For the final game of the first half of the season, the UConn men’s hockey team will travel to Chestnut Hill to face No. 3 Boston College. After splitting the weekend with UMass Lowell in their last series, the Huskies had a weekend off to rest and recover. Now all hands are on deck for BC.
“I’m excited about the way the team has been playing,” said Head Coach Mike Cavanaugh on Tuesday. “Certainly, the BC game and the two games against Lowell, we played pretty solid hockey for nine periods. We’re looking to continue that trend against the Eagles. We know it’s going to be definitely a tough task at Conte Forum.”
“They are, as I said a couple weeks ago when we were getting ready to play them, there’s not many holes in their game,” said Coach Cavanaugh. “From the goaltender to the experienced defenseman, to the elite forwards they have, they’re just dangerous all over the ice. We’re going to have to play a very solid game managing the puck well and disciplined as well if we want to be successful.”
It’s a midweek matchup in Chestnut Hill, MA, puck drop is set for 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday, December 4. The Huskies will enter this game with a 7-6-1 overall record and 4-5-1 in Hockey East Action. That puts them in fifth place in the current Hockey East standings.
One of the current strengths for UConn has been their special teams. They have four shorthanded goals on the season so far which is one of the most in the country. Coach Cavanaugh described the team as overall well balanced, especially on the offense. Juniors Tristan Fraser, Ryan Tattle and sophomore Joey Muldowney have been some of the most consistent and effective players on the team thus far. However, almost all of the returns and newcomers on the Ice Bus have been able to make an impact. Muldowney and Tattle are tied for the team lead in points with 10 total. Junior Jake Percivial has been an anchor on offense, having the team-best seven goals and freshman Kai Janviriya leads the team in assists with seven.
Boston College is entering this matchup with a 10-3-0 overall record and 4-2-0 in conference action. They are currently ranked No. 3 in both the USCHO.com and USA Hockey / Rink Live polls. A player to look out for on the Eagles is Lukas Gustafsson. The conference announced that the junior was named Hockey East Defender of the Week. Last week against Dartmouth, Gustafsson notched his first multi-point performance of the season. He tallied two assists in Boston College’s win over No. 15 Dartmouth. Both of his assists came a power-play and short-handed goals in the third period of BC’s Friday night matchup
Boston College’s penalty kill is a perfect 30-for-30 this season, they are the only Division I team to now allow a power play goal this year. The Eagles are also undefeated on their home ice this season, they have won the last 16 home games going all the way back to the 2023-24 season. In terms of their offense, Boston College has outscored their opponents 44-24 this season, also including 20-5 in the third period specifically.
The last time the Huskies and Eagles met was on November 15 at Toscano Family Ice Forum in Storrs, CT. The physical back and forth battle where the Huskies scored three unanswered goals led them to upsetting (at the time No.2) Boston College 5-4.
Now for the rematch, the Huskies will travel up north to face the Eagles in their home arena for their last game of the first half of the regular season schedule. The single game matchup against Boston College is set for Wednesday, Dec. 4. Puck drop is at 7:00 at Conte Forum in Chestnut Hill, MA and will be available to stream on ESPN+.
