Ryan Leonard continued his clutch scoring, delivering a dagger to the number-five ranked Maine Black Bears on Friday night. The 19-year-old winger put the number-two ranked Boston College up 3-2 with just 1:33 left in the third period.
After Gabe Perreault deftly flicked a loose puck to James Hagens surging down the right side of the ice, Leonard drove the net and provided the finishing touch on the Eagles’ victory over the Black Bears. The marker was Leonard’s fourth of the season on his seventh shot in the game.
The win was BC’s sixth of the season as they improved to 6-1-0 through their first seven games. Leonard also added an assist on a power-play goal from Andre Gasseau earlier in the third period. The Capitals’ top prospect has recorded seven points (4g, 3a) in seven games this season.
While Leonard’s production as a sophomore hasn’t been as gaudy as his freshman campaign, he also started his first season with Boston College slow, scoring just twice through his first seven games. He would pour it on later in the year and go on to score a BC freshman-record 31 goals and add 29 assists in 41 games.
The 2023 first-round draft pick is averaging six shots per game this season and has only recently been reunited with Perreault on the team’s top line. Hagens, the consensus number-one overall draft pick in the 2025 NHL Draft, centers Leonard and Perreault.
Game 7 | Links & Lines
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📈 https://t.co/TK3hDyJ71m pic.twitter.com/TMewwHrW1V— BC Men's Hockey (@BC_MHockey) November 8, 2024
BC has won five games in a row since dropping their second game of the season to the Michigan State Spartans. The only team in college hockey ranked ahead of them by USCHO.com is the number-one ranked Denver Pioneers, who beat the Eagles in last year’s national championship game.
Leonard will next play on Sunday as BC and Maine wrap up their two-game set.
