Luckless Terriers back home after tough OT loss — once again

Deja vu can be — if nothing else — cruel.

Last March, the Boston University hockey team suffered a crippling defeat to St. Lawrence in the longest NCAA tournament game ever. The Terriers had a depleted lineup (due to severe exhaustion) and a hot freshman goalie who seemed unbeatable, but BU was beat in the end, 3-2.

Fast forward to last night in Providence. Battling on equal parts adrenaline and heart, the Terriers fell, 4-3, in the longest Hockey East playoff game ever (96:26). This time the freshman goalie was Sean Fields, who stopped 48 of 52 shots on the night, and the lineup was depleted because of the absence of junior defenseman Pat Aufiero, who suffered a concussion Friday night in game one of the series.

However, the similarities end there between this year’s 14-20-3 squad and last year’s group that went 25-10-7.

But before anyone starts thinking about next season, the focus should shift back to last night’s duel between two netminders who refused to lose. At one end, there was Friar goalie Nolan Schaefer, the sophomore phenom who has been inducing whispers of “M-V-P” all season long. Schaefer didn’t face much last night — five shots or less in all but one period — but he stopped 24 of 27 shots last night to end the Terriers’ season once and for all.

At the other end stood Fields, a quiet and unassuming kid from the Great White North. Only once last night did the Friars slap less than 10 shots on Fields in one period, that being the first overtime when Providence could manage only five shots on goal.

The numbers from last night’s game are staggering. The game lasted 4 hours and 30 minutes, and that’s not just because it was broadcast on television. The two teams combined for 79 shots on goal, yet there were only 15 total penalties in the game. Translation, the play was back and forth last night and clean for the most part. The referees let the teams just play hockey and throughout the night it was the Friars shooting and Fields saving.

“I liked the way our goaltender played. It shows real promise for next year,” said BU coach Jack Parker, who turned 56 last night and probably tacked a few more years by the end of the night.

So the season for BU is now over. Boston College plays UMass-Lowell Friday at the FleetCenter while Maine and Providence will battle in the late game. And for the second time in three years, BU will be staying at home with a 14-20-3 record.

The loss last night also marked the end of five Terrier careers: forwards Carl Corazzini, Nick Gillis and Scott Perry and defensemen Colin Sheen and Keith Emery. Captain Corazzini ends his BU career with 117 points (62 goals, 55 assists) in 150 games. Gillis finishes up with 79 points in 144 games at BU, while Perry will retire his uniform having scored 35 points in 135 games in it. Emery and Sheen may not have the stats to impress, but their feistiness and tenacity will surely be missed by Terrier Nation.

However, as many as four players could reach the 100-point plateau for their careers next season. Fields appears more than ready to assume the full-time starting goalie position. BU has one of its strongest recruiting classes in years coming toward Babcock Street, including four alone from the U.S. National Development Program in Ann Arbor, Mich. The bluest of the blue chips will be defenseman Ryan Whitney, a behemoth of a blueliner who, when teamed up with Freddy Meyer, Chris Dyment, Pat Aufiero, Mike Bussoli and John Cronin will form one of the conference’s top defenses.

However, today there is no hopeful glance at the future. Today there is only a bothersome stinging feeling, a feeling reminiscent of a time last March when BU came to the precipice of achievement.

Yeah, October is right around the corner, but this one is going to sting for more than a while.