BOSTON, MA —- Northeastern made the short trip to BU’s Walter Brown Arena to host the University of New Hampshire in one of several neutral site home games this semester.
It took over a month after the famed Matthews Arena closed its doors for the Huskies to find success, and they held onto it. Northeastern entered Saturday night riding momentum from a 4-0 win in Durham on Friday, a game highlighted by a shutout from goaltender Lawton Zacher.
“It was really cool to look across and see some of the DogHouse over there,” said Northeastern head coach Jerry Keefe when asked about the new atmosphere at Walter Brown Arena.
The DogHouse brought their usual energy to Walter Brown Arena as the Huskies earned a 5-2 win and completed a weekend sweep of UNH.
The scoring opened in the first period with a chip-in goal from Northeastern freshman forward Matthew Maltais following a great effort by sophomore Griffin Erdman. Maltais’s first goal as a Husky came at the perfect time, as Northeastern was struggling to catch up with the Wildcats right out of the gate.
The Wildcats pulled even three minutes later when Jacob Newcombe intercepted a D-to-D pass intended for sophomore Jack Henry after it was mishandled by senior Austen May and buried the puck to tie the game.
The game’s momentum went back and forth until the Huskies took the lead with two minutes remaining in the opening period. Pushing through a sea of Wildcats, alternate captain Dylan Hryckowian illustrated why he wears the letter. The play initially appeared to draw a penalty, but the puck had already crossed the line, giving Northeastern the lead.
The second period opened at a faster pace, and Northeastern quickly capitalized when junior forward Eli Sebastian finished on a 2-on-1 chance from junior linemate Tyler Fukakusa.
“[Sebastian] got rewarded for playing really good hockey,” Keefe said. “[He’s an] outstanding playmaker [and] always plays a really honest game.”
Just 14 seconds later, Erdman buried his own rebound to push the lead to three. Erdman has appeared in every game so far in his collegiate career, showing steady progression that gave way to a three-point weekend against UNH.
After letting in three goals early, goaltender Jared Whale was replaced with Friday night’s starter, Kyle Chauvette. Seven minutes later, the Wildcats responded when Cy LeClerc ripped a slapshot during a delayed penalty on freshman Amine Hajibi. The rest of the period settled down, with the Huskies focused on protecting their 4-2 lead.
In the third frame, Northeastern shifted its focus to controlling the neutral zone and preventing the Wildcats from gaining clean zone entries. Most of the action took place in the defensive and neutral zones, with impressive defensive plays made by the Huskies defense and Zacher.
“That’s the selfless hockey you need,” Keefe said. “Jacob Matthieu was selling it out for whatever it took.”
The defensive efforts paid off late, as an offensive zone turnover by UNH allowed freshman forward Giacomo Martino to send a wrister into the empty Wildcat net. The goal came with less than four minutes remaining in the period, followed by a major penalty on the Wildcats’ captain, cementing Northeastern’s win.
This weekend’s performance is significant for the Huskies, who came into the series against UNH riding a five-game losing streak. It is especially important because it proved Northeastern’s ability to win despite the lack of home ice. As Northeastern begins to get comfortable with its nomadic lifestyle, wins like this are crucial for keeping pace with other Hockey East teams.
Northeastern returns to action on Thursday, when the Huskies begin their series against Merrimack at Lawler Arena with puck drop set for 7 p.m.
Eleanor Johnson is an aspiring broadcaster and writer for WRBB Sports.