A five-goal first period led to a UND rout at the Ralph Engelstad Arena over number 3 Boston University this past Friday.
UND defeated the Boston University Terriers 7-2 in the first game of their weekend series at the Ralph Engelstad Arena.
UND scored on four of their first six shots, getting Terrier senior goaltender Mathieu Caron pulled at 10:31 in the first period.
“He was under siege,” Boston University coach Jay Pandolfo said.
Louis Jamernik V scored the would-be game winner just seconds after UND went up 2-0 in the first period.
Jake Schmaltz fired a pass to the front of the net, and Jamernik tapped it home to give UND a 3-0 lead in under seven minutes; the Ralph erupted.
“You know the Ralph is crazy when it gets going,” Schmaltz said.
Jackson Kunz, Mac Swanson, Jamernik V, Abram Wiebe, and Schmaltz all scored in the first 13 minutes and 12 seconds of the game.
UND kept the early momentum going all game with their “machine-like mindset,” Schmaltz said.
“We got outbattled, outcompeted, you name it, really from start to finish,” Pandolfo said.
It was a “point night” for UND. Several players scored multiple points, including a few career firsts.
Jamernik V had his first career three-point night, and senior forward Kunz had his first career two-point night.
Meanwhile, freshman Mac Swanson got his first two career points with a goal and an assist, and Schmaltz, Wiebe, and Jayden Perron also had multiple point nights.
Freshman forward Cade Littler also picked up his first career point on an assist to Ben Strinden on UND’s seventh goal. Strinden skated down the left wing and sniped it far side past the goalie’s blocker, adding more salt to the Terrier’s wounds.
UND hockey legend Dixon Ward took a lap during pre-game introductions and had the Ralph bumping.
“It’s so sweet when we are in the tunnel, and he’s suited up giving us fist bumps,” Schmaltz said. “You can see he’s got that look in his eye like he might hop out there with us.”
Ward is UND’s only 100-goal, 100-assist player. UND had not scored seven goals against Boston University since Ward was a sophomore in 1990.
Special teams play was key for the Fighting Hawks. They went two for three on the power play, only allowing one goal on five penalty kills. UND scored their first two goals of the night on the power play.
T.J. Semptimphelter was a stone wall in the net for UND. He had 27 saves on 29 shots, shutting out the Terriers attack for the first two periods.
“T.J. made some saves where if they get one or two early, it’s a ballgame again,” UND head coach Brad Berry stated. “He made some saves to keep our momentum going.”
UND defensively held a dangerous Boston University offense in check. The Terriers averaged 4.33 goals per game coming into the night.
“We had stick on puck, body on body. We were finishing on top, so we were back in the play before they were,” Berry said.
Boston University did not score until the third period, when they tallied two in a row but neither mattered.
Schmaltz stayed hot at the dot winning 13 of 18 faceoffs. Boston University ultimately won the face-off battle 37-35.
Both sides were scrappy all game with countless brawls after the whistle. In the chippy game, a total of 19 penalties were taken. Boston University’s Cole Hutson finished off the game by earning a game misconduct, and a major penalty with a facemask during a brawl in front of the Terrier’s net.
“We got to come back here and play tomorrow and it’s not going to be any easier,” Pandolfo stated.
The Terriers came back on Saturday and tied the series, beating UND 4-3.
UND will travel to New York this weekend to face Cornell in a two-game series.
Elijah Andrews is the Dakota Student Sports Reporter. He can be reached at [email protected].
