The second-ranked Boston University men’s ice hockey team (12-4-1, 7-1-1 Hockey East) will officially open up the new year on Tuesday night with a game against crosstown rival Northeastern University(6-9-2, 1-8-0 HE).
“I know our guys are looking forward to it, and they typically play very well against us, so we have to make sure we’re at our best tomorrow,” head coach Jay Pandolfo said in his weekly media call on Monday.
Tuesday’s matchup marks the first time the two teams have met since the Huskies beat the Terriers in the opening round of last season’s Beanpot.
“I think our guys get pretty excited to play Northeastern. It’s been like that the last couple of years…I don’t think there’s any added motivation,” Pandolfo said of the team’s mindset going into the rematch.
The Huskies are looking for a strong second half after a mixed start to the season. Northeastern lost all of its first seven conference games before a 5-3 win over Boston College on Dec. 1.
To make a run at an at-large bid in the NCAA Tournament, the Huskies would need to jump 10 spots in the Pairwise from their current standing at 24th. Coming off a tie against Quinnipiac on Saturday, the team may be building some momentum.
“Northeastern’s playing very well coming off their game against Quinnipiac, so we expect it’s going to be a tough game,” Pandolfo said.
This year, the rivalry between BU and Northeastern is missing one of its most prominent faces: Husky goalie Devon Levi, who left in the offseason to join the Buffalo Sabres.
The loss of Levi, who held the Terriers scoreless in his career starts at Agganis Arena, will only help the Terriers’ chances to grab a win at home against this squad.
But despite the question marks at goalie in Levi’s absence, freshman goaltender Cameron Whitehead has emerged as an above-average solution in net for the Huskies. Whitehead has posted a 2.72 GAA and a .909 save percentage in his 16 starts this season. The 20-year-old Ontario, Canada native was picked in the fourth round of the 2022 NHL Entry Draft by the Vegas Golden Knights.
Junior forward Jack Hughes will get a chance to face off against his old team for the first time since transferring to BU this offseason. Back in September, Hughes said he was “definitely excited” for the January matchup against Northeastern.
“I’m still friends with a lot of those guys, a lot of them I’m really close with,” Hughes said before the season.
Through his first 15 games with the Terriers, Hughes has played mostly on the third line, tallying two goals and three assists.
The contest is also the first game for BU since the end of the 2024 IIHF World Juniors Tournament on Jan. 5.
“Playing that tournament on a huge stage, all of them played very well, I think you can gain some confidence off it, so I expect them to come back and have great second halves,” Pandolfo said.
BU’s participants, Lane Hutson, Macklin Celebrini, and Tom Willander, will all be available for Tuesday night’s game, despite the fact that Huston and Willander’s hockey equipment is currently lost in transit.
“Tom and Lane still do not have their hockey bags, so hopefully they have those by tomorrow,” Pandolfo said.
Five things to know about Northeastern
- Northeastern’s leading scorer is sophomore forward Jack Williams, with 10 goals in 15 games played.
- The Huskies’ captain is senior forward Justin Hryckowian who won the Hockey East Best Defensive Award last year.
- Despite a sub .500 record this season, the Huskies are outscoring opponents by a slim margin of 49-48.
- Northeastern lost three of their biggest stars to the NHL in the offseason, in Levi, Jayden Struble (Montreal Canadiens), and Aidan McDonough (Vancouver Canucks).
- The Huskies lead the country in shorthanded goals with seven. They’ve posted an 84.3% penalty kill percentage.
Puck drop is set for Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Agganis, and the Boston Hockey Blog will have full, on-the-ground coverage. Follow along at hockey.dailyfreepress.com and on Twitter (X) and Instagram @BosHockeyBlog.
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