 The Eagles- and their fans- celebrated after the first of Nathan Gerbe's three goals.
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After going winless in the past six games, a streak that spans the entire month of November, Boston College came out firing on all cylinders against Boston University Friday night at Kelly Rink, dismantling the Terriers, 6-2. The game marked the 239th time that the two schools met, dating back to 1917, and from the very start the Eagles (4-4-5) seemed determined to end their winless streak.
Even head coach Jerry York acknowledged the importance of winning the game. "My wife told me not to go O-for-November," he said, "but the team played much more structured than we had in the early season. We just had more team play today, whether on offense or on defense."
A mere 5:10 into the first period, Nathan Gerbe buried a rebound into the back of the net, giving BC a 1-0 lead. Pat Gannon was also able to find the back of the net early, scoring off a rebound at the 6:32 mark. Perhaps the most spectacular goal of the game came on a BU power play, when Nathan Gerbe intercepted a pass at the blue line and scored a breakaway, shorthanded goal 7:27 into the first period. Gerbe's second goal of the night gave BC a 3-0 lead until Brandon Yip took advantage of a Terrier four-on-three advantage to cut the Eagle lead to 3-1.
"I looked right over, and luckily it came right to me," Gerbe said after the game. "Luckily, tonight I got a couple of bounces that I didn't get earlier in the year. But the game definitely helped me get some confidence back."
The second period began in much the same way as the first; as Ben Smith took advantage of a botched BU clear in order to poke the puck into the net 4:48 into the period. Following back-and-forth play for much of the period, the Eagles were again able to find the back of the net with 1:12 to go in the period, this time on a power play. Andrew Orpik rifled a long shot from the edge of the faceoff circle that found its way over the shoulder pad of the Terrier goalie to make the score 5-1 at the close of the second period.
Heading into the third period it seemed as though all BC had to do to win the game was play 20 minutes of solid defense. Nathan Gerbe, however, never got the message.
With only 3:35 into the final period, Gerbe again intercepted another pass on a BU power play and took the puck down the ice unassisted and ripped a shot through the goalie's legs for his second shorthanded goal of the game, and third overall. The final goal of the night belonged to the Terriers, as Pete MacArthur scored on a BU power play with 10:43 to play in the game, but BC won, 6-2.
There were several firsts in Friday's game, perhaps the most important being the fact that the win was the first BC had in the month of November. Gerbe's three-goal performance marked the first time any BC player since Joe Rooney scored two shorthanded goals in one game on March 25, 2005 and made him the first player to score a hat trick since Benn Ferriero on Jan. 12.
John Muse had 33 saves on the game, a statistic not overlooked by York. "I think the key play of the game came when the score was 4-1," York said after the game.
"John made a save with the toe of his skate, a save that kept our three-goal lead. I felt really good with the way that John played today."
2008 Woodie Awards
