BU forward Quinn Hutson (CAS’26) fishes for a puck off his back during the 2024 Hockey East championship, March 23, at TD Garden.

HOCKEY EAST

BU Falls to BC in Hockey East Championship

Top-ranked Eagles win 6-2, as both teams next turn their attention toward NCAA tournament

College hockey fans everywhere were expecting a treat Saturday night—another installment of the Battle of Commonwealth Avenue, this time on the Hockey East’s biggest stage. What they got instead was a one-sided affair.

The No. 2–ranked BU men’s ice hockey team fell 6-2 to archrival No.1–ranked Boston College, in the Hockey East Tournament Championship on Saturday. National points leader Will Smith scored four goals to earn BC’s 12th conference title and first since 2012. Both teams will now turn their attention toward the NCAA tournament as they await their seedings that will determine whether they could meet one more time this season—with the national championship at stake.

If that were to happen, BU would have to figure out a way to slow BC down. The Eagles’ ability to prevent power play goals from opponents, and score power play goals of their own, characterized the 2024 conference title match. Although BU’s penalty unit entered Saturday second in the nation (28.8 percent), BC’s top-ranked penalty kill (90 percent) proved stronger throughout the game, limiting BU to one power play goal on five attempts.

Shortly after killing a Terrier 5-on-4 in the first five minutes of the game, the Eagles found themselves on the man advantage when Terrier forward Shane Lachance (CAS’27) committed a costly slash at 15:24. The Eagles’ power play unit levied four shots toward Terrier goaltender Mathieu Caron (CAS’25) and the BU defense. On the fifth attempt, BC Hobey Baker finalist and national points leader Will Smith found the back of the net, weaving the puck through a sea of scarlet.

Down 1-0 and weathering continued pressure from the Eagles, BU defenseman Lane Hutson (CAS’26) committed a trip, sending the two-time Hobey Baker finalist to the penalty box at 7:37. Once again, BC’s Smith found himself through on net, slinging the puck over Caron’s right shoulder from the left circle to double the Eagles’ early lead.

“We didn’t get the job done on the penalty kill,” said BU head coach Jay Pandolfo (CAS’96) at a press conference following the game. “BC has some talented players out there that don’t need a lot of space or time, they can make plays through any seam, they can finish, and that was the difference.”

Although BC capitalized on both power play opportunities, BU filled their offensive zone time with multiple shots of their own—12 in the period. However, Eagles goaltender Jacob Fowler managed the barrage, pitching a first-period shutout. Fowler is a Mike Richter Award finalist, given to DI hockey’s top goaltender.

BU entered the second period down 2-0. An otherwise uneventful opening five minutes was brought to an abrupt halt when BU found their first goal of the contest. Defenseman Gavin McCarthy (CAS’27) corralled the puck beyond the left hashmarks, snapping a missile past Fowler to make the score 2-1. Freshman McCarthy could not have chosen a bigger moment to score his first collegiate goal.

“We were joking all year that he couldn’t buy a goal to save his life, so we were saying he’s gonna score one at the Garden at the end of the year,” said Case McCarthy (Questrom’23, SHA’24), team captain and Gavin’s older sibling. “It was a cool older brother moment to be at this stage and see how excited he was to finally get his first one.”

The second period retained the excitement indicative of a meeting between college hockey’s top two teams and greatest rivals. After a heroic save by Fowler on a Terriers breakaway, BU alternate captain Luke Tuch (COM’24) took a boarding call with 2:09 to go in the second, snapping what seemed to be the Terriers first and only possession of the game’s momentum.

As with their first two campaigns on the power play, BC found a way past Caron to regain their two-goal lead. Eagles forward Gabe Perreault feathered a pass across Caron’s crease to Cutter Gauthier, who extended his national lead in goals with his 35th of the season. Gauthier is a Hobey Baker finalist alongside Smith.

Winning 3-1 with six minutes gone in the third, BC won a face-off in BU’s zone. Eagles forward Ryan Leonard found a wide-open Smith to the left of the BU net, who fired the puck past Caron to complete his hat trick and make it 4-1 BC.

Shortly thereafter, Fowler’s heroics in the crease stopped an open look for Terriers forward Ryan Greene (CAS’26). On the other end, BU’s Lane Hutson committed a hold, which the Eagles quickly obliged with another goal. This time, Gauthier coaxed Caron out of the crease, setting up an easy rebound and score for Perreault.

With 7:33 to go, former Terrier Jamie Armstrong committed a five-minute major for contact to the head against his former team.

Skating 5-on-4 for five minutes, the Terriers broke through on the stick of Hobey Baker finalist and Hockey East Player and Rookie of the Year Macklin Celebrini (CAS’27). Celebrini fired a one-timer from the right face-off circle to bring BU within three. BU then opted to pull Caron to make it 6-on-4, but still could not muster more than the one Celebrini goal.

A pivotal time-out with 2:05 left was quickly nullified by Leonard, who loosened the puck on the boards to find Smith, who’s half-ice backhand shot pierced the empty net and made the score 6-2, Smith’s fourth of the game.

“We have got to get past this,” said Pandolfo. “We’re still playing, it’s not the end of our season. This will hurt for a bit but we’ve got a mature group and they’ll respond.”

No. 2-ranked Boston University will play Rochester Institute of Technology, winner of the Atlantic Hockey Tournament, in the opening round of the NCAA tournament, played at the Sioux Falls Regional, Thursday, March 28, at 5 pm ET at Denny Sanford Premier Center in Sioux Falls, S.D.