Women’s Hockey: OT heroics yet again for the Terriers as they win the HE Championship title for the first time in ten years
Featured image courtesy of Matt Woolverton/BU Athletics
By Ryan Owens
The No. 11/13 Boston University Terriers (23-11-2, 18-7-2 HE) are Hockey East champions, taking down No. 12 Northeastern University Huskies (22-13-1, 15-11-1 HE) at the Toscano Family Ice Forum in Storrs, CT on Saturday.
Sydney Healey scored the overtime winner to mark BU’s first Hockey East championship since 2015. It also clinched the Terriers a spot in the national tournament for the first time in that span.
“We’ve worked so hard this entire season for this moment,” Healey said following the game in an interview with ESPN. “For it to come true is just unreal.”
The Terriers made their mark early, generating pressure that resulted in Riley Walsh making a cross-ice pass to captain Tamara Giaquinto, whose shot on the wide-open net easily beat Northeastern’s Lisa Jönsson to give BU an early 1-0 lead.
The Huskies would eventually capitalize, however, with Lily Shannon passing the puck to Jules Constantinople for the one-timer. The puck was knocked away by goaltender Callie Shanahan, but Shannon would find the rebound and net it to tie the game.
Northeastern found themselves on the power play twice in the opening period but were unable to capitalize on either.
The Terriers spent the vast majority of the middle frame dominating offensive zone time, not allowing a shot during this span. However, the Huskies finally began to generate some heavy momentum and drew a penalty for their third advantage of the day.
Shannon would again score, passing back and forth with forward Allie Lalonde before netting the puck for her second of the game, giving the Huskies a 2-1 lead late in the second. This score held as both teams headed to their locker rooms for the second intermission.
Within the first minute of the third, Luisa Welcke drew a hooking penalty, leading Shannon to the box and giving the Terriers their first power-play of the game. Despite generating plenty of momentum, BU failed to change the score.
The Terriers would quickly capitalize after the power play as a battle along the boards left the puck trickling in the middle of the offensive zone, allowing forward Clara Yuhn to rocket a shot off the post and into the net to tie the game 2-2.
BU found a new step in their game after the goal, but a stretch of 4-on-4 hockey halted this momentum, even resulting in another Terrier penalty. Two blocked shots by Giaquinto would prevent anything coming from this stretch, and the teams would head to overtime for the third straight game in BU’s postseason.
Shanahan opened extra time with a series of crucial saves as the Huskies generated heavy momentum, including one that very well could have become a hat trick for Lily Shannon.
The winning goal would go the other way, however, as Lilli Welcke took a far shot that Sydney Healey netted on the rebound to win the game for BU just under five minutes into the extra frame.
“A couple of the girls in the room were like ‘This is your time,’” Healey said to ESPN. “That’s just really what I needed to get that goal.”
The Terriers defeated Vermont and Boston College on the way to this championship game, with these games also including a comeback and a victory in overtime.
The game gives BU a season series victory, having won three of the teams’ five matchups. It also serves as revenge after Northeastern recorded a shutout against the Terriers in the Beanpot final.
With this win, BU secured a spot in the NCAA tournament for the first time in ten years.
On Sunday, Mar. 9, the Terriers will learn their opponent in the opening round. The regional bracket will be played March 13-16.