Game Day: Terriers vs. Bentley

Weather permitting, BU will take on Bentley at Agganis Arena, starting at 7 p.m. It will be the first-ever meeting between the Terriers and Falcons, who became a Division 1 program in 1999, as well as BU’s third game this season against an Atlantic Hockey opponent. Previously, BU defeated Holy Cross and Connecticut.

The Falcons are 5-0-1 in their last six games and have a 7-7-1 overall record. Junior Alex Grieve leads the team with 12 goals and is tied for the lead with 20 points. Defenseman Steve Weinstein’s has 19 assists and leads all blueliners nationally in points.

BU will again be without junior Cason Hohmann and sophomores Mike Moran and Sam Kurker, due to injuries and illness. Freshman Robbie Baillargeon (photo) is the Terriers’ top scorer with 13 points and tied for the goal-scoring lead with five. Matt O’Connor is expected to be back in the BU goal, where he’s delivered stellar performances nearly all season. The expected line-up:

Matt Lane – Danny O’Regan – Nick Roberto

Tommy Kelley – Robbie Baillargeon – Evan Rodrigues

Brendan Collier – Dillon Lawrence – Kevin Duane

Jake Moscatel – T.J. Ryan – Matt Ronan

Ahti Oknsanen-Garrett Noonan

Matt Grzelcyk-Dalton MacAfee

Doyle Somerby-Patrick MacGregor

Matt O’Connor

►Colby Cohen, who scored the championship-winning goal (video) in the 2009 NCAAs, will join Bernie Corbett on the radio and video Webcasts to do color analysis for tonight's game. 

● GoTerriers.com preview, Game Notes, Game Tracker, NBC Sports Radio Webcast, Terrier TV Webcast

● Daily Free Press preview

● Boston Hockey Blog live in-game blog,

● USCHO picks and predictions

● College Hockey News Tale of the Tape

● Hockey East Online weekend preview

● Boston Globe feature on Bentley

● SB Nation preview

► BU Today talked with third-generation Terrier Jake Moscatel about the detour-filled path that brought him to Comm. Ave. and enabled him to realize his dream of donning the Scarlet & White and playing for BU.

Looking ahead

2014 recruit J.J. Piccinich’s team leading 15^th goal—an extra-attacker marker with four seconds left in regulation—knotted the score between Youngstown and Tri-City at five apiece, but Tri-City scored just 29 seconds into overtime for a 6-5 win. Piccinich’s goal was his second of the night, the first having come on a power play. He’s second in the USHL in man-advantage goals with eight.  2015 recruit Maxim Letunov assisted on three Phantoms’ goals, including both by Piccinich, and now has 22 points (9a, 13g) in 24 games.
● Phantoms recap

Led by 2015 recruit Bobo Carpenter, Austin Prep is the preseason favorite for the Massachusetts Super 8 High School title, according to ESPN Boston. Last season, as sophomore   the 5-10, 185 lb. right-shot center from North Reading was second in team scoring (one point behind the leader) with a 16-14-30 scoring line in 24 games. He helped lead the Cougars to the 2013 Super 8 championship game at TD Garden, where they lost to Malden Catholic, after assisting on the game winning goal in the semifinal that eliminated his father’s alma mater, St. John’s Prep.

Looking back—Across the pond and more

On Tuesday, we reported on Chris Connolly’s move from Tappara in Finland to Iserlohn in the German DEL. A sharp-eyed read alerted us that former Terrier captain Sean Sullivan also has moved to the DEL, joining the Straubing Tigers after beginning the season with MODO in Sweden. Sullivan, a Hockey East All-Star in 2006-07, has a 2-12-14 line in 15 games.

Pete MacArthur, who like Connolly recently skated for former BU Coach Jack Parker on Team USA’s gold-medal winning squad in the Deutschland Cup, is in his second season with the Augsburger Panther. He has 12 points in 24 games. John Laliberte plays for ERC Ingolstadt and has a 12-10-22 line in 26 games. This is his fifth DEL campaign.

Ken Magowan, a Terrier forward from 2000 to 2004 is in his third season with the DEL’s Adler Mannheim and has been playing in Germany since 2007.

►Returning to the Islanders line-up following an upper-body injury that had sidelined him since late October, former BU assistant captain Brian Strait registered assists on two goals, but Phoenix dumped New York, 6-3.

►Colin Wilson recorded his 10^th assist for Nashville, while Alex Chiasson picked up his 8^th assist for Dallas, as the Predators beat the Stars, 3-1. Highlights.

►A simple wave to a young fan by former Terrier and Minnesota Wild center Charlie Coyle became an Internet sensation this week, primarily for the glee displayed by the Wild-jersey-wearing youngster when Coyle responded to him. Take a look.

Women’s Team

USCHO.com examines the first semester success of a Terrier squad that had lost three key forwards to graduation and its captain and first team WHEA All-Star Marie-Philip Poulin to a sabbatical year to play for Canada in the Olympics once again.  Led by captain Louise Warren, sophomore Sarah Lefort and senior goalie Kerrin Sperry, #8-ranked BU is a perfect 8-0 in Hockey East and a 14-3-1.

Two future Terriers, 2014 recruits goalie Erin O’Neill and defenseman Toni Ann Miano, were invited to the 2013 Women’s National Under 18 Women’s Festival, where they’ll compete for rosters spots on the U.S. Women’s National Under 18 Team. BU assistant coach Katie Lachapelle will be an assistant at the festival.