, Vt. - In its most decisive road victory in over 18 years, the Boston University men's ice hockey team posted a commanding 9-1 win over Vermont on Friday evening at Gutterson Fieldhouse. Seniors Bryan Ewing and Pete MacArthur set career highs with four points apiece while junior Chris Higgins and freshman Colin Wilson each added two goals and an assist. All nine of the Terriers' goals were even-strength.
The Terriers improve to 3-5-2 on the year with a 3-2-1 conference mark, while the Catamounts drop to 1-5-1 overall and 1-2-1 in league play.
The last time BU won a road game by eight goals was an 8-0 shutout against Merrimack on Nov. 4, 1989, at Lawler Arena.
BU scored a pair of first-period goals and took a 3-0 lead in the opening minute of the second period. Vermont got on the board immediately after, but the Terriers cruised the rest of way, scoring two more times in the middle stanza before tacking on four goals in the third.
Ewing tallied a goal to go along with a trio of assists, while MacArthur earned four assists. Freshman Colby Cohen had a hand in each of the Terriers two first-period tallies, assisting on the first before registering his first collegiate goal - the eventual game winner.
Juniors Jason Lawrence and Brandon Yip each posted a goal and an assist and sophomore Zach Cohen also found the back of the net. Five other Terriers were credited with an assist on the night (Nick Bonino, Matt Gilroy, Dan McGoff, Luke Popko, Brian Strait).
Sophomore Brett Bennett earned the win in goal, making 15 saves before senior Karson Gillespie played the final 10:26 and stopped the only shot he faced.
BU chased Vermont's starting goaltender, senior Jim Fallon, following four goals on just 15 shots. Sophomore Mike Spillane came on in relief, but did fare much better, allowing four goals on 16 shots. Making just the second appearance of his career, senior Jeff Hill closed out the day between the pipes for the Catamounts and made four stops while giving up one goal.
The Terriers held a 36-17 advantage in shots. Each team went 0-for-4 on the power play, ending BU's streak of eight straight games with a power-play goal.
BU opened the scoring near the midpoint of the first. Colby Cohen collected a loose puck in the neutral zone before firing a shot at the top of the right faceoff circle. Fallon made the initial stop, but Lawrence picked up the rebound and sent a slow, angled shot that went off a Vermont skate and eluded Fallon, slipping through the crease before sneaking just inside the left pipe at the 9:10 mark.
The Terriers took a two-goal lead into the first intermission thanks to Colby Cohen's first career tally. With a cross-ice pass, Gilroy found Cohen all alone on the right side, and the freshman made the most of the opportunity by sending a shot to the netting with just 17 seconds left in the period.
Wilson's first goal of the night came just 31 seconds into the second period, as the freshman one-timed a shot past Fallon on assists from MacArthur and Ewing.
Sophomore Viktor Stålberg quickly made it a two-goal game again when he scored what would be Vermont's lone goal of the night just 24 seconds after Wilson's tally. Stålberg beat Bennett high glove-side from the left circle.
The Terriers scored the final six goals of the game, beginning with Yip's first marker of the season. Following a pass from Wilson, Yip sent home a shot from the left side that knocked Fallon out of the game at the 9:57 mark of the middle period.
Under five minutes later, BU's fourth-line produced a goal as Zach Cohen scored on assists from Lawrence and Popko.
Up 5-1 entering the third, the Terriers made sure there would be no chance for a comeback, using tallies from Higgins and Ewing at 0:48 and 3:55 of the final period to make it a 7-1 affair. MacArthur earned the primary assist on both of those goals and did the same at the 8:45 mark when Higgins recorded his second goal of the night.
Wilson capped the scoring and his three-point effort with 8:06 left in regulation when he found the back of the net on helpers from Yip and Bonino.
The two teams will close out the weekend series on Saturday (Nov. 17) at 7 p.m.
