Senior Dan Spang scored the equalizer midway through the the third period as Boston University erased a two-goal deficit to tie Providence College, 2-2, in overtime at Schneider Arena on Friday night. The Terriers now stand at 3-4-1 overall and 3-3-1 in Hockey East, while the Friars are 6-4-1 with a 6-2-1 league mark.
After falling behind by a pair of goals, the Terriers got on the board in the second period before knotting the game at 2-2 in the final stanza. Despite quality chances in the waning minutes of overtime, Boston University could not get the winner and settled for its first tie of the season.
“It was a real solid game by us, I was really pleased with how hard we played and how thorough we were in our own zone,” said Terriers coach Jack Parker. “The only that really bothered me is how we reverted back a little bit on our power play… but that was a slight negative in a 60-minute game that we played extremely well in all three zones and all three periods.
“The most important thing we needed to get out of this game was to get our defense back in order again, and we played very well defensively,” continued Parker. “The six defensemen and the four centers played real well in our own zone – they limited the shots and played hard.”
Senior co-captain Brad Zancanaro and his twin brother, Providence’s captain Tony Zancanaro, shared the ice for the first time during the only power-play opportunity in the opening period, when Boston University’s Zancanaro was busy not allowing any shots during Providence’s man advantage. The Terriers were able to keep control of the puck for much of the two minutes.
The Friars were first to score in the fast-paced first period, in which Providence put up 12 shots to Boston University’s 14. The lone goal came at 7:00, when Torry Gajda took the puck from Bryan Horran and used a swivel move at the goal line just to the right of the net to maneuver around a BU player and shovel the puck past Terrier junior goaltender John Curry.
The teams each lit the lamp in the middle frame, with the Friars first taking the 2-0 lead before BU was able to beat Friar goalie Tyler Sims to halve the Providence lead. Kyle Laughlin scored for the Friars at the 2:41 mark off a Nate Meyers rebound.
Sophomore Bryan Ewing put up his second goal of the season at 7:33 after freshman defenseman Matt Gilroy sent a pass up ice to fellow rookie Chris Higgins, who passed to linemate Peter MacArthur. Ewing got the drop pass in the right faceoff circle from MacArthur and roofed it to Sims’ glove side.
BU got the equalizer in the last period when MacArthur deflected a shot by junior Kevin Schaeffer out to Spang at the left point. Spang took the one-timer for the goal at 9:48.
An urgent Terrier effort throughout regulation and overtime led to BU opportunities, but no goals, as the Friars held on for the 2-2 tie.
“The guys seemed to get back that energy and that enthusiasm to play,” said Parker. “I think they played trying to win tonight instead of trying not to lose, and that’s a big step for us.
The Terrier and Friar penalty-killing units were both perfect, as each fended off three chances by the other team.
BU out shot Providence by a 31-29 margin.
