It was a very good game and probably one of the best non-conference tilts that I've seen UND play in awhile.
IMO, what made this game such a great game (aside from the talent level of the rosters of both teams) is that both teams looked fairly evenly matched. And both teams played to two their strengths - using speed and playing a physical game. I thought BU did an excellent job of shot-blocking, especially Privitera and I thought they had the upper hand in the first period. But UND really took command in the latter half of the game, especially the third period.
While Gaarder got the HT (and congrats is in order there), I didn't think he was UND's best player. I thought Grimaldi was terrific. And what's scary (to other UND opponents) is that he's just getting started. I also thought that Schmaltz played really well, but he did make one mistake in jumping into a play in the third period (I believe it was) that gave BU an odd-man rush going the other way and nearly cost his team.
I also thought Saunders played well, although he didn't seem to be tested as much as Maguire was, especially in the latter half of the game. Having seen Saunders when he played at UAH, he's proven that he can still keep his team in big games. He didn't look complacent and for the most part made the saves that he needed to make.
For BU, the player that really stood out to me was Matt Nieto. He didn't score, but it wasn't for a lack of trying. At various points in the game, he really made it difficult for the UND defenders to cover him. And did a very good job of driving to the net.
I didn't expect last night's game to be a blowout either way and I don't expect tonight to be either. It should be a fun game to watch.