Following its season-opening victory last weekend, the No. 2/1 Boston University men’s hockey team is set to open Hockey East play against the University of New Hampshire Wildcats in Durham, N.H. Friday night.
The Terriers are coming off a 3-2 overtime win against the Bentley University Falcons. Although they secured the game, BU did not dominate in blowout fashion as they did in last season’s 8-2 season-opening win against the same team.
“I thought we really struggled in our breakouts,” BU head coach Jay Pandolfo said to the media Thursday. “We gave up at least three grade-A scoring chances off our breakouts — give credit to their forecheck — but we have to be better in that area.”
This weekend, Pandolfo is also looking for his team to have improved communication with their goaltender. He admits this comes with BU having an entirely new goalie rotation this season, but he made sure to emphasize this factor in practice.
“The communication has to be better there,” Pandolfo said. “They had some chances right at the beginning of the second period. They almost scored off of a botched goalie handle, so that’s something we worked on.”
The Terriers’ newest starting goaltender, junior transfer Mathieu Caron, earned his first victory in the scarlet and white in his BU debut and made 21 saves against the Falcons.
“I’ve been waiting for this moment for a while, so it felt good to finally get out there,” Caron said to the media Thursday. “It was really fun to represent BU for the first time.”
Not to be overlooked by the circumstances, the Terriers managed to pull out the win in the end. Fortunately for BU, the depth of this team bailed them out this time.
“I don’t think we were quite expecting a game like that,” Caron said. “It shows that there’s going to be some tough games, but we have full confidence to pull through in those times.”
And nevertheless, facing adversity of that game’s caliber early on in the season can only make the team stronger as they prepare for tougher opponents down the stretch.
“They made it really hard on us, and getting exposed to that kind of atmosphere early is important,” BU alternate captain Sam Stevens said to the media Thursday. “Every game is gonna be a dogfight, and I think we know what to expect now.”
BU swept UNH in their two-game home-and-home series last December, posting 6-3 and 3-0 victories. This season, the Wildcats were selected to place second to last in the Hockey East preseason coaches poll.
On paper, Friday’s game will not be their toughest test of their season, but the Terriers learned last weekend that no opponent can be disregarded.
Pandolfo will be rolling similar forward lines from the Bentley game against UNH.
“I might make a change or two,” Pandolfo said. “But I think for the most part it will look similar — at least to start.”
Junior forward Jack Hughes is “doubtful” to return this weekend, according to Pandolfo. The Northeastern transfer – who is dealing with a lower body injury – returned to the ice this week but has not participated in a team practice.
Meanwhile, freshman defenseman Tom Willander is expected to make his collegiate debut after being forced to sit out of the season-opener per NCAA rules.
It is unclear who the Canucks prospect will be paired with, but Willander should get looks with a couple of different blueliners as the Terriers plan to dress seven defensemen.
“He’s played with all different players this week on the back end,” Pandolfo said. “I’m sure he’ll actually be moved around a little bit over the course of the game.”
Five things to know about UNH ahead of Friday:
- Friday’s matchup marks the Wildcats’ season opener, but the team is coming off a 3-2 exhibition loss against conference rival Maine on Oct. 7.
- UNH finished the 2022-23 season with a 11-21-3 overall record and a 6-15-3 Hockey East record — placing second to last in the conference.
- Sophomore goaltender Tyler Muszelik played a backup role last season but is expected to compete for the starting position this year alongside North Dakota junior transfer Jakob Hellsten.
- Junior forward Liam Devlin is one of 19 returning players and led the Wildcats in points last season with 24 (12 goals, 12 assists) over 35 games.
- Sophomore forward Cy Leclerc led UNH in scoring as a freshman last season, posting 13 goals.
On Saturday, BU will get a better look at their depth as they take on the U18 U.S. National Team Development Program for their annual exhibition matchup.
The Terriers have not pulled out a win against the program since 2019, but Pandolfo looks forward to the early exhibition matchup as his team gets into the rhythm of the season.
As the schedule wears on, his team will primarily play back-to-back sets of weekend games — but with last weekend’s lone contest, this weekend’s schedule gives his young team a better taste of what to expect.
“I think this early in the year it’s kind of nice,” Pandolfo said. “I think that’s one of the most important things — to get used to that kind of grind.”
Although the final score will have no effect on their overall record, the spectacle will give fans a look at some of the NCAA’s future stars. In particular, BU fans will have all eyes on Terrier commits Cole Eiserman, Kamil Bednarik, and Cole Hutson.
Top 2024 NHL Draft prospect Eiserman recently made the flip from the University of Minnesota to BU and notably played with BU’s star freshman forward Macklin Celebrini at Shattuck-St. Mary’s Prep.
Hutson is the third of four Hutson brothers and will get to face off against his two older brothers, Quinn and Lane.
“[Quinn and I] are really excited to get on the ice with him,” Lane said. “This is the first time ever that all three of us will be on the ice together.”
The Terriers will be squaring up against a U18 team loaded with talent, and they are not going to write it off.
“Every game is important to us. We’re going out there and trying to win,” Stevens said. “We’re not taking it for granted.”
Friday night’s game starts at 8p.m. at the Whittemore Center, and Saturday’s exhibition game will follow at 7p.m. at Agganis Arena. The Boston Hockey Blog will have full coverage of the matchup so be sure to follow along on Twitter (X) @BOShockeyblog and Instagram @boston.hockey.blog.
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