Cockerill named 2020-21 Terrier captain; This Date in BU Hockey—March 31, 2020

Logan Cockerill has been voted captain of the 2020-21 Terriers by his teammates. A New York Islanders draft pick in 2017, Cockerill, an assistant captain this past season, missed the first half due to an injury. During his BU career, he has 14 goals and 22 assists. He also earned a Silver Medal with Team USA in the 2019 World Junior Championships. Assistant captains will be announced in April.

● GoTerriers.com report

● Boston Hockey Blog report

►Daily Free Press reporter Brady Gardner reviewed the past season and looked ahead in a conversation with Head Coach Albie O’Connell.

This Day in BU Hockey: March 31

1994: Making their fifth consecutive appearance in the NCAA tournament, Hockey East champion BU defeated Minnesota, 4-1 in the semifinal in St. Paul. BU which led 3-0 after one period and never looked back, received a pair of goals from first-team All-American Mike Pomichter and single tallies by Bob Lachance and Steve Thornton. J.P. McKersie stopped 31 shots. McKersie along with Rich Brennan and Jacques Joubert earned second-team All-American honors. The victory was the team’s 34^th (against 6 losses), which set a new program record, later exceeded by the 2008-09 squad’s 35.

And one more from March 30:

1990: The Terriers' dramatic post-season run ended in a 3-2 loss in the NCAA semifinals to Colgate. BU had led, 2-1,after one period on goals by Dave Tomlinson and Petteri Koskimaki. But the Red Raiders responded with two second period goals and kept BU off the scoreboard the rest of the way. Previously BU had won three best-of-three post-season series, each time after losing the first game and facing elimination: vs. Northeastern in the HE tournament; against North Dakota in the NCAA opening round; and at Michigan State in the quarterfinals.

Looking ahead

Right wing Jay O’Brien, who is transferring to BU this fall, discussed his season in the BCHL with Penticton and the goals he’d set for himself.  A first-round draft pick of the Flyers in 2018 who played one season for Providence College, he had a 25-41-66 line in 46 games—tied for sixth in points and second in points-per-game. He added five goals and five assists in five playoff games.

● PentictionVees.ca report 

Women’s Team 

A force to be reckoned with on the ice, three-time Olympian @pou29 earned the crown for best female hockey player in this season’s #NHLPAPlayerPoll! pic.twitter.com/R6RvsrrVyZ

— NHLPA (@NHLPA) March 31, 2020

This Day in BU Hockey: March 30

1995: In the NCAA Frozen Four semifinal in Providence, BU broke a 3-3 tie with four unanswered goals in the final period, en route to a 7-3 win against Minnesota. The win sent BU to the national championship game for the third time in five seasons.

Captain Jacques Joubert’s power play goal knotted the score at 1-1 following an early Gopher tally. Minnesota went back on top, 2-1, before Doug Wood scored with just nine seconds left in the opening period. Matt Wright’s goal in the second period was matched by a Gopher score. Bob Lachance’s third-period game winner was followed by goals from Chris O’Sullivan, Sean Bates and Mike Sylvia. Minnesota native Derek Herlofsky stopped 30 Gopher shots to earn his 50^th career win for BU.

1991: In perhaps the most gut-wrenching BU loss in an NCAA tournament game, the Terriers fell to Northern Michigan in triple overtime, 8-7, in the national championship game in St. Paul. BU sprinted to a 3-0 lead after one period on a pair of Ed Ronan goals and one by David Sacco. The second period was all NMU as the Wildcats exploded for five goals and chased John Bradley from the BU cage.

Two NMU goals early in the third period sandwiched around a Dave Tomlinson goal made the score 7-4 with less than 12 minutes left. Shawn McEachern set up Tony Amone for a tally, then Amonte returned the favor, cutting the deficit to one. With goalie Scott Cashman pulled for an extra attacker, a lunging pass by Scott Lachance set up Sacco for the equalizer. In the period’s final seconds, Amonte took a headman pass, raced into the NMU zone and fired from the high slot. Goalie Billy Pye snared it with a second left on the clock.

In the final minute of the first overtime, defenseman Kevin O’Sullivan rushed the puck into the Wildcats’ zone and rang a shot off the crossbar. McEachern’s follow-up attempt hit the left post, skittered along the goal line and went off a defender’s skate before Pye smothered it. Moments later, a Wildcat shot from the blue line sailed past Cashman and clanged off the crossbar.

Two minutes into the third overtime, NMU skated into the BU zone. Darryl Plandowski took a centering pass in the slot and beat Cashman for the Wildcats’ first-ever NCAA title. BU, which had won both the Beanpot and Hockey East title, finished at 28-11-2.

● Sports Illustrated report

● New York Times report

●The Hockey News report

● Video: Sacco’s game-tying goal, Amonte’s near game-winner and more

● Video: Final minute of first overtime

● Video: Third overtime

This Day in BU Hockey: March 29

2009: Jason Lawrence’s power-play goal in the final minute of the third period and a brilliant 27-save performance by Kieran Millan sent BU past New Hampshire, 2-1, in the NCAA Northeast Regional championship game in Manchester.

Corey Trivino’s first-period goal was matched by the Wildcats’ Bobby Butler early in the second. Millan stopped numerous Wildcat breakaways in the first and third periods before Lawrence’s 24^th goal went into the net off a UNH player. With three tallies over the two regional games, Lawrence was named Most Outstanding Player.

The victory gave BU its fifth championship of the season, following wins in the Denver Cup, Beanpot, Hockey East regular season and Hockey East tournament.

● THFB report

● GoTerriers.com recap and box score

● College Hockey News recap

● Video highlights

1998: A 4-3 overtime win by New Hampshire in the NCAA East Regional ended the Terriers’ season as well as Chris Drury’s college career. With assists on two BU goals, he finished his career with 214 points, third best for a Terrier. He is the all-time leading BU goal-scorer with 113. Drury would be named first-team All-American for a second time, Hockey East player of the year and BU’s first recipient of the Hobey Baker Memorial Award.

1997: BU’s “A few good men” season concluded with a 6-4 loss to North Dakota in the NCAA title game in Milwaukee. BU sprinted to a 2-0 first period lead on goals by Peter Donatelli and Chris Drury. But in a disastrous second, the Sioux scored five times—echoing the second period of the 1991 title—while BU responded with only a Chris Kelleher that had briefly tied the score. Trailing 5-3 going into the third period, BU pulled within one on Jon Coleman’s extra-attacker goal, before an empty-net score snuffed out the rally. BU was appearing in its eighth consecutive NCAA tournament, reaching the title game four times.

More on Trevor Zegras signing with Anaheim

● Boston.com report

● NHL.com report