By: Neil Simmons | Follow me on Twitter / X: @NSimmz
Less than 24 hours after an emphatic 7-3 win over Maine, where James Hagens and Dean Letourneau both recorded multipoint games, the Boston College Eagles came up empty in the rematch. The Black Bears, behind freshman goaltender Mathis Rousseau, scored twice in the first period and never looked back, cruising to a 3-0 victory to earn the split at Conte Forum.
It was very apparent that the Eagles’ Friday momentum didn’t carry over to Saturday night, as they quickly dug themselves into a hole, just over a minute into the game. An errant pass by Aram Minnetian from behind his own net gift-wrapped a loose puck to Maine forward Miguel Marques right in the slot, and he wired it past Cloutier for the early advantage.
BC came back firing, looking to respond quickly with Hagens and Letourneau both getting some quality looks, but they couldn’t beat Rousseau. A power play halfway through the period presented a strong chance for BC to draw level, especially with their special teams performance the prior night. However, halfway through the man advantage, the Black Bears sprung a breakaway that resulted in a Josh Nadeau tap-in while all alone in front of Cloutier, for a 2-0 Maine lead that they would hold into the intermission.
While the Eagles came close several times in the first period, but couldn’t convert their chances, Maine suffocated them entirely in the second. The Black Bears owned the middle frame with a shutdown defensive effort that has been their calling card under Ben Barr.
BC mustered just four shots on goal in the period, two of them coming from Hagens. Aside from the Bruins’ star prospect, the Eagles hardly showed an ounce of threat in the offensive zone. BC was lucky to leave the period down by just two; if not for some exceptional saves by Cloutier, Maine could have put this game to bed much earlier.
BC came out with more offensive urgency to start the third period, but at the expense of their defense. A minute of holdover power play time failed to provide a breakthrough for the Eagles, with Maine getting the best scoring chance on a shorthanded breakaway that Cloutier fended off. While BC continued to press, the Black Bears capitalized on another miscue when Cloutier steered a rebound to an open Marques, who scored his second goal to more or less put the game out of reach.
The game came to a screeching halt minutes later, when an awkward corner board hit by Brady Berard on Jeremy Langlois left the Black Bear defenseman down on the ice and needing to be stretchered off. Play resumed with a handful of penalties that yielded no result either way, and the Eagles pulled Cloutier with over three minutes remaining. Maine preserved the shutout, the first of Rousseau’s college career, and secured the weekend split with the 3-0 victory.
Takeaways: Hagens was the Eagles’ best forward all night long, and at times the only forward to threaten Maine whatsoever. His speed, puck handling, passing, and shooting stood out amongst a group that struggled to manage the puck, finish passes, or put their shots on frame. His faceoffs still need work, winning just five of 16 draws as Maine dominated the dot.
Letourneau played what was arguably his worst game of the season. Aside from his early scoring chance that Rousseau turned aside, he looked far more like his freshman self than what we’ve seen to this point as a sophomore. He looked slow on his feet and slow in processing, and wasn’t as physically engaged as he had been in recent games.
Kostadinski played a solid game as the seventh defenseman. He laid some big hits, blocked shots, killed penalties, and didn’t put the puck in harm’s way.
Moore will have better days. He finished the game -3, with a handful of errors that directly led to Maine scoring chances.
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