Eagles Suffer 4-2 Setback at No. 9 Northeastern

BOSTON – Despite a 43-22 shot advantage over Northeastern, Boston College suffered a 4-2 setback at Matthews Arena to close a home-and-home series with the ninth-ranked Huskies on Saturday night. Cayden Primeau made 41 saves and was less than four minutes away from a shutout for NU.

The Eagles (11-19-3) fell back to .500 in Hockey East at 10-10-3 with one game remaining in the regular season at Providence next Thursday. The Huskies earned a weekend split with BC, improving to 14-8-1 in the league and 22-10-1 overall.

Northeastern took the lead three minutes in when AJ Villella's right point shot found the upper left corner through a partial screen of Joseph Woll (18 saves).

NU hit two posts in the first period, including one immediately following the opening tally, but the Eagles carried the play in the second half of the frame and out-shot the Huskies 15-8.

Despite a 12-5 shot advantage in the second period, Primeau kept Boston College at bay. The sophomore denied David Cotton in tight at the right post and kicked out Marc McLaughlin's one-timer from the low right circle.

In the closing minutes of the middle frame, both goaltenders made special saves to preserve the 1-0 scoreline. Woll pushed laterally to rob Tyler Madden's bid with his blocker, and Primeau flashed his glove at the other end to deny Julius Mattila in the final second of the period.

NU put the game away with three goals in the third period, including a pair in the first five minutes. Patrick Schule followed his own rebound at 1:16 after serving a penalty, and Brandon Hawkins finished a one-timer inside the left post at 4:33.

Austin Plevy later redirected a pass from John Picking off the right post with six and a half remaining to stretch the lead to 4-0.

Cotton netted his league-leading 20th goal of the season with 3:19 left on the clock to put Boston College on the board, denying Primeau the shutout, and Aapeli Räsänen buried a rebound with 45 seconds remaining during a 6-on-5.

BC finished the night 3-for-3 on the penalty and has killed off 11 straight over its last four games.

The Eagles remain seventh in the league, one point behind Maine for sixth and one point ahead of eighth-place UNH. Both the Black Bears and Wildcats own the head-to-head tiebreaker on BC.

SCORING
• 2:56 1st, NU Goal (0-1) | Ryan Shea set up Villella for a one-timer at the right point, and his shot found a way into the top left corner through a screen to give Northeastern the early lead

• 1:16 3rd, NU Goal (0-2) | Schule came down the right wing during an odd-man rush and had his initial shot blocked, but followed his own rebound to beat Woll inside the short side post

• 4:33 3rd, NU Goal (0-3) | Jordan Harris slid a backhand pass to Hawkins at the inside hash mark of the left circle, and his one-timer snuck inside the left post to increase the lead

• 13:29 3rd, NU Goal (0-4) | Picking slid a pass into the slot for Plevy, who fought off an Eagle defender and one-timed the puck off the right post for his second tally of the weekend

• 16:41 3rd, BC Goal (1-4) | Cotton followed Oliver Wahlstrom's shot from the right circle and shoveled a backhand past a sprawled out Primeau for his 20th tally of the year

• 19:15 3rd, BC Goal (2-4) | Jack McBain tried to jam in a puck near the right post, and Räsänen buried the loose puck from the edge of the crease in the final minute

UP NEXT
Boston College closes the regular season next Thursday (March 7) with a trip to Schneider Arena to face No. 8 Providence at 7 p.m. The Eagles have already clinched the regular season series with the Friars with a pair of home wins.

Eagles Suffer 4-2 Setback at No. 9 Northeastern

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Team Stats

David Cotton

Aapeli Räsänen

Oliver Wahlstrom

Logan Hutsko

Players Mentioned

David Cotton

Julius Mattila

Jack McBain

Marc McLaughlin

Aapeli Räsänen

Oliver Wahlstrom

Joseph Woll

Players Mentioned

David Cotton

Julius Mattila

Jack McBain

Marc McLaughlin

Aapeli Räsänen

Oliver Wahlstrom

Joseph Woll