In front of a sold-out Alfond Arena crowd, the No. 12 University of Maine men’s ice hockey team battled back four times before captain Brandon Holt buried the overtime winner just 43 seconds into extra time, lifting the Black Bears past No. 5 Boston University 5–4 on Friday, Oct. 31.
The Terriers opened the scoring early when second-year defenseman Cole Hutson put BU up 1–0 about three minutes into the first, assisted by first-year forward John McNelis and third-year defenseman Mick Frechette. Maine’s response was nearly immediate. First-year forward Justin Poirier tied the game just four seconds later off feeds from first-year defenseman Jeremy Langlois and third-year defenseman Frank Djurasevic.
BU reclaimed the lead midway through the period on a power-play goal from first-year forward Ryder Ritchie, assisted by Hutson and fourth-year forward Owen McLaughlin, taking a 2–1 edge into intermission.
Seven minutes into the second, Maine pulled even again as third-year forward Sully Scholle found the net, assisted by fourth-year forward Owen Fowler and first-year forward Miguel Marques. The Terriers answered once more when first-year forward Ben Merrill, assisted by first-year forward Jack Murtagh and third-year defenseman Aiden Celebrini, made it 3–2 fourteen minutes in, but Maine stayed relentless. Fowler tied things back up less than two minutes later with help from Marques and Scholle, sending the home crowd into a roar.
Early in the third, BU’s second-year defenseman Sascha Boumedienne restored the lead 4–3 off a feed from third-year forward Jack Harvey, but Poirier, continuing his standout freshman season, struck again just three minutes later for his second goal of the night.
With the regulation unable to separate the two teams, the game moved to overtime. Poirier threaded a perfect pass to Holt, who buried his first goal of the season to seal Maine’s biggest win of the year. The Alfond erupted as the Black Bears poured over the boards to celebrate the upset over one of college hockey’s powerhouses.
Tensions flared in the final seconds when BU’s Sacha Boisvert was assessed a 10-minute misconduct and unsportsmanlike conduct penalty after firing the puck and striking third-year goaltender Albin Boija. Boija was sharp throughout the night, finishing with 24 saves to move to 4-1-1 on the season.
Maine outshot BU 35–28 and held the Terriers to one goal on four power-play chances while going 0-for-5 on their own opportunities. Poirier led the offense with two goals and one assist, his second three-point performance of the year and six Black Bears recorded multi-point games in the win.
Friday’s victory moved Maine to 4-2-1 (1-0-0 Hockey East) and served as a statement that the Black Bears belong among the nation’s elite. The team looks to carry that momentum into Saturday night’s rematch with the Terriers before hitting the road for a two-game series against the University of Massachusetts Amherst next weekend.
The sold-out crowd at Alfond proved why Maine remains one of college hockey’s most intimidating home rinks. Every goal was met with a wave of sound that echoed through the arena and kept the Black Bears energized until the final buzzer. For a young Maine team still building its identity, Friday night was proof that the future is bright in Orono.
