Doesn’t it feel like ages ago that the Boston University men’s ice hockey team blew a two-goal lead to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute to wind up with a 3-2 loss? The Terriers – who dropped to No. 16 in the USCHO poll because of last week’s upset loss – definitely think so.
But answer this: Since last dropping a 3-1 loss to BU nearly two weeks ago, how long can 170 minutes of scoreless hockey feel for UMass-Lowell, a team that was shut out twice last weekend by (who knew?) Providence College and is now hanging on in the top-20 poll by a single vote?
Lowell coach Blaise MacDonald and his team are probably the only ones who can answer that one. But when BU and Lowell square off tonight for the second time in three weeks, BU hopes to respond to that question in this way: not nearly as long as 230 can feel.
After giving up three unanswered goals to RPI to totally erase what began as a dominant performance last Saturday, the Terriers (1-1, 1-0 Hockey East) will head to Lowell’s Tsongas Arena tonight for one of many firsts this season. It’s their first road game, their first test following a loss and the first time they will see a Hockey East team twice, something they will become more than familiar with when they begin playing the usual home-and-home series in December.
“I think guys are kind of dying to get back on the ice again,” said BU senior forward John Laliberte. “After a loss like that, it’s a long week of practice, so guys are definitely looking forward to this weekend. I know I am.”
For Lowell, however, the team’s simply looking forward to its first goal in nearly three games. After lighting the lamp 9:59 into their loss to the Terriers on Oct. 15, the River Hawks have watched BU goalie John Curry and Providence freshman Tyler Sims make a combined 50 saves to hold them scoreless.
At 1-4 overall and, more importantly, 0-3 in the league, Lowell has a good chance of duplicating the 0-5 start it endured last year to begin Hockey East play. Yet, behind one of the best power plays in the country, the River Hawks managed to rebound to an 11-5-1 league record the rest of the way in 2004-05.
Considering Lowell has always played tough in front of a home crowd, Friday could be the night they turn it around. BU coach Jack Parker just hopes that isn’t the case.
“This team has its back to the wall, they need to play real well and they need to get into the win column in the league, so this is a huge game for them,” Parker said. “But it’s a huge game for us, too. … They kind of handed [the game] to us last time. We gotta see if we can go beat ’em in their building this time.
“I don’t think there’s a question that they’ll be a team to be reckoned with this Friday or some Friday in February,” he added.
On Halloween weekend, however, BU still has a lot to reckon with concerning itself. After watching its defense and ability to finish practically disappear against RPI, the Terriers have placed a heavy emphasis on back-checking and shot selection in practice. Parker called it a “decent week,” but then again, the week of practice leading up to the RPI game was “one of the best weeks I could remember, especially the last three days,” Parker said.
“We’re seeing if we can generate more on the power play, and we’re seeing if we can generate more on our shot selection,” he said. “We’re getting shots, but we can get to rebounds a little better. We gotta get the puck in the Grade A area. Those things are important to us. And it’s important for us to rebound defensively and play solid in our own end.”
Whether the Terriers have an answer to those woes remains to be seen. But with the season only two games old, it’s far too early to start questioning things, anyway.
beast of hockey east
With a win over Lowell tonight, Parker will become the first coach in Hockey East history to record 300 league wins. BU would also become the second team to do it, with BC (318) taking those initial honors two seasons ago.
“That’s easy to accomplish when you’re the oldest coach in Hockey East,” said Parker, who’s in his 33rd year at BU. “I’m the only one that’s been here since the day [the league] started. It would be nice to get that sooner or later, and it would be nice to get it Friday night.”
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