PROVIDENCE – That was the response Nate Leaman was looking for.

The Providence men’s hockey coach wanted to see what his team was made of and one night after being handed a six-goal loss by Boston College, the Friars showed exactly what kind of team they are.

Saturday’s 4-3 win wasn’t perfect for PC, but it showed Leaman exactly what he wanted to see and what didn’t happen Friday night. The Friars didn’t play shook, goalie Philip Svedeback returned to form when his team needed him most and Chase Yoder’s game-winning goal was what PC is going to need as it navigates Hockey East play.

“We had a lot of times throughout the game where our spirit could have easily been broken, especially with the way we played last night and we didn’t,” Leaman said. “For me, that was a huge character-building win for us. We were down and we had to keep grinding and we showed something tonight.”

Here’s what stood out after Providence’s most impressive win of the season.

The Friars saved their best for last

Providence outshot BC 24-14 in the first two periods, but found itself down 2-1 after giving up the go-ahead goal with 51 seconds left in the second, just 20 seconds after Chase Yoder had found the equalizer to the Eagles’ first period goal.

It could have been a moment that flipped the game in a negative direction. In Friday’s 7-1 loss, Providence couldn’t get out of its own way in the second period, giving up four goals in a 3:50 stretch that it had no answers for.

“I just don’t think we reacted very well for it,” Leaman said. “I thought we lost our poise, thought we started running around and I thought they started picking us apart and made it worse and worse.”

That wasn’t the case Saturday.

The Friars found their answer early when Jamie Engelbert tied things up 1:27 into the final period.

The goal energized Providence. Nothing came easy for the Friars on offense, but they worked for every shot and didn’t get discouraged with Jacob Fowler saving almost everything he looked at.

Gabe Perreault gave Boston College a 3-2 lead with 13:34 left to play, but midway through the period Bennett Schimek tied things up.

With the offense continuing to push, Tanner Adams put a shot from the right side that was saved by Fowler. The rebound went to the goalie’s right and with the left side of the net exposed, Yoder was in perfect position to clean up, throwing the shot in for the go-ahead goal with 4:30 left in the game.

“Those are second-half goals,” Leaman said. “That was the discussion coming back from Christmas. As it gets tough to score, you have to manufacture more.

“Yodes did that (in a 3-0 win) against Brown; 0-0 in the third, he got to that area and potted one home and he did it again tonight.”

Svedeback was back on his game

Friday loss to Boston College was a game the Friars’ sophomore goalie would rather forget after giving up five goals on just nine shots before being removed in the second period.

Leaman had concerns about Svedeback early in Saturday’s rematch, but those concerns were put to rest early as Svedeback started to look more comfortable in the crease.

The goals Boston College scored weren’t cheapies and in the third, the Eagles kept firing. Svedeback played with confidence and it was apparent, especially after the Friars tied the game at 3 in the third, that BC wasn’t going to light the lamp again. Svedeback finished his night with 22 saves, nine coming in the third.

“He started the game and you tell he was fragile,” Leaman said. “He found a way to play his best hockey when it mattered and that’s really great for him and his confidence.

“… The third period, it was almost like he said ‘we’re goingto win this game’ and he made the saves.’”

Friars were hardly perfect

Saturday’s game couldn’t have been worse than Friday, but Leaman wasn’t expecting Providence to be perfect. He was looking for imrprovement and for the Friars to do that and grind out a win makes Saturday as big a moment as the team’s had all season.

“I don’t think we were great by any means,” Leaman said. “I thought we fought the puck. I thougth we had some really good chances Fowler made some really great saves on. I thought we lost the poise in our defensive zone a number of times.

“I wouldn’t rate our game an A, but I would rate our heart an A and our grit an A and that’s what I’m proud about.”

Was it a case of a coach being too picky? Hardly. Leaman knew how explosive Boston College could be and while he was ultimately pleased with how PC played the first period, the Eagles’ first goal was a shining example of what can happen if you’re not crisp against the top team in the country.

“They made a play in the neutral zone there where we missed a check, but that’s them,” Leaman said. “You have to be really diligent when you play against them because they make the extra pass and you miss a check and they get a chance.”

But it was how PC responded in these moments that guided them to victory. They worked to come up with a response and when BC continued to answer, the Friars still found a way to get it done.

“What we did talk about [Saturday] morning was making sure we had a response,” Leaman said. “When they score we had a response and that’s what we didn’t have [Saturday].”

“You’ve got to grow, you’ve got to get better and our goal is the big trophy at the end of the year so if you’re not growing through the regular season, that’s why I was excited because we showed something [Friday].”

What’s next for PC hockey

Saturday’s win improved Providence to 11-6-2 (5-4-2 Hockey East) and to 6-6 against nationally ranked opponents. Before Friday, every loss this season was by one goal or in overtime or a shootout, so it seems like the 7-1 score was more an anomaly rather than an indicator of who the Friars are.

PC will be back in action next weeked for a two-game set with Alaska-Anchorage and closes January with games against UMass-Lowell. The Friars open February with UConn before fun starts with meetings with Maine and Boston University.

Leaman didn’t mince words talking about what Providence is chasing this season and knows performances and wins like Saturdays will only help.

“We’re going to be battled tested. We’re not ducking anything,” Leaman said. “Without [injured sophomore forward Jaroslav Chmelar and junior forward Matt Hubbarde) right now, other guys are stepping up. It’s making us grow.