The 6-2 score of Tufts' victory over Salve Regina on Wednesday night does not accurately reflect the nail-biter, which went late into the third period before the outcome was decided. A hat trick by junior center Jason Boudrow and strong defensive play helped the 6-0 Jumbos topple the Seahawks in a rematch of the Coca-Cola Hockey Classic Championship game two weekends ago. Tufts won that game 7-2, and Salve Regina came out fierce in the rematch.

"They came out hard - we beat them by five goals last time, and we knew they were going to be tough," assistant coach Brian Hayes said. "They were playing for pride. They came out and threw everything at us."

The first period featured some close shots and spectacular saves by both goalies, and both teams entered the locker room with the score deadlocked at 0-0. For the first time all season, Tufts, which averages over three goals in the first period, could not find net in the opening frame, narrowly missing on numerous occasions.

"Their goalie was playing well in the first period and making some great saves," senior tri-captain Natan Obed said. "We had the chances that we usually get in the first couple periods, but we just weren't capitalizing."

Boudrow broke the tie three minutes into the second period, getting the rebound of his own shot, and sneaking it past the Seahawks goalkeeper, Chris Burns. Salve Regina had the answer though, as Frank Mingone blasted a powerful one-timer past freshman goalkeeper, Ben Crapser.

Less than two minutes later, an aggressive man-down unit exploited Salve Regina's sluggish offense, and Boudrow got the fast break. Catching the defenders off guard, the center went straight to the goal, forcing the puck into the bottom right of the of the net for the shorthanded goal.

Unable to capitalize on this momentum boost, however, the Jumbos exchanged shots with the Seahawks for the rest of the period, but could not find the net. The usually potent offense was kept at bay by a team that came out hungrier than expected.

"We were a little out of sync the first few periods," Hayes said. "[Crapser] came up with a couple of nice saves like he has all year."

"I don't think we played too poorly in the first couple periods," Obed said. "We're not going to score five goals in the first period every game."

Coming out of the locker room, Salve Regina decided to make a game of it, scoring a power play goal less than two minutes into the third period.

"[Their second goal] was a dose of reality," Obed said. "We're not going to walk over teams and win every single game without having to go through some adverse moments. Once they tied it up, we really concentrated and played harder."

It took five minutes of intense play, but the Jumbos found their payoff, as wide-open freshman Pat Byrne took a perfect feed from Obed to give Tufts the 3-2 advantage. On the next possession, sophomore Rob LaQuaglia rifled a one-timer into the upper left corner of the goal, solidifying the Jumbo's lead. Byrne's game-winner was his third of the season, and the freshman now leads the entire conference in this category.

"After their second goal they came out a little stronger and then we popped the third and fourth goal right away and that was the end of them," Hayes said. "It was the first time we really had a come from behind type situation, and the kids did a good job."

Controlling the tempo of the game for the remainder of the contest, Tufts was able to score two more goals, one by sophomore Chris Martin, and the other a deflection power play goal by Boudrow giving him a hat trick. Boudrow, who also had an assist, now has sole possession of the ECAC Northeast lead in both scoring (22) and assists (14). Averaging 3.67 points per game, the center has been scoring at will all season, and is on his way to repeating the scoring title he claimed his freshman year.

Obed added three assists in the game, now stands fifth in the ECAC Northeast in assists with nine.

Although not the prettiest, the victory puts the Jumbos at 6-0, and they will face a lowly Nichols team this Saturday, giving them some serious momentum going into winter break.

"We have three weeks off, I wish we could keep playing right now," Hayes said. "We don't need the break right now - in years past we have, but we don't need it this year."