To an extent, the Hockey East season has produced its share of surprises thus far. Boston College’s race to the top of the league may not qualify exactly, but it’s still a little interesting that BC has been this good in the season’s first two months. In its three recent national championship seasons, BC posted a combined .526 winning percentage in October and November. Compared to its current 8-1-0 record, these seasons didn’t see the same hot starts. The Eagles were as talented as ever in these seasons, but certain parts of Jerry York’s machine took a little longer to start clicking.

In 2007-08, BC began the year with 4-4-5 record. The next title run saw BC begin the year with a 6-3-2 record, while last year looked a bit more like this one with the Eagles racing to a 10-4-0 start. York preaches simple philosophies designed to get his club peaking at the right time of year. Last season, that process began in late January and continued through early April. With eight consecutive wins after a season-opening loss to Northeastern, BC has steadily improved with every game this year. This early-season success suggests another year of consistent improvement may very well make the 2012-13 Eagles a team college hockey will never forget.

It’s a goaltenders’ world

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BOSTON — Boston College came away victorious in the first edition of this year’s B-Line Rivalry, beating Boston University 4-2 at Agganis Arena on Sunday. With the win, the Eagles extended their winning streak to eight and completed a weekend sweep of two of their biggest rivals, as they also beat Notre Dame on Friday.

BC (8-1-0, 7-1-0 Hockey East) opened the scoring just 43 seconds in when Kevin Hayes carried the puck behind BU’s net behind before finding Destry Straight at the top of the crease for an easy tap-in. The score stayed that way for the next 50 minutes before Hayes and Johnny Gaudreau scored 1:22 apart midway through the third to make it 3-0.

Matt Grzelcyk gave BU (5-3-0, 4-2-0 HE) a glimmer of hope when he scored with 4:40 remaining, but then Bill Arnold sealed the BC win with an empty-netter. BU’s Alexx Privitera capped the scoring with 1:17 to go. Despite not seeing a ton of shots, both Parker Milner (25 saves) and Matt O’Connor (20) made a number of big stops when their teams needed them to. (more…)

LOWELL, Mass. — Maine hung onto a 4-3 win over Massachusetts-Lowell on Saturday, bringing an end to a miserable seven-game losing streak. Kyle Williams, a freshman defenseman-turned-forward, scored the winning goal with 8:50 left in the game when he tipped home a Mike Cornell shot from the point.

Lowell (2-4-1, 1-3-1 Hockey East) opened the scoring 10:09 into the game when Derek Arnold redirected a Joseph Pendenza pass. Maine (2-9-0, 1-5-0 HE) scored the next three, though, as Connor Leen, Adam Shemansky and Devin Shore all found the back of the net. The River Hawks came storming back late in the second and got goals from Riley Wetmore and Pendenza to tie the game heading into the third. (more…)

Durham, NH- UNH raced out to a 2-0 first period lead on Vermont, on a shorthanded tally by Grayson Downing at five minutes, 27 seconds and a power-play goal by Eric Knodel at 12:07. Austin Block had his second consecutive two goal game for UNH as he scored a goal in each of the last two periods. UNH overmatched the Catamounts to take home the win 4-0, in a game that didn’t even feel that close.

Casey Desmith earned his second shutout in a row. Desmith made 27 saves on the night, while his counter-part Brody Hoffman made 25 saves on 29 shots. Hoffman had the more difficult night and kept UVM in the game for much of the first two periods. UNH improves to 6-1-1 on the season and 4-1-1 in Hockey East, while Vermont falls to 1-3-2 and 1-3-2. (more…)

CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. – Boston College defeated Notre Dame, 3-1, at Conte Forum Friday night. Second-period goals from Pat Mullane and Johnny Gaudreau carried the Eagles before an empty-night marker Gaudreau sealed the win in the third. Notre Dame freshman Thomas Di Pauli scored his second of the season at 7 minutes, 10 seconds of the third period to bring the Fighting Irish back into the game.

BC goaltender Parker Milner and Notre Dame’s Steven Summerhays performed well in the game. Neither team managed a great deal of shots, but quality scoring chances were plentiful for both sides.

What I Saw

• The skill of Gaudreau and Mullane gave BC the win on Friday night. The linemates’ second-period goals came on odd-man rushes – Mullane’s a breakaway and Gaudreau’s a 2-on-1 – and ended with nifty moves to beat Summerhays. For the most part, the teams played even hockey. Chances came and went, but BC capitalized on its opportunities. Mullane scored the Eagles’ first goals at 4:41 of the second period, winning a faceoff in the UND zone and immediately heading up ice. BC defenseman Patrick Wey hit the streaking Mullane, who walked in on Summerhays and fine space in the five-hole for the goal. Gaudreau, meanwhile, walked in with Steven Whitney, and beat Summerhays with a wrist shot to the near-side top corner. (more…)

AMHERST, Mass. – Massachusetts scored three goals in the second period and never looked back, holding on for the 4-0 win over Providence Friday at the Mullins Center. Michael Pereira scored his first goal of the season and also had an assist for his first multi-point game since recording a hat trick against the Friars Feb. 11 last season. Troy Power had his second straight multi-point game with a goal and an assist.

Sophomore Kevin Boyle made 17 saves and recorded his first career shutout for the Minutemen. Jon Gillies made 28 saves on 32 shots and suffered his fourth loss of the season.

What I Saw

• It appears UMass has finally gotten that monkey off its back. The Minutemen have made a bad habit of blowing leads, especially in the third period, all season long. But Friday night UMass kept its foot on the gas in third period and found a way to not only hold on, but build on its lead with a backbreaker 17 minutes, 46 seconds into the third period off an unassisted goal by Power to give UMass the 4-0 cushion late in the game. The Minutemen outshot Providence 32-17 for the game, but put up its greatest shot differential in that third period (12-5), something they have rarely been capable of doing all season.  (more…)

NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. — Matt O’Connor improved to 5-0-0 and Wade Megan tallied a goal and two assists as Boston University beat Merrimack 3-1 on Friday. After a scoreless first, BU (5-2-0, 4-1-0 Hockey East) took a 1-0 lead 1:22 into the second. Cason Hohmann made a beautiful pass from the left corner to set up Ahti Oksanen for a rocket of a one-timer from the top of the right circle. Megan added to the lead seven minutes later when he raced down the left wing and beat Sam Marotta (22 saves) five-hole for his fifth goal of the season.

Merrimack (4-4-1, 3-2-1 HE) cut the lead in half 14 seconds into the third when John Heffernan beat O’Connor (34 saves) short-side. The Warriors kept the pressure on, but couldn’t get another past O’Connor. Evan Rodrigues sealed the victory with 7:14 remaining when he deposited a rebound past a down-and-out Marotta. (more…)

Early in the season, there have been a few teams that have stood out and some that are just struggling. Boston College is again at the top of the standings, but has played the most games as well. Maine has been the biggest surprise on the season and their struggles have continued.

The marquee matchup of the weekend is another non-conference tilt, as Boston College hosts Notre Dame on Friday night. But not to be out-done there is also this small matchup in Boston on Sunday, which pits Boston University and Boston College. Both of those matchups will be fantastic ones but they aren’t the only ones that have interesting story-lines. Enjoy the hockey folks (more…)

There’s not much movement at the top this week, but there’s plenty of jostling for spots five through nine, with the team at the top of that group making a push to crack the top four.

1. Boston College (6-1-0, 6-1-0 HE) — Last week: 1
The Eagles extended their winning streak to six by beating Maine 4-2 on Friday and UMass 3-2 on Sunday. Bill Arnold, Michael Matheson and Patrick Wey all had three-point weekends, while Patrick Brown scored with under four minutes to go to give BC the win Sunday. The Eagles went 4-for-8 on the power play and are now operating at 40.0 percent on the season, good for tops in the nation.

2. New Hampshire (5-1-1, 3-1-1 HE) — Last week: 2
The Wildcats suffered their first loss of the season when they fell to UMass 2-1 in overtime Friday, but they rebounded with a 4-0 win at Maine on Sunday. Casey DeSmith stopped all 42 shots he faced Sunday to earn his second shutout in three games, and he now leads Hockey East with a .947 save percentage. Greg Burke and Austin Block each scored a pair of goals on the weekend. (more…)

From an individual standpoint, Hockey East’s top performances in the season first month-plus has offered a strong mix of the expected starts and new faces emerging from a season. Boston College’s Johnny Gaudreau is toward the top of the league leaders with nine points on four goals and five assists, and he’s joined by teammates Bill Arnold and Pat Mullane. However, Boston University’s Cason Hohmann, Merrimack defenseman Jordan Heywood and New Hampshire defenseman Connor Hardowa have put together successful starts as well. For Heywood and Hardowa, it isn’t just about offense, as both play key minutes for their successful teams.

This week, though, none of those players made the cut.

Three Up

Mike Collins, Junior, Forward, Merrimack

Currently leading Hockey East in scoring, Mike Collins is a major reason the Warriors have won three of four after a tough trip to Last Frontier. Since returning from a weekend sweep at the hands of Alaska and Alaska-Anchorage, Merrimack is 3-0-1, including a sweep of Northeastern last weekend. In those four games, Collins scored three goals and assisted on seven others to pick up 10 points. Many wondered where the offense would come from this year for the Warriors, and Collins was a player expected to shoulder his share of the load. Four games do not make a season, but 10 points in four games is never a bad sign. (more…)