BC establishes dominance in HEA quarterfinals

By Chris Maza
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

So I decided to be hip and trendy with a pretty graphic to go along with my predictions for the Hockey East tournament in my last posting. It would have worked out perfectly, too, if UNH hadn't forgotten how to score in games two and three of its series with Vermont. Instead, the reseeding that takes place before the semifinal round makes my pretty bracket graphic worthless. Even with UMass-Lowell losing, the bracket set up still would have held up. So without any fanfare or pictures or anything, here are the recaps of this weekend's series and what lies ahead.

No. 1 New Hampshire vs. No. 8 Vermont
Predicted results: UNH wins series, 2-1 (W, 3-1; L, 4-3 OT; W, 4-2)
Actual results: UVM wins series, 2-1 (L, 7-4; W, 1-0; W, 1-0 OT)
After seeing the score of Friday night's game, my fiance Eileen commented that UNH might have used all of its goals for the series in one game. Turns out she was right. The Wildcats came back froma 4-2 deficit in that game, but scored five unanswered goals as they continued a trend of dramatic, resounding comebacks. But in the next two games, UNH was unable to muster a single goal, displaying the same streakiness they exhibited all season. Hats off to Rob Madore, who rebounded after giving up six goals on 15 shots on Friday to post back-to-back shutouts. Hat off as well to losing keeper Brian Foster, who earned his scholarship money this postseason. Say what you will about his playoff record, but this was not his fault. UVM outshot UNH in every game and 111-77 for the series. Foster made stops on 105 of those shots, including 50 in the series-deciding OT game on Sunday, good for a .946 save percentage.

No. 4 Maine vs. No. 5 UMass-Lowell
Predicted results: UMass-Lowell wins series, 2-0 (W, 5-2; W, 4-3)
Actual resutls: Maine wins series, 2-1 (L, 2-1; W, 2-0; W, 3-2 OT)
While we're on the subject of standout goalie performances, let's talk about Maine senior backup Dave Wilson. Before this series, Wilson had played in just eight games and started just two. Not exactly the resume you want your goalie going into the playoffs to have. But Wilson sparkled against the River Hawks, not allowing more than two goals in a game and posting the only shutout by a Black Bears goalie all season. With the series loss, that 800-pound gorilla that resides on the Lowell's back in regards to winning at Maine has decided to put on an addition and put in a pool.

No. 3 Boston University vs. No. 6 Merrimack
Predicted results: BU wins series, 2-1 (L, 4-3; W, 5-1; W, 3-2)
Actual results: BU wins series, 2-1 (W, 3-2; L, 3-2 OT; W, 3-0)
As expected, Merrimack did not go quietly. But they also were unable to maintain a lead. The Warriors got and gave up three leads in the first two games and the first one turned out to be costly. Merrimack went up, 2-0 early in the second period of game one, but then (maybe at least partially because goalie Joe Cannata almost had his head taken off by his own player's stick) gave up three unanswered goals in a loss. Twice in game two they held one-goal advantages, but BU was able to knot it up both times before Merrimack eventually came away with the victory in overtime. BU's special teams won game three for the Terriers with two power play goals, while killing seven Merrimack man-advantages.

No. 2 Boston College vs. No. 7 UMass
Predicted results: BC wins series, 2-0 (W, 4-1; W, 3-1)
Actual results: BC wins series, 2-0 (W, 6-5; W, 5-2)
The Eagles were the only team to sweep a quarterfinal series as they continued their domination of UMass. The Minutemen put up a fight in the first game because, as my fiance says, "We're BC. We like to give up leads." BC held three-goal advantages twice in the second period at 5-2 and 6-3 and held the latter going into the third, but UMass got two past Parker Milner in the third to make it interesting. John Muse started game two in the place of Milner and was again unimpressive (16 saves on 18 shots), but got the win as it was BC this time tht came on strong in the third, scoring three unanswered goals (one empty-netter) after being tied through two periods. Cam Atkinson continues to play well for the Eagles, recording a hat-trick, plus an assist in game one. Springfield native Barry Almeida had three points in game two and four in the series.

So now comes the reseeding. Because UNH was knocked out, No. 2 Boston College is the highest seed and therefore will play the lowest seed, which in this case is No. 8 Vermont. No. 3 BU, being the second-highest seed, takes on No. 4 Maine. It's all really too bad, because if UNH had beaten UVM, it would have set up some great semifinal drama with the two biggest rivalries in Hockey East taking the ice at the Fleet (I will never call it the Garden. There was, is and always will be only one Garden) in UNH vs. Maine and BC vs. BU. But I digress. Let's take a look at the matchups.

No. 2 Boston College at No. 8 Vermont
Vermont put itself back in the national tournament discussion with the win over UNH, but it still probably isn't enough at this point. The Catamounts probably need to win the tournament altogether to get in. It is possible that if every other conference tourney plays out according to seeding that UVM could squeak in, but that's in an ideal world and there are probably more scenarios that would keep the Catamounts out than would keep them in. But before we get too far ahead of ourselves, let's not forget that BC stands in their way. BC actually lost the season series with UVM, 2-1, but the two teams haven't faced each other since mid-November and since then BC has become one of the best teams in the nation. UVM proved in the UNH series that they are a team that can shut down even strong offensive teams (UNH was third in the league in scoring behind Maine and BC, who were tied for first). But BC is a much more balanced team than UNH and surely won't be giving up 51 shots in a game. The interesting thing to watch is which goalie Jerry York will go with. York has recently put his faith in Parker Milner, but didn't give Milner the start in game two. Was that because he knew game two was not a do-or-die game, or because he saw his freshman keeper get rattled after turning what should have been a fairly decisive win into a nail-biter? My money's on Milner starting.
Projected result: BC wins, 4-2

No. 3 Boston University vs. No. 4 Maine
In order for either of these teams to make it beyond the conference tournament and join the field of 16, they probably will have to win it outright. Neither have a strong enough body of work, plus there is one fewer spots in the tournament because Bemidji State did everyone a disservice by not winning the CHA tournament, giving the CHA an undeserved two spots. Can Dave Wilson work similar magic against the Terriers that he worked against the River Hawks? Probably not. Against a team like Lowell, which has more than its share of problems, Wilson stood a chance. But BU put up 12 goals in two games against the Black Bears about a month ago against now-suspended starter Scott Darling, including chasing Darling out of a televised game. They had their hands full withy fiesty Merrimack, but the Terriers were able to erase deficits and were never out of control in any game. Plus, what could be better for Hockey East than to see another meaningful game between BU and BC?
Projected result: BU wins, 5-3