BOSTON — Northeastern welcomed the Bentley Falcons to Historic Matthews Arena for a matinee Sunday. The Huskies came into the game riding the momentum of a huge 4-2 win over rival Boston College on November 23rd, while the Falcons came into the contest on a four-game win streak, consisting of two series sweeps of AIC and Air Force.
With Northeastern stumbling out of the gate this season, registering a record of 2-6-3 through their first 11 games, the Huskies came into Sunday looking for their first consecutive wins of the 2024-25 campaign.
The first period was an action-packed affair, with the two teams combining for three goals. It didn’t take the Huskies long to get on the board as just about two minutes into the period, Northeastern captain Jack Williams found the back of the Bentley net for his sixth goal of the year off a pass from Christophe Tellier, giving the Huskies an early 1-0 lead.
If anyone in Matthews Arena was under the impression that this early goal meant Northeastern would run Bentley out of the building, they were mistaken.
Bentley applied continuous pressure in the Northeastern zone all night, forcing the Huskies into sloppy, and often irresponsible plays in their own end. Just about six minutes after Williams opened the scoring, the Falcons answered right back. The Huskies’ frantic play in their own end led to dangerous Bentley possession, and freshman forward Oskar Bakkevig beat Northeastern goaltender Cameron Whitehead to knot the game up 1-1.
“I just didn’t think we had our best today,” said Northeastern head coach Jerry Keefe following the game. “Credit to Bentley, Bentley’s a good hockey team… I just thought they were getting to pucks faster than we were, we were a step slow… we weren’t at our best.”
Before the first period came to an end, Northeastern would regain their lead through a Dylan Hryckowian goal, set up beautifully by Anthony Messuri. The junior forward registered his first career collegiate point on the play, earning him adoration from the fans, his teammates, and his coaches alike.
“The guys were really excited for him. He made a great play on the goal,” Keefe said, reflecting on the milestone for Messuri. ”For him to go in and give us energy – the guys were pumped for him. And then to make a big play on that goal, that’s huge for him and that’s huge for the guys.”
Following the first period, the game was dictated almost entirely by Bentley. Northeastern seemed to go into something of a defensive shell, relying on Whitehead for the remainder of the game.
Throughout the second period, the Falcons were a step ahead at every turn. Northeastern had trouble breaking out of their own zone effectively, and on the occasions that they did manage to break out cleanly, it rarely translated to offensive momentum or pressure.
In the middle frame alone, Bentley outshot the Huskies 13-2. Whitehead had to bail out his team on more than a few occasions, making high quality save after high quality save while under the bombardment of Bentley’s relentless offense.
“Whitey was good,” Keefe said. “The penalty kill was good, and we were able to get the win. That’s it.”
Without the play of Cam Whitehead papering over the cracks of the Northeastern defense, it’s likely that the Huskies would’ve left Matthews Arena empty handed.
The third period was more of the same story for Northeastern. They didn’t do themselves any favors, with freshman Ben Poitras and Williams both taking tripping penalties and sending their team to the penalty kill.
Once again, Whitehead was up to the challenge, making 14 saves in the third period, and keeping the Huskies in the lead. “[Whitehead] kept us in the game the whole time,” said Northeastern junior forward Cam Lund. “He’s been there every single game for us this year and he led the way tonight for us.”
Relief would finally come for Northeastern, when Lund added an insurance goal on a two-on-one, extending the Huskies lead to 3-1 with just 1:42 remaining in the third period.
“My thought process there was just ‘put this one on net and try to score,’ and I saw an opening so…” Lund said on his goal.
Northeastern were outshot 35-17, lost the battle in the face-off dot, and gave Bentley four power plays throughout the game. Despite all of that, the Huskies showed grit and determination, blocking 16 shots, and killing off every Falcon advantage en route to an important 3-1 win, improving their season record to 3-6-3.
The Huskies are back in action Friday, Dec. 6th, when they take on the University of New Hampshire at home. WRBB will have live coverage from Zach Lyons, Matty Wasserman, and Chase Alexander from Matthews Arena. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m.