Photo by: Andrew Fielding
After defeating then-No. 1 ranked Boston College on Friday, the Pioneer hockey team lost to No. 7 Boston University on Saturday 4-3, despite a late third period rally.
Four different players contributed goals in the Pioneers’ 4-2 season-opening victory over BC, where the team battled back and forth with the top-ranked Eagles.
Jason Zucker, a prospect of the Minnesota Wild, started the scoring as he made the most of a break-away in the first period. Less than four minutes into the contest, Zucker received a pass from co-captain Dustin Jackson and was able to beat BC goaltender Parker Milner. Zucker’s goal marked his third goal in three games, including a two-goal performance in an exhibition contest against McGill University on Oct. 1.
“Anytime you’re on the road, you want to score the first goal to gain momentum,” said head coach George Gwozdecky. “[Zucker’s goal] was a great boost for us and we certaintly fed off of it.”
Boston College responded quickly to the Pioneers’ 1-0 lead, recording a powerplay goal of their own, drawing the game back to even. Senior Barry Almeida beat DU goaltender Adam Murray with assists from sophomore Kevin Hayes and junior Chris Kreider. The two teams combined for only 13 shots in the first period as Murray made seven saves for the Pioneers.
As the second period began, the Pioneers again set the tone for the period, as sophomore Beau Bennett notched his third goal of the season only 55 seconds into the second period. Bennett received a pass from Phillips inside left circle where he roofed a wrist shot past BC’s Milner, putting DU ahead 2-1.
“Going into the game, we knew it was going to be a close game and both teams knew it would be a great test to see where they stacked up against one another,” said Gwozdecky. “Any type of play that happens in a positive way is a momentum builder. It was great that Beau scored because one of our plans was to create more rebound scoring opportunities and shoot from all different angles.”
Eight minutes later, junior co-captain Drew Shore was able to extend the Pioneers’ lead to 3-1. Shore battled his way in front of the net where he was able to tap in his first goal of the 2011-2012 season.
Both teams remained scoreless for nearly 10 minutes as the Pioneers, backed by key saves from Murray, held a 3-1 lead on the Eagles. As the second period neared the end, BC was able to capitalize on a mishandled puck by Murray. Hayes tallied for BC’s second goal.
With the Pioneers leading 3-2 going into the third, Murray shut the door on BC, stopping eight shots in the final period for a total of 21 saves. Sophomore David Makowski clinched the upset over the Eagles as he made the most of an open net with 39 seconds remaining in the contest. Murray credited the victory to the defensive play of the team.
“My defensemen played amazing, to say the least, and the forwards were coming back for me,” said Murray.
Makowski and freshman Scott Mayfield both finished the evening with a plus-2 rating in the plus/minus category.
“It’s not a new experience for us to defeat a high-ranked team,” said Gwozdecky. “The team was pleased by the win; there were a number of things that we thought we did well.”
BU denies DU of road sweep
With the battle of Boston half-won, the Boston University Terriers awaited the Pioneers on Saturday. The Terriers came up short against Providence Friday, losing 5-3.
The Terriers found the back of the net first and they had a 1-0 lead over the Pioneers through the first period. Junior forward Alex Chiasson scored the lone goal for the Terriers.
In the second period, the Terriers took control of the game, scoring three goals in the first three minutes of the period. Senior Corey Trivino, sophomore Matt Nieto and junior Wade Megan all tallied goals for BU. Both Trivino’s and Nieto’s goals came with the Pioneers on the powerplay.
“Adam Murray played very well throughout the weekend; that is a huge positive for us,” said Gwozdecky. “Unfortunately, there was an error he made behind our net on Friday night and Saturday night. Adam is going to clear up those two errors really quickly. We made some real blunders, we were scrambling and these are things we learned we need to improve.”
The Pioneers went into the locker room down 4-0 after the second period.
While the shots remained close at 26-24 in favor of BU, the Pioneers struggled to beat BU’s leader in goaltender career wins, senior Kieran Millan.
At the 6:01 mark of the third period, the Pioneers were finally able to beat Millan as Luke Salazar scored for DU. John Lee followed Salazar’s tally with a goal of his own at the 13:09 mark.
“We made some adjustments to our plan of attack and our coverages,” said Gwozdecky. “We wanted to open the game up and we knew we would have to be a little bit more willing to take risks. This team understands the pride and tradition of Pioneer hockey; there is no quit in this team and there never has been.”
Murray continued to shut out the Terriers after BU’s 4-0 run in the first and early second periods, keeping the Pioneers in the game.
Gwozdecky elected to pull Murray with over three minutes remaining in the contest, when Drew Shore was able to score a rebound goal at the 2:21 mark in front of the net, inching the Pioneers to within one of BU.
DU out-shot BU but came up just short at the end, as BU took the game 4-3. The Pioneers’ powerplay remained scoreless for the second consecutive game as they went 0-6 on the man advantage.
“A good powerplay is a major key to winning games,” said Gwozdecky. “And our powerplay was not effective at all.”
The Pioneers will begin WCHA play next weekend as they host Minnesota State on Friday at 7:37 p.m. and Saturday at 7:07 p.m. in Magness Arena.
“At this point in the season, we need to focus on correcting some of the areas we were not effective in,” said Gwozdecky. “We know they are a good team.”
Last season, Minnesota State finished their year below .500 at 14-18-6. The Pioneers compiled a 3-0-1 record against the Mavericks, and three of the four games required overtime play.
