weekend, 15 of BU’s 20 skaters registered at least a point, including a goal from senior winger Ryan Priem, who netted his first career tally after 63 games.

‘Obviously we went through that span where we really struggled,’ said Cronin, who with Mullen was named to the All-Tournament team. ‘We won some games against decent teams, but we hadn’t really been tested. To beat brand names like Michigan State and Michigan is huge. I don’t think there was any doubt in our minds that we can play with the best teams in the country, but we probably showed everyone else that we’re better than our record.’

Despite losing sophomores Brian McConnell and Ryan Whitney to Team USA’s entry in the World Junior Championships, the GLI proved BU could hang with the best of the Midwest, and established some production and consistency throughout the lineup.

Collins set himself between David VanderGulik and John Sabo on the top line, with Mullen playing between Maiser and John Laliberte as BU’s second trio. Mullen, formerly a winger, remained on the second line, with McConnell bumped to the left wing, when the former center returned Thursday to face Providence College.

‘I like the way Mullen’s playing,’ said coach Jack Parker. ‘For the time being we’ll see how it goes.’

Parker used the same GLI lineup when BU returned to Boston and beat host Northeastern, 4-0, on Jan. 4. Fields was sharp again, thwarting 31 Husky shots for his second shutout this season and the fourth of his career. VanderGulik scored his third goal in as many games and added an assist on the second of Collins’s two goals.

‘He actually benefited by McConnell leaving for World Juniors,’ Cronin said of Collins. ‘He’s got to play on the first line. I think confidence is the biggest thing in sports, and he’s finally got that back. He’s pretty dominant out there.’

Collins had two assists the next night, as fellow assistant captain John Sabo grabbed the reins and led BU to a dominating, 7-2 win over Northeastern as the Terriers returned to Walter Brown Arena. The defensive pair of Bussoli and freshman Dan Spang combined for two goals and four assists, while Priem knocked in another one, his second in three games, and showed his celebration three-and-a-half seasons in the making, tucking his stick back in its holster, a la Chi Chi Rodriguez.

The win, BU’s sixth straight, lifted BU to 13-6-2, 7-4-0 and second in Hockey East. Through two periods last Thursday, it looked as though No. 7 would come against Providence, but the Friars rallied for a pair of third-period tallies that sent the game into overtime.

BU held a 44-22 shot advantage for the night, but it was the Terriers’ best overtime chance that ultimately led to the winner for Providence. Ryan Whitney blasted a shot from the right faceoff circle, with goalie Nolan Schaefer making one of his 42 saves, but leaving the loose puck in the crease. The Terriers charged for the puck, but Torry Gadja was the first one there, slinging an outlet to Chris Chaput, who got a step on the defenseman and went in on Fields.

Teasing Fields’s stick by carrying the puck well out in front of himself, Chaput baited the goalie into poking for the puck. As Fields reached, Chaput chipped the puck over the netminder’s shoulder to give the Friars a 3-2 win.

‘It’s one that shouldn’t have got away, but we can take a lot of positives away from it,’ Cronin said.

The loss dropped BU to a tie for eighth in the recently unveiled PairWise Rankings, U.S. College Hockey Online’s comparative analysis of Division I teams.

The Icedogs debuted at fifth, but fell following what Cronin called a ‘disappointing way to end the winning streak.’

‘I think it’s actually going to motivate us a lot,’ he added. ‘They came in yelling and cheering in the hallway after the game, and more than anything it just pissed everybody off. We’ll be back next weekend. We’re pretty excited to play BC.’