The eighth-ranked Boston University Terriers received third-period goals 1:58 apart from sophomore right wings Quinn Hutson and Devin Kaplan to build a 5-2 lead and withstood a furious rally from the University of Maine to collect a 5-4 Hockey East victory at Parker Rink in Agganis Arena in Boston on Saturday night.
BU completed the weekend sweep after winning 3-2 on Friday night and has now won four in a row. The Terriers have improved to 8-3-1 overall and 5-1-1 in Hockey East.
Ninth-ranked UMaine fell to 6-3-1 and 3-2-1, respectively.
BU has now won the last five meetings with UMaine and nine of the last 10.
UMaine outshot the Terriers 43-24, including a 20-8 advantage in the third period, but BU proved to be more opportunistic.
Brown University transfer Mathieu Caron finished with 39 saves for the Terriers while UMaine’s Victor Ostman wound up with 15 on 20 shots before being replaced after the fifth BU goal by freshman Albin Boija who stopped all four shots he faced in his college debut.
UMaine freshman left wing Bradly Nadeau opened the scoring at the 10:12 mark of the first period as he netted his seventh goal of the season.
Quinn Hutson tied it at the 14:02 mark on the power play, the Terriers fourth power play goal of the weekend. It was his sixth of the season.
Senior left wing Luke Tuch gave the Terriers the lead for good with the only goal of the second period. It was his fifth.
The wild six-goal third period began with a goal from freshman left wing Shane Lachance at the 4:23 mark. It was the third for the grandson of legendary Boston University coach Jack Parker, after whom the rink is named.
Lynden Breen’s power play goal sliced the lead to 3-2 just 2:20 later, but Hutson notched his second of the game just 12 seconds later and Kaplan’s third of the campaign made it 5-2.
But freshman right wing Josh Nadeau’s fourth, coming on the power play, cut the lead to two with 6:35 remaining, and Bentley University transfer Nicholas Niemo’s first made it a one-goal game with 2:48 remaining.
UMaine pulled Boija and the Black Bears stormed the net, but junior Caron held them at bay.
“We had three or four chances with the goalie pulled and [Caron] came up with some big saves,” said UMaine head coach Ben Barr.
Barr said his team played “incredibly hard until the final buzzer and we can hang our hat on that and learn from it.”
He added, “I don’t feel we got what we deserved this weekend, but these games usually even themselves out. BU is a really talented team and every time you make a mistake, it winds up in the back of your net.”
BU has 14 National Hockey League draft picks including eight who were selected in the top three rounds. And freshman center Macklin Celebrini, who had three assists on Saturday, is projected to the first overall pick in the June draft.
Bradly Nadeau, a first round pick of Carolina (30th overall) is UMaine’s only draft choice.
Quinn Hutson had an assist to go with his two goals and his brother Lane had two assists.
Josh Nadeau and Breen each had an assist to go with their goals and Thomas Freel had two assists.
Freshman defenseman Ryan Hopkins collected his first collegiate point as he assisted on Niemo’s goal.
UMaine was without injured junior center Nolan Renwick and sophomore defenseman Grayson Arnott.
UMaine will be off next weekend but will return to the Alfond Arena on Friday, Dec. 1, for a 7 p.m. game against arch-rival New Hampshire. The Black Bears will entertain UConn on Sunday, Dec. 3, at 5 p.m.
BU will entertain Quinnipiac on Wednesday at 5 p.m.
