On Friday night, the BC men’s hockey team traveled down Comm Ave to face their archrivals from Boston University. The Eagles and Terriers played this one-off game on Friday just before the Beanpot begins on Monday, and aren’t set to face each other again until the end of the season. Boston College defeated their red and white rivals, 4-1.
Boston College took an early lead at Agganis when Andre Gasseau scored in under four minutes after the opening whistle. Another BC goal was called off for offsides, but the Eagles still managed to hold off the strong Terrier attack in the first frame. BC extended their lead to 2-0 in the second period when James Hagens scored on a 2-on-1 breakaway pass from Dean Letourneau.
After killing a penalty for holding, BC came right back and scored again thanks to Letourneau on a crafty play in front of the net. Despite facing a 3-0 deficit heading into the final period, BU continued to fight. BC had their hands full with a highly motivated Terrier squad that was getting more physical, starting spats after the whistle, and fighting for the puck. BU scored a powerplay goal within the first minute of the third period to make it 3-1.
Boston College got some great penalty luck after that by earning about a minute of 5-on-3, but they squandered their opportunities and failed to convert a goal. From there, Boston University kept up the offensive pressure and forced BC into some uncomfortable situations, fighting hard for even just line changes. But they survived on and on, even through a penalty kill, eventually getting a powerplay themselves with under 5 minutes remaining. The Eagles didn’t score on that PP, but it allowed them to drain the remainder of the clock and score an empty netter to secure a 4-1 victory.
