A 6-1 loss to Northeastern was obviously not the start to a weekend Boston University had in mind Friday, but despite the result, coach David Quinn saw positives and points to build off in his team’s effort.
Just 24 hours later, on Saturday night at Agganis Arena, the feeling at game’s end was all positive for the Terriers. BU scored once in each of the first two periods and twice in the third to take a 4-0 win over New Hampshire, backing redshirt sophomore Max Prawdzik, who made 29 saves in his first collegiate start.
“Just a great night for us, for a lot of reasons,” Quinn said. “Last night was a real tough pill to swallow, but I felt good about a lot of things. I thought we were making progress in some areas, and we built off that tonight. You feel so good for Max for all he’s been through since he’s been here at BU. He just keeps working hard and persevering, and the guys are so happy for him.”
Prawdzik made 12 of his stops in the first period en route to BU’s fifth victory of the season. He is the first BU goaltender to earn a shutout in his first collegiate start since Sean Fields against Merrimack on Nov. 4, 2000.
The BU offense came through in the first half of all three periods in support of the Andover, Massachusetts, native goaltender, who made just his second official collegiate appearance. Ty Amonte picked the corner over UNH senior Daniel Tirone’s blocker on a shot from outside the left circle at 9:34, while defenseman Dante Fabbro doubled the lead 2:59 into the second on a long shot from just inside the blue line.
The visitors pushed back after falling behind 2-0, but Prawdzik made 11 saves in a second period in which he faced his toughest work. A flashy pad save on Kohei Sato’s backhand try came in the final five minutes, giving the Terriers all the momentum for the third.
“We played a really simple game and didn’t give up too many crazy scoring chances,” Prawdzik said. “We were playing well, but I still got some touches (early in the game). I felt like I was able to get adjusted to the game, and from then on out the guys were really, really solid.”
“I wasn’t disappointed in the guys’ effort, but we just didn’t have enough to win the game,” said UNH coach Dick Umile. “We had some chances to maybe get back into the game when it was 2-0, and we missed some scoring opportunities. They were more opportunistic, and the results were obvious.”
BU’s junior assistant captains doubled the lead for good in the final frame, as Jordan Greenway buried a rebound at the 8:00 mark and Bobo Carpenter let a wrister go upstairs at 13:28. Carpenter’s goal was his team-leading seventh of the season. Brady Tkachuk assisted on both third-period goals for his second multi-point game of his college career.
“I liked the balance in our lines tonight; I thought we defended well and created a lot of scoring chances for ourselves,” Quinn said. “To bounce back as quickly as we did, in the way we did, I feel really good for our players, and hopefully it’s the start of some good things happening.”
Hockey East roundup
No. 8 Providence 7, Massachusetts 2
Three players contributed three or more points apiece as the Friars went 5-for-8 on the power play in a decisive win at Schneider Arena. After UMass rookie John Leonard knotted the score with his fourth goal of the season 6:10 into the first, the hosts scored four consecutive man-up goals — including two off the stick of freshman defenseman Ben Mirageas — to take a commanding lead that was never relinquished. Mirageas finished with the two goals and two assists, while Scott Conway scored a goal and three assists, and fellow center Brian Pinho scored twice and added a helper. Matt Murray made 39 saves in a losing effort.
UMass Lowell 4, No. 13 Northeastern 2
At Tsongas Center, a three-goal third period lifted the River Hawks to a crucial second consecutive Hockey East victory and ended the visitors’ four-game winning streak. Defenseman Tommy Panico scored a pair of third-period goals and added an assist, while Nick Master sent in the game-winner at the 5:09 mark. Christoffer Hernberg made 20 of his 33 saves in the second period in his sixth win in seven decisions this season. Nolan Stevens and Adam Gaudette notched two points apiece for the Huskies.
Boston College 5, Vermont 1
Vermont scored twice for the second straight game as Ross Colton tallied 11:26 into the first period, but five unanswered goals thereafter lifted BC to a weekend sweep at Gutterson Fieldhouse. Two came off the stick of freshman Christopher Grando, including a short-handed game-winner 9:52 into the middle frame. Grando also assisted classmate Jacob Tortora, who gave the Eagles a two-goal advantage at 14:58 of the second. Ryan Edquist made 23 saves in his third start for BC, which has won five straight games after going 1-5-1 to begin the year.
No. 17 Ohio State 1, Connecticut 1 (OT)
The Huskies snapped a three-game losing streak with a tie in the back end of their nonconference series at XL Center, as senior Jesse Schwartz tied a career-high with his third goal of the season with just 3:21 remaining in regulation. Ohio State’s goal came from Tanner Laczynski at the 9:23 mark of the third. Sophomore Adam Huska made 24 saves in the draw, which moved UConn to 3-8-2. Sean Romeo, who started his collegiate career at Maine before transferring to OSU, made 29 stops.
