Terriers Prepare to Take On Vermont
By: Akshai Wadhwani February 1, 2018
BOSTON, MA — BU’s ice queen is on the brink of making history. Again.
First line center and co-captain Victoria Bach has already become the Terriers’ all-time career leader in both points (185 and counting) and goals (97 and counting) this season. And with two records already done and dusted, she now has the chance to complete the hat trick when her team hosts Vermont on Friday evening.
Bach has posted 32 goals this season. That number makes her the No. 2 goalscorer in the nation (behind only BC freshman Daryl Watts, who has 34), and ties her with former Terriers Sarah Lefort and Jenn Wakefield for most goals scored in a single season by a BU player. A single tally in Friday’s tilt will boost Bach above both of them.
Safe to say the odds are in her favor. While she hasn’t scored the most goals, she remains the most prolific scorer in the country with an average of 1.28 goals per game.
Oh, and did we mention she’s also four points away from becoming BU’s new recordholder for most points in a season?
But Bach won’t be the only one looking to smash program milestones on Friday evening. Her fellow co-captain Rebecca Leslie is four helpers away from joining Marie-Philip Poulin at the top of BU’s career assists list with 100. It seems that collegiate ice hockey records everywhere are locking their doors in fear.
The team behind the two superstars has been just as electrifying lately.
BU (10-13-6 overall, 6-10-5 WHEA) are coming off back-to-back annihilations of Merrimack; after winning 5-1 in North Andover, the Terriers returned to Walter Brown Arena last Saturday and promptly continued their domination of the Warriors with a 6-1 home victory, highlighted by Bach’s breaking of the all-time points record. The scarlet and white are narrowly outshooting opponents at 913-905, and have exerted a solid goal differential at 93-80. They are also averaging more shots and goals per game and a higher shooting percentage.
The Terriers’ defense has experienced a renaissance in penalty killing, allowing just one power play goal in the last four contests. The first and second back lines have played a big role in keeping those power play numbers down, combining for 215 blocked shots on the year.
Vermont (8-16-4 overall, 5-11-3 WHEA) has made a comeback of their own; after losing three straight games on the road, the Catamounts marked their homecoming with a pair of wins over Northeastern. However, they have still been outscored 57-81 and outshot 667-933 this season, and display the second-worst overall team offense in the Hockey East.
The Catamounts (13 points) remain wary of those behind and in front of them in the race for the WHEA tournament; Connecticut (11 points) and Merrimack (10 points) remain hot on their heels for the final two playoff spots, while BU themselves lie just four points ahead in the conference table. All in all, the visitors have a lot to play for in Friday’s fixture.
The Terriers overwhelmingly lead the all-time series with a 30-7-6 record; additionally, they took two of two from the Catamounts, outscoring them 10-2 overall, when the two teams met in Burlington in November. Bach recorded five goals and an assist in that series, while Leslie recorded three tallies and four helpers. Other outstanding performers were Reagan Rust (3 assists), Mary-Grace Kelley (3 assists) and Abby Stanley (1 goal, 2 assists).
Puck drop from Walter Brown is set for 7 p.m.