STORRS, Conn. — After squandering three separate leads and giving up eight goals less than 24 hours prior, Saturday’s performance by the Boston University men’s hockey team was exactly what BU needed.

The Terriers shipped down to the Toscano Family Ice Forum and took the game to UConn, taking down the Huskies 3-1 — something they struggled to do after the opening period on Friday.

“I really like the effort, from start to finish,” head coach Jay Pandolfo said postgame. “I thought we responded really well.”

Playing the game the right way, as Pandolfo puts it — or, in BU’s case, not playing the game the right way — has plagued the Terriers early this season. But on Saturday, they succeeded in that regard, “for the most part,” according to Pandolfo.

“You have to play real simple in this building, and we did that,” he added.

The first 20 minutes of play saw back-and-forth action. BU forechecked well in the offensive and neutral zones but struggled to break out of its defensive zone at times, as the Huskies used their speed and sticks to disrupt passing lanes.

Freshmen Jonathan Morello, John McNelis, and Ben Merrill — the Terriers’ fourth forward line — provided quality shifts in the first but were unable to crack UConn senior netminder Tyler Muszelik.

“I thought that line was real good,” Pandolfo said.

He praised Merrill’s ability to get pucks deep and win battles. McNelis had a “great weekend,” Pandolfo added, noting that his increased ice time has been a factor and that Morello has been a “consistent player” who’s been steady down the middle.

Late in the first period, sophomore forward Cole Eiserman took a hard hit on the boards. He hobbled off the ice, went straight down the tunnel, and did not return to the game.

“He’ll be evaluated,” Pandolfo said. “A little concerned.”

Junior forward Jack Harvey opened the scoring on the power play. The play started with freshman forward Conrad Fondrk, who found a streaking Jack Murtagh on the left wing. Murtagh, a freshman forward, fired a shot at Muszelik. Muszelik stopped the initial shot, but the puck squirted behind him, and Harvey swiped home his first tally of the season at 19:40 to put the Terriers up 1-0.

Harvey’s been “fighting it a little bit” offensively, Pandolfo said. He went pointless in the first five games of the season but recorded an assist Friday and scored twice Saturday.

“It’s been a little up and down. But obviously it felt good to get the monkey off the back,” Harvey said postgame.

BU carried its momentum into the middle frame, maintaining its aggressiveness on and off the puck, earning a power play at 11:04 when senior forward Jake Percival was called for checking from behind.

The Terriers cashed in once again on the man advantage, this time, courtesy of senior forward Owen McLaughlin. He received a pass from sophomore forward Kamil Bednarik at the point, skated in, and ripped a wrist shot off the crossbar and in at 11:22 to double the BU lead.

“He’s come around. I think it took a little bit of adjustment for him,” Harvey said of McLaughlin. “He’s been great. He’s so skilled. Playing with him is easy.”

UConn responded just over two minutes later at 13:37. Junior forward Joey Muldowney rifled home a one-timer from the right circle past sophomore goaltender Mikhail Yegorov. The Huskies threatened after getting on the board, but the Terriers stuck to their game, limiting the damage.

Harvey’s second goal of the game put BU up 3-1 at the 15:11 mark of the second. McLaughlin found Harvey in the slot, who fired the puck past Muszelik. Sophomore forward Sacha Boisvert, who’s missed the last two games with an undisclosed injury, picked up an assist on the tally.

“I thought he was excellent tonight, for not playing, not really practicing a ton,” Pandolfo said of Boisvert.

After killing off a tripping penalty to start the third period, UConn pressed hard to cut back into the BU lead, outshooting the Terriers seven to three in the final frame.

Yegorov, who was pulled after allowing six goals in Friday’s loss, stood on his head to preserve the BU lead. He finished with 24 saves.

“He’ll tell you he wasn’t at his best last night,” Pandolfo said of Yegorov. “He takes ownership and he responds, and that’s what he did.”

Muszelik skated off for an extra skater at the 17:43 mark, but the Huskies were unable to find the back of the net despite a late push, as the Terriers secured a much-needed 60-minute performance.

“Hopefully this group learned a lot this weekend. We’re gonna have to continue to learn. We’re young, so we’re gonna continue to learn and hopefully continue to get better,” Pandolfo said.