DENVER, Colo. - The third-ranked Boston University men's ice hockey team broke a second-period tie with four unanswered goals to roll to a 6-2 victory over Rensselaer on Friday evening in first-round action at the Wells Fargo Denver Cup at Magness Arena. Senior Jason Lawrence scored two goals, including the game winner, to help the Terriers extend their unbeaten steak to six games (5-0-1) and improve to 12-4-1 on the year.
The Terriers will face No. 5 Denver in Saturday's championship game at 9 p.m. EST. The Pioneers tied Holy Cross, 2-2, but won the shootout in the second sudden-death round.
Junior Zach Cohen notched a goal and an assist, while freshman Kevin Gilroy, junior Luke Popko and senior Brandon Yip also scored goals for BU. Senior Chris Higgins and freshmen Chris Connolly and David Warsofsky each recorded a pair of assists. Freshman Grant Rollheiser recorded 13 saves to earn the win in goal.
RPI, which falls to 3-14-1, got a 32-save performance from senior goaltender Mathias Lange.
Cohen and Gilroy scored at 5:00 and 6:43 of the first, respectively, to give the Terriers an early 2-0 lead. RPI got on the board at 10:48 on a marker from senior Matt Angers-Goulet and his freshman brother, Alex, tied the game on a shorthanded breakaway midway through the second.
Lawrence gave the Terriers the lead for good with two power-play goals, one with just under two minutes left to play in the second and another just 2:24 into the third. Soon after Lawrence's second tally, Popko and Yip scored within 30 seconds of each other to put the game away.
BU has now won its first six non-conference games, marking the first time that feat has happened since the 1997-98 season.