It had been 21 games since senior forward Garrett Regan had found the back of the net. He changed that in a big way this weekend with three goals in a pair of 4-1 wins over No. 2 Boston College and Providence College.
Regan got started right away for No. 12 Notre Dame by drawing first blood against the Eagles Friday night. Linemate Justin White chipped a pass forward to Regan who got behind the Boston College defender and fired a shot into the top glove-side corner.
The Eagles rallied with some heavy pressure and fired up a sold-out Kelley Rink. After several big stops from Irish goalie Jordan Pearce, Boston College senior Brock Bradford found a way to sneak one by him on a one-timer six minutes into the second stanza.
"I think once you get into a rhythm you start to see the puck and the feel the pucks coming off you," Pearce said. "You always try to play your best in the biggest games and this obviously was a big game for us."
The senior from Anchorage, Alaska finished the game with 27 saves on 28 shots against one of the most powerful offenses in the country. Prior to Friday night, the Eagles were averaging four goals per game.
"I thought he played his A-game. It was important for him to play against a team of this caliber and play well," Irish coach Jeff Jackson said. "He was the difference-maker tonight."
Just over a minute after Bradford's goal the Irish went on the power-play and regained the lead for good. Defenseman Brett Blatchford started the play with a blast from the point and junior Dan Kissel got a stick on the rebound. Senior Christian Hanson finally slid it past the goal line and then turned to the Boston College student section to celebrate.
"They were having fun with all night, chanting obscenities. So to score that goal and have a little fun with them was nice," Hanson said.
The goal was Notre Dame's 11th special teams tally on the season. The Irish were 1-for-7 overall on the power-play against the Eagles. More importantly, they held a very dangerous Boston College power-play scoreless on eight attempts.
"Penalty killing is an art for some guys and we have some good guys who kill for us," Jackson said. "Coaches can take credit for a lot of things but the players still have to go out and do stuff."
Freshman Billy Maday picked up his fourth collegiate goal when his shot from the top of the faceoff circle trickled past Boston goalie John Muse, hit an Eagle defender and found the back of the net.
Kevin Deeth added an empty netter to finish off Notre Dame's third straight win on the road and its third straight in Boston.
Immediately following their win in Boston, the Irish hopped on a bus for the 45-minute ride to Providence College.
The game started slowly, but once again Regan led the way and broke the scoreless tie with three minutes left in the first. White started the play by digging a loose puck out of the corner and finding Regan in the slot.
The Regan-White combo struck for the third and final time halfway through the second period to give Notre Dame a 2-0 lead. Sophomore Calle Ridderwall and junior Ryan Thang both added goals in the final period and Notre Dame skated to another 4-1 win.
After two successful weekends on the road, the Irish return to home next weekend to take on CCHA opponent Lake Superior State.
