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In the 70th edition of the Beanpot at TD Garden, the Boston College Men’s Hockey team lost to No. 10 Harvard in the first round 4-3 in overtime. It is the third straight tournament the Eagles missed the final, and their championship drought continues to six tournaments.
For the majority of the game, Harvard controlled the puck, especially in the first and second periods. They scored in the very first minute of the game, before BC’s coach Greg Brown challenged the goal due to Harvard having too many men on the ice. He won the penalty and the score remained 0-0. However, Harvard continued to put pressure on the Eagles for the remainder of the period, ensuring they had no chance to do anything on offense. Just over halfway through the first, Marek Hejduk snuck a shot over Mitch Benson’s glove to give the Crimson a 1-0 lead.
The remainder of the first was much of the same, with the Crimson giving few opportunities to the Eagles. At the start of the second, the Eagles went on the penalty kill. While continually putting pressure on the net, one Crimson player drew three Eagles defenders to him, giving Matthew Coronato a wide open net for a one-time goal to double their lead to 2-0.
BC finally got their break, thanks to a goalie interference penalty from the Crimson. During the power play, Lukas Gustafsson centered the puck to Mike Posma, who was on the edge of the crease. He tipped the pass into the net to bring the game within one goal. The Crimson did not let the Eagles stay close for long, as they responded on their own power play with a goal again from Coronato. They took a 3-1 lead into the third period.
The Eagles played frantically in the final period, constantly attacking the Crimson, never letting them settle into their defense. This led to several careless passes and turnovers in the offensive zone. When it seemed like hope was lost, and some Eagles fans began to head for the exit, with just over four minutes left in the third period, Nikita Nesterenko took the puck near center ice. With four defenders in front of him, he weaved through them, deking all of them before lifting a shot over Mitchell Gibson’s blocker. After the spectacular goal, the Eagles fans erupted, giving them all of the momentum with just over four minutes left down by one goal.
The Eagles continued to pour it on before pulling Benson in the final two minutes. With an extra attacker, Cutter Gauthier fired an open shot from the right wing, sneaking it past Gibson to tie the game with a minute and a half remaining in regulation. Just when everyone thought the BC fans couldn’t get louder, they managed to outdo themselves. After Gauthier tied the game, the Crimson and Eagles both scrambled to end the game before overtime. BC still remained stout on defense, only allowing two shots on goal in the third period, while having 22 shots of their own. However, neither team could end it, and the game stayed 3-3 after 60 minutes.
In the overtime period, neither team managed to take advantage. While BC controlled the puck, they did not seem in any rush to score, as they continued to take the puck out of the Crimson zone when an easy opportunity was not imminent. Both teams traded shots, failing to finish any of them until the Eagles turned the puck over in the offensive zone with just over 10 seconds left in overtime. This gave the Crimson a two-on-one with both players rushing down the ice trying to score before overtime was over. Hedjuk received the centering pass and sent it in the back of the net before Benson could get to it. As the Eagles looked on in disbelief, the clock said 1.5 seconds, and the Harvard players stormed the ice.
After their win, the Crimson advanced to the Beanpot final to face Northeastern Monday, February 14th. The Eagles will take on Boston University on the same night in the consolation game. Before that game, the Eagles host Maine on Friday at Kelley Rink.
Fan of Minnesota sports, so I'm used to disappointment. Was once mistaken for Ryan Gosling (but I'm more talented). Probably the only Yung Gravy fan you'll meet.
