BOSTON — The hottest player in the nation since Jan. 1 showed no sign of cooling down as Boston University opened the postseason.
The more casual fan might think we’re talking about Hobey Baker candidate Jack Eichel, who did pick up two goals and an assist tonight to add to his nation-leading total with 58 points.
But the top scorer in 2015 is senior Evan Rodrigues, who one-upped his talented linemate with four points, leading No. 3 BU to a resounding 6-2 win over Merrimack in Game 1 of the best-of-three Hockey East quarterfinals. Rodrigues now has a whopping 37 points in his last 18 games with 13 goals and 24 assists.
Rodrigues’s scoring binge has coincided with being moved up to BU’s top forward line with Eichel and Danny O’Regan.
“I’m playing with two great linemates,” Rodrigues said. “Danny and Jack are special players. I’ve just tried to keep my work ethic consistent during this stretch. We have a few more games to go and hopefully, that continues.”
More importantly, BU started off its postseason with a bang, answering any questions about whether they might struggle to get into playoff mode after enjoying a bye in the first round of the league playoffs last weekend while Merrimack startled Northeastern with a sweep on the road despite having failed to win an away game all season up to that point.
“First of all, great win for us,” BU coach David Quinn said. “You always wonder how you’re going to react to having two weeks off – having a bye over a weekend – and I thought we responded well. I thought we were ready to go from the drop of the puck. I thought we had the grit element, the toughness that we’re going to need to have success against this team. Overall, it was just a really good effort by our guys.”
Despite a light crowd of 2,612 at Agganis Arena due to spring break, the Terriers certainly enjoyed a home advantage.
BU has been plagued by iffy first periods much of the season, but tonight, the Terriers looked dialed in and ready to play. However, that was reflected more in the dominating 18-4 shot total than on the scoreboard.
After not managing a shot in the first seven minutes, Merrimack scored at 8:11 to take a 1-0 lead. Vinny Scotti got the puck behind the net and slipped it to Jace Hennig for the shot and score.
The Terriers got that one back within two minutes. On a power play, freshman defensive pairing Brandon Hickey and Brandon Fortunato teed up sophomore Robbie Baillargeon for a one-time slap shot just outside the top of the left-wing faceoff circle, beating goalie Rasmus Tirronen high glove side.
Tirronen managed to stop the other 17 shots in the period, and Merrimack was fortunate to get out of the period 1-1. That turned out to be a temporary reprieve, as BU responded with four goals on 20 more shots in the second period.
The onslaught started with O’Regan and Rodrigues working a nifty give-and-go through the offensive zone before Rodrigues crossed it from the left wing to O’Regan in the slot for a nice backhanded move before slipping it under the sprawling Tirronen.
At 14:11, BU made it 3-1 with some good puck luck around the crease. Rodrigues put it in the slot, and a Merrimack defender attempted to clear it, only to have the puck carom off a skate before Eichel tapped it in.
“We had a weekend off, so we were able to recharge and rejuvenate, get healthy,” Eichel said. “I think everyone was pretty excited for this weekend. We finished the season the way we wanted to against Northeastern. We just wanted to carry that momentum into tonight, and I think we did that.”
About three minutes later, the game was effectively over at 4-1. This time, Brien Diffley set up a Matt Grzlecyk shot, and Rodrigues dug out the rebound near the goalie and roofed it. For good measure, BU made it 5-1 less than two minutes after that when Matt Lane redirected a Diffley shot. Tirronen made the initial save, but Lane knocked in the rebound.
After an O’Regan setup, Rodrigues made several great moves and almost scored again in the last half-minute of the period, but Tirronen stopped him that time.
On yet another of its eight power plays on the night, BU rounded out its scoring at 9:23 of the third peroid. This time, Rodrigues teed up Eichel in the left-wing circle for the shot and score.
Less than a minute later, Hennig scored his second goal of the night on a long wrist shot that got by the screened Matt O’Connor, making the final 6-2.
“Six goals is a lot, especially against that team and that goalie, but we earned them,” Quinn said. “I think we had one highlight-reel goal, but for the most it was just roll your sleeves up and win a battle along the wall, stay with rebounds near the net front, and don’t be denied.”
“I thought our goaltender battled his tail off,” Merrimack coach Mark Dennehy said. “I thought we improved on our shooting percentage, and the situation we came into this weekend with – having to win two games to move on – hasn’t changed. We still need to win two games to move on.”
BU (22-7-5) will look to end the season for Merrimack (16-17-4) in Game 2 at 4 p.m. EST Saturday.
