The red-hot Boston University Terriers scored three goals in a span of 6:01 in the second period en route to a 5-1 Hockey East victory over the University of Maine at the Alfond Arena Friday night.
BU has now won nine of its last 10 games and improved to 19-11-3 overall, 14-7-3 in Hockey East. The win also ensured that the Terriers will finish in the top five and avoid having to play a preliminary round game on Wednesday.
UMaine fell to 6-21-4 and 4-17-2 and will finish last in Hockey East. The Black Bears won’t know who their first-round opponent will be until Saturday night.
Ty Gallagher’s power play goal staked BU to a 1-0 lead in the first period before Sam Stevens, Wilmer Skoog and Jay O’Brien extended the lead in the second period.
Skoog made it 5-0 in the third period before Ben Poisson scored for UMaine on the power play.
UMaine outshot BU 29-28.
U.S. Olympic team goalie Drew Commesso made 28 saves for the Terriers and Victor Ostman had 23 for UMaine.
It will be Seniors Night at the Alfond Arena on Saturday night at 7:30 p.m. in the regular season finale for both teams.
“The score wasn’t indicative of the game,” said UMaine coach Ben Barr. “The guys played extremely hard. But BU makes you pay every time you give them a scoring chance. You can’t give them odd-man rushes. And we turned the puck over a lot. BU is a highly skilled team and they are playing better than anyone in the league right now.”
UMaine was without three of its top defensemen, forcing Barr to put forward Edward Lindelow back on defense.
Jakub Sirota and Adrien Bisson have been lost for the season with knee injuries and Sam Duerr has an upper body injury.
Gallagher opened the scoring with his fifth goal of the season.
His initial shot was blocked but Logan Cockerill chased down the loose puck, circled the net and fed Gallagher at the bottom of the circle.
Stevens made it 2-0 with his fifth as Matt Brown dropped the puck for him and he burst down the right side before directing the puck past Ostman.
Skoog’s 13th expanded the lead as Ethan Phillps passed it from behind the net to Luke Tuch and Tuch found the open Skoog at the far post for an easy finish.
O’Brien scored with a one-timer on the power play off a Domenick Fensore pass for his 10th of the season.
Skoog added a breakaway in the third period before Poisson scored his eighth off assists from Donavan Houle and Lynden Breen.