Men’s Hockey: Eiserman hat trick and seven points for Hutson brothers power the Terriers in an 8-2 win over Providence

Featured image by Holly Gustavsen

By Devora Slonim

With a Cole Eiserman hat trick, seven points between the Hutson brothers, and four goals in under ten minutes of play, the final regular season home game ended with a bang. 

In their 8-2 takedown over the Providence College Friars (20-9-5, 10-8-5 HE), the Boston University Terriers (19-12-2, 12-8-2 HE) clinched the third seed and home-ice advantage in the Hockey East playoffs. 

“Our group knew this game was important in a lot of different ways…,” Coach Jay Pandolfo said post-game. “The focus was to make sure we just come out and have a good start tonight. We got rewarded with a couple power plays, and we took advantage. So, credit to our group, I thought we were ready to play tonight.” 

Just over a minute into the game, Cole Eiserman did what he does best and capitalized on an early Terrier power play. Cole Hutson found Eiserman at an impossible angle by the red line, lasering the puck past goaltender Zachary Borgiel for the early 1-0 lead.

BU went right back on the man advantage as Graham Gamache tripped up Devin Kaplan, and the Terriers wasted no time. The silkiness of C. Hutson once again went to work as he found the top shelf, ripping one past Borgiel 26 seconds into the powerplay.   

49 seconds later, BU continued their strong offensive pressure as Jack Hughes drove hard to the net, plowing his way through the Providence defense and wrapping the puck around Borgiel for the 3-0 lead. 

An interference call to Nick Roukounakis did not slow BU’s momentum. In quick succession following the kill, Quinn Hutson found Brandon Svoboda at center ice on a breakaway, who cut through two Friars and put the puck in five-hole to extend the Terriers lead by four less than halfway through the first period. 

BU went back on the powerplay twice more at the end of the period and into the second, but the Friars successfully killed both off. 

However, just as time expired on the second penalty, captain Ryan Greene found Eiserman down on his knee at the right circle, potting his second of the night in his signature fashion 38 seconds into the period. 

“I work on that shot a lot, it’s something I take pride in,” Eiserman said of his signature post-up by the right circle. “It’s nice when it goes in, and when it doesn’t, I’m pretty mad at myself… I just want to put it in the back of the net for [my teammates].”

The Friars applied their most sustained offensive possession following the goal, putting several shots on goaltender Mikhail Yegorov and drawing a hooking penalty in the process. 

Special teams for the Terriers continued to excel, as they killed off back-to-back penalties.

“The penalty kill has been so much better in the second half. Much better,” Pandolfo said. “We’ve been more aggressive, we’re using more guys on it so we can stay fresh, [and] our goalie has been there when we needed him. Those are the things that we’ve been doing, and it’s working out for us right now.”

Carrying momentum from the penalty kill, Aiden Celebrini found Greene in the slot, who sent a wrist shot past Borgiel for a comfortable 6-0 lead. 

“He was excellent tonight,” Pandolfo said of Greene. “His speed through the neutral zone tonight, I mean, he looked like an NHL player… When Ryan Greene is on top of his game, we’re a really good hockey team, and he was tonight.”

Despite only putting five shots on net compared to the Friars’ 18, the Terriers escaped the period unscathed.  

Providence ultimately got on the board at 14:24 in the third, as Hudson Malinoski beat Yegorov on the backhand. 

BU got their six-goal lead back on Eiserman’s third of the night, marking his second overall collegiate hat trick and extending the score to 7-1. 

The goals did not stop there as Svoboda netted his second of the night, streaking up the ice with Roukounakis on another 2 v.1 for the eighth Terrier goal. 

Although an unlucky tip from Logan Sawyer beat recently subbed-in netminder Billy Girard IV, BU finished with an 8-2 victory on senior night, and the last home game of the season. 

The Terriers will wrap up the regular season on the road, facing off against the University of Vermont Catamounts on Saturday, March 8. Puck drop is set for 7:10 p.m., and streaming will be available on ESPN+. 

When asked if their game would change now that they have clinched the third seed in Hockey East, Coach Pandolfo was adamant that it would not. 

“We need to keep our foot on the gas… We need to stay consistent, so it doesn’t change, our approach,” Pandolfo said. “We have to go up to Vermont and play a real good, solid road hockey game. You’re going into the playoffs here, you don’t want to take a step back.”

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