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FRIDAY, OCTOBER 3, 2025
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THE INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER AT BOSTON UNIVERSITY
J O U R NA L I S M YEAR LVI. VOLUME A. ISSUE III
ANNIKA MORRIS | BHB PHOTOGRAPHER
Luisa Welcke celebrates after scoring a go-ahead goal in the second period of last season’s Hockey East semifinal against Boston College. The goal was called back after an official review, but the Terriers went on to win in double overtime before beating Northeastern University in the final.
UPGRADED How Tara Watchorn revived BU women’s hockey BY SAM ROBB O’HAGAN BHB Co-Director
The recorder isn’t even on. Not yet. Bret Gilmour and I are on a Zoom call. The Boston University women’s ice hockey goaltender’s coach just finished a hockey clinic, and now he’s in his office, practically chomping at the bit. We’re here to talk about Tara Watchorn. The head coach, who starts the third season of her tenure Friday, has authored one of the most remarkable, against-theodds turnarounds in college hockey. When she returned to her alma mater in April 2023, BU was reeling: two straight losing seasons, no playoff wins in four years and a group of players that — by the admission of Julia Shaunessy, a then-senior — had developed a negative connotation with, well, everything. Now? BU is the defending Hockey East champion. The whole concept of this story is to figure out how in the world Watchorn pulled that off, and I explained this to Gilmour. Before I even asked my first question, Gilmour had his answer. “She is Ted Lasso,” he said, laughing. “That’s probably one of the best ways to explain it.” I’d never thought of Watchorn as a Lasso-adjacent figure, even though her time at BU has been defined by winning with a team that no one thought could. Watchorn — it should be noted — is still one of the best hockey players in the school’s history and an Olympic gold medalist. When she first returned to BU as an assistant coach in 2017, her main role was skill development, and she is — without question — a hockey nerd. You can find an hour-long podcast she hosted titled “Strategies for Efficient Line Changes,” a video of her scribbling on a whiteboard about something called “2-on-2 constraints” and a 30-minute talk she gave on how to build and sustain momentum within a hockey game.
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Hockey Edition
20 25 In collaboration with the Boston Hockey Blog
SEARCHING FOR SIX Development U: BU men’s hockey sends 100th player to NHL BY ELI CLOUTIER BHB Co-Director
Boston University men’s hockey has a rich history with traditions dating back to the program’s first game in 1918, and five national championship banners hanging from the ceiling at Agganis Arena to show for it. Despite contending annually, it’s been over 15 years since the last banner was raised. Still, year after year, the best players choose to bear the Scarlet and White. Why? Because playing for BU is a springboard to playing professional hockey. Head Coach Jay Pandolfo — who himself was a Terrier and followed by a long NHL career — said the goal of “almost 100%” of players who come to BU is to reach the NHL. On April 17, Devin Kaplan, a former three-year player, became the 100th former Terrier to play in an NHL game. That number trails only Minnesota, Michigan and North Dakota. Additionally, 25 former Terriers played during the
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“On the plane ride coming back from Wisconsin, they’re like, ‘We’re going to be here next year.’” REAGAN RUST
Former BU women’s hockey captain and assistant coach
ANNIKA MORRIS | BHB PHOTOGRAPHER
Goalie Mikhail Yegorov in the tunnel during last season’s NCAA regional final against Cornell University. BU won the game in overtime, punching its ticket to its third Frozen Four in as many seasons under Jay Pandolfo.