Men’s Hockey: No. 9/8 BU Snaps Four-Game Skid with 5-3 win against Vermont

By Stevie Potter

Cover Photo Credit: Joe Eachus

No. 9/8 Boston University Men’s Hockey (21-10-0, 15-6-0 HE) snapped their four-game losing streak and defeated the University of Vermont Catamounts (9-17-5, 4-14-3 HE) 5-3 on UVM’s Senior Night.

“Feels great to get back in the win column,” BU Head Coach Jay Pandolfo said. “I thought overall we played pretty well tonight… I thought we started playing the way we are capable of playing.”

BU junior Drew Commesso and UVM junior Gabe Carrie started in net for their respective teams.

The Terriers struck first, just 33 seconds into the game when sophomore defenseman Ty Gallagher took a shot from the blue line that got deflected into the UVM net by junior forward Dylan Peterson. Senior forward Jamie Armstrong had the secondary assist on the goal. Armstrong returned to the lineup for the first time since Jan. 28.

“I thought he gave us a spark. First shift he was out there, did a great job in the O-zone,” Pandolfo said. “It’s what we’ve been working on.”

Despite several chances for both sides, another goal wouldn’t be scored until the second half of the period. At 13:12, the Catamounts were able to tie the game 1-1 thanks to a backhand shot by sophomore forward Andrei Buyalsky. The equalizer was Buyalsky’s fourth goal of the season. 

While filled with opportunities, the second period yielded no goals until the final five minutes of play. Junior forward Luke Tuch broke the drought at 16:16. Senior forward Jay O’Brien was able to muscle the puck away from three UVM players and find the perfectly positioned Tuch, who shot it home. 

“I thought he [O’Brien] was really good on the wing,” Pandolfo said. “They had a ton of chances so hopefully it continues to go well for those three guys.”

Just over two minutes later, BU’s 2-1 lead was snapped again. UVM freshman forward Thomas Sinclair was able to force a turnover in the BU defensive zone and set up graduate forward Finn Evans for a quick goal. 

The final 20 minutes of play saw plenty of action. The Terriers regained their lead early on with a goal by freshman forward Devin Kaplan during a 2-on-1 rush at 1:25. Kaplan’s goal was assisted by senior forwards Matt Brown and Wilmer Skoog. 

Then, at 3:04, BU secured their first two-goal lead since Feb. 3 when freshman forward Quinn Hutson tapped in an across-the-crease pass by senior defenseman Domenick Fensore. The Catamounts bench challenged Hutson’s goal, but the goal stood. 

With time ticking down, UVM’s senior forward William Lemay netted what would become the Catamounts’ final goal of the game at 11:03. 

With only a one-goal differential and just over a minute left to play, the Catamounts made the risky decision to pull their goaltender despite lacking puck possession. The Terriers quickly took advantage of this opportunity when, in a full circle moment, Peterson, the game’s first goal scorer, netted the empty net goal.

The total shots on goal for this matchup added up in favor of the Terriers, 36-22. 

The Terriers will be back in action against the Catamounts for their second weekend game on Saturday at 7:30 pm in Burlington, Vermont.