By Will Beaumont – Contributor

            Your BU Club Hockey team once again found itself ranked in AAU D2’s number 1 position heading into games with Buffalo State on Jan. 25 and 26. Looking to capitalize on the momentum the team had built up on the road, the boys were excited to put on a show for their home fans.

            The first game took place on Saturday the 25th, as the puck dropped at 1:30 p.m. and the game got underway. Bishops came into the game 8-1-0 with an average of 6.5 goals per game and 2.9 goals against per game. Meanwhile, Buffalo State entered the game ranked 32nd with an 8-4-0 record, averaging 4.5 goals per game while conceding 4.8. BU quickly proved to be too much for the Bengals to handle as the team went crazy and posted a 9-2 win. Leighton Geraghty led the scoring with two goals, while six other Gaiters—Cody Morton, Ryan Gudernatsch, Luke Thorne, Nico Deichmann, Marc Lagace, and Nolan Shane—each found the back of the net. Antimmes Leudière received the nod between the pipes and registered two goals against the 25 shots he faced while Bishops managed to send nine past the other team’s two goalies on 62 shots. 

            Game two proved to be much of the same as this time Andrew Delages got to see some action for BU. He would stop 22 out of 25 shots faced while Bishops would manage to score nine goals once again on two fewer shots than the game prior. Luke Thorne would get himself a hat trick while Nico Deichmann would sneak home two of his own, with Fred Gagnon, Marc Lagace, Cody Morton and Leighton Geraghty rounding out the scoring for Bishops.

            Bishops would then head to the road for games in Connecticut against Quinnipiac and the University of New Haven. The first of these games would take place on Friday January 31st against D1 opponent Quinnipiac. Antimmes Leudière would see another start for the team as the puck dropped with a chance for BU to keep the win streak alive. The first period would see Bishops trailing by one goal as Fred Nicolas would score the lone first period goal for BU. The second period would see an offensive explosion as the team would rally for four straight goals coming from Luke Thorne to start the party, followed by Marc Lagace and Cody Morton before Luke Thorne Would pot another. Quinnipiac would manage to score one to bring them back within two as the score read 5-3 in favor of Bishops after two periods. In the third period Nolan Shane would score a goal that Quinnipiac would match, but ultimately the 2nd period strike was enough to secure a 6-4 BU win. Leudière stopped 30 of 34 shots on the way to victory.

            Game two took place against New Haven on the Saturday following the Quinnipiac game. Goaltender Jack Mcfarland would be awarded another start for the club with puck drop set for 5pm. In the first Alex Budd would find the back of the net for the lone goal of the period. Nolan Shane would strike to start the second which would be matched by two New Haven goals. Marc Lagace decided he needed to do the same and scored two more Bishops goals to give them a 4-2 lead after two periods. In the third New Haven would score to bring it within one goal, however Fred Nicolas put the game to bed and polished off a 5-3 win. Mcfarland stopped 32 of 35 shots he faced in a stellar performance to help bring the team to a record of 12-1-0 in AAU competition this season.

            Bu Club Hockey will be back in action February 15th and 16th against Paul Smiths including an outdoor game on the 16th!