Photo by: Rich Gagnon
Red Hot Redemption as Terriers Oust Big Red in NCAA Regional Win
March 24, 2018 | Men's Ice Hockey
By Scott Weighart, Special to GoTerriers.com
WORCESTER – Boston University's 3-1 win over Cornell in today's NCAA Northeast Regional really put the "red" in "redemption."
They say that revenge is a dish best served cold, but BU's win was considerably more heated, as it provided payback to the big-stage Red Hot Hockey loss to its long-time ECAC rivals last November.
With BU now basking in an eight-game unbeaten streak, a Hockey East championship, and a first-round win in the NCAA tournament, that defeat now feels like it happened eons ago. After being heralded as the No. 2 team in both national preseason polls, BU proceeded to muddle its way to a 6-7-1 record going into the November 25 game at Madison Square Garden. BU outshot Cornell 38-30 that night but trailed 3-0 after two periods before rallying furiously in the final 20 minutes, only to fall 4-3.
It marked the first time in the six-game history of that biannual event in New York City that Cornell came out on top in Red Hot Hockey. What hurt even more was that it was a winnable game for the Terriers. Afterwards, I watched BU goaltending coach Brian Eklund lead a lengthy heart-to-heart conversation with sophomore goaltender Jake Oettinger outside the Terrier locker room.
"Both of us knew that that wasn't good enough," Oettinger recalled, speaking to me outside the BU locker room today under happier circumstances. "But he's always super-positive, no matter what's happened in the game. He's been a really big help this year. He's helped me bounced back from not a great start to how we've played in the second half."
Much has been made of how Oettinger has been that much better in the second half of the season. While his save percentage has indeed jumped up a few points, sophomore defenseman Chad Krys doesn't really buy into the notion that the goaltender had a subpar start.
"A lot of people are talking about his first half," Krys said. "To be honest with you, I don't think any of us ever thought he didn't play well. He's the backbone for us. If we don't have him in net, we're probably not in this position. I've played with him for the last four years now [on the US Under-18 Team as well as at BU], and you're just confident. You know he can make saves. He's a huge leader for us."
Back in November, it felt like BU was finding ways to lose. The back-breaking goal in the Cornell loss happened on a power play, when Big Red defenseman Alec McCrea threw the puck into traffic in front of net, where it caromed off Krys and snuck past Oettinger by the post.
That deflating moment is a distant memory for Krys now, as he reflected on how the Terriers have played with so much more composure over the last few months. In this afternoon's game, the team never looked desperate, always took its time to make smart outlet passes to clear the zone rather than just throwing the puck away. "It comes with maturity, and we're the youngest team in the NCAA this year," Krys said. "Maybe at the beginning of the season, we didn't have that type of mindset. But the more games we've played, we've gotten individually better, and if you're playing the right way, then the team's going to do better. I think that's what's going on."
BU captain Brandon Hickey downplayed the significance of a redemptive win against the Big Red, emphasizing that that was then, and this is now. "Definitely it's there a little bit, but it's been a completely different season since the first half," Hickey said. "We've moved past everything that happened and learned from it, and we've been a completely different team in the second half. We've been playing with our backs against the wall for a while now, and it's just 'win and advance.' That was really the focus. You don't want to put too much pressure on everyone. It was in the back of our minds but not something we wanted to harp on."
Krys shared a similar perspective, though he acknowledged that today's win was sweet. "The last three weeks for us have been really rewarding for everybody, especially getting a matchup with a team we lost to in November that we felt, at the time, that we were better than. We're very confident now. In the first half, we weren't getting the results we wanted, and maybe that's where you lose some confidence. But the last three weeks have really rolled well."
Cornell didn't make it easy today. Reversing roles from last November, the Big Red outshot the Terriers 31-22 this afternoon and took a 1-0 lead at 7:27 of the second period after a lengthy stretch of scorelessness.
But trailing in a high-stakes game with its season on the line is nothing new to the Terriers these days. They trailed archrival Boston College 2-0 and 3-2 in the Hockey East semifinal before coming out on top. So it was business as usual for the Terriers and their captain today.
"I went to the bench and tried to calm everyone down, trying to keep everyone pushing forward," Hickey said. "This time of year you need a response; you can't get deflated. We went back out there. Fabbs [defenseman Dante Fabbro] and I wanted to get it deep and get our forecheck going. After a goal, you want to get the puck in their end and take it to them—be a little more physical and show them you're not shying away from anything."
The Terriers were rewarded with the equalizer just 36 seconds after falling behind, and Hickey factored heavily in the goal. "Bobo [Carpenter] dropped it back to me, and I kind of whiffed on the first one because I got bumped. So I just spun and threw it to the net, and [freshman Shane] Bowers made an unbelievable tip. He made a great play there."
The game stayed tied until early in the third period, when freshman Brady Tkachuk teed up fellow freshman David Farrance for a nice one-timer that beat Cornell goalie Matthew Galajda. After scoring just one goal in his first 27 collegiate games, Farrance has now scored two huge goals in his last three games.
Logan Cockerill sealed it with an empty netter, completing the payback. "It feels good, especially with the type of goalie that they have down at the other end," Oettinger said, complimenting his rival netminder, who had a stellar freshman season with a 21-5-2 record. "Going head to head against him was fun, and it's just nice to come out on top."
Now BU will try to see if it can advance to its first Frozen Four since Hickey's freshman season. It's already been a topsy-turvy NCAA tournament, as BU was the second No. 4 seed to oust the No. 1 seed in its bracket. Air Force knocked off the number-one team in the nation in St. Cloud State yesterday, and Michigan Tech came up just short of doing the same to Notre Dame in an overtime loss.
"I think that there's so much parity in college hockey, especially when it comes down to one game—a goalie plays well, you get a couple of bounces," Krys said. "St. Cloud was the best team in hockey, and they lose to an Air Force that probably not a lot of people expected to win. Anything can happen. Everybody's good."
If the Terriers can win tomorrow, they will head to Saint Paul, giving Terrier Minnesotans Oettinger and Chase Phelps a chance to play on college hockey's biggest stage right in their backyards. "It would be incredible," Oettinger said. "It's something I've looked forward to ever since I found out that the Frozen Four was going to be in Minnesota. To be one game away from that is exciting, but we still have a lot of work to do."
Before Hickey moves on to professional hockey as the property of the Arizona Coyotes, he's looking to see how long the Terriers can make this magical run last.
"It's been obviously really special," Hickey said. "It's your last year, your last crack at everything, and you want to make the most of it. All of the seniors have been in this position before. We've won and lost championships together and been through a lot.
"We're just trying to go out there and lead the guys by example—do everything we can and trust in Coach. We're here for a reason. We shouldn't be intimidated by anyone we come up against."
They've moved beyond a tough night at Red Hot Hockey. Now we'll see if tomorrow will prove to be another red-letter day.
WORCESTER – Boston University's 3-1 win over Cornell in today's NCAA Northeast Regional really put the "red" in "redemption."
They say that revenge is a dish best served cold, but BU's win was considerably more heated, as it provided payback to the big-stage Red Hot Hockey loss to its long-time ECAC rivals last November.
With BU now basking in an eight-game unbeaten streak, a Hockey East championship, and a first-round win in the NCAA tournament, that defeat now feels like it happened eons ago. After being heralded as the No. 2 team in both national preseason polls, BU proceeded to muddle its way to a 6-7-1 record going into the November 25 game at Madison Square Garden. BU outshot Cornell 38-30 that night but trailed 3-0 after two periods before rallying furiously in the final 20 minutes, only to fall 4-3.
It marked the first time in the six-game history of that biannual event in New York City that Cornell came out on top in Red Hot Hockey. What hurt even more was that it was a winnable game for the Terriers. Afterwards, I watched BU goaltending coach Brian Eklund lead a lengthy heart-to-heart conversation with sophomore goaltender Jake Oettinger outside the Terrier locker room.
"Both of us knew that that wasn't good enough," Oettinger recalled, speaking to me outside the BU locker room today under happier circumstances. "But he's always super-positive, no matter what's happened in the game. He's been a really big help this year. He's helped me bounced back from not a great start to how we've played in the second half."
Much has been made of how Oettinger has been that much better in the second half of the season. While his save percentage has indeed jumped up a few points, sophomore defenseman Chad Krys doesn't really buy into the notion that the goaltender had a subpar start.
"A lot of people are talking about his first half," Krys said. "To be honest with you, I don't think any of us ever thought he didn't play well. He's the backbone for us. If we don't have him in net, we're probably not in this position. I've played with him for the last four years now [on the US Under-18 Team as well as at BU], and you're just confident. You know he can make saves. He's a huge leader for us."
Back in November, it felt like BU was finding ways to lose. The back-breaking goal in the Cornell loss happened on a power play, when Big Red defenseman Alec McCrea threw the puck into traffic in front of net, where it caromed off Krys and snuck past Oettinger by the post.
That deflating moment is a distant memory for Krys now, as he reflected on how the Terriers have played with so much more composure over the last few months. In this afternoon's game, the team never looked desperate, always took its time to make smart outlet passes to clear the zone rather than just throwing the puck away. "It comes with maturity, and we're the youngest team in the NCAA this year," Krys said. "Maybe at the beginning of the season, we didn't have that type of mindset. But the more games we've played, we've gotten individually better, and if you're playing the right way, then the team's going to do better. I think that's what's going on."
BU captain Brandon Hickey downplayed the significance of a redemptive win against the Big Red, emphasizing that that was then, and this is now. "Definitely it's there a little bit, but it's been a completely different season since the first half," Hickey said. "We've moved past everything that happened and learned from it, and we've been a completely different team in the second half. We've been playing with our backs against the wall for a while now, and it's just 'win and advance.' That was really the focus. You don't want to put too much pressure on everyone. It was in the back of our minds but not something we wanted to harp on."
Krys shared a similar perspective, though he acknowledged that today's win was sweet. "The last three weeks for us have been really rewarding for everybody, especially getting a matchup with a team we lost to in November that we felt, at the time, that we were better than. We're very confident now. In the first half, we weren't getting the results we wanted, and maybe that's where you lose some confidence. But the last three weeks have really rolled well."
Cornell didn't make it easy today. Reversing roles from last November, the Big Red outshot the Terriers 31-22 this afternoon and took a 1-0 lead at 7:27 of the second period after a lengthy stretch of scorelessness.
But trailing in a high-stakes game with its season on the line is nothing new to the Terriers these days. They trailed archrival Boston College 2-0 and 3-2 in the Hockey East semifinal before coming out on top. So it was business as usual for the Terriers and their captain today.
"I went to the bench and tried to calm everyone down, trying to keep everyone pushing forward," Hickey said. "This time of year you need a response; you can't get deflated. We went back out there. Fabbs [defenseman Dante Fabbro] and I wanted to get it deep and get our forecheck going. After a goal, you want to get the puck in their end and take it to them—be a little more physical and show them you're not shying away from anything."
The Terriers were rewarded with the equalizer just 36 seconds after falling behind, and Hickey factored heavily in the goal. "Bobo [Carpenter] dropped it back to me, and I kind of whiffed on the first one because I got bumped. So I just spun and threw it to the net, and [freshman Shane] Bowers made an unbelievable tip. He made a great play there."
The game stayed tied until early in the third period, when freshman Brady Tkachuk teed up fellow freshman David Farrance for a nice one-timer that beat Cornell goalie Matthew Galajda. After scoring just one goal in his first 27 collegiate games, Farrance has now scored two huge goals in his last three games.
Logan Cockerill sealed it with an empty netter, completing the payback. "It feels good, especially with the type of goalie that they have down at the other end," Oettinger said, complimenting his rival netminder, who had a stellar freshman season with a 21-5-2 record. "Going head to head against him was fun, and it's just nice to come out on top."
Now BU will try to see if it can advance to its first Frozen Four since Hickey's freshman season. It's already been a topsy-turvy NCAA tournament, as BU was the second No. 4 seed to oust the No. 1 seed in its bracket. Air Force knocked off the number-one team in the nation in St. Cloud State yesterday, and Michigan Tech came up just short of doing the same to Notre Dame in an overtime loss.
"I think that there's so much parity in college hockey, especially when it comes down to one game—a goalie plays well, you get a couple of bounces," Krys said. "St. Cloud was the best team in hockey, and they lose to an Air Force that probably not a lot of people expected to win. Anything can happen. Everybody's good."
If the Terriers can win tomorrow, they will head to Saint Paul, giving Terrier Minnesotans Oettinger and Chase Phelps a chance to play on college hockey's biggest stage right in their backyards. "It would be incredible," Oettinger said. "It's something I've looked forward to ever since I found out that the Frozen Four was going to be in Minnesota. To be one game away from that is exciting, but we still have a lot of work to do."
Before Hickey moves on to professional hockey as the property of the Arizona Coyotes, he's looking to see how long the Terriers can make this magical run last.
"It's been obviously really special," Hickey said. "It's your last year, your last crack at everything, and you want to make the most of it. All of the seniors have been in this position before. We've won and lost championships together and been through a lot.
"We're just trying to go out there and lead the guys by example—do everything we can and trust in Coach. We're here for a reason. We shouldn't be intimidated by anyone we come up against."
They've moved beyond a tough night at Red Hot Hockey. Now we'll see if tomorrow will prove to be another red-letter day.
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