Mike Moran may seem like your typical fourth line grinder but he certainly is not. Moran was destined to play on Comm Ave since he was born into a family full of BU hockey players including both of his uncles Mike and Mark Bavis. Mike, who he would play for during his freshman season and Mark, who he would honor with his jersey number.
Moran came to BU as a 21 year old freshman when most of his classmates were 2 or 3 years younger than him. He had to play a year after graduation from high school in the BCHL and EJHL for three different teams to convince the BU coaching staff including his own uncle that he belonged. his 46 points in 39 BCHL games certainly proved that. He wasn't given a spot because of his uncles. He earned it and was a critical player for BU over his four year career. He was a stable presence on the fourth line always finding a way to make a positive play whether it was a goal, a chip out of the zone or a faceoff win. Moran arrived on campus in the fall of 2011 and contributed to the team from the very beginning. He wasn't the offensive scorer of some of his classmates like Danny O'Regan or Matt Gryzelcyk but he certainly found his niche as a fourth line grinder who could play the defensive style of the game very well. His 25 career points certainly are not going to jump out at you but he always seemed to find a way to score in the biggest games. His biggest goal scored was probably in the Beanpot Final last year to open up the game that BU would eventually win in OT. He also scored from below the goalline on BC's Thatcher Demko last season in a BU win at BC.
Moran is a special BU Terrier in that like classmate, Danny O'Regan, BU hockey was part of his family history. Former BU assistant coach and player Mike Bavis, who is his uncle, was Moran's assistant coach for his freshman season and Moran wore #11 in honor of his other uncle Mark Bavis who also played at BU and was a scout for the Los Angeles Kings before his tragic death in the 9/11 attacks. Both Bavis' played at BU and had a huge impact on the BU hockey community. Moran often referred to going to games since he was a kid to watch his uncles play and Mike later coach. Moran certainly made plenty of his own memories as a player and should be proud of what he accomplished especially as a leader on this team the last few years.He was always a pleasure to watch on the ice and will follow his uncles' path and be a lifelong Terrier whether that's as a fan, or coach in the future. Thank you Mike for a great four years on Comm Ave.
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