Men’s Ice Hockey: PLAYER RATINGS vs. Cornell
By: Dan Shulman
OFFENSE – B
The Terriers, once again, were dormant on offense through the first two periods. But in the third, BU showed just what it was capable of doing. The scoring prowess of the Terriers came through, putting three goals past one of the top goalies in the nation. If the offense would play consistently for three periods, the Terriers would be an extremely dangerous team.
DEFENSE – C+
The defense certainly had its downsides today. On the game’s second goal, the Terriers failed to clear a scrum in front of the net and it resulted in an easy tap-in for Cornell. In the third period, after BU tied the game, the defense began to sit back and allowed Cornell to retake the lead. But for the remainder of regulation and overtime, the Terriers blue-line units held strong against the Big Red. There is certainly work to be done on the defensive side of the puck.
SPECIAL TEAMS – C
The power play and penalty kill units had a difficult game against the Big Red. On a positive note, the Terriers took only two penalties in the game for the second consecutive contest. But the struggling penalty kill faltered, surrendering a power play goal in the second period. The Terriers man-advantage got its chances, but went 0-4 on the night. The penalty kill needs to improve this season, and the power play will be fine despite having an off-night.
GOALTENDING – B+
LaCouvee remained solid between the pipes. The sophomore made 22 saves, and stopped two of four shots in the shootout. BU was saved on multiple occasions by the play of LaCouvee, who couldn’t be held accountable for any of Cornell’s three goals Saturday. As LaCouvee grows more confident, his play will only improve and the Terriers will be tough to score against.
TERRIERS’ THREE STARS OF THE NIGHT
- A.J. Greer
Well, well, look who showed up. Greer, who emerged late last season as a key role player for the Terriers, found the back of the net for the first time this season. He recorded six shots on goal and an assist on the night to go along with his +1 rating. Hopefully this is a sign of better things to come for Greer.
- Jordan Greenway
Welcome to the goal-scorers club Jordan Greenway. The freshman netted the game-tying goal with under four minutes remaining in regulation. Greenway also recorded four shots and earned a +1 rating. The floodgates have opened for one of Boston University’s most promising recruits.
- Matt Lane/Ahti Oksanen
Aside from his winning tally in the shootout, which won’t count in the standings, Matt Lane fed Greenway for his equalizer, took six shots on net, and had a +1 rating for the game. Fellow senior Ahti Oksanen didn’t record a point, but had a game high seven shots on goal. Both Lane and Oksanen have been stellar this year, and these two look to keep that momentum going after showing up at Red Hot Hockey.