Parker erupts, ‘Dogs respond in OT

The flight attendants always tell you about those masks that fall from the ceiling when cabin pressure changes suddenly.

The funny thing is, the Boston University hockey team probably didn’t need the masks when it was actually on the plane. But between a pair of early-January Fridays, the Parker 747 certainly saw its fair share of turbulence, and Terrier Nation needs some sort of breathing aid right about now.

The Terriers (6-6-6, 3-5-2 Hockey East) flew halfway across the country and displayed more heart than they’ve shown all year, coming back from six different deficits in two nights to earn a pair of 5-5 ties with the two-time defending national champion University of Minnesota in front of more than 10,000 fans per night at Mariucci Arena.

They came home to play before a sparse Walter Brown Arena crowd of 2,100 and turned in a “shameful display,” according to coach Jack Parker, falling for the first time ever at home to the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, 2-1. Multiple tirades followed from Parker, who repeatedly questioned his team’s desire and went on to cancel Thursday’s practice and Friday’s team meals and pre-game skate. Senior assistant captain Frantisek Skladany was a healthy scratch Friday as well.

But when converted junior defenseman Bryan Miller managed to slide the puck through all the literal and figurative chaos and past Northeastern University goalie Keni Gibson and his five-game winning streak about two minutes into overtime Friday night for a hard-fought 4-3 win in a game BU absolutely had to win, Parker’s boys had somehow survived it all, at least for now.

True, that 3-5-2 record in Hockey East still isn’t exactly impressing anyone. The Terriers (currently 23rd in the PairWise, a gauge for the NCAA Tournament) will not crack the top 15 in the near future, barring a miraculous run over the next two weekends. But sometime between when Miller lit the lamp and when his teammates mobbed him like they had just won the Stanley Cup, the Section 8-ers might have actually removed the paper bags from their heads.

The bags went on after a 2-0 BU lead turned into a 3-2 deficit on four shots and less than six minutes in the second period, largely thanks to a shaky penalty kill and equally inconsistent goaltending. The last goal slid right through senior Sean Fields’ five-hole and sent him skating for the bench.

But sophomore Stephan Siwiec came in, and stopped the next (and last) 14 Northeastern shots (“We might see [Siwiec] next weekend,” Parker said).

Sophomore Jekabs Redlihs whipped the tying goal top shelf past Gibson (three shutouts in his last five games coming in) off a nice fake and feed from junior Brian McConnell, and Miller’s heroics off a pair of rebounds from junior Ryan Whitney and sophomore Dave Van der Gulik won it for BU.

“We just tried to stay positive,” Miller said of the team’s reaction to falling behind Friday. “Last game, against UMass, once they went up I think everyone just kinda thought it was over and kinda gave up. Tonight, once they went up 3-2 on us, we just tried to stay positive. We knew we were playing well and the coaches knew we were playing well, eventually it would come.”

Parker noticed what Miller confirmed about mailing it in during the Massachusetts game, and he certainly told them about it in a wake-up call for a team Miller admits thought success would come more easily.

“I had quite a rant at them,” Parker said. Then, when there was supposed to be practice Thursday, “I told them not to get dressed, and I went after them pretty good again. Just talking about how we aren’t playing hard, how we aren’t taking people seriously sometimes.

“I got what was bothering me off my mind about individuals and about teams and about the team itself, and then I told them to go home,” he continued. “‘I’ll see you at the game Friday.’ And they came ready to play. We got their attention anyways.”

Wednesday’s press conference, after a game with very few genuine BU scoring opportunities, included numerous shots by Parker at his team.

“This team has a tendency to want things to be easy,” Parker said Wednesday. “They just come off a good weekend [against Minnesota], they’re hoping UMass isn’t as good as Minnesota. We weren’t mentally ready to play this game and UMass certainly was.

“Does it take me by surprise that a BU team would do that? Yeah,” Parker continued. “Does it take me by surprise that this specific BU team would do that? No.”

Coaches do not say such things about their teams very often. But Miller certainly does not deny the effect of the latest coaching method from Parker, who picked up his 686th win as head coach Friday.

“I think it was kind of needed,” Miller said. “Not too much was working the last couple games. I don’t know if it was Coach’s last resort, but it was a real shock to the team.”

This came after the team showed no sense of urgency, according to Parker, when trailing by one in the third period of a huge conference game against the Minutemen.

So after they were told to go home Thursday, the Terriers remained congregated in the locker room to discuss things as a team. Despite Parker’s cancellation of the team meal Friday, the Icedogs then met at Bertucci’s Friday afternoon for a little more soul-searching.

The whole turn of events, which the team now hopes will be the turning point of the season, certainly changed some attitudes. The extra effort was apparent Friday, as the Terriers kept up with the scrappy Huskies, often outskating them and controlling play for the most part, outshooting Northeastern 30-24.

As for the dramatic win?

“We needed something,” Miller confirmed. “Our record isn’t so hot right now, and another loss or two wouldn’t have been good for team morale, so a win definitely boosted our confidence. It’s good going into a big weekend next weekend against [Boston College].”

The collapse was surprising after the team’s performance in Minneapolis. The Terriers adjusted well to a larger ice surface, a fast, hot opponent and a hostile crowd. The offense showed signs of life with 10 goals in two games, and despite some suspect goaltending at times, BU escaped without a loss.

In fact, the Scarlet and White caught the eye of Gophers coach Don Lucia.

“I was impressed with BU all weekend,” Lucia said. “They’re a very good hockey team and I think you’re going to see them make great strides in the second half of the year now.”

Maybe he’ll be right, and maybe not. But for a team that hasn’t won two consecutive games all year, this Friday’s game in Chestnut Hill would be a pretty good time to start.

But at least this roller coaster ride of a season that seems to drop violently every time there is a semblance of a climb will take Terrier Nation a bit farther yet.

One thing’s for sure: the B-line twinbill comes at a time when any swooning will drop the Icedogs once again to a new low. But in the event of some winning, the Ben and Patrick Eaves show also provides an opportunity for this team to climb to new heights and resuscitate a season on the brink.

Either way, the Terriers stand appropriately at 6-6-6, staring Satan (and his accomplice Boston College) in the face as a thus far cursed season hits do-or-die time.