When Boston University men’s hockey freshman David Warsofsky slipped up the right wing and netted a shorthanded goal in the third period of the Beanpot final against Northeastern University, the Huskies’ hopes of knocking off the top dogs vanished.
Two weeks later, they’ll have two shots to avenge their Beanpot loss and take down the No. 1 Terriers in a home-and-home weekend series between the top two teams in Hockey East.
Warsofsky’s goal was a backbreaker, finishing off Northeastern and sending BU on the way to its 29th Beanpot title. But as the teams meet again with first place in the conference on the line, the 5-2 result from that Monday night is thrown out the window, and Agganis Arena will be coated by a fresh sheet of ice.
No. 4 Northeastern (20-8-2, 15-5-1 HE) has been atop the league standings since the early stages of the season, coasting past the cellar dwellers and holding its own against Boston College and the University of New Hampshire. Though the Huskies are enjoying an unprecedented level of success, they have not managed to bring down the Terriers (23-5-2, 14-5-2), who also beat NU, 3-0, on Nov. 16 at Agganis.
For a Huskies squad looking to show that it deserves to be mentioned amongst the elite teams of college hockey, this weekend represents a chance to solidify that standing.
‘It was a great college hockey game by two very good college hockey teams,’ BU coach Jack Parker said after the Beanpot final.
Although the results have clearly been in BU’s favor, Northeastern offers perhaps the best combination of offensive firepower and defensive focus that the Terriers have dealt with this season. Up front, NU boasts a bevy of scoring options that consistently crash the net, and will keep freshman goaltender Kieran Millan on his heels.
Senior Ryan Ginand, an ever-active center scoring nearly a point per game (19 goals, 10 assists in 30 games), represents the biggest threat to the Terriers’ defensive corps. No matter the score or time of the game, Ginand has a knack for finding the puck on his stick and letting it rip.
He has already fired 140 shots, with his nearest teammate, sophomore Wade MacLeod, sending 99 pucks on net. Millan will also have his hands full with senior Joe Vitale (22 points) jamming the crease and screening shots from the point, especially on the power play.
When the teams met two weeks ago, the Huskies needed an impressive offensive effort because their Hobey Baker candidate goaltender Brad Thiessen looked simply ordinary. He let pucks slip past him that he would easily stop on most nights, especially at the end of the game when BU struck twice in 30 seconds with a man in the penalty box.
If Thiessen plays up to his ability, he can shut down an opponent from wire to wire. And if he brings his best to the ice at Agganis tonight and NU’s Matthews Arena tomorrow night, it could spell trouble for the Terriers.
After getting some much-needed rest last weekend, playing just once in a two-game set at the University of Maine, Millan should be fresh and ready to go when the Terriers step onto the ice tonight. He continues to turn away pucks and, with a potent BU attack in front of him, continues to rack up the wins, pushing his record to 19-1-1.
With the Terriers’ top line of sophomore Colin Wilson and seniors Chris Higgins and Jason Lawrence leading the way, this weekend’s two-game series with Northeastern promises to be a battle at both ends of the ice ‘-‘- and both stops on the Green Line.
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