Terriers weren't so dogged

WORCESTER -- The law of averages and a below-average performance last night caught up to the Boston University hockey team -- at the worst possible time.

Bad decisions and poor special teams play left BU goalie John Curry hanging out to dry on a night when Boston College took advantage of mistakes and piled it on -- 5-0 in the NCAA Northeast Regional final at the DCU Center.

''We were dominated tonight," said BU coach Jack Parker, who admitted he was ''flabbergasted" by the outcome. ''We picked a bad night to have a not so good game for ourselves. And Boston College really jacked it up a notch or two. We didn't control any of this game."

BU captain Brad Zancanaro said it came down to being outworked. ''They wanted it more than us tonight," he said, while teammate Dan Spang, a senior defenseman from Winchester, also gave credit to BC for ''playing hard and executing."

It all started to unravel for the Terriers in the first period when Kevin Schaeffer left a gift pass in front of the BU net. BC's Brian Boyle, the recipient of the puck that never reached Schaeffer's defense partner, Sean Sullivan, didn't have time to say ''thanks" before snapping it past Curry, setting the tone for what was to follow.

Boyle's only goal against the Terriers this season was the first hint of a BU meltdown that led to BC's first win against the Terriers since Dec. 2, this time with an NCAA Frozen Four berth on the line.

''Boyle made it happen," said Parker. ''The defenseman made a bad decision . . . All he had to do was flip it to the other side or carry it himself. He tried to flip it to his partner and Boyle was there."

Three goals -- two of them shorthanded by Joe Rooney -- in the second period just about completed the Eagles' domination of the team that had left them shaking their heads in disappointment at the conclusion of the Beanpot and Hockey East tournaments, and on two other occasions.

The fourth goal -- which was reviewed -- was the one Parker felt took the remaining wind out of BU's sails. The net came off its moorings, but Rooney's shot crossed the goal line, and with that ruling the Terriers' hopes for a reprieve and some chance of coming back were dashed.

''The Beanpot, the regular-season Hockey East title, and the Hockey East [tournament] title, we're happy to take that home with us," added Parker, ''but that all goes for naught tonight."

Zancanaro noted that the aforementioned trifecta was something BU's seniors had yet to experience. ''It's been great playing here. It's been an honor to play with the other seniors," he said.

But BU's four straight wins over BC prior to last night will be footnotes to a text with a different ending -- the first time the Terriers have been shut out this season.

''They came after us pretty hard,"' said Zancanaro. ''They forechecked well. We had trouble getting out of our zone."

And the Terriers, who had outshot BC in every meeting this season but were outshot (31-28) last night, did not pay enough attention to making their offense click by playing smart defense.

''We had a couple of breakdowns," said Spang. ''We should have worried about defense first."

Parker said he expected a physical game, and was disappointed the Terriers couldn't match BC's aggressiveness.

''There was only one team tonight that was physical," said Parker. ''Right off the get-go we weren't in synch. You know, after the [NCAA Tournament] selection show, people were saying how we had to beat BC five times in a row. The way I looked at it, we only had to beat them once -- tonight."