It is impossible to win a hockey game without scoring — just ask BU.
For the second consecutive contest, the Terriers were shut out, this time against Maine, 2-0, at Walter Brown Arena on Saturday afternoon.
After producing 18 shots on goal against Vermont on Thursday, BU (9-17-3, 7-11-2 Hockey East) mustered just 16 on Black Bears’ sophomore goaltender Kiia Lahtinen.
Despite that, head coach Tara Watchorn felt that the Terriers improved on their performance from Thursday, but that there is still “more to go.”
“They took a lot of strides today with our habits and trying the things that we want to do,” she said postgame. “We’re gonna keep fighting.”
It was a lethargic start for both BU and Maine (11-17-3, 7-11-3 HE) on Saturday afternoon, with each side struggling to generate consistent offensive pressure. A body checking call on senior Riley Walsh to give the Black Bears a first power play didn’t help either, as the Terriers’ penalty kill effectively thwarted the player advantage.
With just 44 seconds remaining in the first period, BU thought it had opened the scoring. Senior Clara Yuhn slid a backhanded pass in front of the Maine net, which sophomore Kaileigh Quigg swatted past Lahtinen. The Black Bears successfully challenged the play for offsides, and the goal was overturned.
With 12 seconds remaining in the frame, Quigg, still seeking her first goal since Nov. 21 against Providence, had another excellent opportunity. Wide open in the slot, she received a pass from senior Sydney Healey from behind the net, but Quigg’s shot was saved.
After a more lively start to the second period, sparked in part by a strong shift from BU’s third line of freshmen Lexie Bertelsen and Anežka Čabelová and sophomore Lola Reid, the Terriers earned their first power play of the game when sophomore Stephanie Jacob was called for slashing at 4:14.
BU created little offense in the game’s first two periods, registering just 11 shots on goal — Bertelsen, Čabelová, and Reid were the Terriers’ most potent forward line throughout the game.
“We talked a lot about reloads, stopping on pucks, commitment to getting pucks in deep when you can,” Watchorn said. “I think that there was a lot of emphasis on that, and they were really trying.”
Before Maine could kill the penalty, Quigg was whistled for high-sticking, and Jacob opened the scoring for the road team on the power play at 7:17.
Graduate goaltender Michelle Pasiechnyk, who stopped 17 of the 18 shots she faced in the loss, made the initial stop, but Jacob collected the rebound and flung a backhander past her high blocker to give the Black Bears a 1-0 lead.
Jacob tacked on a second goal at 17:31 of the third period with the BU net vacant.
Maine wasn’t even exceptional on Saturday. The Terriers were in the game the entire way but were just completely stagnant while in possession of the puck. BU hasn’t scored in its last 129:29 of play.
When asked what her team needs to improve upon, the first thing Watchorn mentioned was confidence.
“I think that comes from everyday practice, and it comes from doing it over time, and continuing to take ownership,” she said.
Watchorn even admitted that the Terriers are still fighting to rebound from their loss to Harvard in the Beanpot final on Jan. 20. But time is running out, with just four regular season games remaining.
