1994–95 Boston University Terriers men's ice hockey season

The 1994–95 Boston University Terriers men's ice hockey team represented Boston University in college ice hockey. In its 22nd year under head coach Jack Parker the team compiled a 31–6–3 record and reached the NCAA tournament for the sixth consecutive season and twenty first all-time. The Terriers defeated Maine 6–2 in the championship game at the Providence Civic Center in Providence, Rhode Island to win their fourth national championship.

1994–95 Boston University Terriers men's ice hockey season
National Champion
Mariucci Classic, Champion
Beanpot, Champion
Hockey East, co-Champion
Hockey East Tournament, Champion
NCAA Tournament, Champion
ConferenceT–1st Hockey East
Home iceWalter Brown Arena
Record
Overall31–6–3
Conference16–5–3
Home13–1–1
Road9–3–2
Neutral9–2
Coaches and Captains
Head CoachJack Parker
Assistant CoachesBlaise MacDonald
Mike Eruzione
Bill Berglund
Captain(s)Jacques Joubert[1]
Alternate captain(s)Rich Brennan
Derek Herlofsky
Boston University Terriers men's ice hockey seasons
« 1993–94 1995–96 »

Season

Coming off of the worst championship loss in over 30 years, Jack Parker was looking for a way to help his team recover from a nightmarish end. To make matters worse, goaltender J. P. McKersie an AHCA Second Team All-American, was hit by a car while biking that left him in a coma for 6 days.[2] While McKersie would recover and eventually continue his playing career, he would sit out the entire 1994–95 season. This left a rather large void in net, but because Parker rotated his goaltenders, senior alternate captain Derek Herlofsky was well positioned to shoulder his share of the burden. The bulk of McKersie's minutes would eventuallo go to Chicago draft pick Tom Noble who beat out Shawn Ferullo for the second spot in goal.

The forward and defensive corps were in a much more stable position as BU returned the majority of its principle players from a year before. The Terriers also added a couple of top prospects to this mix, including Chris Drury who was already nationally famous for having led Trumbull, Connecticut to the 1989 Little League World Series Championship.

Slow Start

Early on, the Terriers had trouble finding consistency in their game, starting 3–1–2 through the first three weeks of the season but having allowed 7 goals against in two different games. After a weekend against the worst team in Hockey East Massachusetts, albeit only in their second season since returning to the ice, BU was able to settle down and get themselves ready for their first tournament of the season.

Tournament Play

At the end of November BU headed to California for the Great Western Freeze–Out, held at the home arena of the Los Angeles Kings. The Terriers easily downed Princeton in the semifinal then pushed national powerhouse Maine into overtime but the Black Bears were the ones who prevailed. While the loss didn't harm BU too much since it was a non-conference game, they faced Maine in a pair of road games the following weekend. While the Terriers could only capture 3 points out of 10 in the series, both games were played very close and demonstrated that the two teams were evenly matched.

The near miss against Maine appeared to light a fire under the Terriers who utterly dominated their next two games (winning by a combined score of 21–3) before taking several weeks off for their winter break. When the team returned to the ice at the end of December they did so in Minneapolis for the Mariucci Classic. Similar to their first tournament, BU won the semifinal comfortably and headed into overtime in the title game. This time they were able to win from a goal by Ken Rausch.[3] 63 58

Catching Maine

At the beginning of 1995 BU was 16 points behind Maine, however, because Hockey East had altered its point system beginning with 1994–95 (5 points for a win, 2 points for a tie and an additional point for a shootout win after overtime) they were only about 3 games behind the Black Bears with 3 games in hand.[4] This meant that despite going 0–1–2 against Maine in their head-to-head matchups the Terriers could still keep even with the conference leaders as long as they took care of business.

The Terriers played well in January going 6–2, with all games coming against conference opponents. The consistent play allowed BU to close the gap with Maine with one game in hand. That would be put on the back-burner, however, as BU played in the Beanpot at the beginning of February. The Terriers were able to capture their 18th title after dropping a weak Boston College team in the championship, but the time off had allowed Maine to build a 15-point lead in the Hockey East standings.

Ill-equipped to afford a mistake the Terriers laid an egg in against Providence, losing 1–8 in their worst performance of the season. BU recovered to win the rematch but that left Maine with a 10-point lead in the standings and both teams had three games to play. Fortunately for the Terriers their remaining games came against two of the worst teams in Hockey East while the Black Bears faced much stiffer competition. BU swept their final three games while Maine lost twice and the two teams ended in a tie for 1st in the conference standings.

Hockey East Tournament

Because Maine had the tie-breaker due to the head-to-head meetings, BU received the 2nd seed and played Merrimack in the quarterfinals. While the game was close, BU won the 1-goal game and advanced to the semifinal at the nearby Boston Garden. The Terriers took care of Massachusetts–Lowell to reach the Championship where they were surprised to find 6th-seeded Providence as their opponent. The Friars proved up to the task and played the Terriers hard but BU held firm and won the game 3–2 to win their second consecutive conference tournament.

NCAA Tournament

The championship allowed BU to earn the top eastern seed and a bye into the regional semifinals. After a week off the Terriers faced defending national champion Lake Superior State and were able to exact their revenge with a 6–2 victory. BU advanced to the Frozen Four and faced Minnesota in a rematch of the 1994 national semifinal. The score may have been different but the result was the same as Boston University defeated the Golden Gophers 7–3 to return to the national championship game.

The Terriers faced Maine on April Fools Day and though the Black Bears had yet to lose to BU that year they were coming off of a 3 overtime epic against Michigan (then the longest game in NCAA Tournament history).[5] Despite this Maine was able to control the balance of play early, outshooting the Terriers early but on a faceoff in the Black Bear end on the Power Play, Steve Thornton was able to tap the puck through Brad Purdie's skates and fire home the first goal of the game. After that Maine netminder Blair Allison had to face a barrage by the BU offense that saw him face 21 shots over the next 25 minutes (compared to Maine's 6). The Terriers would score twice more to build a 3-goal lead midway through the game but the Black Bears were able to get on the scoresheet before the end of the second. Maine closed the lead to one just 31 seconds into the final frame but BU continued to apply pressure to Allison and scored twice more before capping off the game with a third power play goal to win their fourth national championship.[6]

Awards and Honors

The two-goal game from Chris O'Sullivan earned him the Tournament MOP and was joined on the All-Tournament Team by Kaj Linna and Shawn Bates. Mike Grier was named to the AHCA All-American East First Team[7] while Linna and O'Sullivan made the second team. All three players were named to the All-Hockey East Second Team[8] while Chris Kelleher made the Hockey East All-Rookie Team.[9] Steve Thornton received the Len Ceglarski Award for sportsmanship.

Standings
1994–95 Hockey East standings
Conference Overall
GP W L T SW PTS GF GA GP W L T GF GA
Maine†24153618810463443266196118
Boston University†*24165328813182403163224117
New Hampshire241464078113853622104161123
Northeastern24118557098893516145143137
Massachusetts–Lowell24111211581051164117194165175
Providence2471163501021033714176158159
Merrimack24712534874913714185125137
Boston College248142145861193511222129169
Massachusetts2432100156412936628292173
Championship: Boston University
† indicates conference regular season champion
* indicates conference tournament champion

Schedule
Date Opponent# Rank# Site Result Record
Exhibition
October 15 vs. New Brunswick* Walter Brown Arena • Boston, Massachusetts (Exhibition) W 7–6 
Regular Season
October 28 at Rensselaer* Houston Field House • Troy, New York W 5–1  1–0
October 30 vs. Maine Walter Brown Arena • Boston, Massachusetts T 3–3 OT 1–0–1 (0–0–1)
November 4 vs. Massachusetts–Lowell Walter Brown Arena • Boston, Massachusetts W 9–7  2–0–1 (1–0–1)
November 5 at Massachusetts–Lowell Tully Forum • Billerica, Massachusetts T 7–7 OT 2–0–2 (1–0–2)
November 11 at Northeastern Matthews Arena • Boston, Massachusetts L 1–3  2–1–2 (1–1–2)
November 12 vs. Northeastern Walter Brown Arena • Boston, Massachusetts W 4–2  3–1–2 (2–1–2)
November 18 vs. Massachusetts Walter Brown Arena • Boston, Massachusetts W 7–0  4–1–2 (3–1–2)
November 19 at Massachusetts Mullins Center • Amherst, Massachusetts W 7–4  5–1–2 (4–1–2)
November 22 at Harvard* Bright-Landry Hockey Center • Boston, Massachusetts W 6–1  6–1–2 (4–1–2)
Great Western Freeze–Out
November 25 vs. Princeton* The Forum • Inglewood, California (Great Western Semifinal) W 6–2  7–1–2 (4–1–2)
November 27 vs. Maine* The Forum • Inglewood, California (Great Western Championship) L 5–6 OT 7–2–2 (4–1–2)
December 2 at Maine Alfond Arena • Orono, Maine L 5–6  7–3–2 (4–2–2)
December 3 at Maine Alfond Arena • Orono, Maine T 5–5 OT 7–3–3 (4–2–3)
December 7 vs. Vermont* Walter Brown Arena • Boston, Massachusetts W 11–1  8–3–3 (4–2–3)
December 10 vs. Dartmouth* Walter Brown Arena • Boston, Massachusetts W 10–2  9–3–3 (4–2–3)
Mariucci Classic
December 30 vs. Western Michigan* Mariucci Arena • Minneapolis, Minnesota (Mariucci Semifinal) W 5–2  10–3–3 (4–2–3)
December 31 at Minnesota* Mariucci Arena • Minneapolis, Minnesota (Mariucci Championship) W 4–3 OT 11–3–3 (4–2–3)
January 6 vs. New Hampshire Walter Brown Arena • Boston, Massachusetts W 5–1  12–3–3 (5–2–3)
January 10 at Providence Schneider Arena • Providence, Rhode Island W 9–2  13–3–3 (6–2–3)
January 13 vs. Merrimack Walter Brown Arena • Boston, Massachusetts L 2–3  13–4–3 (6–3–3)
January 14 vs. Northeastern Walter Brown Arena • Boston, Massachusetts W 6–2  14–4–3 (7–3–3)
January 20 at Boston College Conte Forum • Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts W 7–4  15–4–3 (8–3–3)
January 21 vs. Boston College Walter Brown Arena • Boston, Massachusetts W 5–1  16–4–3 (9–3–3)
January 26 vs. New Hampshire Cumberland Civic Center • Portland, Maine L 2–4  16–5–3 (9–4–3)
January 28 vs. New Hampshire Walter Brown Arena • Boston, Massachusetts W 7–3  17–5–3 (10–4–3)
February 3 at Massachusetts Mullins Center • Amherst, Massachusetts W 5–1  18–5–3 (11–4–3)
Beanpot
February 6 vs. Northeastern Boston Garden • Boston, Massachusetts (Beanpot Semifinal) W 6–2  19–5–3 (11–4–3)
February 10 at Massachusetts–Lowell Tully Forum • Billerica, Massachusetts W 9–6  20–5–3 (12–4–3)
February 13 vs. Boston College Boston Garden • Boston, Massachusetts (Beanpot Championship) W 5–1  21–5–3 (12–4–3)
February 17 at Providence Schneider Arena • Providence, Rhode Island L 1–8  21–6–3 (12–5–3)
February 18 vs. Providence Walter Brown Arena • Boston, Massachusetts W 6–3  22–6–3 (13–5–3)
February 24 at Merrimack J. Thom Lawler Rink • North Andover, Massachusetts W 4–1  23–6–3 (14–5–3)
February 25 vs. Merrimack Walter Brown Arena • Boston, Massachusetts W 5–3  24–6–3 (15–5–3)
March 4 vs. Boston College Walter Brown Arena • Boston, Massachusetts W 10–3  25–6–3 (16–5–3)
Hockey East Tournament
March 12 vs. Merrimack* Walter Brown Arena • Boston, Massachusetts (Hockey East Quarterfinal) W 4–3  26–6–3 (16–5–3)
March 17 vs. Massachusetts–Lowell* Boston Garden • Boston, Massachusetts (Hockey East Semifinal) W 4–2  27–6–3 (16–5–3)
March 18 vs. Providence* Boston Garden • Boston, Massachusetts (Hockey East Championship) W 3–2  28–6–3 (16–5–3)
NCAA Tournament
March 25 vs. Lake Superior State* DCU Center • Worcester, Massachusetts (Regional Semifinal) W 6–2  29–6–3 (16–5–3)
March 30 vs. Minnesota* Providence Civic Center • Providence, Rhode Island (National Semifinal) W 7–3  30–6–3 (16–5–3)
April 1 vs. Maine* Providence Civic Center • Providence, Rhode Island (National Championship) W 6–2  31–6–3 (16–5–3)
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from USCHO.com Poll.
Source:

[1]

Roster
No. S/P/C Player Class Pos Height Weight DoB Hometown Previous team NHL rights
1 Shawn Ferullo Sophomore G 5' 8" (1.73 m) 158 lb (72 kg) 1975-04-03 Lynnfield, Massachusetts —
2 Kaj Linna Senior D 6' 2" (1.88 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1971-01-24 Helsinki, Finland Karhu-Kissat (I-Divisioona) —
3 Chris O'Sullivan Sophomore D/F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 199 lb (90 kg) 1974-05-15 Dorchester, Massachusetts Catholic Memorial School (USHS–MA) CGY, 30 overall 1992
4 Chris Kelleher Freshman D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 214 lb (97 kg) 1975-05-23 Belmont, Massachusetts St. Sebastian's School (USHS–Prep) PIT, 130 overall 1993
5 Doug Wood Junior D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1974-01-07 Sudbury, Massachusetts —
7 Rich Brennan (A) Senior D 6' 2" (1.88 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1972-11-26 Guilderland, New York Tabor Academy (USHS–Prep) QUE, 46 overall 1991
8 Bill Pierce Sophomore W 6' 1" (1.85 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1974-10-06 Burlington, Massachusetts QUE, 75 overall 1993
9 Shawn Bates Sophomore C 6' 0" (1.83 m) 183 lb (83 kg) 1975-04-03 Medford, Massachusetts Medford High (USHS–MA) BOS, 103 overall 1993
10 Peter Donatelli Freshman F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1975-11-05 North Providence, Rhode Island North Iowa Huskies (USHL) —
11 Bob Lachance Junior W 5' 11" (1.8 m) 183 lb (83 kg) 1974-02-01 Bristol, Connecticut US National Junior Team (WJC) STL, 134 overall 1992
12 Mike Grier Sophomore W 6' 0" (1.83 m) 242 lb (110 kg) 1975-01-05 Holliston, Massachusetts St. Sebastian's School (USHS–Prep) STL, 219 overall 1993
14 John Hynes Freshman W 5' 9" (1.75 m) 168 lb (76 kg) 1975-02-10 Warwick, Rhode Island —
15 Mike Sylvia Freshman F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1976-02-05 Newton, Massachusetts —
16 Ken Rausch Senior W 6' 0" (1.83 m) 189 lb (86 kg) 1973-03-26 Danbury, Connecticut NJD, 32 overall 1993
17 Jay Pandolfo Junior W 6' 0" (1.83 m) 197 lb (89 kg) 1974-12-27 Burlington, Massachusetts Burlington High (USHS–MA) —
18 Chris Drury Freshman F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 184 lb (83 kg) 1976-08-20 Fairfield, Connecticut Fairfield Prep (USHS–CT) QUE, 72 overall 1994
19 Steve Thornton Senior C 5' 11" (1.8 m) 179 lb (81 kg) 1973-03-08 Gloucester, Ontario Gloucester Rangers (CJHL) —
20 Jeff Kealty Freshman D 6' 4" (1.93 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1976-04-09 Framingham, Massachusetts Catholic Memorial School (USHS–MA) QUE, 22 overall 1994
21 Mike Prendergast Senior W 5' 9" (1.75 m) 182 lb (83 kg) 1972-10-22 South Boston, Massachusetts US National Junior Team (WJC) —
22 Matt Wright Sophomore W 6' 1" (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1973-04-27 Belmont, Massachusetts Phillips Academy Andover (USHS–Prep) —
24 Jacques Joubert (C) Senior C 6' 2" (1.88 m) 201 lb (91 kg) 1971-03-23 South Bend, Indiana North Iowa Huskies (USHL) —
26 Jon Coleman Sophomore D 6' 0" (1.83 m) 192 lb (87 kg) 1975-03-09 Canton, Massachusetts US National Junior Team (WJC) DET, 48 overall 1993
27 Shane Johnson Sophomore D 5' 10" (1.78 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1974-01-01 Brandon, Manitoba Kelowna Spartans (BCJHL) —
29 J. P. McKersie Senior G 6' 1" (1.85 m) 206 lb (93 kg) 1972-01-23 Madison, Wisconsin Dubuque Fighting Saints (USHL) MNS, 239 overall 1990
30 Tom Noble Freshman G 5' 10" (1.78 m) 153 lb (69 kg) 1975-03-21 Hanover, Massachusetts CHI, 284 overall 1993
35 Derek Herlofsky (A) Senior G 5' 10" (1.78 m) 173 lb (78 kg) 1971-10-01 Minneapolis, Minnesota St. Paul Vulcans (USHL) MNS, 184 overall 1991

[1]

Scoring Statistics
Name Position Games Goals Assists Points PIM
Chris O'SullivanD/F4023335648
Mike GrierW3729265585
Jacques JoubertC4029235241
Steve ThorntonC3917244114
Bob LachanceW3712294114
Mike PrendergastF3817223930
Shawn BatesC3818123048
Rich BrennanD315232856
Jon ColemanD405232842
Chris DruryW3912152738
Kaj LinnaD367202726
Ken RauschW371212246
Jay PandolfoW20713206
Chris KelleherD353172062
Mike SylviaW361091925
Bill PierceF335131829
Doug WoodD396111787
Matt WrightW35791627
Shane JohnsonD3306650
Jeff KealtyD2505529
Derek HerlofskyG240332
Tom NobleG180220
Peter DonatelliF20000
Shawn FerulloG50000
John HynesW70006
Total

[10]

Goaltending statistics
Name Games Minutes Wins Losses Ties Goals Against Saves Shut Outs SV % GAA
Derek Herlofsky24163360
Tom Noble1810071530462.74
Shawn Ferullo5000
Total4031631171

1995 Championship Game

(E1) Boston University vs. (E2) Maine
Scoring summary[12]
Period Team Goal Assist(s) Time Score
1st BU Steve Thornton – PP unassisted 14:57 1–0 BU
2nd BU Chris O'Sullivan Thornton and Grier 27:27 2–0 BU
BU Jacques Joubert – PP GW Linna and Prendergast 29:15 3–0 BU
Maine Tim Lovell Frenette and Thompson 34:51 3–1 BU
3rd Maine Trevor Roenick Rodrigue and Tory 40:31 3–2 BU
BU Mike Sylvia Bates and Pandolfo 45:23 4–2 BU
BU Chris O'Sullivan – PP Brennan and Grier 48:30 5–2 BU
BU Bob Lachance – SH Thornton 58:47 6–2 BU
Penalty summary
Period Team Player Penalty Time PIM
1st BU Mike Sylvia High-Sticking 2:13 2:00
Maine Tim Lovell High-Sticking 2:13 2:00
BU Shawn Bates Interference 8:32 2:00
BU Shane Johnson Interference 11:26 2:00
Maine Brad Mahoney Roughing 13:50 2:00
Maine Jamie Thompson Cross–Checking 16:25 2:00
BU Chris O'Sullivan Cross–Checking 17:53 2:00
2nd BU Chris Drury Interference 23:19 2:00
Maine Dan Shermerhorn Interference 28:42 2:00
BU Shane Johnson Interference 38:20 2:00
BU Kaj Linna Slashing 39:44 2:00
3rd Maine Reg Cardinal Holding 47:41 2:00
BU Kaj Linna Holding 52:17 2:00
Maine Jason Mansoff Holding 55:26 2:00
BU Jacques Joubert Elbowing 55:26 2:00
BU BENCH Too Many Men 56:59 2:00

Players drafted into the NHL

1995 NHL Entry Draft
= Did not play in the NHL
RoundPickPlayerNHL Team
8183Kaj LinnaOttawa Senators

[13]

References
  1. "Year-By-Year Results" (PDF). Boston University Terriers. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
  2. "GOALTENDER RETURNS FROM MAJOR ACCIDENT". Chicago Tribune. December 25, 1995. Retrieved December 4, 2019.
  3. "BU Hockey - 1994 Mariucci Classic Championship game-winning goal". YouTube. Retrieved December 4, 2019.
  4. "1994‑95 Maine". College Hockey News. Retrieved December 4, 2019.
  5. "HOCKEY; Maine Has Final Say In Third Overtime". The New York Times. March 31, 1995. Retrieved December 4, 2019.
  6. "1995 National Championship - Boston University vs. Maine". YouTube. Retrieved December 4, 2019.
  7. "Men's Ice Hockey Award Winners" (PDF). NCAA.org. Retrieved June 11, 2013.
  8. "Hockey East All-Teams". College Hockey Historical Archives. Retrieved May 19, 2013.
  9. "Hockey East All-Rookie Teams". College Hockey Historical Archives. Retrieved May 19, 2013.
  10. "Boston University Terriers 1994-95 Skater Stats". Elite Prospects. Retrieved December 4, 2019.
  11. "Boston University Championship Teams" (PDF). Boston University Terriers. Retrieved 2017-02-26.
  12. "2017-18 UND Hockey Media Guide" (PDF). UNDSports.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-02-28. Retrieved 2018-05-08.
  13. "1995 NHL Entry Draft". Hockey DB. Retrieved December 4, 2019.
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