Terry's Late Tally Pushes Denver Past BU

In one of the most exciting games in recent memory, Denver’s Troy Terry scored with just 16 seconds left to put the Pioneers up 4-3. 

BU came back from 0-2 down in the first period on goals from Ty Amonte and Bobo Carpenter. Denver took a 3-2 at the end of the first on a power-play goal by Colin Staub.

After pouring shot after shot at Tanner Jaillet, and ringing the post four times, Dante Fabbro finally broke through to tie the game 3-3 with 7:49 left. 

Jake Oettinger was fantastic, especially in the second period to keep it a one-goal contest. 

"I thought we had a great third period to tie it up, obviously disappointing the way it ended. We are work in progress. I love how hard we competed. We just have to learn how to win and finish games like this off, that's the bottom line," said CoachQuinn"

BU will head to Providence tomorrow night to wrap up this weekend’s action

Tough Tests Against Pioneers, Providence

Article first published on WTBU Sports

For the first time this season, BU will square off against two different opponents in the same weekend, as Denver comes to town Friday night before the Terriers visit the Friars of Providence College on Saturday night.

From The Vault
Former Terrier Matt Lane fires off a shot in the 2016 West
Reginal in St. Paul against Denver.
(Photo by Matt Dresens)

This weekend will be a real measuring stick for the young Terriers when they go head-to-head with two of the last three national champions. Denver took the title last year in thrilling fashion with a 3-2 win over Minnesota Duluth in the championship game. Providence won in 2015 against BU and we all know what happened then.

The Pioneers come into this weekend’s game with a 2-0-2 record and ranked number one in the nation. On opening night, Denver and Notre Dame skated to a 2-2 draw before the Pioneers doubled up the Irish 4-2 the next night. Last week, Denver took three points from Lake Superior State at home.

For coach David Quinn, the preparation didn’t change just because Denver is the number one ranked team. He took this week and treated it like any other game.

“We try to do that no matter who we play,” Quinn said. “It’s pretty much come to work every day and try to become a better team. Obviously, we make some tweaks with every team we face because every team plays a little bit differently. This isn’t a game you have to get a team excited to play.”

A year ago, BU traveled to Denver and was swept by the Pioneers by scores of 4-2 and 3-1 respectively. In 2016, Denver ended BU’s season with a 7-2 beatdown in the West Regional in St. Paul. Earlier in the 2015-16 season, BU beat the Pioneers 5-4 in overtime at Agganis Arena.

“I think there’s a familiarity from both ends,” Quinn said. “There’s certainly a lot of respect too. They’ve been one of the top programs in the country for a long time and we’ve always had great games with them and we’re looking forward to this one.”

“They keep it simple and fast,” said junior forward Bobo Carpenter, who has faced DU four times in his career. “They really want attack hard and get their offense going. Their transition is a key their success. We want to be that team too, so it’s going to be exciting.”

Scouting the Pioneers
To no one’s surprise, Denver is led in scoring by Henrik Borgström, Troy Terry and Dylan Gambrell. The electrifying Borgström and US World Junior shootout hero Troy Terry have identical stat lines of three goals and three assists for five points. Borgström had a pair of goals against BU last year in the second game. Gambrell has posted five points by way of two goals and three assists.

Other players to watch include Liam Finlay, Tyson McLellan and Jarid Lukosevicius, who scored all three of Denver’s goals in the national championship game last year.

In goal, Tanner Jaillet is 1-0-2 to start his senior season and owns a 2.21 goals against average and a .911 save percentage.

From The Vault
Jake Oettinger makes one of 38 saves in
 a 2-1 win at Providence last December.
(Photo by Matt Dresens)

Switching the focus to Providence, the Friars are 3-2-0 this season and are coming off a weekend trip to the North Country where they scored a 6-5 overtime win at St. Lawrence and were shutout 4-0 at Clarkson.

Both teams will be in the same situation facing a back-to-back on Saturday. On Friday, the Friars are home against Boston College, a team they lost to 4-3 in overtime two weekends ago.

“We’ve played two games for three weekends in a row now,” mentioned Quinn. “Its nothing new to us. We focus on the game Friday night and don’t even think about the game Saturday. They’re in the same situation. We’ll talk about Providence Saturday morning.”

Scouting the Friars
Josh Wilkins leads the team in scoring with a pair of goals and three assists for five points in five games. Fellow sophomore Kasper Björkqvist has a team-high four goals, while Jacob Bryson leads the assists column with four helpers. Other players to watch include Brian Pinho, Vincent Desharnais and Ryan Tait.

PC got a huge boost last weekend when junior defenseman Erik Foley, a former member of the team USA World Junior Championship team came back from injury.

In goal, Hayden Hawkey holds an .871 save percentage and a 3.33 goals against average.

Curry, Carpenter Find Scoring Touch

Coming into the weekend, Bobo Carpenter and Patrick Curry had combined to score zero goals in the first four games of the year. After this weekend, the two had seven between them.

Bobo Carpenter was named Hockey East Player of the week.
(Photo by Matt Dresens)

For Carpenter, it was about being opportunistic. Friday, he scored a pair of shorthanded goals in the second period. He was the first player since Cason Hohmann in the 2015 Hockey East Playoffs against Merrimack to score two shorthanded goals in the same game. Then, on Saturday, Carpenter notched a hat trick with all three of his goals coming on the power-play.

“Bobo’s obviously been a little snakebitten early and it's nice to see guys get off the schneid and get goals,” said coach Quinn on Saturday.

Curry, on the other hand, started the weekend out on the fourth line Friday night. Midway through the game, Head Coach David Quinn moved the sophomore forward up with Jordan Greenway and Shane Bowers.

“I just thought Curry was playing well,” said Quinn after Friday’s game. “We bumped him up there, though he had a lot of energy. He did some things we are going to need him to do. He’s got quick hands and can shoot a puck. I thought he would be a good complement to them.”

Saturday, Quinn took it a step farther, putting Curry on the first line with Brady Tkachuk and Bobo Carpenter. The move paid off just 1:29 into the game when Curry tipped home a John McLeod point shot to give BU a 2-0 lead. Later in the period, Curry scored again, this time off a rebound.

“He’s earned that opportunity,” said Quinn on Saturday. “Pat’s come a long way in a month and a half. From a guy who’s not been in the lineup, he’s claimed a spot for himself. As long as he plays physical and plays with a pace, he’s going to contribute for us.”

Humbly Curry said, “I was fortunate to be near the net and have some pucks bounce off of me.”

Even strength Struggle
Friday night, BU again struggled to find offense in five-on-five situations. In fact, Pat Curry’s first goal on Saturday was the Terriers first even-strength goal since the second period of the first Minnesota State game. That’s 1:23.59 between Shane Bowers’ goals on October 13th and Curry’s goal Saturday night for those scoring at home.

At the Polls
BU was up one slot in the USCHO poll from 7th to 6th. Denver was again the top team in the land with 33 first-place votes. St. Cloud jumped up one peg from 3rd to second, while Harvard, North Dakota and Wisconsin rounded out the top five.

Hockey East Scoreboard
Friday
Lowell 3, at Clarkson 1
Miami 7, at Maine 5
Quinnipiac 6, at Northeastern 4
Providence 6, at St. Lawrence 5 (OT)
Ohio State 3, at UMass 1
Colorado College 3, at New Hampshire 6
Vermont 1, at Michigan 4
Boston College 2, at St. Cloud 5
Merrimack 5, at Duluth 5
UConn 2, at Boston University 2 (OT)

Saturday
Vermont 2, at Michigan 3
Miami 3, at Maine 6
Quinnipiac 3, at Northeastern 2 (OT)
Lowell 5, at St. Lawrence 0
Colorado College 2, at New Hampshire 1 (OT)
Providence 0, at Clarkson 4
Ohio State 3, at UMass 0
Boston College 1, at St Cloud 3
Merrimack 2, at Duluth 7
Boston University 6, at UConn 3

Carpenter Hat Trick Paces Terrier Win Over UConn

Behind a hat trick from Bobo Carpenter, a pair of goals from Patrick Curry and a tally from Brandon Hickey, BU doubled up UConn 6-3 in Hartford to earn their first league win of the season.



Carpenter scored a total of five goals on the weekend, after notching two shorthanded strikes last night.

Jake Oettinger made 27 saves for his third win of the year.

BU will face Denver at home on Friday night and then head to Providence on Saturday.

All Tangled Up

In a back and forth game, BU and Uconn battled to a 2-2 draw in front of 3,397 at Agganis Arena as the Terriers play their first Hockey East league contest of the 2018 campaign.



“That was Hockey East at its finest. There wasn’t a lot of room out there and guys competed. I thought we had a really good first period, thought we defended a lot harder. It's frustrating because we just haven’t been able to score goals.”

Both of BU's goals came shorthanded, both scored by Bobo Carpenter. Johny Austin and Alexander Payusov both scored on the power play for UConn. 

“Our penalty kill let us down tonight,” added Head Coach David Quinn. “You can’t be giving up two goals after you get two shorthand goals. We just don’t have a lot of experience with guys killing right now. That’s going to take some time.”

Jake Oettinger made 31 saves on the night, while UConn goalie Adam Huska turned aside 33. 

Weekend With The Huskies

From The Vault
Former Terrier Ahti Oksanen
battles for a puck down low
against UConn in an October
2015 meeting that BU won 4-2.
(Photo by Matt Dresens)

After getting embarrassed by Mankato State last weekend, BU is back in action this weekend as they square off with UConn in a home and home series to open Hockey East play. Friday night, BU will be the host, while Saturday’s game will be played at the XL Center in Hartford.

The Huskies are 2-2-0 on the year with wins over Maine and America International. UConn surprisingly lost to Sacred Heart last weekend 3-1, despite outshooting the Pioneers 45-22.

One of the keys for BU will be putting last weekend’s results in the rearview mirror.

“Obviously last weekend was incredibly disappointing and surprising, but we have to move past it,” said Coach Quinn. “We had a good week of practice and I’m very confident we will see the team we saw in the first two games instead of the last two.”

A season ago, BU and UConn split a pair of games in November. BU won the first matchup 2-1 at the XL Center behind goals from Jordan Greenway and Gabe Chabot. The next night was a different story. UConn blew out the Terriers 4-0, with Huskie goalie Adam Huska making 37 saves in the shutout.

“We just have to get shots on net,” mentioned senior captain Brandon Hickey. “You can’t score unless you’re shooting. UConn likes to block a lot of shots and they have a really good goalie. We have to direct pucks at him and tire him out, get a bunch of traffic and things are going to start going in.”

Scouting the Huskies.
Sophomore Alexander Payusov is off to a hot start to lead the Huskies in goals scored with four. The Montreal native notched a hat trick on Friday night against AIC in a 6-4 win for UConn. Last year, Payusov registered just two points in 15 games played. Karl El-Mir has five points by way of a pair of goals and three assists. Former Terrier commit Max Letunov has posted a goal and three assists.  

Other players to watch include Spenser Nass, Derek Pratt, and Kasperi Ojantakanen.

In goal, Huska is the owner of a .920 save percentage and a 2.43 goals against average.

Mankato Massacre

Over the weekend, BU was swept at home by Minnesota State in back to back nights at Agganis Arena. It was the first time in the arena’s 12 year history that BU was swept by an out of conference opponent on back to back nights.

The Terriers were, however, swept by Maine on January 27th and 28th in 2012 and again by Vermont in November 2008.

Ty Amonte barrels over Mankato goalie Jason Pawloski on
Saturday night.
(Photo by Matt Dresens)

Mankato’s experience and BU’s youth showed in this series. There were plenty of examples when the older Mavericks outworked and far outplayed the young Terriers.

“They played men's hockey and we played boy’s hockey,” said Head Coach Dave Quinn after Friday night’s 6-3 loss. “We just weren’t physical at all. Overtime they shot a puck and  we would turn and watch for it. We didn’t defend with our feet in the D-zone. It looked like we had never played D-zone coverage before.”

A constant issue for BU over the weekend was passing and decision-making with the puck. The best example of this was on a power play late in the third period of game two. Chad Krys was able to toe-drag around one defender at the top of the circle, but rather than let go a shot from a quality angle, he dished to the middle and the pass was broken up.

“Instead of five foot passes, we were trying to make 50 foot passes,” added Quinn. “we slowed the game down and started giving up odd man rushes and making bad decisions.”

“We have to shoot the puck when we have chances,” mentioned senior captain Brandon Hickey. “There were a couple times that guys had it in the slot and they looked off the shot to make a pass backdoor when the right play would have been to throw it at the goalie.”  

Between the Pipes
Despite being swept and outscored 9-3, Jake Oettinger still had a strong weekend. Friday night, the sophomore netminder sticked aside 39 shots, including 19 in the third period.  Saturday, he allowed two goals, neither of which was his fault, on 25 shots.

“We gave up 45 shots at home, six goals and our goalie played well. You can’t say that a lot,” said Quinn after game one.

Red Light District
Shane Bowers started the scoring just 2:03 into game one on Friday on the power play, he would later score again in the third period on rebound… Jordan Greenway notched his first of the year on a slick play to bat the puck out of mid-air midway through the first period, Friday on the power play.

At the Polls
The Terriers dropped from second to seventh in the USCHO poll. Denver was again Top Dog, receiving all but one first-place votes. Harvard, who has still yet to play a game, continues to move up and are now slated second. St Cloud picked up the one other first-place vote and come in ranked third, with North Dakota and Notre Dame rounding out the top five.

Hockey East Scoreboard
Friday:
Wisconsin 5, at Boston College 2
UMass 5, at Union 4
Colgate 0, at New Hampshire 5
UConn 6, at American International 4
Nebraska Omaha 6, at Lowell 3
Mankato State 6, Boston University 3

Saturday
Vermont 2, at Quinnipiac 3 (OT)
Wisconsin 4, at Merrimack 1
America International 1, at UMass 3
Nebraska Omaha 2, at Lowell 5
Colgate 3, at New Hampshire 5
Northeastern 3, at RIT 3 (OT)
UConn 1, at Sacred Heart 3
Mankato State 3, Boston University 0

Sunday
Boston College 4, at Providence 3 (OT)
Vermont 3, at Union 2

Mankato Completes The Sweep -Photos-

It was another tough night for the Terriers, as they fell 3-0 to Minnesota State.

After a scoreless first period,  Mankato's Nicolas Rivera scored at 7:15 to get the Mavericks on the board on the power play. CJ Suess doubled the lead at 13:56 of the second and Marc Michaelis added an empty-netter to wrap up the scoring.



Jake Oettinger made 25 saves, while MSU netminder Jason Pawloski turned aside 26 shots for the shutout.

The Terriers went 0-4 on the power play, including three man advantages in the first period

"Tonight it was more disappointing because we lost. I thought that we did a lot of things that we didn't do last night. I thought we competed. I thought we were physical. I thought we had a good first period, couldn't get a power-play goal. Second period they started coming at us a bit more. We get a too many men on the ice penalty and they capitalize on it on the power play and make it 1-0. One thing we are right now, when we face adversity in the middle of the game, we tend to feel sorry for ourselves. That's kinda what was going on tonight," said Coach Quinn.

Next up, BU has a home and home with UConn.

Mankato Game 1 Slide Show

Weekend With Mankato

- Article originally published on WTBU Sports -

After a thrilling come-from-behind overtime win Sunday afternoon at Quinnipiac, BU is back in action this weekend with a pair of games at Agganis Arena against Minnesota State – Mankato, a school the Terriers have never played in their 96-year history.

From The Vault
Former Terrier Connor LaCouvee makes his return to BU
this weekend as a member of the Mavericks.
(Photo by Matt Dresens)

The two teams enter this weekend going in opposite directions. BU is a perfect 2-0-0 on the year, while the Mavericks lost their season opener a week ago, 4-0, at St. Cloud State.

Mankato is projected to have a strong season, as they were selected first in the WCHA preseason coaches’ poll. They return five of their top six scorers from a season ago when they finished third in the WCHA.

With Mankato being a team BU has never faced, Head Coach David Quinn wanted to focus more on improving his own team in practice rather than game-planning for the Mavericks.

“I think at this point in the season everyone is just working their own thing,” Quinn said. “There’s not a lot of pre-scouting and tailoring your practices, you just want to be good at what you’re good at. You’re trying to implement what you’re trying to do and do it well.”

Playing at an up-tempo pace has been a huge emphasis for Quinn so far. For a player like Patrick Harper, who has been on fire to start the year, posting four goals and two assists, this is exactly the type of system that best fits his game.

“I think with the forward group and D we have, we all want to play a fast, skillful and effective game,” Harper mentioned. “We want to control the pace out there, and dictate the offense and play a fast transition game. The plan doesn’t really change week to week. We are approaching Minnesota-Mankato the same way we have the last two games.”

The players may be approaching the games similarly, but the lineup will look a bit different this weekend.

Coach Quinn declared that junior goalie Max Prawdzik will be in the lineup on Friday, saying simply, “you’ll see him tomorrow night.” Whether that means he will play the entire game remains unclear. Prawdzik allowed five goals on 27 shots to PEI in BU’s exhibition contest two weeks ago.

Scouting The Mavericks
Through one game this year, no one has scored for Mankato after they were shutout by St. Cloud. That being said, the Mavericks do have some firepower. Brad McClure, Marc Michaelis and CJ Suess combined to score 40 points as a line last year. As a freshman, Michaelis lead the team in scoring with 14 goals and 22 assists for 36 points. Suess was right behind Michaelis with 31 points by way of 12 goals and 19 assists. The team also returns their leading goal-scorer from a year ago in Zeb Knutson, who found the back of the net 15 times in 2017.

In goal, Jason Pawloski allowed three goals on 25 shots to St. Cloud last weekend. A year ago, he split time with Cole Huggins, who has since graduated.

Another Familiar Face
For the second consecutive weekend, another former Terrier will do battle against his old team. Last week, it was Kevin Duane and Brandon Fortunato, this week Connor LaCouvee makes his return to Agganis Arena. The graduate transfer finished up school at BU last spring in just three years, and now, as a Maverick, he could very well see time in goal this weekend.

In three season with the Terriers, LaCouvee saw time in 32 games, posting an 11-5-4 record with a .903 save percentage and a 2.88 goals against average.

Close Encounter
While BU and Minnesota State haven’t actually faced off against one another, the two schools did both participate in the 2011 Shillelagh Tournament hosted by Notre Dame. BU lost to Brown in the first round and Mankato beat Notre Dame to advance to the championship game, where the Mavericks cruised to a 7-3 victory to win the holiday tournament over Brown.

Harper Continues Hot Start

(Photo by Matt Dresens)

BU won their lone game of the weekend in dramatic fashion, dropping Quinnipiac 3-2 in overtime Sunday afternoon.

Unfortunately, I could not make the trip because I was playing hockey at another Connecticut based college, but did listen to some of the game.

Patrick Harper continued his torrid pace to the start of the season, notching two goals and an assist. Freshman Shane Bowers scored the game-winner with less than a minute left off a shot from Harper in the slot.

Coach Quinn put it simply, saying, “I’m glad he was on our team tonight, I'll tell you that.”

Harper now has four of the team’s eight total goals, and currently leads the nation in scoring with four goals and two assists.

A season ago, Harper started off on a tear, too. He posted two goals on opening night at Colgate and then two assists in game two at Denver. In fact, the New Canaan, Connecticut native found the scoresheet in his first seven games as a Terrier and wasn’t held pointless in back to back games until the first weekend of December.

“I think he’s playing at a better pace,” mentioned coach Quinn. “We’ve talked a lot about playing with a pace without the puck. He’s really good with it and plays quick with it, but when the other team gets it there’s a little bit of a lull. So far, I think he’s elevated the pace of play without the puck.”

Next weekend, BU squares off against an unfamiliar foe in Minnesota State (Mankato). The two games at Agganis will be the first time the Terriers battle the Mavericks. Mankato elevated their program from Division III to DII in 1994, before climbing to the Division I ranks in 1997.

There will be one familiar face on the ice, though. Former Terrier goalie and graduate transfer Connor LaCouvee is now a Maverick and will more than likely see time in one of the two games. The complete weekend preview will be up Thursday.

At the Polls
BU stayed put at number two, picking up five first-place votes in the process. Denver was again number one, despite not playing a game yet. Harvard, who also have not kicked their season off yet, moved up from fourth to third, while Notre Dame and Minnesota Duluth rounded out the top five.

Hockey East Scoreboard

Friday:
New Hampshire 4, at Lowell 3
UConn 3, at Maine 4 (OT)
Quinnipiac 1, at Boston College 1 (OT)
Sacred Heart 3, at Northeastern 7
UMass 3, at Arizona State 5
Colorado College 0, at Vermont 3
Merrimack 1, at Colgate 2
Providence 3, at Miami 1

Saturday 
UConn 5, at Maine 1
Lowell 1, New Hampshire 3
Sacred Heart 0, at Northeastern 7
UMass 4, at Arizona State 2
Colorado College 4, at Vermont 3
Merrimack 2, at Colgate 2 (OT)
Providence 3, at Miami 2

Sunday:
BU 3, at Quinnipiac 2 (OT)

Battle With The Bobcats

Ex-Terrier Kevin Duane will skate
against his former team for the first time
tonight as a member of the Bobcats.
(Photo by Matt Dresens)

Article first published on WTBU 

In a rare Sunday matinée, BU travels to Hamden, Connecticut to take on Quinnipiac in the Bobcats home opener at High Point Solutions Arena.

This last week, BU finally had some real practice time to prepare for this weekend’s game. Last week’s win against Union was the earliest scheduled game in the 96-year history of the Terrier hockey program.

“This is the first week we had enough time to work on the things we want to work on,” mentioned sophomore defenseman Chad Krys. “Five-on-five, PK, PP, pretty much all aspects of the game is what we’ve been doing this week.”

A net-front presence was a key to BU’s success last weekend, most notably from Jordan Greenway and Brady Tkachuk, who found themselves in the thick a number of scrums in front of the net. Patrick Harper’s power-play goal was also a direct result of a battle being won at the net.

“We got guys who will go there [the front of the net] and need to go there,” added Coach Quinn. “I love when there’s big scrums in front of the opposing team’s net. That means we’re pissing people off, and that’s what we need to do.”

Friday night, Quinnipiac opened their season at Boston College. The two teams skated to a 1-1 draw at Conte Forum as BC tied things up late in the third period on the power play.

A year ago, BU blanked the Bobcats, 3-0, at home. Jordan Greenway, Bobo Carpenter and Jakob Forsbacka-Karlsson registered the goals, while Jake Oettinger turned aside 22 shots for the shutout.

In December 2015, BU toppled the then-unbeaten Bobcats, 4-1, in Hamden, handing QU their first loss of the season.

“Every year is different,” said Quinn. “Every team’s different, but their identity will be the same. They have good skill, they are big and strong, well coached and they’ll have a good goalie. It certainly will be a challenge, especially going into our first road game. It will be interesting to see how we react in a hostile environment.”

Scouting the Bobcats
Quinnipiac lost a lot of firepower off of last year’s roster with the departure of Sam Anas, Devon Towes, and brothers Tim and Connor Clifton. The Bobcats do return their top three scorers from last year in Landon Smith, Craig Martin and Chase Priskie.

Smith notched 11 goals and 18 assists in 40 games played to lead QU with 29 points. Bo Pieper is the top returning goal scorer for Quinnipiac. The senior forward amassed 13 goals a season ago and also added 12 assists.

In goal, Andrew Shortridge made 25 saves against Boston College last night. A season ago, the sophomore from Anchorage, Alaska saw time in 26 games and recorded a .920 save percentage to go along with a 2.08 goals against average. The Terriers faced Shortbridge last season, scoring twice on the then-freshman netminder, who was making just his second collegiate start.

BU will also face two familiar faces this weekend. Although the two never played together at BU, Kevin Duane and Brandon Fortunato both transferred from Comm. Ave. to Quinnipiac.

Duane has been at QU since the Fall of 2015, but due to transfer rules, could not play until the Fall of 2016. Last year he played in 29 games, scoring 4 goals and adding 9 assists.

Fortunato, on the other hand, sat out all of last year. The now senior defenseman departed BU after the 2016 season and played in his first game as a Bobcat Friday night against BC.

Power Surge

Patrick Harper and Dante Fabbro celebrate
after Harper's first period power play tally.
(Photo by Matt Dresens)

If there was anything to take away from this weekend, it was the power play. A season ago, despite having a wealth of talent on the man advantage, BU struggled to find the net. The Terriers had the fourth-ranked power play in Hockey East at just a 16.9% conversation rate. By contrast, Northeastern scored 30.1% of the time.

In two games this weekend (yes, one was an exhibition game), BU went 6 for 15 (40%) on the man advantage. That included both non-empty net goals on Saturday against Union and four against PEI on Sunday.

This early in the season those numbers have to be taken with a grain of salt. Usually, the power play is ahead of the penalty kill early in the year. It takes time for defensive units to gel and for players to learn their defensive role.

“I thought we did a better job in the offensive zone, using the points, using the back of the net,” said Coach Quinn about his team’s power play on Saturday night. “We didn’t do that early on. The fact that they seem coachable and are actually listening is an encouraging sign. And again… it's September 30th.”

Dante Fabbro and Patrick Harper were two key components of the man advantage on Saturday. Early on, both Harper and Fabbro were on their forehand side, essentially taking away the one-time option.

“We had a little powwow between the second and third periods about getting on their offsides,” mentioned Quinn. “Those two guys are so good at making passes and shooting the puck. It creates much more of a scoring threat [when they are on their offsides].”

The powwow paid off immensely as Harper made a cross-ice pass through a tight seam to Fabbro at the near side dot, where the sophomore d-man one-timed home the eventual game-winner.

“I know last year we struggled [on the power play] a lot because we held on to the puck too long,” added Fabbro. “I think our mentality this year is to shoot the puck, find those seams and attack the rebounds. I think so far so good.”  

Attacking a loose rebound is exactly what Harper did to score his first of two on Saturday. From the side of the net with Union goalie Jake Kupski down and out, Harper chipped in the loose change to tie the game 1-1 in the first period.

Red Light District (Goals scored on the weekend)
Two goals:
    Pat Harper
    Brady Tkachuk
One goal
    Dante Fabbro
    Shane Bowers
    Patrick Curry
    Chad Krys
    Brandon Hickey
Totals: 10 goals for, 7 goals against. 

At the Polls 
There was no USCHO poll this week. BU is still ranked second in the nation behind Denver. Minnesota is third, Harvard is slotted fourth and Lowell rounds out the top five. Currently, there are five Hockey East schools in the top 20.

Hockey East Scoreboard 
Saturday (all exhibition games except BU)
St. Francis Xavier 1, at UConn 2
New Brunswick 2, at Boston College 4
Acadia 2, at Lowell 4
PEI 1, at Northeastern 9
Queen’s 0, at Umass 1
Union 1, at BU 4

Sunday
Acadia 1, at Maine 3
St. Francis Xavier 3 at New Hampshire 3 (OT)
Waterloo 1, at Vermont 6
PEI 5, at BU 5 (OT)

Photos From Union