Boston University and Princeton practiced on the same ice today.
The drills went well and the referees were pretty quiet.
Unfortunately, there were fans in attendance.
Fortunately for BU, this practice actually counted as a game in the overall
standings... BU won 7-3.
 
This was kind of a yawner.
 
BU got out to a 3-0 lead early in the first with very little effort, one goal
even being a slap-shot/dump-in from the blue line that caught the first Tiger
goalie sleeping. (did not catch name of first goalie for Princeton today)
 
Princeton changed goalies between the first and second periods, the backup
giving no more than a temporary surge to the Tigers.
 
BU continued its domination into the early part of the second, building a 4-0
lead.
 
The problem with BU's play is that it was coming too easy for them.  They
looked like they were running practice drills coming up the ice at times, not
taking Princeton seriously at all.
 
Princeton began to skate and caught BU napping.  Before the end of the second,
it was 4-3 with BU in shock and clinging to a 1-goal lead.
 
BU, although not killing themselves, picked it up to the pace of a "spirited
practice" and put Princeton away in the third, winning 7-3.
 
 
Attendance:  apx 1,800 fans (not quite what it usually is)
 
 
some notes:
REFS - Since they do get a lot of bad press usually, I just wanted to mention
that they did do a reasonably good job again today with only one questionable
call all game (and that call is only questionable if you are a BU fan).
 
SIZE -  I don't know if Princeton is really THAT small, or if BU is really THAT
big...  One thing I do know... Princeton's biggest guy could not size up with
ANY of BU's starters. (and that includes BU's goalie, McKersie)  BU did not run
around plastering anyone because they did not need to.  Usually, just a body on
body bump by a BU player was enough to knock the Princeton player off of the
puck.
 
FOG - With the warm, humid air outside today, Walter Brown looked like the
Garden a few years ago.  One could tell how the game was going by which end
was getting foggier.  We were able to write "GO BU!" in the steam on the glass
along the back boards.
 
Penalties - I thought this game moved very fast due to the very low number of
penalties in today's game.  Unfortunately, I do not think it was so much due to
both teams being clean and perfect angels as it was to both teams just not
seeming to care enough about the game to make that kind of effort.  At times,
it looked a little like watching BC last year.  Don't get me wrong, I like to
see such a low penalty count, but there are times when the defenseman should
pull down that forward who is about to score, etc.
 
 
Overall, not a great game to go to unless you were a BU fan.  And even then...
 
 
I do not like to see BU play games like this because, although it is nice to
see that BU is this talented, they form bad habits in games like this,
forgetting that, come playoff time, they need to work if they want to win.
 
 
Well, on to Merrimack...
 
Tony  BU'92'93
Former Ogre