Andover native Shane Lachance was always going to be a Boston University Terrier.
Now he’s on his way to the NHL.
He led the men’s hockey team to a phenomenal season, including its 3-1 victory over Penn State Thursday that advanced the Terriers to their first Frozen Four final in a decade. The team will go after its sixth national championship Saturday against Western Michigan.
Lachance’s legacy in hockey is long.
His grandfather Jack Parker coached the men’s hockey team for 40 years from 1973-2013 and led them to three NCAA national championships. The rink inside BU’s Agganis Arena is named after him.
Lachance’s father, Scott, played one season at BU under his future father-in-law Parker, before making the jump to the New York Islanders of the NHL and beginning a 14-year career playing hockey at the highest level. Scott Lachance is now the head of United States scouting in the New Jersey Devils NHL organization.
Lachance’s hockey career started in Andover. He played hockey close to his hometown growing up, with one season at Andover High School before he moved on to Tabor Academy on the South Shore in Marion.
This story was published as part of a collaboration between Andover News and the Department of Journalism in Boston University’s College of Communication. The student journalist is a member of Professor Meghan E. Irons’s Reporting in Depth class.
“Until I was about 16 years old, there were so many good players, I didn’t even think of how I was gonna make it all the way here,” to BU, Lachance says. “There was so much competition, but it just motivated me to work harder.”
Standing with “Boston” written in white across his chest on his scarlet jersey and his sticks threaded through his skates thrown over his shoulder, Lachance has definitely made it.
The youngest captain in BU history, he will play for the national championship tomorrow, Saturday, April 12, at 7 p.m., and fans in Andover and around the country will be watching on ESPN2.
A Family Affair
On a recent day, Parker watches over a morning practice at Walter Brown Arena, which is typically the women’s hockey facility, on his way to the Boston Red Sox home opener. He makes quips between the sounds of skate blades carving the ice and the hollow thwacks of sticks slamming the ground.
Freshman Cole Esierman, a first round NHL draft pick by the New York Islanders, fires a point-blank slapshot over the left shoulder of the goalie, who’s facing pucks from multiple angles at once.
“That one went in,” Parker says, chuckling at the power behind Eiserman’s shot in a practice.
He greets players as they leave the ice. He tells Quinn Hutson, the team leader in points, to keep it up, and shakes hands with everyone who follows him.
“He’s a legend. He built this program, and all the players that played under him, we all have a piece of Jack Parker,” said Joe Pereira, the current BU men’s hockey assistant coach. Pereira played under Parker from 2007-11, winning a national championship in 2009.
Lachance is now making a name for himself and has professional teams courting him to join the NHL.
He spent two seasons playing for the Youngstown Phantoms in the US Hockey League, the highest level of amateur junior hockey league for players 20 years old and younger in the country, and he served as captain in his second year there. He was drafted by the Edmonton Oilers in the sixth round of the 2021 NHL Entry Draft.
As a BU freshman last season, he was seventh on the team in total points and fourth in goals.
Now, as a sophomore, Lachance has earned the “C” on his BU jersey, the youngest captain in the team’s history.
“It’s an honor. It’s such a storied program, and I’ve been lucky enough to be a part of it for a while now,” Lachance says. “When I came in last year, I didn’t expect it to happen this quick, but obviously, I’m super grateful for this opportunity.”
The team has had an up-and-down season, lacking sustained runs of success. The Terriers play best with their backs against the wall, bouncing back from lackluster losses with convincing wins. Despite their inconsistency, the team still secured its spot in the NCAA tournament with 15 other teams across the country. Now, they’re one of two schools left standing.
It’s head coach Jay Pandolfo’s third Frozen Four appearance in his three years at the helm. It’s Lachance’s second-straight. After failing to make a championship appearance the years before, BU will be hungry to finish what they started.
“This late in the season, it’s just making sure I’m leading by example, bringing guys on my back. If I’m doing that, then we’re gonna be all set,” Lachance says.
He gets to the rink early every day and puts the work in to improve his game. He’s helped manage all of the different personalities in the locker room.
“You know the old saying how you do anything is how you do everything,” Pereira said. “He does everything right.”
Back in early March, Lachance’s rights were traded to his dad’s New Jersey Devils to help broker a deal between the Oilers and Bruins. Whether he stays with BU next season or moves on to sign with the Devils organization remains undecided. There’s a season to finish first.
“There’s no doubt in my mind that Shane can play in the NHL, and whenever he decides to turn pro, if it’s this year or next year, I know he’ll get better and better,” Pereira said. “He hasn’t skipped any steps throughout the course of his hockey career, and I don’t see him taking any steps back now.”
Regardless of where his career takes him next, Lachance, wearing “Boston” across his chest on his scarlet jersey, has left his mark at BU like his grandfather and father did before him.