The 800 Club

Parker Joins Elite Company, Terriers Defeat Merrimack 3-1

Jack Parker earned his 800th career win Friday night, as the Boston University Terriers earned a wire to wire victory over Merrimack College in North Andover.

Matt Gilroy started the scoring in the first, and Brandon Yip and Colby Cohen added power play goals in the second and third periods respectively in the effort to make Parker just the third coach in NCAA history to reach the 800-win mark.

Colin Wilson also continued his quest for the Hobey Baker award, notching two assists to add to his team high 32 points on the season. Rookie netminder Kieran Millan improved to an impressive 15-1-1 on the year.

BU is now 12-1-1 in their last 14 contests, the one blemish a loss at home to Providence College.

The win put Parker in rare company, as he joins current Boston College coach Jerry York and legendary head coach Ron Mason, most recently of Michigan State University, as the only head coaches to reach the 800 win mark. Parker is the only one to achieve the milestone with just one team.

After the win, Parker attributed his success to his longevity as a head coach. ``I'm old,” he said to goterriers.com. “I've been here a long time -- that's the reason you get 800 wins. I've also had over these 36 seasons some fabulous assistant coaches who have [recruited] some great players.''

The Terriers’ squad this year is responsible for 19 of those 800 victories, marking one of the most successful starts in team history. The latest win helps solidify the Terriers’ spot atop the Pairwise Rankings, which mirror the selection guidelines for the NCAA tournament.

While the Terriers did convert two goals with the man advantage, their power play did not shine quite as it has in the past. The Terriers enjoyed 15 minutes of power play time in the game, and were shut down often by the Merrimack special teams unit.

BU’s penalty kill continued its outstanding play, keeping Merrimack off the board on seven power play chances. Since giving up a power play goal to Boston College on January 17, the IceDogs have rattled off an amazing special teams streak, killing off 27 consecutive penalties over a span of 49:21.

The BU defense is anchored by the brick wall that is Kieran Millan. In his 17 games, Millan has posted a 1.47 goals against average and a .937 save percentage.

Those stats put him at third in the nation for GAA and tied for foruth for save percentage among qualifying goaltenders.

Millan’s stellar play has put Parker’s plan for a rotating goalie system on ice, for now. Fellow freshman Grant Rollheiser spent the early part of the year splitting time with Millan, putting up a 2.66 GAA and .876 save percentage.

Simply put, Rollheiser played well, but Millan has been spectacular.

The Terriers will try to ride their recent success into the 57th Beanpot Tournament Monday Night. Although the Terriers are the owners of 28 Beanpot banners, they fell in the opening round last season to Boston College. BU will look to get back to Beanpot glory at T.D. Banknorth Garden in the 5:00 pm game against Harvard University on Monday Night.

Super Preview

Before you tune in to the big game this weekend, check out the preview of the game, brought to you by WTBU Radio. Phil DiMartino and the rest of The BUITM crew debate the outcome of the Big Game, as well as what songs will be played during the halftime show.

Listen to the segment here, and listen to BU In The Morning weekdays from 10am - Noon.

Super Bowl Preview - Phil DiMartino

Game Preview: #2 BU Terriers Vs. Merrimack College Warriors

Coach Jack Parker is on the hunt for win number 800 on the road at Merrimack College. But after a big two game set against New Hampshire and just 72 hours before the Beanpot, how will the Terriers respond to a team that they are supposed to beat?

Also, the last time BU went to Mack, Captain Matt Gilroy suffered a separated shoulder and prolific goal scorer Chris Higgins sustained a concussion. Will the physical play carry over?

Phil DiMartino sits down with WTBU Radio Play by Play Commentator Kevin Edelson to discuss the game.

mens hockey vs mack preview - Phil DiMartino

The Greatest Show On Ice

The NHL Takes Over For A Weekend

The NHL All-Star Game is in the books, and it just may be the best thing to happen to hockey in a while.

Sure, the contests don’t mean anything. And yes, the most recognizable player in the game was absent from the competition. And no, it doesn’t really even matter who won the game.

Despite those things, for two nights out of the entire sports year, the NHL actually took over and made some people lean forward in their chairs and say, “That was pretty cool.”

Montreal, in its 100th season as the host to the storied Canadiens franchise, was the venue for this weekend’s fun and games. The city is passionate about its team, and more importantly about the sport. The fans came out to watch their idols, and in some cases, their national heroes.

The All-Star came hit the birthplace of the NHL at just the right time. Canadians take their hockey very seriously, and they truly appreciate the game played at its highest level. Add that to a talented crop of young stars, and combine it with the home team’s centennial, and you get a recipe for a wonderful spectacle.

The best part of the weekend is that fans, especially those not familiar with hockey, get to see the game’s best players unleashed.

No contract incentives to live up to, no pressure and essentially no defense.

Just the best players in the world on a sheet of ice.

Players like Alex Ovechkin and Evgeni Malkin thrive in that envoirnment. It’s the natural habitat for players who came out of the womb wearing skates and have fewer real teeth than they do fingers.

In the skills competition, Ovechkin once again put on a show for the ages. He has made it his mission to show off a little bit of personality without sacraficing the grace that his game embodies.

Donning a bucket hat and a pair of ridiculous sunglasses, Ovechkin prepared for the breakaway challenge with his countryman Malkin. He then grabbed two sticks and took off like a rocket towards the goal. He controlled the puck with his two sticks better than most skaters could do with one. After tossing his right-hand stick toward the crowd, he pounded home a shot, circling around the endboards, with a hat dangling by a string from his neck and a grin on his face.

The game itself was much of the same. The Eastern Conference eventually won a 12-11 slugfest that had to go to a shoot-out to determine the winner.

The home-town hero Alex Kovalev won the MVP award, Ovechkin got the shoot-out game winner, Malkin did things with the puck that most people didn’t know were possible, and the fans got a great show.

For one weekend, the world saw all the amazing things hockey has to offer.

While it wouldn’t make sense for the NHL to amend their rules to aid their offensive wizards any further than they already have, it is nice to see the League doing some things right.

The goals won’t come on a nightly basis as they did Sunday night, but the magical moments will. The players will be there all year. The only question is whether or not 23 goals in one night is enough to keep the fans coming back to the rink.

Terriers Continue To Roll, Defeat UNH 3-1

Special Teams, Goaltending Propel BU to Weekend Sweep

The Boston University Terriers are clicking on all cylinders.

Getting Coach Jack Parker win number 799 of his career, the number two ranked Terriers completed a weekend sweep over the 11^th ranked University of New Hampshire Wildcats on the road Saturday night with a 3-1 victory.

With the win, BU is now 18-5-1 overall and 11-5-1 in Hockey East. The Terriers are now in sole possession of second place in Hockey East, just four points behind Northeastern University.

The Terriers continued to show a great deal of depth, getting their first goal from blue-liner Kevin Shattenkirk, while the eventual game winner came from rookie sensation Chris Connolly.

A night after earning his second shutout of the year, rookie netminder Kieran Millan shined again in the win, his 14^th victory in 16 starts this year. Millan made 29 saves, and is making it harder every night for Jack Parker to go back to a rotating goalie scenario.

Chris Higgins also proved that he has recovered from a brutal hit he took against Merrimack which sidelined him for a game against Boston College. In the two games since sustaining a concussion and receiving six stitches, Higgins has a goal and three assists.

BU also continued very strong special teams play, killing off all six New Hampshire power plays. Since giving up a power play goal forty seconds into a game against BC, the Terriers have killed off a whopping twenty consecutive penalties over an elapsed time of 38:57.

But it’s not just nearly two period of penalty killing that’s driving the Terriers. An offensive outburst has propelled BU to its most prosperous stretch of the year to this point. The Terriers are 11-1-1 in their last 13 games, and are yet to drop a contest outside of Hockey East.

BU will try to wrap up its stellar January on a high-note when they will travel to Merrimack looking to wrap up a season sweep of the lowly Warriors.

After that, the Terriers will look to bring back the Beanpot title to its most familiar home when they open up the tournament in the early game against Harvard University.

A Question of Popularity

Should the NHL All-Star Game rosters be left up to the fans? Should the Winter Classic be played in New York and Boston? Does the skills competition matter more than the actual game? The BU in the Morning Crew Debates.

NHL Discussion - Phil DiMartino

Where Is the Love?

The Donovan McNabb Story

Donovan McNabb does nothing but lead his team into big games time and time again. Yet Philadelphia sports fans seem to want to run him out of town. After another devastating loss in another big game, hear what Phil DiMartino had to say about Donovan McNabb on WTBU Radio.

Donovan McNabb and Philly - Phil DiMartino