The BU Terriers finished the 2014 portion of their 2014-2015 schedule exactly how they wanted to with a 5-1 win over EZAC foe RPI in Troy,NY. Matt O'Connor was excellent in goal in the first as the Terriers looked to find their groove. This has been a problem for this team so far this season where they give up more chances in the first period but they had their chances as well but RPI goalie Scott Diebold was up to the task as well.
The Terriers found their scoring touch in the second as John Macleod scored on a wrister through traffic from the point before Jack Eichel found Danny O'Regan for a tap in powerplay goal later in the period. Brandon Hickey made it a 3 goal lead heading into the third on a weird play where he scored off a backhand from below the goal line. The scoring from Macleod and Hickey is certainly a welcome site for Terrier nation as you need secondary scoring to succeed in postseason play and it appears that BU is starting to get some bounces and getting that scoring.
JJ Piccinich added his first collegiate goal to seal the game in the third. O'Connor lost the shutout with 3 minutes to play but Nick Roberto added an empty netter to finish off the first half with a 5-1 victory for the Terriers. As a BU hockey fan, it is hard not to be excited by the first half of the season. The expectations for this team certainly were not this high to begin the season as they were picked to finish 6th in the league. It is now hard to see them finishing out of the top 3. Vermont and Lowell appear to be the other contenders for the league title with Providence Merrimack and BC on the outside looking in. The crucial position to come in is the top 6 so that you avoid the first round of the HE playoffs. The Terriers look to be well on their way to achieving that and being in position to receive an NCAA at large berth.
The 11 first half wins from the Terriers is the most since 08-09 who had one more loss at the break than this team does. The 3 losses is the fewest since 06-07. Both of those teams are obviously very good company to be in with and set you up to have a successful season. With that said, the beginning of the second half of the season is tough scheduling wise. Union comes to Agganis on 1/3 before a weekend in Madison against a terrible Wisconsin team before BU begins their toughest stretch of the season with BC, Lowell, @UVM X2, vs UMass, Harvard(Beanpot), @Lowell and then the Beanpot championship/consolation game. That is 7 out of 8 very tough games for a team to face consecutively (guess which game is the trap game *cough UMass Cough). Those 8 games are going to tell a lot about this team and just how far they can go this season. If they come out of those 8 games with a winning record, there is no reason to think they aren't a Frozen Four team at minimum.
The Terriers face teammate Jack Eichel and his World Junior Team teammates Friday night at Walter Brown Arena in what should be a very entertaining game. The USA U20's lead by Eichel and 2016 draft eligible Auston Matthews will be the most talented team BU faces all season so it will be interesting as to how they stack up.
This Week in #DISRES9ECT
Eichel and Seney exchanging words all the way up ice and are whacking at each other off the draw.
— Mike McMahon (@MikeMcMahonCHN) December 7, 2014
Bubela hits Eichel right in the number on his back, it's a BU power play with about 6:30 left in the 2nd period, BU up 1-0.
— Without a Peer (@without_a_peer) December 14, 2014
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