BOSTON — With 67 ticks of regulation remaining in Friday night’s match-up with BU, Matthews Arena erupted. Sophomore Joe Connor had broken the tie with a one-timer that found the top-shelf to give the Huskies the game-clinching 3-2 lead over their rivals.
Although Friday night ended with Northeastern in the win-column, and third in the Hockey East standings, it was not without struggles for the Huskies.
The first came before the puck even hit the ice, when it was reported that junior starting goaltender Lawton Zacher would not be between the pipes. Coupled with no Joaquim Lemay on the blue line or Matthew Perkins up-front, the lack of Hockey East’s top netminder was certainly unwelcome news for Northeastern.
“We might not see [Perkins] until after Christmas break,” head coach Jerry Keefe said. “[Zacher and Lemay] won’t be in tomorrow, but hopefully [they will return] against Brown next weekend.”
As expected, sophomore Quentin Sigurdson got the nod in for Zacher’s absence. Despite it being his first official appearance of the season, Sigurdson had played in six games last year sporting a respectable 2.13 goals against average and .920 save percentage, so maybe he would pick up where Zacher left off, right?
One shot and 62 seconds later, Northeastern trailed 1-0.
Nevertheless, Sigurdson settled in for the Huskies, only conceding one more goal and making multiple key saves – 32-of-34 overall, including two breakaways and a penalty shot that all came within a matter of 30 seconds – to keep the game within reach.
“We have all the confidence in the world in [Sigurdson],” Keefe said after the game. “Every time that guy has gone out and played, he’s given us a chance to win in every game.”
With said ‘chance to win,’ the Huskies battled. Later in the first, they tied the game at one, off the stick of junior Andy Moore – his first of the season and second career goal. However, they again fell behind but not out, and senior transfer Austen May was able to even it at two in the second.
Down but not out was the story of Friday for Northeastern. Trailing has been an unfamiliar position for the Huskies – in fact, this is the first game of the season where they have made a comeback to win.
But in the end, sticking with it and grinding to the final whistle, is what gave the Huskies a chance. And of course, that mentality led to the opportunity for Connor to secure the win.
“I came on the ice, just hopped on late,” Connor said. “[Giacomo Martino] wheeled around the net, found me, and I just hammered it.”
With the win Northeastern improves to an overall record 8-3 (4-2 and in third place in Hockey East). Boston University falls to 5-7-1 (3-4 in conference, seventh place). The Huskies and Terriers will play game two of this home-and-home series Saturday, Nov. 22, at 7 PM. Chase Alexander and Kabir Singh will have the call from Agganis Arena on WRBB Sports +.
Luke Graham is the Digital Content Manager for WRBB Sports. He has covered Northeastern hockey and baseball with WRBB both on-air and in print for three years. Read all his articles here, and follow him on X here.