College hockey is back, and opening weekend did not disappoint. Today, I’ll be going through all the matchups from Hockey East teams (not including exhibition games), and an overview of this week’s schedule.
No. 13 Quinnipiac @ No. 6 Boston College
Boston College’s first game without Gabe Perreault, Ryan Leonard and Jacob Fowler did not go ideally. The Eagles kept it close on Friday, but ultimately were upset 4-3 by the Bobcats. And the goal total doesn’t even tell it all, as Quinnipiac outshot BC 30-15. Andre Gasseau’s 3 assists were the only bright spot in a bleak opening to BC’s season.
Merrimack @ UMass Lowell
In the first fully Hockey East matchup of the year, Lowell cruised to victory. Jay Ahearn plotted two of the River Hawks’ four goals in their shutout victory Friday. Merrimack was outshot 36-17, and seven penalties on their end didn’t help anything either, even though they killed off six of those seven.
Both Austin Elliott and Max Lundgren played great in net, with Lundgren being the only reason the score wasn’t even more lopsided.
No. 10 UConn @ Colorado College
The Huskies opened their year in the Rockies, taking on a Colorado team just shy of a rank. Joey Muldowney scored UConn’s first of the year, but Colorado College answered with three straight against a Huskies team that looked flat. Both teams took five penalties and had fairly similar shot totals, but Colorado managed to take game one 4-2.
Game two was an entirely different story on both sides. Bret Link opened it up for the Tigers, but UConn answered with five straight of their own, including two 5-on-3 goals. Though yet again the shot totals weren’t far off, UConn looked noticeably better and was able to salvage the series.
Long Island University @ No. 2 Boston University
The Terriers are entering the year with expectations of being the best that Hockey East has to offer, but their showing against LIU didn’t exactly back that up, despite the 4-2 win. LIU, a middle-of-the-pack team, played well against a Terriers roster that barely lost anything and gained a lot this offseason. The Sharks outshot BU 38-32, and two of the four Terrier goals came on the powerplay.
All of BU’s offense came from their top line and pair, with two or more of either Cole Eiserman, Cole Hutson, Ryder Ritchie and Sacha Boisvert earning a point on any of Boston’s four goals. A win’s a win, but BU needs to prove that they’re the powerhouse they’re expected to be.
Northern Michigan @ No. 15 UMass Amherst
If it wasn’t for a stellar performance by NMU goalie William Gramme, UMass might have put up double digits in game one. The final 5-3 score doesn’t do UMass justice, as they plotted 70 shots to NMU’s 26, not far from tripling their total. UMass outshot NMU 35-7 in the first and trailed 2-1 after one period, telling just how well Gramme kept things under control.
Game two ended with a 4-1 UMass win, outshooting NMU 46-32. And the game was 2-1 until two empty net goals sealed the deal for the Minutemen. Despite the win, UMass couldn’t play with the same level of domination they did in game one.
Jack Musa’s three goals in the series make him the current Hockey East goals leader, although half the teams have not played yet.
Holy Cross @ Northeastern
The game itself was an interesting one, with Northeastern coming out on top 6-4. Despite this, Holy Cross took 29 shots, while Northeastern had 24. 10 penalties were dished out (11 if you count Jack Stockfish’s roughing double-minor as two) prior to the end of the game.
But the end of the game is what made this one stand out. A stoppage with six seconds to go resulted in a scuffle between the teams, causing three from each side to be issued game misconducts. While some of the other games may have been better hockey, there wasn’t a more entertaining matchup this weekend than this one.
This week’s schedule
Thursday, Oct. 9: New Hampshire @ Michigan State, Boston College @ Minnesota
Friday, Oct. 10: Boston College @ Minnesota, Colgate @ Boston University, Holy Cross @ Maine, Army @ Northeastern, UMass Amherst @ Stonehill, Michigan @ Providence, St. Lawrence @ Vermont, New Hampshire @ Michigan State
Saturday, Oct. 11: Colgate @ Boston University, Holy Cross @ Maine, Michigan @ Providence
Sunday, Oct. 12: Vermont @ St. Lawrence