Boston College Men’s Hockey: Bonus Goalies Q&A

Of course, after asking Mitch Benson, Henry Wilder, and Jack Moffatt about their masks, I couldn’t simply let them go without answering some fun questions! Enjoy our fun Q&A with the tendies:

Not necessarily related to your helmets, but I know goalies are kind of known to be a bit superstitious — are there any superstitions that you have?

Benson: Yeah, I have a couple. I kind of stand a certain way in net, I don’t know why it’s just kind of something that feels natural to me, and other than that I usually get dressed in the same way too. That’s about it, nothing too crazy. I like to think I’m semi-normal.

Moffatt: Weirdly, I always put my gear on in the exact same order. I feel like that’s probably a common thing with a lot of hockey players but I always do like right first so when I put on my knee guards it’s right leg, then left leg, skates is right leg, then left leg, everything is like that all the way up — I’ve just always done that as long as I can remember. So I don’t know if it’s a superstition or just a habit. But that’s the only thing I have really.

Wilder: I think just the way I get dressed. I couldn’t even explain it to you. I usually put on — I kind of go like a snake like I’ll do my left stuff, and then I’ll go back right and then I’ll do left. So I’ll do my left skate, right skate, right pad. So like that’s what I mean by that and I don’t know why — there’s no real reason.

And then if we win a game and if we keep winning games. I won’t change my suit. Like I would wash my suit, but I’ll wear the same one. It’s just something weird. I don’t know why I do it.

What’s something that BC fans might be surprised to know about you?

Benson: Hmm, I play a little bit of classical guitar.

Moffatt: I’m actually pretty good at coding stuff. I spend a lot of time on it, it’s honestly like a hobby for me at this point. Yeah, so that’s — I guess — probably an odd combo. Hockey and CS are probably the two biggest parts of my life. (author’s note: that’s what I do for my real world job!)

Wilder: It’s a little different to what Jack said, but I’ve always liked using Photoshop. And I really like doing that in my free time. It’s something that I like to screw around with and just kind of eat up time with. It’s pretty mindless. You can just put on music, watch TV and look down at your computer and design stuff. And I like that kind of tapping into that artistic side and and also taking inspiration from other stuff that people have made. And trying to apply that to mine and adding bits and pieces. I like that really creative part where you can kind of just make what you want. There’s no real template of what you have to do.

I like making sports posters and stuff. I really like sports. I would watch pretty much all sports and I think watching like successful athletes is really inspiring too. And it’s crazy how people kind of look up to them like gods when they get to a certain level of success. So yeah.

Song that you’ve got on loop recently?

Benson: On loop recently… I’m a big punk rock guy but also like some rap, so I think it’s My All by Polo G.

Moffatt: Oh, Zach Bryan. Something in the Orange. I think a lot of people have been playing that a lot recently.

Wilder: It’s old but I really like Dua Lipa’s One Kiss, just to really feel good — (another Dua Lipa fan on the team!) — It’s a good car tune, everything sounds better in the car.

Go-to coffee order, and where are you getting it from?

Benson: I don’t drink coffee, I’m all natural.

Moffatt: Just a large black cold brew from Dunkin, 100% percent.

Wilder: Well, I’m like, I’m definitely a straight black kind of guy — iced or hot — but I do like the French press. I really like French pressing coffee, like I have a French press at home. But if not, it’s always Dunkin. So yeah home or Dunkin.

Favorite off campus spot?

Benson (who I, as a fellow 25-year-old, gave permission to name a bar instead of a restaurant): As a team we’ve had a lot of good times at Circle!

Moffatt: My favorite off campus spot is probably Eagles Deli. We’ve been going there a lot.

Wilder: Eagles [Deli] is a good shout out. I’m not gonna say the same thing so I’m gonna go off the board and say Johnny’s in Newton Center which is an unbelievable breakfast spot and it’s very underrated because a lot of BC students go the other way instead. But Newton Center is underrated. So I’m a big fan, and it’s a little bit quieter around there usually.

Favorite thing to do in Boston?

Benson: I’m a huge seafood person so going out to eat any type of seafood is really up there for me.

Moffatt: Probably going to Bruins games, honestly, that’s always been one of my favorite activities as a kid, just going to hockey games. They used to be Bruins and BC games, but it’s always something I look forward to.

Wilder: Walking around the North End or the Seaport, like I think there’s good energy there and obviously like the Seaport’s really nice if you’re walking along the water, especially in the summer. Yeah, like it’s really beautiful there. So I really like going there. As a kid I used to like going in to see the Coast Guard ships because they make a big Coast Guard thing there and I was obsessed with that. So I like doing that and whenever I get the chance to go back, like in the summer or go for a walk — especially when my family goes out for a meal or something — we always try to go for a little walk.

And lastly — favorite dining hall meal here?

Benson: I’ll be honest, I actually haven’t been into any of the dining halls here! (author’s note: I honestly admire the self control to not pop into Hillside or Lower all the time)

Moffatt: So probably — does Hillside stuff count? (yes) — Okay yeah, probably the Baja Chicken from Hillside.

Wilder: Barbecue chicken over rice. It isn’t the healthiest but it’s really good and it’s very consistent. That’s the thing about it. Like whenever barbecue chicken and rice is on the menu, it just won’t miss. Which is good because you know you can go to the dining hall and get something good which is not always a guarantee. Yeah, so I’d say that and I like Hillside omelets. And yeah, BC after dark, too — very underrated.

A huge, huge thank you to Mitch, Henry, and Jack for taking the time to sit down with us!