Boston College Defeats UMass 8-1 in Hockey East Semifinals

Gabe Perreault scored two goals in his first game since February, Cutter Gauthier increased his country-leading goal count to 34, and Jacob Fowler made 27 saves to backstop Boston College to an 8-1 whomping of the UMass Minutemen. 

Eleven different Eagles picked up at least a point, with Will Smith, Perreault, and Gauthier scoring four a piece. 

This was a most impressive performance for the eagles, as they looked scary in a way they have not looked since Perreault went down with an undisclosed injury on February 23.

The Eagles dominance was quiet. They only notched 37 shots on goal despite scoring eight goals. 

The turning point in the game was a five minute major contact to the head penalty taken by Mike Posma at 14:34 in the first period. The Eagles killed it off by blocking shots and forcing the Minutemen to the outside for a full five minutes. During the power play UMass only got four shots on goal through on Fowler.

Before the game, Will Smith broke the news that Perreault was going to be back in the lineup by commenting “guess who’s back” on Perreault’s Instagram post with the caption “About that time 👀”.

“I didn’t think my comment would blow up like that. It’s fun having him back,” Smith said. 

This win marked the Eagles ninth straight win over the Minutemen.

They will go onto face the winner of Maine vs Boston University in the Hockey East finals tomorrow at 7:30.