BOSTON -- The Northeastern men's ice hockey team gets back to work on Tuesday night when the Huskies travel across town to No. 4/3 Boston College at Conte Forum. Northeastern is at the tail end of one of its toughest stretches of the season, with nine straight games against teams currently ranked in the top-20 of the USCHO.com poll, the longest such stretch since the 2000-01 season (10 games).
The all-time series with Boston College
The history between these storied rivals dates all the way back to their first matchup on Feb. 4, 1933, a game that Boston College won 8-6. With an all-time record of 49-164-16 against BC, Northeastern enters Tuesday's matchup looking to make up for lost ground. In their two regular season games last year, the Huskies went 0-1-1 against the Eagles. In a pair of games in which BC held the No. 2 ranking, the two foes played to a 3-3 tie at Conte Forum before a 4-3 Eagle win at Matthews Arena. Last Tuesday, BC used a last-minute goal to top Northeastern 2-1.
Northeastern and Boston College met again in the Hockey East semifinals at TD Garden with a trip to the title game on the table. After Miles Wood gave BC the lead only 15 seconds into the game, Northeastern scored twice before the period was over to take a 2-1 lead into the break.
Zach Aston-Reese and
Adam Gaudette had the first period tallies for NU. The Eagles tied the game early in the second before goals from
Nolan Stevens and
Eric Williams made it a 4-2 NU lead. Wood's second goal of the night made it a 4-3 game at the end of two.
Lincoln Griffin and Alex Tuch exchanged third period strikes before the final horn sounded, giving Northeastern it's penultimate win en route to the Hockey East title.
Scouting the Eagles
The No. 4 Eagles have soared to the top of the Hockey East standings early this season, holding a near perfect 7-0-1 conference record on top of an impressive 12-5-1 overall mark. From Oct. 16 to Nov. 18, they rode a 10-game unbeaten streak that saw them go 9-0-1. Their only losses this season have come to Wisconsin, Air Force, Harvard, Minnesota and North Dakota.
They've outscored opponents by a count of 66-43 thanks to their overall balanced game, which starts with goaltender Joe Woll. The Toronto Maple Leafs prospect owns a 9-5-1 record and has been the go-to starter for the Eagles. From there, BC's defense has been responsible for allowing an average of only 2.40 goals per game. Michael Kim has registered one goal and 10 assists from the blueline while Scott Savage has posted 10 points in his last 10 games.
Matthew Gaudreau leads the forward corps in scoring with 19 points thus far. Senior Ryan Fitzgerald has been consistent in his career at BC, posting 16 points in his 15 games this year. Ottawa Senators first-rounder Colin White has been effective in generating offense in his sophomore year, landing 10 goals and five assists.
Into enemy territory
Since
Jim Madigan took the reins of the program in 2011, Northeastern hasn't been afraid to take on some of the nation's top teams away from the friendly confines of Matthews Arena. Since the 2011- 12 season, the Huskies have defeated 10 top-ten teams on the road (USCHO.com poll), including two last season. In those games, NU has outscored its opponents 47-31.
Out of the gates
Zach Aston-Reese (11 goals, 12 assists),
Dylan Sikura (nine goals, 14 assists) and
Adam Gaudette (eight goals, 12 assists) are all enjoying hot starts to the season, ranking in the top-20 in the nation in scoring.
The trio makes Northeastern one of only two teams in the nation (Union) to have at least three skaters with 20 points or more.
With class
Despite having one of the largest senior classes in the nation, the Huskies have received production from all four classes early in the season:
Freshman: 5 - 14 - 19
Sophomore: 14 - 19 - 33
Junior: 15 - 26 - 41
Senior: 13 - 20 - 33
Recapping last Tuesday's loss to the Eagles
Despite 27 saves from sophomore
Ryan Ruck and a tying goal early in the third period from
Zach Aston-Reese, a Michael Kim shorthanded tally with 22.9 seconds remaining in regulation was the difference as No. 3/4 Boston College topped Northeastern on Tuesday night at Matthews Arena, 2-1.
Goaltending was the story for most of the evening as Ruck and Eagle netminder Joe Woll (23 stops) went save-for-save, keeping a pair of potent offenses at bay. It wasn't until the final minute of the second period when Boston College took a 1-0 lead on a goal from Colin White. Northeastern would respond less than two minutes into the third period as Aston-Reese tallied his team-leading 11th goal of the year on a redirection in front.
After the Huskies were awarded a power play opportunity with less than two minutes to go in the final frame, instead it was the Eagles who cashed in as Kim picked off an entry pass from Northeastern, sped the other way and beat Ruck bar down for the game-winner.
Get there early
After being held without a first period goal in its opening weekend series at Quinnipiac, Northeastern has potted 18 goals in the first period in the 12 games since, nearly one half of their total in 41 games last season (40). The Huskies' 18 goals in the opening frame are tied for the 14th most in the nation. Of those 18 opening period goals, 16 have come at Matthews Arena.
ZAR reaches the century mark
Senior assistant captain
Zach Aston-Reese has been one of Northeastern's go-to players during his career on Huntington Avenue. He has 11 career game-winning goals, which ranks in a tie for third in the nation among active players.
Overall, Aston-Reese has 108 points (46 goals, 62 assists) in 121 career games, which ranks in a toe for seventh in career scoring among active skaters nationally. He also became the 48th player in team history to reach 100 points, and is currently tied for 37th in career scoring at Northeastern.
Aston-Reese is tied for the team lead with 23 points this season (11 goals, 12 assists). He is the quickest Husky to reach 20 points in season since Jim Fahey in 2001-02, who also accomplished the feat in 13 games.
He's Sik
Dylan Sikura's four-assist night against Bentley on Oct. 15 marked the first for a Husky since
Kevin Roy had four helpers on Feb. 22, 2014 against Maine. Sikura is tied for seventh in the nation with 13 assists in his first 14 games, and tied for fourth overall in scoring with 22 points.
After logging his first career hat trick on Nov. 25 against No. 11/8 Minnesota, he was named the Warrior Hockey Player of the Week for the first time in his career. The Aurora, Ontario native has at least one point in 11 of the team's 14 games this season.
Good Gaud
Sophomore center
Adam Gaudette has been one of the top players in the nation through the first two months of the season, recording eight goals and 12 assists in his first 15 games. It took him 28 games to reach 20 points last season. The Braintree, Mass. native had a five-game goal scoring streak snapped on Nov. 5 at Boston University, the longest of his career.
Aston-Reese earns monthly honors
Assistant captain
Zach Aston-Reese has been named the Warrior Hockey Player of the Month for his 13-point showing in the month of November.
In the Huskies' eight games against ranked opponents in November, the Staten Island, N.Y. native scored seven goals and dished out six assists. He started the month with a three-point game against No. 4 Boston University. After picking up two assists earlier in the game, he scored the game-tying goal with 56 seconds left in a 4-4 tie.
In NU's weekend set with No. 19 Providence, Aston-Reese posted three goals and three helpers. That six-point weekend earned him the Player of the Week nod for Nov. 13-20. He closed out the month with a goal and an assist against No. 11 Minnesota and one goal against No. 3 Boston College.
Power up
NU is averaging more than six power play opportunities per game this season, and have cashed in 20 times, tied for the fifth most in the nation. Its 96 power play opportunities is tied for the eighth most in the country, and nine different Huskies have found the back of the net on the man advantage.
Killing it on the PK
The Northeastern penalty killing unit has been hard at work early in the year, going 68-of-79 early in the season. Its 86.1% success rate is 13th in the nation this season. At this point last year, the Huskies were 54th in the nation in penalty killing percentage (42-of-56; 75%).
Get in front of it
A contributing factor to Northeastern's low shots against total has been the shot blocking abilities of the skaters in front of
Ryan Ruck. NU has blocked 226 shots in 15 games, while freshman
Jeremy Davies leads the team, and is tied for 22nd in the nation, with 33 blocks.
Three-goal third
Northeastern battled back from one-goal deficits on three occasions during the third period of the Nov. 4 game against Boston University. It was the first time since Feb. 6, 2015 at Massachusetts that the Huskies scored three goals in the final period.
Then on Nov. 25, NU potted four goals in the final frame to top No. 11/8 Minnesota. The last time the Huskies scored goals four in the final frame came at Dartmouth on Dec. 30, 2013 in the consolation game of the Ledyard Classic.
The road ahead
Northeastern will have a week off for final exams before returning to the ice on December 19 at Michigan State in its final contest before the holiday break.
