(Box from BC game summary sheet) Saturday, December 1, 2001 at Kelley Rink (Conte Forum), Chestnut Hill, MA BC 4, UMA 0 HOCKEY EAST GAME ------------------------------------------------------------------------ UMASS-AMHERST (HE) 0 0 0 - 0 (6-8-0 overall, 2-5-0 HE) BOSTON COLLEGE (HE) 3 0 1 - 4 (8-5-1 overall, 4-3-0 HE) Shots on Goal Pen - Min Power Play UMA 9- 6- 5 -- 20 4 - 8 0 - 6 BC 10-11-11 -- 32 6 - 12 1 - 4 UMA- Mike Johnson 7-11-10 - 28 saves/4 goals (60:00) BC - Tim Kelleher 9- 6- 5 - 20 saves/0 goals (60:00) Referee - Tim Benedetto Assistants - Tom Quinn, Steve Arnold Attendance - 6376 1st Period BC1 Tony Voce 10 (Dave Spina, Ben Eaves) PPG 11:40 GWG BC2 Dave Spina 4 (Ryan Shannon) 16:42 BC3 Tony Voce 11 (Ben Eaves, A.J. Walker) 17:12 Penalties BC - Peterson (holding) 4:57 UMA - Kuiper (high-sticking) 11:12 2nd Period No Scoring Penalties UMA - Kuiper (holding) 7:48 BC - Dziama (obstruction-interference) 10:17 UMA - Soderholm (slashing) 11:22 BC - Alberts (tripping) 15:51 BC - Cass (obstruction-interference) 18:32 UMA - Miljko (hooking) 20:00 3rd Period BC4 A.J. Walker 4 (Ben Eaves, Tony Voce) 13:06 Penalties BC - Walker (tripping) 4:25 BC - Peterson (obstruction-hooking) 9:40 3 Stars - 1. BC - Tony Voce (2G, 1A) 2. BC - Ben Eaves (3A) 3. BC - Tim Kelleher (20 saves, 0 goals) University of Massachusetts - Amherst F JIMMY CALLAHAN, DARCY KING, MARTIN MILJKO Craig MacDonald, Greg Mauldin, Tim Turner Mike Warner, Tim Vitek, Brad Nizwantowski Peter Trovato, Scott Horvath, Matt Walsh D SAMULI JALKANEN, KELLY SICKAVISH Toni Soderholm, Nick Kuiper Sean Regan, Jeff Lang G MIKE JOHNSON, Tim Warner Boston College: F TONY VOCE, BEN EAVES, A.J. WALKER Jeff Giuliano, Ryan Shannon, Dave Spina Ned Havern, Ales Dolinar, Ryan Murphy Anthony D'Arpino, Ty Hennes, Justin Dziama D John Adams, J.D. Forrest ANDREW ALBERTS, BILL CASS Joe Schuman, Brett Peterson G TIM KELLEHER, Matti Kaltiainen, Robbie Miller COMMENTS -------- Boston College got back on the winning track Saturday night with a solid 4-0 win at home versus UMass-Amherst. Tim Kelleher got his second shutout in 2 weeks and the BC top line of Voce, Eaves, and Walker caused trouble for the Minutemen all night, scoring 3 of the 4 Eagle goals. The BC defense did the job by limiting the number of shots that reached the net, clearing any rebounds, and forcing the puck to the outside. UMass was unable to turn any of their possession into top opportunities and dropped their 4th straight Hockey East contest. They scored only 1 goal on the weekend, dropping a 6-1 game at home Friday to Maine. BC was able to rebound from a tough 5-4 loss Friday at New Hampshire, holding off UMass pressure in the first period until they could dent the net 3 times, and the Eagles controlled the rest of the game. Both teams had a hard time getting started in the first period, though UMA got the best of the early opportunities with an energetic forecheck. An early power play resulted from their pressure but they got few shots and Kelleher kept them at bay. BC got some pressure of their own after killing the penalty when Voce, Eaves, and Walker all worked to keep the puck deep in the Minuteman zone, but few shots resulted. Kelleher then made one of his few difficult saves of the night with a big leg save on a shot from the slot, and another one on a Nizwantowski effort. Just past the midway point Voce made a hard rush through the slot but was ridden off the play, and then BC got a power play of their own on a high-sticking call behind the net. The Eagles moved the puck back and forth on the left side in the zone, finally leading to a hard pass/shot across the crease from Dave Spina from low on the left side. The puck squirted through Johnson's effort to block it, and slid softly to the right post, where Voce was camped and swatted into the open net. BC continued to crank up the effort, taking the play away from UMass. Ryan Murphy was blocked on a stuff attempt, and action was up and down in the neutral zone or to the outside. UMass had their chances (outattempting BC for the period), but they were often blocked the BC defense or sailed wide of the net, a problem they had all night. A long break pass from deep in the UMA zone missed its target for an icing, and on the ensuing faceoff Ryan Shannon was able to occupy 2 UMass players while fighting for the drop. Dave Spina picked up the loose puck at the faceoff dot and quickly moved to the slot unmarked, while the BC forwards drove to the net. With a partial screen in front, he lifted a backhand shot high to the left side for the second goal. BC made it 3-0 just 30 seconds later, after a UMass turnover. Eaves got the puck free at the boards outside the right circle, and Voce drove alone down the slot yelling for the puck. The pass was made right to the front of the net as Voce stretched forward, and he poked the puck under Johnson for his second goal of the night. BC was able to disrupt passing lanes and keep remaining shots to the outside, and went to the locker room with the 3 goal lead. The second frame featured plenty of power plays, resulting in a lot of action and scrambling defenses, but both teams were able to do enough to keep the puck out of the net. BC had some scoring chances on their man advantages, especially from Voce and Eaves, but Johnson made the saves. UMass maintained good pressure on a subsequent power play, with their best chances of the night, but BC's defense deflected lots of passes and shots to keep the puck away from the net. Tim Turner missed a tip with an open net at one point, and J.D. Forrest slid down to block a centering pass on a 2-on-1. A shot from the outside was deflected by a stick and sailed past Kelleher's shoulder only to strike the left post and bounce back out. The Eagles did a good job clearing the puck on a late penalty kill and drew a call of their own on a lob pass to a breaking Ryan Murphy, who was hauled down as the period came to an end. That set up a BC power play early in the third period, with shots from Dolinar, Giuliano, Shannon, and Forrest all saved. The play fell into the pattern of BC sitting back with the lead, forcing UMass to come to them and then disrupting the offensive flow (mostly in the neutral zone.) BC did take 2 penalties, but in both cases UMass was unable to get much working, with BC repeatedly clearing the puck and keeping the puck away from Kelleher's net. (It was telling that Kelleher got the shutout but was only given the 3rd star of the game award, as he didn't have to make many hard saves in the game.) BC got the final score with 7 minutes to go on another setup by Eaves. His rush through the defense to the low slot forced UMass out of position, and Voce fired a hard shot from the near left circle. The save was made, but the puck came free in the slot as Johnson was down and out of the play, and Walker popped it into the vacated net. The Eagles were content to sit back and play "prevent" defense from then on, and the Minutemen were unable to get any significant shots despite working hard. There were some questions how BC would respond after a tough overtime game at UNH the night before (and similar questions about UMass, who got slammed by Maine the same night.) The Eagles did fine, though they may have been more vulnerable to a more accomplished offensive team. UMass skated hard and worked with a strong forecheck effort, especially in the first period, but their inability to get the puck to the net proved fatal. They ended up having more attempts than BC in two of the three periods, but were frustrated by the number of shots that were wide or blocked by the BC defense. BC, on the other hand, was more controlled with their offense, and got their goals all from close range. UMass may also have gotten fatigued in the third period, where they were dominated by BC, even when BC was killing penalties. UMass only played 4 defensemen for most of the game, and I think they were worn down by the end. Sami Jalkanen made more mistakes than I remember seeing him do in past efforts, and none of them were able to stay with Voce and Eaves. UMass needs a couple of offensive snipers who can get the puck in the net, and a couple that can operate in close quarters. They were able to move the puck in open ice pretty good but were unable to handle it under pressure and in tight spaces. And most of all they need more depth, especially on defense. With 2 games next week against a tough Boston University team, they need to find some answers to keep from falling too far behind in the Hockey East race. Boston College once again worked hard for the 60 minutes at home, with a strong 3rd period. Their top line was able to get pressure down low and score goals, and the defense was scrappy and played well positionally to limit the number of shots. Kelleher didn't have to do a lot in net, but he was solid and controlled, and gave up few rebounds. After a rough start to the year, Tim now has 2 shutouts in his last 2 starts, and has his confidence back. There are still weaknesses in the defense, and they would like more offensive production from the other lines and the defensemen, but for now they have probably overachieved compared to what was expected for the first 2 months of the season. BC faces a tough road trip next week with 2 games at Maine. Last year's team was able to win 4 times against the Black Bears, but that type of success is highly unlikely this year. Rick McAdoo "Volunteer reporter" A content BC fan. GO EAGLES!