Tournament rematch tonight in Durham

It's hard to imagine a must-win hockey game in the middle of November, but that's what the Wildcats were faced with last Saturday, after falling to 2-6-2 the night before in a game in which they outshoot UMass by 14.

"It was a must-win," said senior captain Bobby Butler, whose Wildcats doubled up UMass on Saturday, 4-2. "It was very important to leave with those two points and we were very excited when we did."

But now, UNH's attention shifts to the team that needed an overtime goal to defeat the Wildcats in last year's Northeast Regional final, en route to a national championship.

Boston University visits Durham tonight in an unfamiliar situation. The Terriers enter the Whittemore Center sporting a 2-6 record in Hockey East play and have struggled to find the back of the net all season, averaging just over two goals per game.

The Terriers have looked like anything but a team that lost just six games last season – the same amount they've dropped in nine games so far this season.

BU returns dominant forwards Chris Connolly and 50-point scorer Nick Bonino. Connolly shared Hockey East Player of the Week honors with Butler this week after recording four points in a two game series with Merrimack. 

"They're always a skilled team," said Butler. "We just need to play team defense and we should be fine."

Saturdays win was UNH's first in five games, their last coming Oct. 24 over Maine. But according to UNH head coach Dick Umile, the team had played well enough to win before Saturday.

"Friday night was as well as we've played all year," he said.

Sometimes, you just get unlucky. 

The week prior, Umile and his coaching staff had been working on skaters blocking shots in the defensive zone. Butler did just that in the final seconds of regulation, blocking a shot but ricocheting it right to a wide-open Casey Wellman, who put the puck in the net.

"It took a crazy bounce right to a kid standing alone," said Umile. "That was a tough loss to take because we played extremely well." 

UNH will be playing without freshman Greg Burke (separated shoulder) and Nick Krates (high ankle sprain). 

"We've done a nice job having guys step in when we've had injuries," Umile said. 

The forwards will need to be on top of their game, however, for the Wildcats to emerge with a win. BU, despite losing Hobey Baker Award winner Matt Gilroy, remains solid on defense, thanks to the play of sophomore goaltender Kieran Millan, who posted an unthinkable 1.94 GAA as a freshman last season.

The Terriers only returned one forward from last season's top two lines (Bonino) and may be lacking depth after losing Ryan Ruikka for the season.

"Make no mistake, this will be a tough weekend," Umile said. "They're a good team."

UNH, however, may be ready for a breakout after splitting the road series with tenth-ranked UMass and mixing up lines.

Peter Leblanc is expected to play with Stevie Moses and Mike Sislo on the first line, while Umile said Butler has played well with Paul Thompson and Phil DeSimone on the second line.

"We may not be able to prove it right now," said Umile. "But I think we're going to be a good team. I think we are ready (for a breakout)."

The puck is slated to drop at 7 p.m. tonight in the annual Blue-out against BU. Fans are encouraged to sport their UNH blue tonight and have the opportunity to watch the Wildcats take on the Terriers in Boston tomorrow night on NESN.