Men’s Hockey: Terriers complete weekend sweep over UNH with a 2-1 OT win

Featured image by Spirit Veron

By Claire Smieszny

Saturday night, Boston University Men’s Ice Hockey (13-7-1, 9-3-1 HE) defeated the University of New Hampshire Wildcats (10-8-3, 2-7-2 HE) 2-1 in a down-to-the-wire overtime win. 

“I thought we competed really hard defensively tonight,” Coach Jay Pandolfo said postgame. “They got some opportunities and I thought [Mathieu] Caron was really good tonight. I thought the penalty kill was excellent.”

BU took control of the zone early, and their first chance came quickly off an o-zone draw and shot by Cole Eiserman into the goalie’s chest. UNH fired back shortly after, and fast-paced, physical play developed between both teams. 

The Wildcats did well getting underneath BU’s sticks and shutting down most opportunities around the net. BU made some set plays during sustained zone time, but had difficulty stringing together breakout plays. 

UNH potted the first goal of the game on a backdoor tap-in from Ryan Conmy to Nick Ring, giving the Wildcats the lead for the first time so far this series. It was 1-0 UNH just under halfway through the first period. 

Matt Copponi headed to the box shortly after, putting the Terriers in a dangerous position to have the goal deficit double, but they were able to stave off UNH. BU struggled to get an offensive flame back after fumbling zone entries and losing the puck to the Wildcats’ forecheck. 

A man advantage for the Terriers late in the period gave them an opportunity to get back on their game. Unable to capitalize, BU closed out the first period a man down due to Ryan Greene sitting for cross-checking, unable to set up shop in the offensive zone. As time wound down in the first frame, the score remained 1-0 Wildcats. 

UNH came out hot to start the second period, back on the hunt to double their lead. The Terriers relied heavily on goaltender Mathieu Caron to carry them through as the Wildcats ran up the shot count. 

BU sat back offensively until awarded their second power play of the night, where they were finally able to even up the score. A Cole-to-Cole connection from defenseman Hutson to a waiting Eiserman at the left dot to fire it home. The score sat an even 1-1 7:45 into the second period.

The tying goal seemingly flipped a switch for the Terriers. They were more deliberate with the puck, forechecking hard, and getting back and defending. They had more successful breakouts with the puck and crept up on UNH in shots. 

Further into the period, both teams struggled to generate chances on net. Play slowed down from the wicked pace that was set at the start of the game, and both teams set up their system offense for a couple strung together plays. It wasn’t without the occasional rush or turnover on the forecheck. 

A too many men penalty at the end of the period gave the Terriers a chance to put one more on the Wildcats before heading to intermission, but they were unsuccessful. The score was deadlocked at 1-1 heading into the third and final period. 

The beginning of the third period was dominated by UNH, with Caron again being the only reason the Terriers remained on common ground. He carried a .971 save percentage through the end of regulation, silencing any doubts still held about his caliber as starting goalie. 

“I just keep doing what I’ve been doing the past two weeks in practice and in games,” Caron said. “Same thing. Shots, a little different, obviously, in games, but I see them all the time in practice, so it’s more of the same.”

Despite setbacks, the Terriers continued to stun with their creative flair on offense when given the chance. However, they weren’t often afforded the opportunity as they floundered with breaking the puck out of their zone.

As the penalties piled on for BU, the Wildcats had more opportunities to take control of the game. An ongoing struggle for the team; they managed the setback but were prevented from doing much in the way of offense in the final, critical minutes of the game. 

Regulation finished with each team stuck at one apiece and moved into overtime. Ryan Greene sank the winning goal on a rush with Jack Harvey, who sauced him the puck to tuck it past netminder Jared Whale’s left pad. 

“There’s a guy that has experience and enjoys those moments,” Pandolfo said of Greene. “[Greene’s] a captain for us. He cares. He wants to have success.” 

The Terriers now look to next weekend when they face off against their storied rival in Boston College in a home-and-home series. The first game will be held at Agganis Arena on Friday night, with puck drop set for 7 p.m. and streaming available on NESN and ESPN+.