Monday, November 02, 2026

Big Mike snares Defender of the Week; Polls; Terrier Takeaway; Tkachuk HOF tonight; McAvoy back at Agganis

Mikhail Yegorov - Hockey East Defender of the Week   

Mikhail Yegorov's standout performances in the weekend sweep of Maine has earned the junior netminder Hockey East Defender of the Week honors.  The St. Petersburg, Russia, native turned aside 62 of 66 shots, including 19 in the first period Saturday--10 coming on power plays.

While Tynan Lawrence's third period goals drew the Terriers even at 2-2, it was Yegorov repeatedly slamming the door that made the comeback possible, which Pandolfo pointed out post-game.

“Big Mike was huge there for us,” Pandolfo said. “There were a lot of scrambling plays around our net. He made some big saves on rebounds, and the kill did a job there for us to keep it 2-0 and give us a chance at some point to get our game going and find a way.” 
 

The 2024 NJ Devils' second-round draft pick has a 1.98 goals against average and a .928 save percentage in eight starts. He's allowed more than two goals in a game only twice.

Poll Story

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In the USCHO Weekly Poll, BU continues to slowly move up the rankings, climbing one spot up to #13. Undefeated Wisconsin jumps over Michigan as the new #1.  Providence, the highest-ranked HEA team, fell to #9 after absorbing its first loss, 5-1, to Quinnipiac. Merrimack, a Terrier opponent later this month, also moved up to #16. Army, a newcomer to the rankings, slots in at #19. 

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The USA Hockey Poll finds BU right where it was last week--#1. To say November will be challenging for the Terriers is an understatement. They will face two-game series with current #3 Michigan State, #4 Denver and #14 Merrimack plus a single game with #6 Quinnipiac.

ESPN's John Buccigross has the Terriers at #14--same slot as last week, while Everything College Hockey places BU at #13.   


SNL (Saturday Night Leftovers & some Friday Fries)  

Head Coach Jay Pandolfo is 7-0 against Maine at Agganis Arena. BU has won its last 10 matchups with the Black Bears in Boston. Overall, the Terriers are 22-6-3 against Maine at Agganis.

With seven goals, Lawrence has a 21.9 shooting percentage (32 shots), but that is only second best on BU behind Brandon Svoboda’s 25.0%. Kamil Bednarik is at 20%. Svoboda also leads the Terriers in face-off percentage with 57.8.

YouTube College Hockey Network has extended highlights of the second BU-Maine game and other games. We've added a link to the site in the sidebar Links section.   

BU Hockey Stats' Week 5 Recap—Terriers Spook Black Bears—reviews the men's and women's games and provides advanced analytics.

Maine’s power play was clicking at 23.5 % going into the series. BU’s penalty-killers held them to just one goal on eight power plays. 

After going 0 for its first 11 power plays, BU has converted on five of the next 18 man-advantages with at least one PPG in each of the last four games.  

Seen in the Agganis crowd: Blackhawks GM Kyle Davidson on Friday, St. Louis GM Alex Steen on Saturday; and Jack Parker both nights.

BU's two freshman defensemen led the way in Time on Ice with a four-year starter right behind them.  


When all 12 Terrier forwards hit the scoresheet in Friday's 7-2 win, our friend BU Hockey Stats quickly answered the obvious question. 

● Boston Hockey Blog recap “They’re not going to quit”: Tynan Lawrence’s two goal performance propels BU to a 3-2 comeback win over Maine.

“He impacts the game every time he’s on the ice because of his motor,” Pandolfo said. “He doesn’t stop. He works. He makes plays. He does everything right.” 

BU Oldtimer's Terrier Takeaway

1. BU faced a much faster, more aggressive and crisper Maine team Saturday night. The Black Bears were faster to the puck and tougher on the puck. The result was Maine getting the puck inside the dots and above the crease for several scoring opportunities. Yegorov was outstanding during the first two periods, especially the first period. 

2. Maine's improved play in the BU d-zone limited the number of clean breakouts BU could generate, essentially through the first two periods.

3. BU began to balance the scales during the second period, limiting Maine to only a few extended o-zone possessions. However, the Terriers were unable to create Grade A scoring chances of their own.

4. Tynan Lawrence's natural talents are abetted by high levels of hockey sense and anticipation.

5. Conceding that it was Halloween evening, the crowd size was smaller than expected.

 Looking ahead

2027 recruit James Scantlebury scored his 11th and 12 goals for Quebec but that was all the offense for the Remparts who fell, 5-2, to Baie-Comeau. He has 24 points in 15 games, third in the Q. 

2027 recruit Shawn Carrier scored his seventh goal as Halifax defeated Sherbrooke, 5-3. 

Looking back    

One year after Jack Parker's induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto, Keith Tkachuk will join him. The former Terrier and longtime NHLer will be inducted into the Hall tonight, making him the first Terrier who played in the NHL to be so honored.

The quintessential power forward of his era, Tkachuk rang up 1,065 points (538 goals, 527 assists) in 1,201 games, playing for the Winnipeg Jets, Phoenix Coyotes, St. Louis Blues and Atlanta Thrashers. 

In his one season as a Terrier, he scored 40 points (17G,23A) skating on line with Tony Amonte and Shawn McEachern that led BU to the 1991 national championship game.  The next season he joined the U.S. National Team for what would be the first of four Winter Olympic appearances. Tkachuk turned pro with Winnipeg in 1992.

He was inducted into the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame in 2012.

Keith's son Brady Tkachuk played for the Terriers in 2017-18 before turning pro. He now skates for the Florida Panthers with his brother, Matthew. Both were key contributors to last February's gold-medal win by the U.S. in the Milan Winter Olympics.

►Bernie Corbett recently interviewed Keith for his new The Game They Played podcast. Look for it to be posted later this week.

NHL.com has two feature stories on Big Walt. The first is filled with Parker quotes. 

● NHL.com Tkachuk played ‘old-time hockey’ on way to Hall of Fame

● NHL.com Keith Tkachuk's leadership made him fit for Hockey Hall of Fame, Roenick says

 charlie hall

►BHB alum Belle Fraser, now with BostonBruins.com, delves into how college hockey inspired the Bruins’ Hometown Remix jersey–aka "the Varsity Sweater–and talks with Charlie McAvoy about his Terrier days. (McAvoy Back on Campus video.)

“The pride is probably what makes it so different,” McAvoy said. “When you go to a place like BU, and you realize just how important it is, what it means to be part of this history – you kind of have that brotherhood. You can’t ever take that away.”​ 

● NHL.com Inside the Bruins’ HTR Varsity Sweaters, College Hockey in Boston  

Women's Team

● The Hockey News Jesse Compher Excited To Sharpen Her Game With USA Ahead Of PWHL Detroit Debut

 

 

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