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Eiserman, whose six goals lead BU and are tied for the most in Hockey East along with UMass forwards Jack Musa and Vaclav Nestrasil, exited last Saturday’s 3-1 win over UConn after taking a hard hit to the boards at the end of the first period. Eiserman was later seen on the broadcast on crutches, offering fist bumps to teammates as Pandolfo conducted his postgame interview. “He’s not on crutches anymore, so that’s a good thing,” said Pandolfo. “He’s walking around.” Selected by the Islanders in the first round (20th overall) of the 2024 NHL Draft, Eiserman’s 25 goals led the Terriers and were tops among NCAA freshmen last season. He did not miss a game because of injury, appearing in 39 of 40, with the one absence while winning a gold medal with Team USA at the World Junior Championship. Pandolfo isn’t necessarily looking at one individual to replicate Eiserman’s production, but he sees a few players that could step up. Sophomore Sacha Boisvert, selected two spots ahead of Eiserman by the Blackhawks, returned to the lineup against UConn. Senior Owen McLaughlin had three goals in the series, and junior Jack Harvey added a pair in Saturday’s win. Conrad Fondrk, Brandon Svoboda, and Jack Murtagh also were cited by Pandolfo as players the Terriers could turn to as they make their way to Orono to face a Maine squad that will be opening league play following a 3-2-1 start that includes last weekend’s split with Colgate at home. Saturday’s matchup will air on NESN at 7:30 p.m. With the Boston College football team hosting Notre Dame on Saturday, the BC-Northeastern men’s hockey series will start Thursday night at Conte Forum, before concluding Friday at Matthews Arena. The Eagles will be looking to bounce back from a 7-3 loss to Denver. Freshman Louka Cloutier, who entered with a 1.30 goals-against average and .937 save percentage in going 2-0-1 in his first three starts, allowed six goals on 26 shots. “He’s a mature kid,” said coach Greg Brown. “He understands that it’s always on to the next play. He kept his composure. He made some big saves, but there were some breakdowns and some very good shots. “It didn’t seem like there were some soft goals where the bench was deflated. They earned their goals, and we just have to tighten up so we don’t give up that many chances.” The Bruins’ first two picks from the 2025 draft registered points, with first-rounder James Hagens tallying his third goal of the season, while second-round pick Will Moore assisted on a goal by another Bruins pick, senior Andre Gasseau (2021, seventh round). Moore has a goal and two assists through five games of his freshman campaign, and has impressed Brown with his anticipation. “His skills are excellent, but I think right now the thing that really stands out as a strength is his ability to see what’s coming next,” said Brown. “I think that’s something you really build on. He’s going to keep working on getting stronger, getting faster, all that stuff. But when you have hockey sense like that and the IQ to read plays, that’s a really good place to start.” Northeastern enters having posted consecutive wins over ranked teams in UMass and Denver. In a 1-0 win over the Pioneers, the Huskies blocked 19 shots, led by captain Vinny Borgesi’s four, while Matthew Perkins had three. “I just like where our group is at right now,” said coach Jerry Keefe. “Everybody’s bought in. You can see it in there. I’ve said it to a lot of people: This is a really good group of kids, and they’ve been really fun to coach.” Harvard, and the rest of the Ivy League, will finally kick off the season this weekend. The Crimson will open on Friday at UConn. The Huskies also will host Merrimack on Saturday. UMass will host Cornell on Saturday, UMass Lowell and Providence will play a home-and-home series beginning Friday at Tsongas Center, and Vermont will travel to UNH for a pair of games. In Atlantic Hockey action, Sacred Heart and Holy Cross kick off a home-and-home series Thursday in Worcester, and Bentley travels to Mercyhurst for two games.
