Game Day: Terriers vs. Catamounts at The Gut

#3 Terriers are in Vermont to begin a two-game series with the #12 Catamounts. Tonight’s game and tomorrow’s begin at 7 p.m. at venerable Gutterson Field House and both will be live-stream (free, high-definition) on CatamounTV.com .

GAME DAY! A few shots from morning skate as BU gets set to battle Vermont tonight at 7 pm #GoBU #ProudtoBU pic.twitter.com/6SUMaJXCuV
— BU Men's Hockey (@TerrierHockey) January 23, 2015

BU, which has a 7-1-2- road record, will be seeking to continue the strong and thorough effort from last Sunday’s second and third periods, that led to a comeback win over Lowell. BU is currently tied for the Hockey East lead with Lowell, while Vermont is three points back in fourth place.

The Catamounts’ strength has been on defense and in goal. In 23 games, they have a conference-best GAA of 1.78. Goalies Brody Hoffman (1.97) and Mike Santaguida (1.51) have split the duties in net. Vermont, whose top scorer is defenseman Mike Paliotta, also has one of the league’s top penalty-killing units.

Adding to the dynamic for the series is the presence in UVM’s line-up of former Terrier d-man Alexx Privitera and a pair of one-time BU commits, Jarrid Privitera and recently –eligible Ori Abramson.

BU’s top line features freshman Jack Eichel, the nation’s leading point-scorer (34), junior Danny O’Regan, who is tied for second in the nation in goals with 16, and senior assistant captain Evan Rodrigues (photo), who is riding a six-game point streak (2-9-11).  

After seeing four of BU's six goals scored last weekend coming on the power play, Coach David Quinn is looking for additional production at even strength for the recently-adjusted forward lines. 

The series between the teams began during BU’s 1971-72 season with a 7-2 BU win. Terriers hold a 42-22-8 lead in the series. Last season, the teams split a pair of games at Agganis Arena with BU winning the first night, 4-2, and Vermont taking the second game, 6-2.

Tonight's line-up for BU has only one change from the Lowell game: 

Rodrigues-Eichel-O’Regan

Olsson-Baillargeon-Oksanen

Greer-Lane-Hohmann 

Phelps-Moran-Roberto

Grzelcyk-MacLeod

Hickey-Fortunato

Somerby-Diffley

O’Connor

● GoTerriers.com preview, Game Notes, Live Stats, Terrier Sports Radio Network webcast, CatamounTV.com  webcast (free live stream)

● Boston Hockey Blog live in-game blog and pre-game notes

● Daily Free Press preview

● Burlington Free Press preview

● Boston Globe: Bertagna expecting a tight finish

● Hockey East Online weekend preview

● USCHO picks and predictions

● College Hockey News tale of the tape

Looking back

When former Terrier team manager Tony Ruvolo recently attended a golf equipment trade show in Florida, he reconnected with two-time BU All-American Herb Wakabayashi, working for Miura Golf equipment.

A teammate of Jack Parker on several powerhouse BU squads in the late-1960s, the diminutive center from Chatham, Ont., led the 1966-67 Terrier in scoring as a sophomore with 51 points, en route to the NCAA championship game. Herb and his linemates Mickey Gray and Serge Boily (and later Eddie Wright) moved the puck so quickly and creatively that legendary sportswriter Red Smith dubbed them The Pinball Line following a remarkable scoring outburst in the 1966 Holiday Festival at Madison Square Garden.

Following his years at BU, Wakabayashi skated in the 1972 Sapporo Olympics, as well as in the 1976 and 1980 games, for Japan, where he later played semi-pro hockey and coached. He was inducted into the BU Athletics Hall of Fame in 1978.

Looking ahead

SB Nation looks at several New England players, unranked in the recent NHL Central Scouting Midterm Rankings, that might hear their names called in the June draft.  Included is 2015 BU recruit Robert Carpenter, who is tied for 12^th among USHL scorers with a 15-18-33 scoring line in 35 games.

2017 recruit David Farrance scored 1:05 into overtime to lift Victor, N.Y., High School to a 1-0 win over Webster Thomas on Tuesday in a Section V hockey game.

Women’s Team

#7/6 Terriers will host Vermont on Saturday and Sunday with puck drop at 3 p.m. for each game.  Sunday’s contest will be BU’s annual Skating Strides Against Breast Cancer game (details) . More Game Day information will appear here tomorrow and Sunday.

● Daily Free Press preview

● BU Today: Unstoppable Marie-Philip Poulin