SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - The No. 2 Boston University men's ice hockey team avenged last year's season-ending loss to Minnesota, topping the seventh-ranked Gophers, 6-3, to win the NCAA Sioux Falls Regional on Saturday evening at Denny Sanford Premier Center.
It marks the first time in 27 years that the Terriers are making back-to-back trips to the Frozen Four as they will take on No. 3 Denver in the national semifinals on Thursday, April 11, in Saint Paul, Minnesota. This is the 24th time the Terriers have advanced to the Frozen Four.
Freshmen Jack Harvey and Shane Lachance each recorded a goal and added an assist while classmate Macklin Celebrini had a trio of assists. Sophomore Quinn Hutson provided BU's first goal and graduate students Case McCarthy and Sam Stevens sealed the game with empty-netters. Sophomore Lane Hutson scored his 15th goal of the season as well.
The Terriers went down 2-0 with just over two minutes left in the opening period but got on the board just 14 seconds later thanks to Quinn Hutson's impressive individual effort to enter the first intermission down just one goal. BU put together a three-goal middle period and took a 4-3 edge into the final frame.
Junior Mathieu Caron made 25 stops for the Terriers, who improve to 28-9-2 on the year.
Celebrini was selected as the Most Outstanding Player of the regional. He joined Caron, Lane Hutson, Harvey and McCarthy on the All-Regional Team.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- BU controlled play through the opening few minutes but Jaxon Nelson lit the lamp at the 7:19 mark to give Minnesota a 1-0 lead, which it doubled thanks to Bryce Brodzinski's goal at 17:47.
- Quinn gave BU much-needed momentum just 14 seconds later. He intercepted a clearing attempt along the wall and skated in on Gopher goaltender Justen Close before sliding a puck underneath Close's pads.
- The Harvey-Celebrini-Lachance line went to work to get BU the lead early in the second. The trio first combined for a goal at the 1:17 mark when Celebrini gained the zone and deked by a defender before turning and sliding a cross-zone pass to a wide-open Lachance, who made no mistake into an open net as Close had committed to defending Celebrini.
- Harvey then gave the Terriers their first lead of the game at 5:25 of the second when he collected the puck in the right circle and zipped a shot into the top right corner.
- The Gophers equalized at the 9:20 mark, but Lane restored the Terriers' lead for good at 15:36 when he danced around a defender at the top of the zone and skated down to the bottom of the left circle before slipping the puck past Close.
- BU played a tremendous third period, outshooting Minnesota, 15-9, over the final 20 minutes.
- McCarthy and Stevens added empty-netter.
GAME NOTES
- Jay Pandolfo has now made it to the Frozen Four six times; four as a player and twice as head coach.
- Hutson now has a career-high 49 points on 15 goals and 34 assists.
- Celebrini enters the Frozen Four with 32 goals and 32 assists for 64 points, which is second in the nation.
- The 17-year-old is the first freshman since the 2005-06 season to record 30 goals and 30 assists in the same season.
- Neither team was whistled for a penalty on Saturday.
- That was the first time BU did not commit a penalty in a game since Feb. 28, 2019 at Providence.
- BU outshot Minnesota, 38-28.
