Taking the ice for the 100th season, the Boston University men’s hockey team will start the year with a match up against the Holy Cross Crusaders. The non-conference exhibition game will take place at Walter Brown Arena on October 2 and should leave the Terriers with some offensive experience heading into the official start of the regular season next week.
The Crusaders went 4-12-0 last season with wins against Atlantic Hockey Association rivals Long Island, Bentley, and Sacred Heart before moving into a 10-game losing streak. While the 2020-21 season has to be taken with a grain of salt, the Terriers should be in a pretty solid position moving into the regular season.
Holy Cross has lost two of their highest scoring players in Jake Pappalardo and Logan Ferguson, but junior forward Alex Peterson will return to the ice. Peterson led the crusaders in points with nine from four goals and five assists.
Junior Erik Gordon and sophomore Matt Radomsky will return to the crease. In 11 games, Gordon posted a 2.62 goals against average and a .906 save percentage to secure his spot as the starter this coming weekend.
The Terriers are breaking into the season following the “red and white scrimmage,” where the red team took down white in a 2-1 victory, with goals scored by freshman forward Brian Carrabes, sophomore forward Dylan Peterson, and junior forward Matt Brown. The scrimmage was the Terrier’s first game in front of fans at Agganis since March of 2020.
“Some of those freshmen that we had last year never played at Agganis. The red and white scrimmage last week was exciting for guys to get to play there and exciting for our veterans and our older guys to have that opportunity again,” head coach Albie O’Connell told the media at the Hockey East Preview Day.
As one of the youngest teams in the country last year, the Terriers will look to advance further in the tournament with help from a veteran leadership group. Senior Logan Cockerill will lead the squad as captain alongside Ty Amonte and Max Kaufman and new assistant captain and junior defenseman Alex Vlasic.
“Starting with Logan Cockerill, our captain, he was rock solid,” O’Connell said. “Max Kaufman, you know he was a transfer from Vermont, [and] we made him a captain through last year, he really established himself as one of the leaders on the team, especially with Ty Amonte getting hurt last year and kind of being around but not really on the ice. I can’t say enough about our leadership group that we have.”
While only an exhibition game, Saturday’s match will be the inaugural game in the 100th season of BU men’s hockey, and the players, coaches, and fans are excited to celebrate everything this historic program has to offer.
“It’s going to mean everything to our guys. Being in the 100th season of the program and some of the events and some of the people that will come back and the celebration of just some of the great people that we’ve had within the program, and to do it together, to do it at Agganis, it’s just really exciting.
Puck drop is set for 7:30 p.m. at Walter Brown Arena with coverage on Twitter @BOSHockeyBlog.
This year has the potential to be a great one. Kids have worked hard this off season and it’s finally time to drop the puck. I will be in attendance all season and rooting for the team at the rink and on the blog. Go bu 🐾
Good win but HC is barely a D1 team. Someone PLEASE tell Cockerill and Fensore that a smart decision with the puck is 10x more valuable than how fast a player can skate. You want to put on a skating exhibition, go join the ice capades where turnovers don’t matter. How in the world has no coach not gotten this through their skulls by now? Albie, seriously son, tell them. Will Pandolfo crack this code? Sorry for being so savage so soon but these boys are clearly going to need some doses of tough love. Prove me wrong please.
*edit: I’m actually not sorry at all. Lol. More Herb Brooks and less caring about feelings. That, my children, is how champions are made. Only question is are we in the championship business? We’re gonna find out very soon.
I would like to hear some opinions on the future of Albie
This is the last year of his contract.
if he has a 25 win season, for example, do they re-sign him and for how long?
However if he has a 500 season will they renew him?
25 wins would be a great achievement and I think then there’s a good case for re-signing him. I’d say it’s critical not to have another 500 season this year.
And if he does, what do you think the bu admin will decide ?
I agree Holy Cross is not a great college hockey team and the teams we will see in hockey East are very good to great National programs but they are a division 1 program and you can only play the team your playing. I thought we did a lot of good things and a few things that we will have to clean up. As to the above comments on Cockerill and Fensore I did not notice any bad turnovers and I believe Dom is the best skater in college hockey he generates so much offense off of his breakouts. He is also a great defenseman he plays hard he may be undersized but he does not play that way. If you had a team filled with Dom Fensore’s that team would be very good. I don’t usually get into coaching contract talk on this blog and I hope to not get in too it much but I think Albie certainly has proved himself to be one of the best coaches in the country. If I was in charge he would be locked up. Go bu 🐾
“one of the best coaches in the country” seriously? of wait, it is Colin. never mind