By Kevin Dillon/DFP Staff
A week ago, the No. 18 Boston University men’s hockey team lost back-to-back games in Michigan and struggled to produce offense because it got away from the things Coach David Quinn wanted it to do. These things included staying out of the penalty box, maintaining puck possession and creating scoring chances in front of the opposing goaltender.
“We have got to get together with coach,” senior captain Garrett Noonan said after the team’s 3-1 loss to Michigan State University. “He knows what is best for us and when we get back to listening to coach we will start to get the Ws.”
It looked like Quinn’s messages finally got through to his team after the first period of Friday night’s 4-3 comeback win over No. 3 Providence College, as the Terriers scored four unanswered goals after a disastrous first period.
“It was a frustrating period to watch, especially after what happened out in Michigan,” Quinn said. “I just told them, ‘Hey, there’s a team over there that’s playing faster, stronger, making better passes and we need to be willing to change on the fly – change our mental approach on the fly,’ and obviously we did it.
Once the first frame was over, BU (4-3, 2-0 Hockey East) did just about everything Quinn was looking for. Perhaps the biggest improvement the Terriers made was their ability to stay out of the penalty box over the final two stanzas.
Things did not start so well for BU in regards to staying out of the box. After jumping out to an early power play, junior winger Evan Rodrigues took a bad interference penalty 17 seconds into the opportunity to bring the teams to four-on-four. Shortly afterward, freshman center Nick Roberto took an offensive-zone tripping penalty to give the Friars (4-1-1, 0-1 Hockey East) a power play of their own. Roberto did not play for the remainder of the first period after the infraction.
But after those two penalties, BU’s penalty bench collected dust as the Terriers stayed out of the box and drew four Providence penalties. A power-play goal from sophomore winger Matt Lane was key in BU’s turnaround, and the team did not give the Friars any chances to strike back with a man advantage.
“It puts us in a hole,” Quinn said of the first period penalties. “We just have to stop taking those penalties. We have a goal of four [penalties] or less and we took two and we gave ourselves a chance to win tonight.
Another thing Quinn had preached after the previous weekend in Michigan was that he wanted his team to possess the puck better and have more time in its opponent’s zone. The Terriers really struggled to keep control of the puck in the first period, which resulted in Providence attempting 25 shots (19 on goal) compared to BU’s 12 (eight on goal).
However, things turned around for the Terriers in the next two frames. BU began to pass the puck around the offensive zone better, as displayed in the Terriers’ fourth goal. Sophomore center Danny O’Regan started the play by passing the puck from the left circle to sophomore defenseman Matt Grzelcyk, beginning a rotation of the puck around the zone and back onto O’Regan’s stick for the goal. BU had been threatening with several scoring chances in the shifts preceding O’Regan’s game-winning goal as well.
“Puck possession is obviously huge,” O’Regan said. “It’s just a matter of… making all of the simple plays. Not trying to do too much with the puck. I think that’s where we are best as a team and as a line in creating offense.”
That puck possession led to scoring chances for BU though because it was working hard for pucks in front of Providence goaltender Jon Gillies — something Quinn had highlighted in practice leading up to Friday’s game. Gillies, who has a big frame at 6-foot-5, 215 pounds, entered Friday’s game with a 1.71 goals-against average and a .950 save percentage. All four of BU’s goals on the night came within a close proximity to Gillies, two of which came off of rebounds.
BU had 11 grade-A chances in the final two periods as opposed to Providence’s seven. It was the Terriers’ ability to outwork the Friars’ defensemen that helped them come back, according to Providence coach Nate Leaman.
“I thought they really won the battles around our net,” Leaman said after the game. “I thought overall we played a very good first period, but defensively after the first period I thought we were atrocious.”
With the win in hand, it is apparent that the Terriers got the message that Quinn told them in the locker room between the periods. Quinn can only hope that that message sticks with the team as it travels to Providence to face the Friars on the road Saturday night.
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