Seven minutes and 20 seconds.
It took the BU men’s hockey team that long to record its second shot on net against Union last Saturday. At that point, the Garnet Chargers had reached double digits.
“It was a lack of focus by our group,” Pandolfo said. “Letting guys behind us, giving them Grade-A chances which we typically don’t do.”
The No. 3 Terriers (2-0) quickly figured it out, stringing together three goals by the end of the period in what would be a 4-1 win. BU will need a much more polished showing against the University of Connecticut (3-1) at Agganis Arena on Friday for a 7 p.m. puck drop.
The following day, the Terriers will take on Harvard in an exhibition game for a preview of February’s Beanpot Semifinal.
BU has the chance to iron out any wrinkles before being thrown into the fire next weekend in a two-game away series with No. 5 North Dakota.
Caron can’t bail Terriers out of sluggish starts forever
Goaltender Mathieu Caron has an early case for team MVP. The senior goaltender bailed out BU’s young defensive core a few times through the first two weeks — none more than in the first period against Union.
It is a testament to the goaltender’s mentality entering the season, which he described as “comfortable” and “confident.” It is clear Caron isn’t just a player who can hold firm in net, but a player who can be the sole reason a team wins games.
This weekend is the perfect opportunity for the Terriers to show a 200-foot, 60-minute dominant performance.
“It’s just a mindset to make sure that we’re ready when the when the puck drops,” Pandolfo said. “There’s no way of drawing anything up. It’s a mentality, and it’s a focus, and that’s what thought we were lacking in the first period.”
Discipline. Discipline. Discipline.
The Terriers lead the NCAA in penalty minutes per game with 28. A two-game sample may not say much, but it is far from a good look. Assistant captain Devin Kaplan takes the lion’s share of those minutes with 23 — the PIM leader in the NCAA.
Similar to the slow start, it hasn’t bitten the Terriers. Yet.
However, the Terriers strength tends to be dragging the opposing team down with them. This could point to the aggression and ability to get under opponents’ skin.
In the first game of the season, the Terriers’ 46 penalty minutes (thanks to a pair of misconducts from freshman Cole Eiserman and Kaplan) was nearly matched by the Holy Cross Crusaders’ 37. Union recorded the same 10 penalty minutes as BU.
UConn plays a physical game, setting the stage for flare-ups on Friday night. The Huskies average nine penalty minutes in each of their first four games.
Taking penalties against a better, more disciplined team will be a major Achilles’ heel just as it was last year in the Hockey East Championship against Boston College. The Terriers need to walk the line better, and this Friday will be a litmus test.
The kids are alright
The story of the season for the Terriers has been the youth movement. But with a team so young, how will they adjust to college hockey? Will there be learning curves? Will it take time to fit into BU’s system?
While the freshman class is not infallible, the answer to all the above questions is an overwhelming no. Cole Eiserman and Cole Hutson have lived up to the billing. But the most surprising newcomer has been Alex Zetterberg.
The undersized Swede scored his second goal on Saturday with a powerplay snipe. Pandolfo commended him for his hockey IQ.
“He knows what he’s going to do in the puck before he gets it,” Pandolfo said. “He’s undersized, and I feel like he’s had to use his hockey sense to get by at times. He’s probably had to do that since he was younger, and it shows like he just really is intelligent.”
Scouting the Huskies
Connecticut is 3-1 this season with a sweep of Colgate and a split with Holy Cross. Sophomore forward Jake Richard leads the team with six points on four goals and two assists with junior Jake Percival right behind with five.
The Huskies’ offense ranks in the top 10 nationally with four goals per game.
“They’re playing with a lot of structure in their game. They compete really hard. They’re playing physical,” Pandolfo said. “We have to be ready for them. They always play us tough, and tomorrow the first league game is going to be a good test.”
The Terriers took care of business against the Huskies last season, outpacing them 12-1 in the two-game series.
UConn is anchored by junior goaltender Tyler Muszelik, who transferred from New Hampshire last offseason. Muszelik has a .902 save percentage this season, but he recorded an .883 save percentage in his best season with the Wildcats in 2022.
Saturday night chaos?
The Terriers have a chance to use Saturday night as a lab to make any last-minute tweaks or line shuffles ahead of the North Dakota series. Pandolfo noted there is no limit on the number of players to dress in an exhibition and plans to play “as many guys as we can.”
However, this is the first time this season the team will have back-to-back games, and Pandolfo said he wants his players to be prepared for the workload.
“I want to get us used to playing in back to back games, rather than North Dakota being that first time,” Pandolfo said. “It’s a good opportunity for us to get used to the schedule that typically happens in college.”
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