Cole Hutson celebrates after squeaking the game-winning goal past Northeastern goalie Lawton Zacher to lift BU into the Beanpot championship against Boston College. Photo by Sheily Melgar

Varsity Sports

BU Tops Northeastern in Thrilling Shootout to Reach Beanpot Title Game

Terriers will defend their tournament title against rival Boston College on February 9

There are few instances when a tie feels like a win, but for the Boston University men’s hockey team, coming off three straight losses, Monday night’s Dunkin’ Beanpot semifinal at TD Garden was one of them. 

In its matchup against crosstown rival Northeastern, BU squeaked out with a 2-2 tie and shootout win. Cole Hutson (CAS’28) scored the winner for the Terriers, when his shot trickled past the Northeastern goalie.

“I know it’s a tie on the record, but right now, anything positive for our group is really important,” head coach Jay Pandolfo (CAS’96) said postgame.

The Terriers will play for their record 33rd Beanpot title on Monday, February 9, at TD Garden against Boston College, a rematch of last year’s Beanpot championship game, which BU won 4-1. It will also be the 300th meeting between the Comm Ave rivals. The Eagles trounced Harvard 5-1 earlier Monday evening to join BU in the title game.

BU played with a sense of urgency from the opening face-off, controlling the pace of play early by winning pucks in the corners with the intent to create offense.

“I really like our effort, really from start to finish,” Pandolfo said. “I thought we deserved that win.”

Despite the strong start, BU’s momentum was halted when Charlie Trethewey (COM’29) was called for tripping at 8:17 of the first period—and Northeastern opened the scoring at 9:20. The Huskies worked the puck around the Terriers’ perimeter as senior Vinny Borgesi found junior Dylan Hryckowian, who fired home a one-timer from the left circle to give Northeastern a 1-0 lead.

At 18:51 of the opening frame, BU had its best scoring chance of the period. Ben Merrill (CAS’29) fired a puck that careened off junior goaltender Lawton Zacher’s far pad. The bounding puck found the stick of Cole Eiserman (CAS’28), the Terriers’ best goal scorer, wide open in the left circle. Eiserman fired a puck on goal, and Zacher made a sprawling save to keep BU off the board.

The Terriers finally found the back of the net early into the second period. Starting at the top of the offensive zone, Trethewey maneuvered around the Huskies’ defense and flung a backhanded shot on goal. The puck was redirected by Jonathan Morello (Questrom’29) on its way to the back of the net to knot the score at one apiece.

Freshman Jacob Mathieu gave Northeastern the lead back at 4:55. With a full head of steam entering the offensive zone, he received a pass from Hryckowian and fired a wrist shot past netminder Mikhail Yegorov (CAS’28), who saved 24 shots in a stellar game.

But BU answered when Nick Roukounakis (Questrom’28) won a loose puck in the defensive zone, rushed up the ice, and rifled one home to tie the score.

“It’s a childhood dream,” Pembroke native Roukounakis said of scoring in the Beanpot. “I used to come to the Beanpot a lot with my dad.”

BU’s third line of Morello, Roukounakis, and Ryder Ritchie (CAS’29) were excellent all night for the Terriers. “[Morello], he’s just a workhorse, he never stops,” Roukounakis said. “Ritchie, he adds a little bit of skill to our line that we need, and he makes the right plays at the right time.”

Both sides finished with 11 shots on goal in the middle frame, although the Terriers held a 32-21 advantage in shot attempts during the period. Pandolfo has emphasized hitting during BU’s recent scoring drought, which remains a work in progress despite Monday’s result.

The Terriers controlled much of the play in the third period, outshooting the Huskies 15-7 in the frame. Tynan Lawrence (CAS’29) was everywhere for BU in the third, showcasing his speed, puck handling, and ability to drive offense. He created several chances for himself and others in the last 20 minutes of regulation.

Even with both teams having quality looks in the waning minutes of regulation, neither could find the back of the net, forcing a five-minute, 3-on-3 overtime period.

After a back-and-forth start to the extra session, the Terriers thought they had the winner with just 33 seconds remaining. Ritchie fired a wrist shot that beat Zacher, but Gavin McCarthy (SHA’27) was whistled for interference, negating the goal. Northeastern was unable to score in the final seconds of overtime, and the game headed to a shootout, which BU won 2-1.

“He’s had our back all year,” Hutson said of McCarthy. “It was good to get the chance to defend maybe a mistake he made—we had no doubt we were killing that penalty.”