The Quinnipiac men’s ice hockey team opened the 2025-26 season against the Boston College Eagles of the Hockey East at Conte Forum in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts on Friday. The Bobcats came into the game ranked 13th in the USCHO Poll, and the Eagles, sixth.
The Eagles came in heavily favored with several key returners from last season, center James Hagens, the seventh overall pick in June’s NHL Draft by the Boston Bruins, started his second season looking to begin a long career making Beantown hockey fans happy.
“Last year was so busy for him with the draft,” Boston College head coach Greg Brown said of Hagens, “He does a great job putting that stuff aside but I think there is weight off his shoulders.”
Also coming back were right winger and co-captain Andre Gasseau as well as defenseman Aram Minnetian.
These guys alongside Teddy Stiga, of World Juniors gold medal-winning goal fame, and new goaltender Jan Korec, who replaced reigning Mike Richter Award winner, Jacob Fowler, look to keep the Eagles’ national championship hopes alive.
The Bobcats brought in eight new players this season, for their 50th in program history. Head coach, Rand Pecknold, looked to continue their run of six consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances.
Both teams had great early chances in front of the net as a close shot by the Bobcats’ Tyler Borgula was saved and a Stiga chance for the Eagles was erased when the aforementioned Stiga went for a no-look pass that found no teammates waiting.
The Bobcats then capitalized when assistant captain Jeremy Wilmer toe-dragged past a diving Eagle defender and scored over the shoulder of Korec.
After not being able to take advantage of an earlier power play opportunity, Boston College found another chance with 15 seconds remaining in the opening frame and struck when Stiga put one behind Silverstein to tie the game at one each.
In a closely contested first period, the Bobcats outshot the Eagles 5-4, with both teams making offensive zone intrusions and putting quality shots on net.
“We have to play fast,” Quinnipiac head coach Rand Pecknold said on what the message was to his team after the first period. “I think if we play at a fast pace we are far better off.”
In the second period, it would be two first-year Bobcats that scored two important goals. First it was Vancouver Canucks draft pick, Matthew Lansing, taking a pass from fellow first year and Calgary Flames draftee, Ethan Wyttenbach, lacing it past Korec to give the Bobcats a 2-1 lead.
Then, Graham Sward, a former ECHL player with the Norfolk Admirals and whose draft rights are owned by the Nashville Predators, screamed one that went through the wickets of Korec to give Quinnipiac a two-goal advantage.
“They’ve bought in from day one and it’s very exciting to see, they’ve been getting better and better as they’ve gone forward,” said Wilmer
Play then became chippy as Lansing was given a cross-checking penalty during a scrum in front of the Bobcat net in which goaltender, and former Eagle, Dylan Silverstein’s, mask came off and play had to be stopped.
During the ensuing Boston College power play, junior transfer Ryan Conmy, playing his first game in Chestnut Hill after making the move from Holy Cross, fired a wrister past Silverstein to pull the Eagles within one at 3-2.
Six minutes later, sophomore center Chris Pelosi, on the ice with many familiar faces after attending Bruins Development Camp over the summer– with teammate Elliot Gronewold and five Eagles– took advantage of a loose puck behind Korec and knocked it in giving the Bobcats a 4-2 lead. When they showed the replay on the Conte Forum jumbotrons, it looked as though Korec knocked it in with his chest while lying down, but the goal was still credited to Pelosi.
“It was pretty cool seeing everyone out there,” Pelosi said. “But at the end of the day it’s our team versus their team.”
This would summarize the Bobcats dominance of the middle frame, outshooting the Eagles 14-6 with Silverstein stopping all five shots he faced in the period.
Just before the start of the third, the Chestnut Hill faithful became unruly with the public address announcer having to scold fans not to throw projectiles onto the ice.
Their frustrations would be relieved a few minutes later as Gasseau brought the puck into the Bobcats zone and pass to junior defenseman Drew Fortescue who rifled one past Silverstein to cut the Quinnipiac lead in half and make the score 4-3.
“It looked like [how we would play] the first game of the year,” Greg Brown said. “We do a lot of things in practice to make sure that we’re playing together, not shooting ourselves in the foot… we didn’t really do that at all and not much in the second.”
The intensity mounted as the crowd got back in the game, especially after the playing of “Mr. Brightside” by The Killers, with the fans serenading the teams on the ice.
The Bobcats defense beared down as Charlie Leddy blocked a shot on a three-on-two chance and Braden Blace blocked another chance with under four to go. Brown pulled his goalie after a 1:30 to go but the Bobcats were up to the challenge and stopped any Eagles chances at sending the game to overtime.
“One goal games are super important,” Pelosi said. “ Every single point matters in a short season so as many as we can get we need them.”
The Bobcats would pull out the 4-3 win and begin their golden season 1-0. They will take on the Providence Friars in an exhibition game Sunday at 2 p.m., while the Eagles will look to regroup before a two-game set with the Minnesota Golden Gophers next week in Minneapolis.
