CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. - Cutter Gauthier scored a pair of goals, one to tie the game in the third period and another to win it in overtime on Friday night as No. 3 Boston College defeated UConn 5-4 at Kelley Rink to open a Hockey East home-and-home series.
The Eagles improved to 8-2-1 (3-1-1 HEA) and 6-1-0 at home, while the Huskies fell to 5-7-1 (3-4-0 HEA).
Gauthier added an assist for a three-point night, while fellow sophomore Andre Gasseau also posted a two-goal performance in the victory. Rookie defenseman Drew Fortescue scored his second of the season.
Freshman Jacob Fowler made 28 saves and pushed his record to 8-2-1 through 11 starts.
BC took the lead at 7:25 of the first period at the tail-end of a power play when Ryan Leonard's shot from the top of the left wing circle deflected off Gasseau's skate through Ethan Haider's pads. Leonard extended his point streak to five games with the assist.
The Eagles doubled the lead at 9:01 on a left wing effort from Fortescue, who took Will Vote's cross-ice pass from the right corner and snuck a shot past Haider through traffic.
After a Tristan Fraser goal put UConn on the board at 17:05, Gasseau one-timed a pass from Gauthier short side from the right wing circle to restore the two-goal cushion with 1:36 left in the first.
A pair of Chase Bradley goals early in the second period quickly pulled the Huskies level at 3-3. Jake Flynn then buried a shot through a screen from the slot with 4:55 left in the middle frame as UConn took its first lead.
Gauthier tied the game as a power play was about to expire at the 6:16 mark of the third period. Jack Malone fed a pass into the low slot for Gabe Perreault, who backhanded the puck to the weak side for Gauthier. The forward unleashed a shot from just inside the dot that bounced off Haider and a UConn defenseman at the left post.
Gauthier's overtime winner followed an Oskar Jellvik chance as he closed in on net from the left wing and tried to lift a backhand to the far post. UConn played the puck into the crease from below the goal line and Gauthier pounced to secure the win.
The teams close their home-and-home series on Saturday night at 7 p.m. on ESPN+ at the Toscano Family Ice Forum in Storrs.
