Men’s Hockey: Terriers fall 4-0 to UMass; shut out for the first time this season
Featured image by Joe Eachus
By Devora Slonim
Discipline issues continue to be a problem for the Terriers.
Two major penalties and five reverse goal calls were the difference-makers tonight.
The Boston University Terriers (8-6-1, 4-3-1 HE) were shut out for the first time this season, falling 4-0 to the University of Massachusetts Minutemen (8-6-2, 2-4-2 HE).
“We are finding a way to continue to shoot ourselves in the foot,” head Coach Jay Pandolfo said post-game. “It’s tough to win that way, that’s for sure.”
The first five minutes of the opening frame tilted in the Terrier’s favor, but it was the Minutemen who got on the board first.
After an initial right-pad save from BU goaltender Mathieu Caron, Ryan Lautenbach was in an optimal position to rip the rebound into the wide-open net for an early 1-0 lead.
A rough first period for Cole Hutson ensued as what was originally a game-tying goal was negated for goaltender interference. A few minutes later, Hutson was given a five-minute major and game misconduct on a high hit to the head of Minutemen forward Daniel Jencko.
The Terrier’s penalty kill bailed him out, fending off the entirety of the five-minute man advantage.
BU entered the second trailing by one and were outshot by UMass 15-10.
The first action of the middle frame came with just over four minutes remaining. The Terriers received another major penalty and game misconduct as Brandon Svoboda headed off the ice on a cross-checking call.
Jencko capitalized on the penalty call, firing a shot from the right circle, beating Caron to give the Minutemen a 2-0 advantage. With another two minutes left on the power play, UMass found the back of the net again. Lucas Ölvestad tipped the puck past a sprawling Caron for a commanding 3-0 lead.
“That’s another issue for us,” Pandolfo said regarding the 46 penalty minutes dished out. “You have a lot of guys getting worn down killing penalties that we rely on to create offense for us… and you got other guys that don’t kill penalties that are sitting on the bench, and there’s no question it’s been an issue. It’s something that we need to figure out and do a better job with.”
A sloppy bench minor penalty was the nail in the coffin for BU, as Kenny Connors made it 4-0 in the third.
Calls continued not to go the Terriers’ way.
For the second time, a BU goal was overturned for goaltender interference, keeping the score at 4-0 late in the final period.
“This group has certain things that they want to accomplish game to game, and right now we’re not hitting on those things that we need to do to win hockey games, from discipline, winning special teams battles, [and] giving up too many shots; [there are] a lot of things that factor into us losing,” Pandolfo said.
The Terriers will look to bounce back as they prepare for a rematch against the Minutemen on Wednesday, Dec. 11 in Amherst, MA. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m., with streaming available on ESPN+, TSN+, and NESN.