Team photo following Northeastern's victory in the 2024 men's Beanpot tournament
Northeastern had a rather sizable hurdle to overcome from the start of the season. Not only was the team having to contend with half of last year's roster departing but they were also having to replace the two-time national goaltender of the year, Devon Levi in goal. Freshman Cameron Whitehead stepped in between the pipes and looked good against weak opposition in the first few weeks, however, once the team began their conference schedule everything seemed to fall apart. Whitehead had a little trouble getting up to speed with the college game and though he had a couple of decent performances, he went winless over a 4-week stretch. Equally at fault was the almost complete lack of scoring that afflicted the Huskies. Team captain Justin Hryckowian missed over a month after getting hurt in the first game of the season while his brother Dylan along with Matt DeMelis and Jack Williams were in and out of the lineup with bumps and bruises. The rest of the offense didn't step up and cover for their absent teammates and Northeastern suffered as a result. By Thanksgiving, the team had lost seven games in a row, the worst start to the conference schedule in the history of the program.[1]
The team took a slight break during the holiday weekend and travelled west to face Rensselaer. The first game was a pedestrian draw but the second looked to be a turning point of the season. Northeastern scored 9 goals in the first two periods and steamrolled the Engineers. Just as importantly, the Huskies got contributions from up and down the lineup with nine players recording at least 2 points in the match. The following week the team barely resembled the same group that had lost seven in a row when they took on #1 Boston College. After building a 3-goal lead in the first, the Huskies got into power play trouble and the match was tied entering the third. Cam Lund, who had been very quiet during the losing streak, completed a hat-trick in the final frame to lead the Huskies to a massive upset to give Northeastern its first conference win of the year.
After returning from the winter break, Whitehead went through a rough patch and Northeastern went winless in four. However, when it appeared that the season might be slipping back into the abyss, the offense stepped up and bailed out their netminder. In late January, the team scored at least 4 goals in each match over a four-game stretch and won every contest. The hot streak led the Huskies right into the Beanpot, where they were set to defend their championship. Northeastern was fortunate by being set against Harvard in the first game but still had a tough time beating a down Crimson squad. Despite widely outshooting the Ivy Leaguers, Northeastern needed a late comeback to force overtime. Their efforts were rewarded, however, when Gunnarwolfe Fontaine scored just 33 seconds into the extra frame. The championship match pitted the Huskies against Boston University but Northeastern didn't show any fear towards the #3 team. The Terriers got into the lead three separate times in the match but the Huskies matched every goal with one of their own. Despite a vast disparity in shots (17–36) Northeastern hung in the game and forced overtime. BU was in total control for seemingly the entire extra session but, with just seconds to play, a mistake in the BU end left Fontaine wide open in the left circle and the Huskies' only shot in overtime went in and Northeastern held on to its crown.[2]
The win streak put Northeastern above .500 for the first time in months and gave the team an outside chance to earn an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. Unfortunately, the Huskies plait each of the next three weekends and lost any chance of becoming a bubble team. When the conference tournament began, a Hockey East championship was Northeastern's only hope of making the national tournament. They played like it in their first game and shut down Merrimack 4–0 thanks to three-point nights from Justin and Dylan Hryckowian. In the semifinal, the Huskies met Boston University for the fourth time and the Terriers were looking for revenge. After a scoreless first period, BU took a 3-goal lead in the second to put Northeastern's season on the edge of a cliff. Justin Hryckowian scored two goals to spur a comeback from the Huskies but none of his teammates could follow suit. A late goal from BU ended the attempt and Northeastern would have to wait for another year.
