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NCAA Hockey: More Boston magic; RIT pulls off massive upset

Via RIT

In which we recap the day’s events in the NCAA tournament.

MANCHESTER, N.H. — Let’s put it this way: If BU has even the remotest chance of coming back in a game, its almost inhuman ability to dominate the third period all but assures that it will.

Their game against Minnesota-Duluth was tied at two goals apiece through two periods, but BU made a little switch or two — mixing up the depth lines, changing up the forecheck, the standard stuff it usually does at this point in the game to disquiet opponents — and really stepped into the game in a way it has so many times before.

The top line, indomitable as it so often is at this point of games, crushed UMD in possession, drew a late penalty, and underrated senior Evan Rodrigues scored a wonderful individual goal at 17:36 of the third on the ensuing power play. BU won 3-2 and punched its ticket to the Frozen Four. Because of course it did. It was always going to.

“I thought we did what we do best,” BU coach David Quinn said. “I thought we had a great third period. We were relentless, we we smart, and we just did the things we needed to do to win an incredibly important hockey game and extend our season.”

The Terriers are now 21-0-2 when leading or tied through two periods. They’re also just 6-7-3 when trailing after 40. If they're within striking distance, it’s almost impossible to put them down and keep them there.

But with that ability to basically take over a game occasionally comes a fallowness that leads to some nervy situations in the early going. That’s what happened today. When the top line of Jack Eichel, Evan Rodrigues, and Danny O’Regan were off the ice, BU was getting thoroughly pushed around. And while that line carried play more often than not, this was once again a game where little was happening for them in the offensive zone apart from shuffling the puck along the perimeter.

Rodrigues did have the first of his two goals 7:17 into the first period, as a puck batted high in the air at the attacking blue line on a bad clearing attempt came within a six-foot radius. He swatted at it like a batter trying to foul off an 0-2 pitch high and outside, and to the surprise of basically everybody in the building, it not only got on net, but beat UMD goalie Kasimir Kaskisuo.

Still the problems persisted, and the second period was far more eventful than the first. Three times in the first 7:31, someone scored, with UMD doing so first, just 37 seconds after the break. BU answered 2:55 later to regain the lead, and UMD got back even 3:59 after that. Then the Bulldogs started to exert their influence. BU had to dig deep.

“It was kind of like a heavyweight fight,” Quinn said. “We controlled the first few rounds, almost had a couple of opportunities to deliver the knockout punch. Then they come back and dominate for about 10 or 12 minutes, and we come back and dominate for 10 or 12 minutes.”

The motivated Eichel, the one who explodes off the bench menacingly pitched forward, is a player that exudes confidence. When he does that, and gets a head of steam, all involved — whether playing, coaching, or watching — know something is bound to happen. That Eichel was rarely in evidence through 40 minutes, and the Terriers’ numbers showed it. Possession was in UMD’s favor, goals were even, and the season had as little as 20 minutes left.

Those who watched BU a lot this year could tell that something was off; the game in the eastern marches of college hockey is one built on finesse and the transition. Teams out west tend to be bigger, more physical, and games are often determined by moments of individual skill. Neither is better or worse than the other, and certainly teams out east can dictate a more violent game, while some in the west are more than happy to play faster. But the difference can be jarring, and BU — a smaller team overall — hasn’t played a western team since mid-October when it swept Michigan State and Michigan (not exactly outstanding practitioners of the sport this season) at its own Agganis Arena.

For the second game in a row, the transition game just wasn’t there for the Terriers. UMD was, in fact, doing a better job at stifling them than Yale — its Bulldog compatriots — in terms of limiting chances. BU’s goals came, instead, on a series of failed clearing attempts and a bout of extended possession in the attacking zone.

But where BU, and the Eichel line specifically, has really made its hay this season is that third period. For whatever reason, the Terriers’ style tends to trend more toward that of a powerful heavyweight content lean on opponents, pushing them against the ropes again and again, in hopes of tiring and perhaps provoking them into mistakes. That wasn’t how the opening 40 had gone, of course — it was Duluth doling out most of the punishment — but there was, as always, a kind of expectation that, okay, now they’re going to do something here. The BU goal differential in the third period entering tonight’s game was an astonishing plus-42 in just 38 games, on 67 for and just 25 against.

But if you’re waiting until the later rounds to really try to put your opponent on the canvas, you run the risk of getting KO’ed yourself. It doesn’t happen often, especially if that’s your game plan and you’re well-conditioned, but it certainly can.

“We talked about the same thing,” said UMD coach Scott Sandelin. “Obviously they came out and probably had a little more jump. I mean, obviously it’s tough to generate anything. They were winning races and getting pucks to the net, which is what they do very well.”

The adjustment Quinn made led to the Terriers once again getting the puck deeper into the attacking zone and keeping it there. And while the middle of the ice was still very much the domain of Minnesota-Duluth, the opportunities were certainly starting to come a little more rapid-fire. Shot attempts at 5-on-5 in the third period were 23-7 to BU. Something had to give soon, and of course the top line made it happen.

Late in the game, Rodrigues got the puck in the right wing corner and, in part of a physical battle, was dragged to the ice. Was it a penalty? No surprise here, but Sandelin didn’t think so, and with less than five minutes to go in a tied regional final, few in the building would have begrudged the lack of a call. But called it was, and with just one second to go in the power play, Rodrigues scored his second and staked BU to a lead it would, obviously, never relinquish.

One hesitates to call what BU does “clutch,” because the way they play the game is what engenders late winners and helps them strangle the life out of just about every game. It isn’t so much that someone always steps up as the opponent is nearly always too exhausted to protest. Skill wins games pretty reliably at this level, and the Terrier top line has loads of it. What reply could any Bulldog have had tonight?

How do you not count the lights if you’re lucky enough to survive that long?

RIT 2, Minnesota State 1

A rather controversial goal got the No. 1 team in the country bounced in just its first game.

An RIT forechecker appeared to shove a defenseman into goaltender Stephon Williams just as linemate Josh Mitchell let a shot go. Puck, defender and goalie all ended up lying in the net, and initially the referee signaled no-goal. But a decently long review overturned the initial call, and RIT held on the rest of the way. (It was ruled that the MSU defenseman initiated contact.)

For much of the game, it seemed as though RIT was going to keep pace with Mankato. The Tigers scored the first goal just 4:30 into the game and didn’t concede until nearly 27 minutes later. Shots were relatively even through two periods too, at 18-14 to the top-seeded Mavericks.

Then it was as though RIT just hit a wall. That whole “best possession team in the country” thing seemed to occur to everyone all at once. Shots ended up being 34-19. But inevitability of possession disparity aside, this was a game RIT had no business winning. And yet here we are.

The romance of the tournament, one supposes.

Denver 5, Boston College 2

Things looked like they were going OK for the Eagles, playing relatively close to home in Providence, R.I., for most of the first period. They weren’t down more than one goal against a very intimidating Pioneer side, and in fact Michael Matheson leveled inside of five minutes to go. If they could get to the intermission tied, things might not have seemed so bad.

But instead Trevor Moore scored with seven seconds to go before the interval, and as it turned out that just about sealed it. The game appeared even for a while longer, then Denver struck twice more in 1:01 midway through the third to really salt the earth. Tanner Jaillet stopped 22 of 24 to pick up the win, 11 of which came in the third when the result was more or less assured.

The win bumped the NCHC to 4-0 in the tournament to that point.

Providence College 7, Miami 5

This game was, in a word, insane. Providence scored seven times, which was odd because in the Hockey East quarterfinals it scored just four goals across three games. Miami scored five times despite missing both its 20-goal scorers to suspension in one case, and injury in another. Providence also has one of the best goalies and defenses in the country.

And how they scored: Providence led 6-2 entering the third period, and Miami couldn’t get much going in attack to answer. So with about 13 — THIRTEEN!!!! — minutes left, Miami coach Rico Blasi pulled his goalie in search of four goals.

And he almost got them. Matthew Caito scored at 11:26, then Devin Loe at 14:14, then Sean Kuraly at 18:27. At that point, it was 6-5 and things were getting awful nerve-wracking.

It wasn’t until Brandon Tanev scored into an empty net with just seven seconds left that the Friars could breathe easy. And not that it ended up mattering, but look at this desperation save from defenseman Louie Belpedio:

Nebraska-Omaha 4, Harvard 1

This one was closer than the scoreline suggests, as Omaha scored two into an empty net. But still, there was very little chance that Harvard was ever going to win it.

Grant Gallo scored just 1:59 into the game, then Avery Peterson scored with less than two seconds left in the first on a 5-on-3. A two-goal deficit is tough for anyone, but particularly so for a team so essentially one-line as the Crimson. Not that the Mavericks could keep that one line silent, as Jimmy Vesey cut the lead in half early in the third with his nation-leading 32nd of the season. But a late penalty from Luke Esposito with 2:30 left assured the Harvard comeback would end before it began.

North Dakota 4, St. Cloud 1

St. Cloud jumped out to a lead 1:29 in, but then North Dakota figured out that they are much better than the Huskies. They scored the next three goals relatively early in each period (8:59 of the first, 6:49 of the second, 2:53 of the third). This was basically the only possible result here.

Three Stars

1. Jordan Ruby, RIT

Ruby only played 21 games for RIT this season, but he turned in a .923 save percentage across them, and improved that today, stopping 33 of 34 against a much better team. This is the reason the Tigers won: They got pushed around, especially late, and Ruby didn't crack.

2. Evan Rodrigues, BU

Two goals and a massive performance in all three zones. This kid thinks the game at a very high level.

3. Grant Arnold, Denver

Arnold, the Pioneers' captain this year, entered the game with zero goals on the season. He scored the fourth and fifth goals for Denver. I guess you call that leadership.