Sunday, December 5, 2010

BC Complete Sweep with 5-2 Win

CHESTNUT HILL, MA - The fans of the Boston College Eagles summed up their feelings towards their cross city rivals with a loud “just like last night” chant with under a minute to go.  

In front of a sold out crowd, the home town team did not disappoint their fans as they completed the home and home sweep over arch rivals Boston University with convincing 5-2 win.  BU’s coach Jack Parker put it best when describing The Eagles, “speed and confidence”.  There was no lack of either tonight.

Both teams came out with a lot of jump to start the game, trading hits and scoring chances.  The Terriers got on the board early with a goal by freshman Matt Nieto.  

It didn’t take long for BC to strike back as Cam Atkinson netted his 14th of the season after a giveaway by the BU defenders.  His linemates Brian Gibbons and Joe Whitney, who assisted on the goal, caused havoc for BU with their passing around the net to set up an easy tap in for Atkinson.

The Eagles jumped out to an early 2 goal lead to start the second period with goals from sophomore defenceman Brain Dumoulin and forward Steven Whitney.  Dumoulin’s big blast from the point had eyes for the back of the net as the puck narrowly missed the traffic in front and Whitey’s first of two on the evening was a shooters goal over the shoulder of BU goalie Kieran Millan.  

While BU managed to get close with a goal from a scrum in front of the net, Chris Kreider sunk any hope of a comeback with a short-handed goal breakaway goal.  

“There was a little bit of mis-communication and they were a little bit flat footed.  I kind of got lucky and got a head of steam.”

The highlight of the night came with Whitney’s second goal.  After jumping on to the ice after another strong penalty kill, Whitney took a pass from Jimmy Hayes and was off to the races.  The sophomore fooled Millan with a deke and scored on his backhand to the roar of the BC faithful.

“”The goalie was far out and I went for the deke on the backhand” said Whitney after the game.

Coach Jerry York was happy this team tonight.  “For the first two periods, we were outstanding.  We really had some jump.”

Attitude is a big factor to BC’s recent success according to Kreider.  “Everyone is so positive on the bench and in the locker room.  At times we might have been cheating the game a little bit as our coaches say.  Playing a little too soft instead of playing like men.  We sat down and talked about it.  We have a lot of leaders other than our captains stepping up to the forefront.”

Coach York believes that his team is getting better but they need to stay focused, not just thinking about April.  “You can’t just wait for Beanpots, HockeyEast tournaments and NCAA.  I think your attitude, like Chris said, is a big part.  Enjoy each practice and April will come soon enough.”

Boston College will go on their winter break and won’t be back on the ice until Decemeber 30th taking part in the Ledyard National Bank Classic in Hanover, NH.  

Zac’s 3 Stars

1st Star - Boston College - F Steven Whitey
A 2 goal night for the young forward.  6 shots on net and finished a +2.  His second goal would have easily make highlight of the night.

2nd Star - Boston College - F Chris Kreider
Kreider helped seal the deal for the Eagles with a short-handed goal and ended the night with 8 shots on net, the most out of any player on either team.  

3rd Star - Boston College - G John Muse
Once again, Muse came up big when he had to.  A few key saves down the stretch kept BU out of the game.

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