http://www.nunews.neu.edu/nu-news/Issues/111500/s2.html
Huskies send Terriers packing
By Mike Trocchi
News Staff
11/15/00
Boston University captain Carl Corazzini tried to fire up his team in a pre-game
huddle around the goaltender’s net on Sunday. He pointed fingers and yelled at
individuals to rebound from BU’s loss to UMass-Lowell two nights before.
It didn’t work.
Northeastern showed it has the poise and talent to keep up with, and surpass,
Boston’s traditional college hockey powerhouse, in a 4-1 win in front of 4,152
fans at Matthews Arena.
During the game, Corazzini looked like he was trying to carry the Terriers
(2-4-1, 1-3-1 Hockey East) on his back.
For the Huskies (5-2-1, 2-1-1 Hockey East), it wasn’t necessary for one guy to
carry the load. Instead, Graig Mischler (two goals, nine assists on the season)
and Sean McDonald (one goal) ended scoring droughts and goaltender Jason Braun
(34 saves) had one of the best games of his career to seal the win.
“They weren’t the prettiest goals I’ve had, but they came from hard work,”
Mischler said.
Mischler’s first tally came at 2:15 of the second period after BU’s Mike
Pandolfo took a sharp feed from Dan Cavanaugh to put BU up, 1-0, just 4:04 into
the game.
The Huskies rebounded by scoring twice in the second period, the second goal
coming on a wrister by Willie Levesque that was tipped past BU goalie Jason Tapp
by McDonald.
Mischler added his second goal of the game on a rebound off defenseman Mike
Jozefowicz’s slapper at 13:46 of the second. Chris Lynch (five goals, three
assists) added his first even-strength goal in a year at 15:58 to seal it at
4-1.
“They want to make some waves this year,” Northeastern coach Bruce Crowder said
of his players. “We’re trying to get to the point where we’re not too high or
too low.”
Junior Joe Mancuso was on a high on Sunday as he contributed three assists on
the night, doubling his career scoring total.
“I wasn’t sure what my role was going to be the first couple weeks of the
season,” Mancuso said. “But things change and now I’m getting the chance and
making the most of it.
Mancuso was filling in for Arik Engbrecht (out with back spasms) and he fit
right in with Northeastern’s best defensive effort of the season.
For now, it’s a role reversal in the city of Boston. The Terriers are trying to
find their way, while the Huskies are fighting their way through a tough
schedule and succeeding nicely.
“We had some guys who were equal to the task,” Crowder said. “That’s very
encouraging.”
Asked how he felt starting off 5-2-1 in the toughest eight-game stretch that has
ever started a Northeastern men’s hockey season, Mischler warned that there are
still battles to be won.
“We’re not out of the woods yet,” Mischler said. “[But] we’re right in the thick
of things.”
NU is also still in the thick of the national rankings picture. On Monday, the
Huskies moved up to 10th in the latest US College Hockey Online poll and are in
the top 10 for the first time since January 1998. BU dropped to No. 18.
The win over the Terriers on Sunday was the first at Matthews since the Surge!
game on Jan. 16, 1998.
Crowder is encouraged by the way Braun and sophomore Mike Gilhooly have played
in goal and is hoping that will be one of the keys to moving up in Hockey East.
“The biggest thing is that we do have a horse race,” he said. “This is very good
for us.”
NU plays a two-game set with No. 14 Providence this weekend, with Saturday
night’s game at Matthews.
On Commonwealth Avenue, things are in a bit of disarray and Boston University
coach Jack Parker knows Northeastern will battle for city supremacy. “That’s a
good team,” he said about the Huskies. “They’re going to win a lot of games.”
Mancuso saw Sunday’s win as another benchmark in what hopes to be a breakout
season. And he thinks NU might even have a bulls-eye on its chest now.
“Everyone likes to underestimate us,” Mancuso said. “People might start to take
us seriously now.”
