PLUS/MINUS: 4 Takeaways from the Terriers’ Weekend

By: Dan Shulman

• UNTIMELY PENALTIES

On both Friday and Saturday, the Terriers took some untimely penalties which really put them behind the eight ball. On Friday, following a Yale equalizer, Ryan Cloonan took a ill-timed, albeit controversial, five-minute major penalty that set up a Bulldogs strike to give Yale the lead, one they would not relinquish.

Saturday night saw much of the same, with BU making five trips to the penalty box. A stellar showing by the penalty kill bailed the Terriers out, but with Quinnipiac’s 26.7% power play, the game easily could have been swayed with a Bobcats power play. The Terriers need to remain composed and disciplined in order to win games down the stretch.

• SKATING WITH A PURPOSE

Friday night was a very sluggish skating night for the Terriers. Despite scoring first, there was no sense of urgency for the Terriers. Yale easily thwarted any scoring chances with easy clearances and prevented odd-man rushes. It was a frustrating game for the Terriers, who came up short in a close game.

Saturday night was a complete turnaround for the Terriers. Even after falling behind, BU seemed to rebound quickly, and scored three times against arguably the country’s best goaltender. The Terriers outhustled Quinnipiac, and were clearly the better team on the ice. There was an evident sense of urgency and purpose with which BU skated on Saturday. If BU can bring this same intensity every game, another postseason run could hang in the balance.

• TWO SOLID GOALIES

This one does not just talk about the Terriers’ opponents, but also pertains to BU. Alex Lyon and Michael Garteig are two of the nation’s top goalies, and BU was able to get a combined five goals past the two net-minders. It was a testament to their stinginess and persistent offensive attack this weekend against to solid goalies.

On the homefront, Connor LaCouvee and Sean Maguire both played very well this weekend. LaCouvee picked up the loss on Friday, but has proven himself over the year. He has come up big this season and will continue to do so through the second half of the season. Meanwhile, Maguire had one of his best performances in scarlet on Saturday, holding an undefeated Quinnipiac team to just one early goal and making countless heroic saves. Two talented goalies are valuable assets to have going later in the season, and Boston University showed that it had that this weekend.

• ZONE TIME

Both nights saw zone time dwindle for the Terriers. This was especially obvious on Friday as the Terriers struggled to have any zone time late in the game against Yale. The Bulldogs were stout defensively, allowing very few opportunities for BU to score later in the game.

Saturday night was a little different for BU. In the final minutes of the game, Quinnipiac had all of the possession, but throughout much of the contest, the Terriers were able to get some valuable zone time. BU bolstered a strong forecheck and saw defenders pinching in along the corners. The Terriers saw their zone time drop off late in the game, but there were considerably more opportunities to score. Against two tough defenses, this stat isn’t particularly worrying, as the Terriers have done well to maximize zone time all-season.