The Massachusetts hockey team dropped its fourth straight game after getting blown out, 7-2, against Boston University on Friday.
UMass (5-4-1, 1-4 Hockey East) has now extended its HEA losing streak to four and hasn’t defeated BU (5-3, 3-2 HEA) since 2019.
The story of the game was the second period. Boston University dominated the frame, outscoring UMass 4-1, showing off its immense skill. The highlight goal for BU was Wilmer Skoog’s lacrosse style goal just over one minute into the period. Skoog found himself in the corner of the zone with the puck wobbling on edge. He then sped towards the back of the net and promptly scooped the puck up on his blade and whipped it around the far post, over the shoulder of Luke Pavicich.
WILMER SKOOG, FOREVER A LACROSSE LEGEND!https://t.co/myMwabnPJ0@hockey_east | @espn | @NESN pic.twitter.com/pu13HH7GBH
— BU Men's Hockey (@TerrierHockey) November 12, 2022
“I’ve seen it a lot,” Boston University head coach Jay Pandolfo said. “I’ve seen it in games, I’ve seen it in practice. I trust him, he’s really good at it. It’s probably his fourth or fifth [lacrosse] goal. He practices it a lot and he’s good at it so I trust it, he’s a big, strong kid.”
Skoog’s goal would make it 2-0 at the time, but that would just be the start for the Terriers. Next in line was Quinn Hutson, who delivered a wicked wrister past Pavicich. The UMass netminder had no time to react, as Hutson’s release was so quick. Hutson would add the next goal, as well as an assist on goal number five, giving him a three-point night.
Ryan Greene would tack on the fourth Terrier goal of the period when a cross ice pass deflected off a UMass defenders stick and slid thru Pavicich’s pads. That goal would mark the end of Pavicich’s night as Cole Brady came in to replace him just past the midway point of the second period. He made 18 saves on 23 shots, while Brady stopped 20 of his 22 tests.
As head coach Greg Carvel has alluded to on several occasions, UMass’s freshmen have shown both exceptional skill and growing pains in their young college hockey careers. In the first period, the latter was true as Mikey Adamson turned the puck over at the blue line in the offensive zone, giving BU freshman Ryan Greene a clean breakaway. Greene tucked a backhand past the outstretched leg of Pavicich to give the Terriers the game’s opening notch.
Ryan Greene led the Terriers offensively, potting two goals and adding three helpers, exactly matching his season point total in one night.
“I have trust in all of our guys, up front we have a ton of depth,” Pandolfo said. “Whoever’s in the lineup, I trust and I know they can contribute offensively, and that’s what everyone’s doing, and certainly tonight for sure”
After starting the season 5-0-1, the Minutemen have dropped four in a row, all to HEA opponents, a trend that Carvel is desperate to put a stop to.
“We’ve just got to come together as a group,” Carvel said. “When you’re struggling to win games the worst thing that you can do is fall apart, so we’ve got to lean hard on each other and get back to basics”
A five-minute major on BU to start the third period was a potential launching point for the Minutemen in making a desperate push to come back, but a two-minute minor for a protocol violation was called on UMass at the start of the third due to its tardiness in taking the ice out of the intermission.
The minor penalty delayed UMass’s power play, potentially taking some momentum with it. Though they would manage to get one after the 4-on-4, all seemed to be said and done five minutes into the third.
It will be a quick turnaround for the Minutemen, as they will take on Boston University again Saturday night in Boston. UMass will look to snap out of its funk by puck drop at 7 p.m. at Agganis Arena.
Matt Skillings can be reached at [email protected] and followed on twitter at matt_skillings.
