"Cardiac" Terriers advance to the Frozen Four with a 3-2 win; Rodrigues with the game-winner--UPDATED

#2 ranked Terriers are headed back to the Garden for the 2015 Frozen Four after yet another high-intensity thriller in the Northeast Regional.  Assistant captain Evan Rodrigues authored the game-winner--and his second goal of the game--on a brilliant toe drag and shot with 2:24 left in regulation to give the Terriers a 3-2 win over Minnesota Duluth. 

Terriers took a first period lead when freshman Brandon Fortunato hustled along the blueline to keep the puck in the UMD zone, chipping it toward Rodrigues who whirled and golfed a shot past Bulldog goalie Kasimir Kaskisuo. Duluth dominated the second period in terms of shots and puck possession. After Willie Raskob tied the score, freshman J.J. Piccinich centered a pass from behind the net to Matt Lane who backhanded the puck just inside the left post, giving BU a 2-1 lead. Four minutes later Kyle Osterberg’s wrist shot glanced off Matt O’Connor’s glove and trickled across the goal to knot the score.

Terriers came out for the third on a mission, firing a dozen shots to UMD’s five. With the game headed toward overtime, Rodrigues took a pass from captain Matt Grzelcyk in the right circle, toe-dragged past a diving defender and whipped a shot past Kaskisuo, who was partially screened by a leaping Ahti Oksanen, for the game-winner. Coach David Quinn:

‘‘We played a great third period. We were relentless. We were smart and we just did the things we needed to do to win an incredibly important hockey game to extend our season.’’

With the victory, BU will play in the Frozen Four for the 22nd time and the first time since winning the 2009 National Championship in Washington, D.C. The opponent in the April 9 semifinal will be North Dakota, which won the West Regional with a 4-1 win against St. Cloud State.

Rodrigues now has 61 points, joining linemate Jack Eichel as the only skaters in Division 1 to exceed 60 points this season. The two scores give him 21 on the season making E-Rod the fourth Terrier to reach the 20-goal mark this year. After scoring 16 points first semester, Rodrigues has scored 45 points (16G, 29A) since January 1, more than any other Division 1 player.

With three goals in the two regional games, the senior wing from Etobicoke, Ontario, was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player. He was joined on the All-Regional Tournament Team by Grzelcyk and junior wing Danny O'Regan.

Terriers dominated in the face-off circle, a problem area earlier in the season, winning 39 of 61 draws. Senior Cason Hohmann won 15 of 19 and Eichel controlled 15 of 23. 

● GoTerriers.com recap, comprehensive box score and photo gallery  
● NCAA video highlights
● Post game comments: Coach David Quinn (transcript); Rodrigues & Grzelcyk (transcript)
● Press conference (video)
● Daily Free Press recap  and Rodrigues shines in final season
● Boston Hockey Blog  Pluses & Minuses
● NCAA Media Packet 
● USCHO recap and BU's late knockout; photo gallery 
● SB Nation recap 
● College Hockey News recap and Northeast Regional notebook 
● Boston Herald recap and Rodrigues delivers again
● Boston Globe recap
● Duluth Tribune recap 
● WEEI College Blog: Rodrigues' special senior season

Check back for more coverage, interviews and photos.

Puzzle piece No. 2 goes up! #GoBU #ProudtoBU pic.twitter.com/ZZIrZmTm11
— BU Men's Hockey (@TerrierHockey) March 29, 2015

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