(Photo courtesy of UMass Lowell Athletics) “Freshman Mirko Buttazzoni skates between two Boston College defenders, entering the zone with the puck.”
Jake Messer
Connector Editor
On Friday, Dec. 5, the River Hawks lost 3-1 to the no. 14/15 Boston College Eagles in a dominant showing from the Eagles, as they have now won seven out of eight of their last games.
Lowell, who were in search of their first win against BC at home since Nov. 13, 2021, unfortunately, the River Hawks were unable to generate the offensive needed to beta one of the best teams in the nation.
“Well, we certainly came up short tonight,” said UMass Lowell Head Coach Norm Bazin. “Obviously, I liked the third period. I thought there was a little bit more urgency, but it was too little, too late.”
The puck dropped in front of 6,143 fans who braved an abundantly cold night to watch their River Hawks, and for the first three minutes, the game remained cold, almost a feeling out period. It would take three minutes for a shot on goal to be registered, coming by way of a wicked wrist shot from senior Jack Collins of Lowell.
Halfway through the first, BC outshot Lowell 4-2, but other than some big hits and some solid forecheck on both sides, no jump out of your seats had happened, almost as if both teams had tremendous respect for the other’s offense, playing back and being selective with their passes and their shots.
With nine minutes left in the first, Boston College superstar freshman James Hagens dashed by the River Hawk defense on a quick breakaway, going forehand to back hand to try and swipe the puck in past freshman goalie Austin Elliott, who was able to stick out the left pad to deny the Bruins seventh overall pick in this year’s NHL Draft of a nifty goal.
With roughly five minutes left in the first frame, senior TJ Schweighardt would commit a hooking penalty, putting Lowell a man down and giving BC their first opportunity on the powerplay, which would be capitalized on immediately after the penalty came to an end.
BC’s Dean Letourneau would tap the puck into the back of the net off a slick feed from Will Vote as the two were able to get behind the River Hawks defense, an easy goal putting the Eagles up 1-0.
Lowell would get a chance to redeem themselves, as BC would get chippy, resulting in a roughing penalty and putting the River Hawks on their first powerplay of the evening. Some good looks would appear, but none would find the back of the net, marking the end of the first period as the Eagles led 1-0.
Two minutes into the period, graduate captain Jay Ahearn took a questionable roughing penalty right in front of the BC net, putting the Eagles right back on the powerplay. The man advantage would be thwarted by Elliot, who made three saves in route to killing off the penalty.
BC would continue to pour it on, but would also continue the extra curricular activity after the whistle, which would give the River Hawks a powerplay seven minutes into the second, their second opportunity of the night
Once again, it amounted to none on the scoreboard of the shot chart, as BC killed it off quite efficiently, as 10 minutes in, Lowell was only able to generate one shot on goal.
Mere seconds after the powerplay, off a faceoff win and off a hard slap shot from the point, Hagens was able to redirect the puck past Elliott for his tenth of the year, making it 2-0 in favor of the visitors.
The difference between the two was apparent at the end of the second period, speed. Boston College was faster than Lowell, staying in front and keeping the puck moving, hence why Lowell was only able to generate two measly shots in the period. If Lowell was going to get back into this game, they were going to have to have to put some pep to generate some offense.
This they would not, as Lowell would commit a costly penalty to start the final period and BC would cash in once more, as Letourneau redirected his second of the night past Elliott, making it 3-0 with 15 minutes left in the contest. Great passing and net front presence has propelled BC in the dominant showing.
Lowell would show a pulse as with just under 12 minutes remaining freshman Mirko Buttazzoni would smash in a loose puck into the back of the net to cut the deficit to two and inject life back into the Tsongas Center.
With chances a plenty, a golden opportunity would drop into their laps, as BC defender Aram Minnetian would trip a River Hawk behind the net, sending them to the powerplay with five minutes left, down two goals.
Lowell would not capitalize once again, their third powerplay that didn’t end in a goal.
The game would end soon thereafter by a score of 3-1, as BC outshot Lowell 29-16. Lowell came out hard in the third, but were simply unable to overcome Boston College’s stout defense and exquisite speed. A tough night for the River Hawks as they were playing behind in many ways, all night.
“I thought the effort was there in the third, ” coach Bazin said. “We were chasing it a little bit in the first two periods, you’re not going to be successful in this league doing that, you have to initiate, and I thought the guys started making some plays in the third and having a little more puck poise. Hopefully that [energy] comes from the start tomorrow.”
