BC Hockey: Semifinal Preview vs. UConn.
By: Luke Ballard
With Merrimack’s shocking overtime winner against Providence, Boston College’s semifinal opponent will be the UConn Huskies (19–11–5, 12–9–3 Hockey East).
The Huskies, seeded third in Hockey East, beat the Boston University Terriers 5–3 Saturday at the Toscano Family Forum. UConn’s third-place finish in Hockey East is the highest in program history.
UConn, which never trailed, started the scoring early in the first period with a Jake Percival snapshot on a 2-on-1 opportunity. UConn’s fourth line has been a spark plug for the Huskies all year long, providing energy and much-needed scoring opportunities. Percival again almost opened the scoring at the start of the second for UConn if it wasn’t for a beautiful save by Terrier netminder Mikhail Yegorov; however, BU would immediately take the puck down ice as Tynan Lawrence would score unassisted to even the game.
BC should be attentive when UConn’s fourth line is skating, as they have proven time and time again to be a credible threat. What seemed to be working for UConn quite well in their contest against BU was to skate their Percival-led fourth line against BU’s top unit, and then skate their top line against BU’s bottom two units. The fourth line held its own against the star-studded BU cast, and UConn picked apart BU’s lower lines all night. BC should be careful not to fall into that same trap.
Jake Richard put UConn back on top, catching Yegorov out of position. It was Richard’s 10th goal of the season, as Richard is tied for third in points scored for the Huskies, with 27 points, level with Joey Muldowney. Muldowney scored the closing goal on an empty net as the duo continues to produce on ice.
Ethan Whitcomb and Anthony Allain Samake would score the remaining two goals for the Huskies.
As for the Boston College Eagles, the last time they met with the Huskies, the Eagles pulled off the weekend sweep, defeating UConn 5–2 and 2–1 (OT). Although these two games were the last ones BC won in the regular season, they played as if they belonged among the best teams in the country, something they can hope to replicate come Friday night.
James Hagens recorded four points in the weekend series, including a hat-trick in game one. Hagens, who is a favorite to win the Hobey Baker, recorded three points in Friday night’s win over Maine, notching two goals and one assist. BC will continue to look toward Hagens for production as the Bruins ‘ first-rounder has certainly hit his stride down the latter stretch of the season.
Dean Letourneau has continued his comeback player of the year-worthy season, as he recorded two points in Friday’s contest and four in the previous weekend series versus UConn. Letourneau, who had three points on three assists last season, now sits at 37 points with 20 goals and 17 assists. The leap Letourneau has taken has been nothing short of extraordinary, as he will certainly play a key role in Friday’s game.
As for the BC netminder, Louka Cloutier looked very solid against Maine, making multiple diving and kick saves to prevent what were sure to be Black Bear goals. Despite some recent shaky performances, Cloutier looked comfortable against Maine. In the previous series versus UConn, Cloutier recorded a combined .929 save percentage while only allowing three goals. Coming hot off the shutout win, I can see Cloutier entering this game with the utmost confidence.
It is important to remember that it is do-or-die for Boston College, as their only path to the national tournament comes through a Hockey East championship, which they have only won once since 2013, that being in 2024. The last time the Eagles visited The Garden, they won their first Beanpot in 10 years; perhaps this year, they will look to make history again.