MANCHESTER, N.H. – No. 2 Boston University and No. 4 Cornell will meet in Saturday’s final of the Manchester Regional with a trip to the Frozen Four on the line.
The Terriers won their first-round game rather easily, dispatching Western Michigan by a score of 5-1. The Big Red blanked defending champion and No. 1 Denver, 2-0, in the nightcap. It sets up the regional final between the two former ECAC Hockey rivals and a pair of college hockey’s most historically significant programs.
The Lane Hutson show rolled into SNHU Arena as BU’s star freshman defenseman left off where he finished at the Hockey East Championship a weekend ago. He scored the Terriers’ first goal and was on the ice for four of the five goals scored by BU. There’s not much else that can be said about Hutson that hasn’t already been mentioned. His patience, poise, vision and skating allow him to be a puck-possession machine.
A big difference in this game was the ability of BU’s defense to break pucks out and keep WMU from any sustained pressure. Outside of the Broncos’ top line, there was a clear disparity in puck skill in this game. It showed in a number of facets of the game. Hutson and Dom Fensore gave BU a significant advantage.
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For a second straight game, a Hutson brother scored the game-winner. Lane’s older brother, Quinn, had the second goal of the game, which stood up as the game-winner. Five different Terriers found the back of the net on Thursday afternoon, including senior right wing Ethan Phillips.
Phillips hasn’t had the productive career many expected when he came to BU from the USHL, but he made the most of his jump to the first line Thursday. He had a goal and two assists and was rewarded for his strong play on the forecheck.
“Ethan Phillips was excellent tonight. I think that it was the best game he’s played all year. I give him a lot of credit and I was really happy for him to find a way to get the empty netter and I think that the whole line, [Matt] Brown, [Jay] O’Brien and Phillips were excellent tonight,” said BU head coach Jay Pandolfo.
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Denver, the first seed in the regional, came out sluggish and struggled to get going against a stingy, heavy Cornell squad. Junior right wing Jack O’Leary had the game-winner and added an assist on the second goal. His speed and tenacity on the forecheck were evident throughout the night.
“We wanted to put it behind their heels early and often. To stop that forecheck right away,” said O’Leary. “I found myself in the right spot at the right time and took that momentum right away.”
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Denver seemed to be stunned by Cornell's hot start.
“They’re a good team. They pressured us well and we couldn’t really adjust to that until the second period. They were just a physical team and it felt like we started to match that in the second and third,” said Denver star Carter Mazur.
Cornell sophomore goaltender Ian Shane earned the shutout. Local hockey fans, especially those who follow the prep circuit, might remember the Manhattan Beach, Calif., native. Shane played prep school hockey at Westminster before heading to the USHL with the Chicago Steel.
"I said this on Wednesday, I don’t know how [Shane] is not an all-league goalie. He has the second-best goals-against average in the country and he doesn’t even get third team in our league or second team in the All-Ivy. And I think that’s his mentality as he has a little chip on his shoulder to prove people wrong,” Cornell head coach Mike Schaefer said of his goaltender.
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Boston University defeated Cornell, 4-3, back in January. It’s an interesting matchup as the Terriers are certainly more skilled, but the Big Red bring forecheck, physicality, and heaviness. As mentioned above, Hutson and the rest of the talented Terriers should be able to escape the Cornell forecheck and push possession.
Expect BU to make it two straight this season against the Big Red on Saturday.
