CHESTNUT HILL – No. 11/10 University of Massachusetts hockey erased a 2-0 first period deficit and led 4-3 early in the third, but two goals on a 5-on-3 helped carry No. 1 Boston College past UMass, 6-4 at Kelley Rink on Sunday afternoon. The loss leaves the Minutemen at 16-9-3 overall, 9-7-2 in Hockey East, while the Eagles improve to 23-5-1 and 15-3-1 in league action.
 
“I’m very proud of our effort tonight,” said UMass head coach Greg Carvel. “Our guys played extremely hard. Michael Hrabal was outstanding. We overcame some adversity early in the game and then faced some adversity late in the game that was out of our control and decided the game.”
 
Boston College opened the scoring 6:44 into the first when Gabe Perreault found Ryan Leonard in the slot for a top-shelf strike. Will Smith earned the secondary helper on the play.
 
In the final minute of the opening frame, the Eagles expanded their advantage to 2-0 with Gabe Perreault converting on the power play, putting back his own rebound over Hrabal’s right shoulder from Smith and Eamon Powell.
 
The Minutemen halved their deficit on a play that began with Ryan Ufko hitting Cam O’Neill with an outlet pass that he sent ahead to Kenny Connors on the rush. Connors then deposited the puck into the back of the Eagles’ net at the 8:28 mark of the second period.
 
Soon after, Aydar Suniev backhanded home a wraparound from Connors to level the score at 2-2, 11:31 into the frame.
 
Then just 29 seconds later, Suniev struck again as he batted home a bouncing puck in front from Lucas Mercuri and Ryan Lautenbach to give UMass a 3-2 lead.
 
Boston College responded to tie the score at 3-3 at the 15:17 mark of the second with Jamie Armstrong scoring on a redirection from Lukas Gustafsson and Jack Malone.
 
Shortly after a power play opportunity expired, the Minutemen pulled back in front, 4-3. Mercuri won a puck battle along the wall and sent a feed to Samuli Niinisaari at the right point. Ninnisaari sent the puck into the slot and Dans Locmelis was there to send it tap it past Jacob Fowler at 7:56.
 
The Eagles then answered on a 5-on-3 as Leonard netted his second of the game from Smith and Powell 10:03 into the third. With 1:40 remaining on the Mercuri penalty, Boston College converted at 5-on-4 as well, with Leonard finishing off a hat trick from Smith and Malone at 11:01.
 
BC ended the contest with a 46-24 advantage in shots and went 3-for-5 on the power play, while the Minutemen were 0-for-3. Hrabal set a new career high with 40 saves for UMass and Fowler totaled 20 stops on the afternoon for the Eagles.
 
UMass will be back in action on Friday, February 23, when the squad will play host to No. 19 New Hampshire at the Mullins Center at 7 p.m.