High Character - A UMass Hockey Podcast · Cameron Guzzo

2026 Hockey East Quarterfinals Recap

March 18, 2026·43 min·3 clips

Jack Musa corrals his own rebound and snipes one bar down to put UMass ahead in a critical playoff moment.

This episode recaps UMass hockey's 4-1 playoff victory over Northeastern, securing a spot in the Hockey East semifinals. Hosts Cameron and Evan, the show's regular commentators, record from Miami while attending the World Baseball Classic. They acknowledge technical and travel difficulties but celebrate the team's advancement to Boston's TD Garden. The hosts detail the lineup, noting defenseman Landon Nyes returned to significant minutes while Bo Cosman remained absent. UMass opened the scoring early with a Larry Keenan goal through traffic, which they describe as a "twine-seeking missile." Northeastern tied the game late in the first period on a fluky goal that slipped past goalie Michael Hrabal. Jack Musa gave UMass a 2-1 lead late in the second period with a bar-down shot off his own rebound. Vlaslav Nestoril made it 3-1 in the third period on a tap-in from a Musa setup, marking Musa's 100th career point and Nestoril's 30th point this season. Cam O'Neill sealed the 4-1 win with an empty-net goal from the red line. They highlight that UMass is undefeated this season when leading after two periods, a stark contrast to previous years. Northeastern's coach Jerry Keefe complimented UMass's predictable but unstoppable defensive system that smothered opponents. Head Coach Greg Carvel gave an emotional post-game press conference, nearly tearing up when asked about the team's celebratory "link-up" tradition. Carvel stated this group, which was .500 in January, learned to play the right way and has exceptional culture. He also called Jack Musa his favorite forward in his ten-year tenure at UMass. The hosts award co-Players of the Game to Musa and Nestoril for their three-point performances. They present a custom "Big Fucking Larry" award to defenseman Larry Keenan for his offensive heater and all-conference selection. Another custom "Christ the Redeemer" award goes to Cam O'Neill for his emphatic empty-net goal. They note no "Good Try" award was given because the team played a nearly flawless 60 minutes. The episode looks ahead to the semifinal against Merrimack, a team UMass swept earlier in the season. The tone is enthusiastic, conversational, and filled with inside jokes between the two passionate hosts. The style is an informal recap blending play-by-play analysis, coach and player quotes, and personal anecdotes from attending the game. UMass hockey fans and followers of Hockey East will love this detailed, celebratory breakdown of a key playoff win. Listeners seeking a highly produced, studio-quality broadcast or analysis of other teams might want to skip this episode.

As heard by us

A scrappy quarterfinal recap that keeps its focus on the win, the semis, and UMass' rise.

High Character spends this quarterfinal recap on what actually matters: the win over Northeastern, the trip to Boston, and what the result says about a team that keeps improving.

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Why you'd press play

You want the win, the Carvey quote, and Boston on Friday.

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