Brian Durocher, BU Already Looking Ahead After Beanpot Semifinal Loss

BOSTON — The Boston University Terriers weren’t able to advance to the 2022 Women’s Beanpot Championship, but head coach Brian Durocher doesn’t want the team to keep their heads down.

BU took on Harvard in the opening semifinal matchup of the Beanpot on Tuesday — the first game of the tournament in general since 2020 after last year’s was cancelled due to complications involving COVID-19 — and fell at Matthews Arena, 4-1.

The score may not show it, but the game actually was significantly closer than what one might assume a 4-1 game to be. The two teams were tied through 40 minutes of action with one goal apiece, but the Crimson pulled away with three goals in the final 11 minutes of the third period to clinch their trip to the championship.

After the game Durocher discussed the loss and put it into context. Although the Terriers fell in the Beanpot semifinal, they have high aspirations of what the team can accomplish later on this season and the loss is just a blemish.

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“You have to kick the can in frustration and say ‘Look, this one’s over,'” Durocher said. “We didn’t get the Beanpot and I feel bad for the seniors and everyone else but what I was focusing on was making sure at the end of a game like this they were sticking together. When it’s 3-1 or even 4-1 and you have a few minutes left, I said ‘I didn’t want to hear any negativity. We’ve got to stick together because there are more championships to play for later in the year.’

“I want them to be focused there, I told them. I still saw some things I like out there. Call me crazy but I see positives. That’s how I coach. That’s how I want to be.”

With the loss the Terriers are 10-10-4 through 24 games and currently sit in sixth place in Hockey East, but still have eight regular season games remaining, including a date with the loser of Northeastern and Boston College’s semifinal tilt in the Beanpot consolation game on Tuesday, Feb. 8.