Game Day: #2/3 Men and #6 Women face Harvard in the Beanpot Tournaments--UPDATED

After a one-day snow delay, the #2/3 Terriers take on #6 Harvard in the preliminary round of the 2015 Beanpot Tournament. With puck drop set for 5 p.m., the game will be broadcast live on NESN and throughout Canada on TSN.

BU will be looking to reverse the result of an early season meeting that saw Harvard take a 3-2 overtime win despite being outshot by the Terriers, 42-24. At the time, BU Coach David Quinn called the Terriers’ effort, which followed five straight wins, “the best game we’ve played from start to finish in a while.”

BU will also be seeking to gain a berth in the championship game for the first time since 2010.  The Terriers are entering the Beanpot with only four losses for the first time since the 1997-98 season. 

Harvard’s offense is led by juniors Jimmy Vesey (18G, 15A) and Kyle Criscuolo (11G, 17A), who scored the overtime winner in the last meeting.

BU's top line of freshman Jack Eichel, senior assistant captain Evan Rodrigues and junior Danny O'Regan (photo), has a combined 103 points.  Junior captain Matt Grzelcyk has scored 11 points in the eight games that have been played since the beginning of the second semester, and is tied for the plus/minus lead among all D1 defensemen with a +19.   

Both teams excel on the power play. BU currently is converting at a nation’s best 26.9%, while the Crimson have a 23.9% success rate, fourth best in Division 1.

Terrier line-up for tonight:
Rodrigues-Eichel-O'Regan
Oksanen-Baillargeon-Hohmann
Olsson-Lane-Roberto
Phelps-Moran-Piccinich
Grzelcyk-MacLeod
Hickey-Fortunato
Somerby-Diffley
O'Connor
 

● GoTerriers.com preview, game notes, Game Tracker, Terrier Sports Radio Network webcast.

● Boston Hockey Blog live in-game blog

● Daily Free Press preview, O'Regan feature and Beanpot History
● SB Nation Beanpot scouting report: strengths & weaknesses

● Boston Globe: Beanpot preview; 3 Charlestown friends

● Boston Herald preview

● BU Today preview

● NESN preview

● New England Hockey Journal preview

►With a 1.89 GAA and a .936 save percentage in conference games, junior Matt O’Connor is second in both categories among Hockey East netminders.

►Rodrigues’ record-setting (H.E.) and record-tying (BU) performance earned him the NCAA’s third star of the week.

 

►Terriers fell to #3 in the USCHO weekly poll, while they maintained their #2 status in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine.

Looking ahead

For the second week in a row, a BU recruit is USHL forward of the week. Last week, the honor went to 2015 recruit Robert Carpenter. This week’s co-winner is 2016 recruit Kieffer Bellows. The Sioux Falls power forward scored four times in two games, including a hat trick that featured two extra-attacker goals in 44 seconds, and a shootout goal as well. On a tear since the beginning of December, Bellows has 16 goals in his last 18 games.

Looking back

Former BU captain and All-American Kevin Shattenkirk, following a week in which he scored two game-winning shoot out goals, was injured in a collision (video) with Alex Ovechkin and will require abdominal surgery. With 40 points, fourth best on the Blues, Shattenkirk recently made his first appearance in an NHL All-star game.

Women’s Team

#6 BU meets #4 Harvard in a preliminary round game of the 37^th annual Women’s Beanpot tonight. Puck drop is at 8 p.m. with ESPN3 broadcasting the game. The Terriers and Crimson skated to a 1-1 overtime tie this past November.  Sophomore Samantha Sutherland scored BU’s only goal in the game.

Terriers, who are three-time defending Hockey East tournament champions, are looking for their first Beanpot title. BU's top goal-scorers are senior captain Marie-Philip Poulin with 17, junior Sarah Lefort with 15, and freshman Victoria Bach with 14.

● GoTerriers.com preview, game notes, Live Stats, ESPN3 broadcast

● Daily Free Press preview

Senior defender Shannon Doyle was named the Hockey East Defensive Player of the Week. Doyle, who is tied for the team lead in assists with 17, scored a goal and assisted on the game-winner in Saturday’s 5-3 win at Connecticut. The victory was the 200^th in the 10 year history of BU Women’s Hockey, all with Coach Brian Durocher behind the bench.