BOSTON — Boston University defeated Maine, 1-0, Saturday night at Agganis Arena. Garrett Noonan’s first period goal was all goaltender Sean Maguire needed, as the freshman made 28 saves to pick up his second consecutive shutout. Noonan’s third goal of the season came on the power play. BU overloaded the right half of the ice to create space. A Danny O’Regan pass drifted by Evan Rodrigues to Noonan who beat Maine’s Martin Oullette to the near post.

With 5 minutes, 32 seconds left in regulation, BU’s Ben Rosen went off on a boarding major. Despite the five-minute power play, including a 6-on-4 for the final 1:04 of the period, Maine could not beat Maguire.

What I Saw

• Sean Maguire has shaken off the early-season nerves that gave him problems in his first couple starts. Maguire stopped 21 shots on Saturday night and didn’t too troubled making any of them. For young goalies, problems with nerves manifest themselves in poor positioning and a noisy performance. Against Maine, Maguire wasted little movement and kept himself in good position to make important saves. His defense did its job well, keeping his eyes clear and erasing any second chances with quick clears to the corners. Those second opportunities rarely came for Maine ,though, and that’s a credit to Maguire’s calm and confident play. Fellow freshman Matt O’Connor has played well enough to warrant his position as the team’s No. goalie, but a viable second choice could prove vital for BU in the second half. (more…)

AMHERST, Mass. – Colgate rallied for four goals in the third period to overcome a 2-1 deficit and complete the weekend sweep of Massachusetts with a 5-2 win Saturday night at the Mullins Center.

Kurtis Bartliff, whom Colgate coach Don Vaughan called out to step up before the game, scored twice for the Raiders, including the game-tying goal four minutes, 39 seconds into the third period, while Tyson Spink and Kyle Baun each scored a power play goal.

Spencer Finney had a quiet night between the pipes, but was strong, making 31 saves and shutting out the Minutemen over the final two periods of play.

Kevin Boyle’s night was quite the opposite. The sophomore goaltender was solid for the first two periods, but fell apart in the final 20 minutes. He finished with 18 saves on the night.

What I Saw

• It appeared UMass was on its way to a grind-it-out, low-scoring victory throughout the second period and the early part of the third period with a 2-1 lead and Boyle playing strong. However, the third period belonged to the Raiders in every way possible. The rally started on a goal that falls solely on the shoulders of Boyle. Bartliff’s shot was a low-quality attempt at the net in which the puck deflected off the midsection of Boyle, and trickled between his legs before he could even locate it. The momentum continued to swing in Colgate’s favor when Joel Hanley was called for a questionable elbowing call that UMass coach John Micheletto was clearly upset about 8:51 into the period. That’s when the power play got back to work and Baun hit Tyson Spink with a cross-ice feed from the slot and Spink buried the puck into a wide open net, something similar to what the unit did to the Minutemen penalty kill the night before. Suddenly, Colgate had the 3-2 advantage as UMass reverted back to the struggles that plagued it on Friday. A pair of greasy goals from Billy Rivellini and Bartliff in front of the net were the finishing touches on a lopsided third period.  (more…)

North Andover, Mass.-  Harvard and Merrimack played to a 0-0 deadlock after one period and then Harvard stormed out in the second period to take a 2-0 on one shift. Tommy O Regan scored the first goal of the second period as he found a puck that boucned in the air and put it in the net for a 1-0 Harvard lead three minutes, 13 seconds into the period. But Harvard was not done as O’ Regan found a streaking Desmond Bergin 31 seconds later in the left slot and Bergin put it past Merrimack goalie, Sam Marotta for the 2-0 lead. Merrimack would respond on a shorthanded faceoff at 6:27 of the second period on a goal by Rhett Bly. Five minutes later Mike Collins would send a puck to the back of the net to send the teams into the second intermission tied at two goals apiece.

The teams would skate an even third period to head into overtime. At the end of the third period, Harvard captain Danny Biega took a five minute major for kneeing on Merrimack College forward Brian Christie. This meant that the Warriors were on the power-play for the entire overtime. They killed the penalty and escaped Lawler Arena with a 2-2 tie against Merrimack. (more…)

AMHERST, Mass. – The first line of Tylor Spink, Tyson Spink and Kyle Baun accounted for Colgate’s first four goals to carry the Raiders to a convincing, 6-4 win over Massachusetts Friday night at the Mullins Center.

Tylor Spink and Baun each found the back of the net twice while Tyson Spink notched three assists. Three of the all-freshmen line’s goals came on the power play, which also included fellow freshman Mike Borkowski at the point.

Colgate goaltender Spencer Finney had some inconsistencies between the pipe, but his 31 saves were enough to secure the win. UMass goalie Kevin Boyle had little support in front of him at crucial moments, and the six goals he allowed revealed that as he could only come up with 19 saves on the night.

What I Saw

• That Raiders first line really dominated play on Friday, and it was especially clear in the first 40 minutes of play as Baun and the Spink twins were responsible for all four Colgate goals in that span, three of which were on the power play. The second power play goal came five minutes, 50 seconds into the second period with the Raiders leading 2-1. Tyson Spink fed Baun out in front of the net, and some hesitation by the Minutemen defense left Tylor Spink wide open on the other side. Baun passed it over to Tylor Spink from the slot, who quickly wristed home the goal to make it 3-1 Colgate. Later in the second period, it happened all over again. This time, it was Tyson Spink who gave to his brother an empty net in front of Boyle with a pass from the slot following more poor defensive zone play by UMass to give the Raiders a commanding, 4-1 lead heading into the third period.  (more…)

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Boston College was 10.5 seconds away from giving Jerry York his record-breaking win, but Nick Saracino ruined the celebration plans when he banged home a loose puck to tie the game at 3-3. The Eagles had a few chances to win it in overtime, but Providence’s Jon Gillies (26 saves) made a couple big saves to preserve the 3-3 draw.

The Eagles (11-2-1, 9-2-1 Hockey East) took a 1-0 lead 12:39 into the game when Pat Mullane won an offensive-zone faceoff and Johnny Gaudreau managed to chip the puck past Gillies. BC added to its lead with 6:54 left in the second when Michael Matheson scored a power-play goal on a shot through traffic.

Derek Army cut the lead in half 22 seconds into the third when he split the BC defense and beat Parker Milner (34 saves) with a backhander. Matheson restored the two-goal lead 1:34 later with his second goal of the game, but then Noel Acciari answered for the Friars (7-6-2, 5-4-1 HE) 12 seconds after that. The score stayed that way until Saracino’s late heroics.

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Durham, NH.- It was a made for TV game that wasn’t televised and it had every makings of a game that mattered. BU raced out to a 1-0 lead four minutes, 39 seconds into the first on a goal by Wade Megan. This goal would be the lone goal of a tightly played first period as BU took the 1-0 lead into the intermission. The Terriers would add two more at 4:01  and 8:03 of the second period to give the visitors a 3-0 lead over the host Wildcats. The lead was enough as the Terriers would hold off a late charge by UNH to take home the 3-2 victory.

UNH falls to 11-2-2 on the season and 8-2-1 in Hockey East, while Boston University improves to 9-5-0 and 7-4-0, The win moved the Terriers within three points of second place UNH and within four of Boston College in the Hockey East standings, as the Terriers remain in third place in the conference. (more…)

Dartmouth got an early goal from captain Mike Keenan at two minutes, 33 seconds of the first period and Vermont would respond nine minutes later to send the game into the first intermission deadlocked at one. The second period was the Dustin Walsh show, as he ripped a snipe in the slot past Hoffman just 29 seconds into the stanza and made it 3-1 with four minutes remaining. The lead was enough for Dartmouth, as they never looked back and defeated Vermont 4-2. Dartmouth improves to 7-2-2 on the season, while Vermont falls to 3-8-3.

What I Saw

• Vermont actually played one of the most confident games I have seen from them in the past two seasons. They were poised with the puck and played pretty good defense for the most part. The goals that Dartmouth scored on the night were on poor defensive coverage by the Catamounts, lapses that often happen against good teams, such as Dartmouth. (more…)

For the first time since Oct. 24, we have a new No. 1. In case you forgot, I had Lowell first to start the season. Swing and a miss. Anyway, let’s get right to it.

1. New Hampshire (11-1-2, 8-1-1 HE) — Last week: 2
UNH had been knocking on the door for weeks, and this weekend BC cracked it open just enough for the Wildcats to squeeze through. They swept Lowell with a pair of 5-2 wins, completing the season sweep in the process. Grayson Downing tallied two goals and two assists on the weekend, while Dalton Speelman, Kevin Goumas, Nick Sorkin and Jeff Silengo all had three points. UNH now leads the conference in offense, defense and special teams net.

2. Boston College (11-2-0, 9-2-0 HE) — Last week: 1
The Eagles had their 10-game winning streak snapped by BU on Friday, but they bounced back with a 5-2 win over their archrivals on Saturday. With the victory, Jerry York tied Ron Mason’s all-time wins record. Johnny Gaudreau had a goal and an assist on Friday before having his 15-game point streak snapped on Saturday. The second line of Kevin Hayes, Bill Arnold and Brendan Silk combined for three goals and three assists on Saturday.

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Boston University coach Jack Parker said it best on Saturday night. Following a 5-2 loss to Boston College, Parker said that his longtime rival Jerry York doesn’t receive the credit he deserves. It’s strange to suggest a coach rightfully considered the best in college hockey history is under-appreciated, but the task he inherited when taking over the program in 1994 was one few could’ve pulled off. Not only did York turn BC’s program around after years of malaise, he transformed them into college hockey’s premier program just as recruiting and the game itself became more competitive.

York tied Ron Mason atop the all-time wins list with the victory over BU on Saturday. His 924 wins are pretty nice complement to his five national championships — four with BC and one with Bowling Green in 1984. But taking BC’s program to its current level seemed almost impossible when he took the job 19 seasons ago. Friday night, York and his team head to Providence for a meeting with the Friars, and his first chance to become the unquestioned wins leader. (more…)

CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. — Boston College defeated Boston University, 5-2, Saturday night at Conte Forum. The win avenged Friday night’s 4-2 Terrier win and clinched the season series for the Eagles. The victory was the 924th in the career of BC coach Jerry York. He is now tied with Ron Mason, as the winningest coach in Division I history.

The Eagles scored four power play goals on Saturday, including three in the second period. BC center Bill Arnold scored a pair of goals, and BU freshman Matt O’Connor made 33 saves in the loss.

What I Saw

• The second period decided the game on Saturday night. The Terriers took a series of bad penalties that put the Eagles on power play after power play. Bill Arnold scored two power-play goals in the period, and freshmen defenseman Michael Matheson added another. Arnold’s first came 1 minute, 59 seconds into the period, with Yasin Cisse serving a minor for interference. The Terriers took five penalties in the period, and Cisse’s minor came at the end of the first. Sending a team as dynamic as BC to the man advantage six times in 20 minutes makes it difficult to win games. Entering the second, the score was tied, but the Terriers undid themselves with the undisciplined play. On Friday night, the Terriers killed five of six BC power plays; the lone tally coming with 24 seconds left in a decided game. Even with the successful kill, five penalties to nullify in a single period is difficult on any team. (more…)