Saturday, January 10, 2026

UPDATED Terriers blank Minutemen; Fifth Olympics for Poulin

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#19 Terriers opened the second half with a 1-0 road win against UMass as 1st star Jack Harvey's second period goal was the game's only tally. The score belies BU's dominance especially in the opening two periods when they held the Minutemen to 11 shots while creating numerous scoring chances of their own. Goalie Mikhail Yegorov was the game's second star, stopping all 18 shots he faced.

Coach Jay Pandolfo, in his weekly media call, pointed out that the Terriers would need to create second chances around the net and pounce on rebounds if they were to score on 6'7" goalie Michael Hrabel. He allowed very few rebounds and Harvey's goal came on one of them.  

BU has now won its last three starts and six of the last seven, and now stands at 10-8-1. 

Post-game, a pleased Pandolfo said “I think it was a really good, solid road game. We checked really well...we got better as the game went on. Playing 13 forwards...we managed the ice time pretty well. I think that's going to help us also with having three [games] in four [nights], which we're not used to."

He continued, "I thought everyone contributed tonight. So it was great to see, it was a really good team effort. Big Mike, to come out of the break and first game back, get a shutout, I think that's going to give him confidence. But overall, as a team, I think we give up 18 shots. That's pretty good on the road…”

“UMass is a team that usually funnels a lot of pucks to the net, and I think we did a good job getting in shot lanes, good job of winning pucks in our end,” Pandolfo said. 

Heralded newbie Tynan Lawrence, who was given a solo skate at the start of the team's pre-game skate, made a strong impression. 

The New Brunswick native, who centered BU's second line with Cole Eiserman and fellow freshman Ryder Ritchie on his wings, created two first-period scoring chances with pin-point passes. The first sent Eiserman in on a partial breakaway that was foiled at the goalmouth by Hrabel. The second found Eiserman alone between the circles, but his stick snapped on his one-time attempt.

Lawrence would later see action on a revamped BU power play unit, taking Eiserman's usual spot at the right circle while Eiserman moved to the bumper spot. Lawrence won his first three draws and finished with five of nine.

“I thought his effort was good," Pandolfo told the media post-game. "I thought he made some nice plays, but he's just going to get better and better. You can just see the type of player he is, how smart he is, really good stick, can make plays, sees what's going on out there.” 

The fourth line of Jonathan Morello, Ben Merrill and Nick Roukounakis set the tone, cycling the puck in behind the UMass goal line and making retrievals to maintain possession. Roukounakis fired a shot off the post at the 13:50 mark.

Ritchie took an elbowing penalty late in the opening period which BU would successfully kill, limiting UMass to one shot. On the same play as the penalty, Pandolfo challenged the non-call of a stick to Eiserman's head, but the challenge was denied.

Terriers outshot UMass seven to four in the opening period and won 13 of 15 draws with Morello a perfect five for five. 

The game's only goal came eight minutes into the second with BU set up in the offensive zone. Sacha Boisvert sent a cross-ice pass to Aiden Celebrini at the top of the right circle. The junior defenseman toe-dragged past a defender to the slot and fired a shot off Hrabel's pads. Harvey, stationed just outside the blue paint, quickly roofed the rebound past the lunging goalie for his sixth goal of the season.

Minutes later Yegorov kept BU in the lead robbing Owen Mehlenbacher on a shot from just outside the crease. Then, a slash by Bo Cosman gave BU a man-advantage which produced three grade A chances but no goals.

Yegorov made two more big-time saves in the middle period, including another on a Minuteman who was in close, alone.

The Terriers had two grade A chances to double their lead before the period ended. On the first, Brandon Svoboda took a centering pass at the goalmouth but couldn't get the puck past Hrabel. Then, the Czech goalie robbed Ritchie on a shot from 10 feet out.

Shots for the period were 13-7 BU.

Knowing the Minutemen would be pushing for an equalizer in the third period, the Terrier did a good job of limiting their attempts primarily to long shots. However, a center-point shot by Mehlenbacher, clanged off iron. Even when UMass pulled Hrabel for an extra attacker, BU forced their hosts to take shots from the outside as time wound down. 

Pandolfo was pleased with the team's effort to close out the win, noting "As the season progresses, things get tighter and tighter. You have to be comfortable playing in one-goal games. Going into the third period on the road with a 1-0 lead and [being able to] hold on to it, I thought was great."

Final shots were 30-18 BU while the Terriers had a 27-14 edge at the face off dot. 

With the win, BU moved up three slots in the NPI, which replaced PairWise, to #20. 

The teams will complete the home-and-home Saturday at Agganis Arena. Puck drop is at 6 p.m. 

JIM MCKENZIE'S TERRIER TAKEAWAY  

This game marked the debut of highly-touted Tynan Lawrence.  I felt he played a solid game overall.  He did not clearly stand out and did not make any glaring mistakes.  Given his skill level, as he assimilates himself into the BU game, I fully expect he will be more of an impact player. 

As has historically been the case for players who compete in the World Juniors, they most often come back as better players.  My observation tonight was that Sasha Boumedienne continues to improve his play at both ends of the ice. He's playing with greater confidence and is now one of the Terriers’ best defensemen. 

Sloppy D zone play has haunted BU at times this season; tonight was no exception. Mick Frechette continues to improve and Aiden Celebrini had a very solid night, but I thought Charlie Trethewey did not have his best game. 

In order for his team to make a run for the HE Championship and get into the NCAA tournament, overall D-zone play has to improve and become more consistent.  The talent is there, but the team needs to continue to improve and consistently play tighter defense.

● GoTerriers.com recap and box score

● Post-game Pandolfo

● Boston Hockey Blog  BU opens second half with a tight-checking 1-0 win at UMass  

Looking ahead

2026 recruit Caleb Malhotra scored his 19th goal as Brantford beat London, 4-1, in a battle of OHL heavyweights. The 6'2" center also won seven of nine draws and continues to lead all rookies with 51 points in 38 games.         

2027 recruit James Scantlebury scored his seventh goal in USHL Chicago's 6-5 overtime win against Sioux City.   

Looking back

Mammoth captain Clayton Keller assisted on three goals in Utah's 4-2 win against St. Louis. He has 41 points (13G,28A) in 45 games.

Women's Team    

Terriers head to New Hampshire for a 6 p.m. start at The Whittemore Center.

● Terrier.com preview and game day links 

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