Men’s Hockey: Following a rough weekend, Terriers hope to rebound against Notre Dame
Crowded around the goal, Boston University Men’s Hockey practiced their shooting on Wednesday afternoon. The atmosphere was light-hearted on the ice, as each player celebrated whenever they scored and congratulated junior goalie Mathieu Caron for every save. It appeared to be like any other practice, but their past loomed behind them.
Over the weekend, they had rough performances against two teams they were predicted to play better against. Facing the University of New Hampshire and the U.S. Under-18 National Team, BU lost by two goals the first game and six in the second.
“I think, defensively, we really struggled,” coach Jay Pandolfo said with a sigh. He noted the team focused on restructuring the defensive zone in practice. “That’s where it starts for us is, you know, being solid defensively. We certainly weren’t that this past weekend.”
This weekend, Boston prepares to play against Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind. The team hit the road on Thursday, so the players were running out of time to prepare when they came to speak to the media.
“We didn’t really play to our structure. We didn’t really play to our identity. And, I think we played as individuals,” senior forward Luke Tuch said outside the men’s locker room.
BU and Notre Dame met last November at Agganis Arena where the Terriers won 5-2. The teams were tied 1-1 after the first period, before BU pulled ahead and recorded another goal in the second and three goals in the third.
It was a classic result for the 2022 Terriers, but this year things appear to be different. BU recorded 16 penalties in their game against the U.S. National Team on Oct. 14, which resulted in 51 total penalty minutes.
Historically, Boston has a split record against Notre Dame having seven wins, seven losses and two ties against them. This season, the Fighting Irish are an easier team on BU’s schedule.
Despite attempting 88 shots in three games, Notre Dame has scored four goals and have a -11 point differential. Meanwhile, the Terriers have scored seven goals this season in 56 shots and have a +5 differential. But, BU should still be cautious going into this game so as to not repeat last weekend.
“We let up 14 goals in two games, so we gotta help our defensemen and help our goalie out. We left them high and dry last game,” Tuch said.
Freshman defender Tom Willander is helping lead the defense this season. He has only played against UNH so far, and he said the coach’s message was a “wake-up call”. This week, the defense will look to correct their mistakes.
“The way we want to play is just to play fast. So, just not making it too hard for us in the zone and when we’re in control of the pocket,” Willander said.
The team’s new freshmen talent had impressive performances including Willander and forward Macklin Celebrini. Willander recorded his first collegiate goal and Celebrini recorded five shots and two goals against UNH.
The Terriers will face off against Notre Dame on Friday, Oct. 20 at 7 p.m. and on Saturday, Oct. 21 at 6 p.m. Both games are available to stream on Peacock.