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Gallery: Northeastern holds off Boston College for Hockey East championship
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Gallery: American International wins first Atlantic Hockey playoff title
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Northeastern jumps out to quick lead, hangs on to down Boston College, capture Hockey East playoff championship
BOSTON — Last year, Northeastern was one of the most dominant teams in college hockey but left a lot on the table, losing in the Hockey East semifinals and then falling to Michigan in the opening game of the NCAA tournament.
One year later, with a much different team, the Huskies have already crossed one off one of those “bucket list” items from a season ago, winning the Hockey East championship on Saturday, 3-2 over Boston College, and now will work to win games in the NCAA tournament beginning next weekend.
“We started the season with a lot of people questioning whether we were going to have a good team losing [Nolan] Stevens, [Adam] Gaudette and [Dylan] Sikura,” said Northeastern coach Jim Madigan. “These guys worked hard every day and came to the rink wanting to get better.
“We are a different team, but we still have good players. We knew our offense would be spread out. It was just a quiet confidence with this group. They don’t really get rattled.”
They certainly weren’t on Saturday, despite watching a 3-0 lead heading into the second shrink to a one-goal margin after Oliver Wahlstrom and David Cotton each struck on the power play in the first 117 seconds of the middle frame.
Somehow, the Huskies then tightened everything up and found a way to win, the third Hockey East title for Northeastern in three tries, with the other two coming in 1988 and 2016.
While the game on the ice was a gem, an instant classic by many standards, a moment early in the this took the breath away from many in attendance as Boston College’s Logan Hutsko locked legs with teammate David Cotton and fell to the ice awkwardly. After a nearly 10-minute delay, Hutsko was taken off the ice on a stretcher and was taken to Massachusetts General Hospital.
The initial report, though, from BC coach Jerry York was promising.
“First and foremost, the most important thing, Logan is moving his fingers and toes,” said York. “We are cautiously optimistic he’ll he okay. He had a situation where he broke his neck three years ago in junior hockey, so they’re being really cautious. But he’s conscious and we hope for the best.”
The moment was a jarring one on Saturday and, though it didn’t take any polish off the trophy that Northeastern won, it did have an impact on their coach.
“My first thought is that my thoughts and prayers are with Logan Hutsko,” said Madigan upon taking the podium in victory. “It’s tough when you see a young man on the ice like that. So we hope that he’s doing well.”
The game itself was a great – and maybe typical – back-and-forth postseason affair.
Northeastern jumped out to the early lead based on their top line’s play.
Matt Filipe buried a blocked shot at 2:39 of the first to give the Huskies a lead and then a rebound shot from Brandon Hawkins at 5:08 gave the Huskies a 2-0 lead early.
The power play gave Northeastern a 3-0 lead as Hawkins connected on his second of the game just 12:15 into the game.
Somehow, though, BC stayed the course.
In the second, the Eagles’ response was quick.
Wahlstrom buried a puck just 18 seconds into the frame on the power play. And after a penalty to Jeremy Davies at the 52-second mark, Cotton’s tally at the 1:57 mark renewed the crowd’s interest.
Early in the third, the injury to Hutsko hardly demoralized the Eagles. If anything, the club had more jump but couldn’t solve Northeastern goaltender Cayden Primeau, who finished the game with 38 saves and was named tournament MVP.
Boston College had its best chances in the closing minutes, including a shot by Wahlstrom with less than five seconds remaining in regulation that Primeau moved left to right to stop.
The loss ends the season for the Eagles, who struggled in out-of-conference play and also lost seven of eight heading into the postseason.
Northeastern, though, knew its NCAA destiny and will be a No. 2 seed when the brackets are announced on Sunday. The hope for the Huskies, though, is to improve on its last two performances which included a loss to national champion North Dakota in 2016 and last season’s fall at the hands of Michigan.
“[The NCAAs] are the next stage to out evolution as a program,” said Madigan. “The first time we played a great North Dakota team that ended up winning it all. Then last year, we all thought we left something on the table and we lost to ta good Michigan team.
“Now we’ve got to win the games in the [NCAA] tournament to bring our program to the next level.”
Wisconsin-Stevens Point completes unbeaten season, captures men’s D-III national championship in OT over Norwich
STEVENS POINT, Wis. — Steven Quagliata has scored overtime goals before in his hockey career but none bigger than the one he registered Saturday night.
The sophomore defenseman wristed a shot into the upper right corner at the 15 minute, 13 second mark of the extra period to lift Wisconsin-Stevens Point to a 3-2 win over Norwich in the NCAA Division III men’s hockey national title game at K.B. Willett Arena.
“I never thought it would have been me but I got my opportunity and I ended up finding the corner,” Quagliata said. “An overtime goal for a defenseman is not likely and that’s one that I will remember for the rest of my life.”
UW-Stevens Point (29-0-2) became the first Division III men’s program to complete a perfect season and won the sixth championship in its history. The Pointers also won the title in 1989, ’90, ‘91, ’93 and 2016, and captured the 1990 crown on their home ice as well.
Pointer senior winger Tanner Karty was named the Frozen Four’s outstanding player.
“To be honest the whole undefeated thing was just the carrot on top. It’s nothing that we talked about or cared about,” said UWSP coach Tyler Krueger, a former Pointers player and an assistant on the 2016 team “We just wanted to win (the title) here in front of our fans. This game and weekend will go down in this town for years. It’s something that people will be talking about 20 years for now. They talk about the 1991 one still.”
Quagliata picked up the puck at the Norwich blue line off a pass from Colin Raver and broke down the right side and lifted the high shot over the glove of Cadets goalie Tom Aubrun, who finished with 42 saves.
“We knew it was going to come down to one bounce (in overtime) and all 29 guys in our that locker room thought that (bounce) would go our way,” Pointers senior defenseman Stephan Beauvais said.
Norwich fell short of its sixth NCAA championship and had a 19-game unbeaten game snapped. It was the second title appearance in the past three years for a Cadets team which won the 2017 championship.
“I was there two years ago when we sent the seniors out with a national championship,” Norwich senior defenseman David Robertson said. “That’s what you like to do as a senior on the team. You want to win your last game in your last year. We got as close as we could get.”
The teams combined for all four goals of regulation in the third period. The Pointers scored twice in a snap of just over a minute to take a 2-0 lead and Coby Downs accounted for both of Norwich’s goals.
The Pointers fired 26 shots of Aubrun through the first two periods without success. That changed just 3:31 into the third as Jordan Fader redirected a slap shot from defenseman Danny Kiraly to break a scoreless battle.
UWSP made it 2-0 just 63 seconds later as Colin Raver took a long pass from Karty at the Norwich blue line, broke in and beat Aubrun with a low shot.
Downs scored off his own rebound at the 7:01 mark and then tied the game just over five minutes later. The sophomore forward took a pass from Scott Sawnson at the Pointers blue line, broke in, cut across the crease and beat UWSP goalie Connor Ryckman with a backhand.
Ryckman finished with 26 saves and also set a program record with his 26th win of the season.
“To be down 2-0 on the road, in their barn and to force overtime shows the resiliency of this team,” Norwich coach Cam Ellsworth said. ‘You have to be proud to come back on this stage and in this environment.
“The first five minutes (of overtime), we had a couple of chances,” Ellsworth said. “They got us running around and maybe tired us out a little bit.”
The Pointers, who lost in the national semifinal last year, had a 9-4 shot advantage in overtime and also controlled puck possession. UWSP lost to Salve Regina 3-0 in the 2017 Frozen Four in which they had a 55-20 shot advantage and on Saturday they nearly doubled up on Norwich
“It was one of those games that had a similar feel to last year’s semifinal,” Krueger said. “We used that experience to lean from it. You need to stick with the process and don’t force it. You need to trust each other and trust the game plan. It was just a matter of time (for us).”
Bracketology Extra: The 16 spots are filled
With Boston College’s loss in the Hockey East championship game, the 16 spots are all taken. What we don’t know is who will be the Atlantic Hockey champion and who gets the autobid from the Big Ten.
The 16 spots go to:
St. Cloud State
Minnesota State
Massachusetts
Minnesota Duluth
Denver
Quinnipiac
Northeastern
Clarkson
Arizona State
Ohio State
Cornell
Harvard
Providence
Bowling Green
Atlantic Hockey winner
Big Ten winner
We wait for the results to see the seeding.
Mitchell’s four-point game helps Denver roll over Colorado College in NCHC Frozen Faceoff third-place game
ST. PAUL, Minn. — Behind four points from defenseman Ian Mitchell (two goals, two assists), three points each from Liam Finlay (two goals, one assist) and Tyson McLellan (one goal, two assists), Denver defeated rival Colorado College in the NCHC Frozen Faceoff consolation game 6-1 Saturday night.
Devin Cooley made 22 saves for the win in goal for the Pioneers.
“It was a good game for us,” said Denver coach David Carle. “Obviously, I liked our execution offensively. First time in a while we’ve been able to execute like that.”
The win came just two weeks after CC swept the Pioneers and took back the Gold Pan trophy that is awarded to the winner of the season series.
“I guess we definitely wanted to make a statement tonight with how the regular season ended with them taking the Gold Pan from us,” said Mitchell. “I don’t know if we needed any extra motivation against CC, but that was definitely on our minds.”
Colorado College goalie Alex Leclerc looked sharp early, making several stops on Denver shots from the hashmarks area.
It took a near-perfect play for DU to get on the board. Emilio Pettersen picked the puck from CC’s Mason Bergh at the DU blue line and raced up the left side boards on a two-on-one with Jarid Lukosevicius. He held it until near the bottom of the left circle and passed it to Lukosevicius, who knocked it into the open net top corner at 5:49 before Leclerc could get over to cover the post.
“There were a lot of pretty goals scored tonight,” said Carle. “I thought guys presented for pucks, talked for pucks, better than we have a in a long time.”
Despite the early lead, the Pioneers looked sloppy, turning the puck over numerous times in the defensive zone as CC got its forecheck going. CC ended up getting the first power play of the game due to this pressure, and Cooley made a big stop on a chance by Grant Cruikshank from the slot on a rebound. The power play then turned into a five-on-three, and CC capitalized when Bergh passed it down low to Trey Bradley, who took a couple of strides toward the net and ripped a shot from the bottom of the right circle top corner glove side at 15:01. Denver killed the second penalty however, and the game was tied after one.
“I got the puck from (Christiano) Versich and gave it up to Mason, and he kind of snuck some guys up to the point and gave me a lot of time,” said Bradley. “I saw the goalie didn’t have his stick, so I just tried to get it on net quick and catch him out of position.”
Denver’s turnovers almost cost them early in the second when CC raced in on a two on one. Cooley made a huge stop by sliding to his left and stopping Bergh’s one-timer. In the play after, Mitchell ended up getting called for tripping, putting CC on its third power play. However, Denver had a very aggressive kill and prevented CC from getting any good chances.
“DC (David Carle) came in the room and let us know, ‘Tighten it up, this game means a lot,” said Finlay. “He kind of made that really clear to us, and I think we came out with a better effort in the second.”
On its first power play of the game, Denver almost took the lead when a shot hit the crossbar, but it stayed out. However, on DU’s second power play, the Pioneers took the lead when Mitchell fired a snap shot from the middle of the blue line that beat a screaned Leclerc top corner stick side at 8:29.
“I thought we played well in the first, and I don’t know if after that we ran out of steam, five games in eight nights,” said Colorado College coach Mike Haviland. “Certainly, I thought we were chasing the game the last 40.”
Denver then took the two-goal lead just a minute later when Michael Davies carried the puck down the left side almost to the goal line and sent a pass through the crease to Finlay on the far post, who directed it into the open net. Finlay had a made a good spin move to get out of a stick check by Bryan Yoon and free himself for the redirect.
“We know he’s a great goalie,” said Finlay of Leclerc, who had held Denver to just two goals in the three previous games between the two. “He’s been really good all year, especially against us. We just knew we had to be harder around the net.”
Just 27 seconds into the third period, Mitchell made it 4-1 almost single-handedly. He got the puck at the left point and drove down low toward the center, roofing a shot top corner from the hashmarks of the right circle.
“He was really good,” said Haviland of Mitchell. “He’s a guy that has a lot of offensive abilities. He’s a smart hockey player. I think his movement up top was outstanding, his little give-go’s. He made us pay.”
Denver kept up the pressure and made it 5-1 at 5:37. Mitchell left a nifty behind the back drop pass for McLellan at the blue line. McLellan drove down the left side and backhanded a pass to Finlay driving the net, and Finlay directed it top corner stick side.
Mitchell continued his offensive onslaught a few minutes later. After Denver killed a CC power play, Mitchell drive toward the middle of the offensive zone and dished a pass to Brett Stapley down low, who then passed through the crease to McLellan driving toward the left post. McLellan redirected it in at 12:11.
“Ian usually doesn’t need extra motivation, he’s a really driven person,” said Carle. “Ian sometimes forgets how influential he can be on the game with the puck, and tonight I think you saw him attack the game every time he was on the ice, and it really put them on their heels.”
Third-place games usually aren’t too intense, but late in the game a scrum broke out. McKay Flanagan checked Lukosevicius in the Denver zone, leading with an elbow high that appeared to hit his head. Pettersen and Mitchell took exception, immediately going after Flanagan while Lukosevicius was on the ice.
Then CC’s Tanner Ockey tied up Cole Guttman and took some swings at him. Lukosevicius pulled Ockey off Guttman while Pettersen and Alex Berardinelli went after each other. A long review by the referees after led to Ockey’s ejection and a five-minute major for cross-checking and Flanagan getting a five-minute major for charging. Mitchell also received two minutes for cross-checking.
With the win, Denver is guaranteed a two-seed band in the NCAA tournament, but how high they finish will depend on other results this evening.
CC ends it season with a 17-20-4 record, but took major steps forward as a program by qualifying for its first Frozen Faceoff.
“It means an awful lot to get here,” said Haviland. “You have to continue to learn from our process, and I thought this year we did, especially in the second half. Now the bar has been set, and we have to keep pushing for excellence.”
Gabel caps record-setting career with Patty Kazmaier Award win
HAMDEN, Conn. — Clarkson University senior forward Loren Gabel has been awarded the 2019 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award. The honors were presented to Gabel Saturday afternoon at Cascade Catering as part of the women’s Frozen Four weekend hosted by Quinnipiac University.
The award, which is in its 22st year, is presented annually to the top player in NCAA Division I women’s hockey by the USA Hockey Foundation.
Gabel is the second winner from Clarkson University, joining Jamie Lee Rattray, who won in 2014. Gabel was selected from a group of three finalists that included senior defenseman Megan Keller (Boston College) and senior forward Annie Pankowski (University of Wisconsin).
Gabel entered Clarkson the year after the Golden Knights won their first national championship, but she said before this season that she wasn’t actually aware of the fact when she enrolled. She did not know what she nor the program were capable of.
“Winning those two national championships — never would I have thought of winning one, let alone two,” she said. “It’s just an amazing honor and an unbelievable accomplishment. It’s very indescribable.”
She was named ECAC Hockey Player of the Year for the second straight season and is Clarkson’s all-time leading scorer, finishing her career with 213 points (116 goals, 97 assists). Her 116 goals in 160 career games is also a program record. She led the nation with 34 goals during the regular season. She added 29 assists, giving her 63 regular-season points, which is second in the country behind teammate Elizabeth Giguère.
“I couldn’t have gotten here without my amazing teammates and coaching staff. It’s just an amazing honor,” said Gabel. “Leading our underclassmen every day, day in and day out, and leading them in the right direction to pursue that hard work and dedication and leave a mark in the Clarkson hockey program is amazing. It’s a complete honor.”
A two-time Patty Kazmaier top-three finalist, Gabel rose to new heights this season in part because how well she and Giguère worked together along with linemate Michaela Pejzlová. They were three of the top five scorers in the country.
“Loren brought out the best in (Elizabeth) and Elizabeth brought out the best in Loren. They just had that instant chemistry,” said Clarkson coach Matt Desrosiers.
The left winger led the Golden Knights to a 30-8-2 record and the team’s fourth-consecutive Frozen Four. In addition to all her other accolades, she was named to the ACHA All-American First team for the second-straight year.
“I’m extremely happy and proud of her,” said Desrosiers. “What she’s been able to do over her whole career — just the growth she’s shown as a player and as a person in those four years — it’s no surprise to me that she was able to receive this award. She leads by example, with her work ethic on and off the ice. She’s someone that our team kind of rallies around and kind of follows in that sense. She’s just done a tremendous just growing as a person into the leadership role over her four years.”
The award caps off a truly astounding and stellar career for Gabel, who now holds most every program scoring record — goals in a season and goals by a senior (40), career goals (116), goals by a junior (36), assists by a junior (39), points in a season and by a junior (75), career points (213), game-winning goals in a season (11) and career (25), and career hat tricks (7). She also owns the NCAA record for fastest hat trick (2:21), which she accomplished against Yale in 2018.
“I have had the privilege to coach some very elite and talented players during my time at Clarkson, and Loren has proven to be one of the all-time great Golden Knights,” said Desrosiers. “Loren exemplifies everything the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award represents: a top performer in the country, competitiveness, performance in the clutch, and a true passion and love for the game of hockey.”
Women’s D-I Frozen Four championship pick: Familiar foes faceoff as Wisconsin guns for first national title since 2011 and Minnesota looks to regain it
Both Nicole and I picked the semifinal games correctly. It’s now down to two teams. Thanks to everyone for supporting us during the year. I hope you’ve enjoyed it as much as we have. On the year, I am now 345-118-63 (.715), while Nicole is 318-145-63 (.664).
Sunday, March 24
Minnesota versus Wisconsin
Candace: These two split four games during the regular season, then Wisconsin dominated the Gophers in the WCHA final. Wisconsin looks like it’s on a mission, but the Gophers won’t make it easy. Will the pressure get to the Badgers? In some ways, the Badgers reminds me of the USA women’s soccer team in 2015. I’m going with Wisconsin. Wisconsin 2-1
Nicole: I’m going with my gut and saying Wisconsin wins it all this year. Wisconsin 2-1
Clarkson’s Loren Gabel wins 2019 Patty Kazmaier Award
Loren Gabel of Clarkson won the 2019 Patty Kazmaier Award, announced today in Hamden, Connecticut. She became the second Clarkson player to earn the award, after Jamie Lee Rattray in 2014. Gabel, a top three finalist last year, finished with 69 points on the year.
“I have had the privilege to coach some very elite and talented players during my time at Clarkson, and Loren has proven to be one of the all-time great Golden Knights,” said Matt Desrosiers, head women’s ice hockey coach at Clarkson University in a press release. “Loren exemplifies everything the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award represents; a top performer in the country, competitiveness, performance in the clutch, and a true passion and love for the game of hockey.”
Gabel recorded her 200th career point during her senior season and also surpassed the 100-goal mark. Her 210 career points through the end of the regular season is the highest in Clarkson history, as are her 113 goals in 156 games.
Men’s D-III Frozen Four championship: Regional bias seen in final pick of year as Norwich dukes it out with Wisconsin-Stevens Point
We are down to the final two after a great pair of semifinal games yesterday hosted by Wisconsin–Stevens Point. Yesterday saw some terrific hockey with Norwich taking down Geneseo and the host team getting by Hobart behind Tanner Karty’s three-point night. There is some regional bias in the picks. Tim is currently down one to Brian for the tournament, as Brian picked the Norwich win.
Saturday, March 23
No. 4 Norwich at No. 1 Wisconsin–Stevens Point
Tim: The teams have been two of the hottest in the second half of the season, so it appears the final will be an outstanding game. It doesn’t get better than two powerhouse teams ending up in the championship game and this one should be an instant classic. Expect a lot of chances by both teams and great goaltending with the game coming down to a late goal and an empty-net tally for the final result. Norwich 4-2
Brian: The Pointers are a win away from closing the deal on an unbeaten season after taking down Hobart, 5-3, Friday night. The best part is that they can do it at home. The last hurdle to a title is Norwich, which knocked off Geneseo, 4-2. Wis.-Stevens Point last won a title in 2016. Norwich won it all in 2017. So, this stage is hardly a strange one to either team. Both feature great offensive attacks, and both have stellar goalies in Connor Ryckman (Pointers) and Tom Aubrun (Cadets). This game should be an instant classic. In the end though, it’s hard to bet against the Pointers. Wis-Stevens Point 4-3
Bracketology: What we know entering conference championship Saturday
Friday’s conference semifinal results gave us two more teams in the NCAA tournament field of 16: Cornell and Harvard.
That makes 14 teams in the tournament:
St. Cloud State
Minnesota State
Minnesota Duluth
Massachusetts
Quinnipiac
Northeastern
Clarkson
Denver
Ohio State
Arizona State
Cornell
Harvard
Atlantic Hockey champion (Niagara or American International)
Big Ten champion (Penn State or Notre Dame)
That leaves two spots open for Boston College, Providence and Bowling Green.
If BC doesn’t win the Hockey East final, the two spots go to Providence and Bowling Green, regardless of how the Falcons fare in the WCHA title game at Minnesota State.
If BC wins, then either Providence or Bowling Green doesn’t get a bid.
Bowling Green, of course, can earn its way into the NCAA tournament with a victory at Minnesota State.
The four No. 1 seeds are also decided. They will be:
St. Cloud State
Minnesota State
Minnesota Duluth
Massachusetts
Cogan scores, adds two assists as Wisconsin blanks Clarkson for spot in title game
HAMDEN, Conn. — The Wisconsin women’s hockey team advanced to the national championship game with a 5-0 win over Clarkson on Friday evening.
Senior Sam Cogan led the Badgers with a goal and two assists while senior Annie Pankowski added two goals to lead Wisconsin.
The game felt closer than the score indicated, though the Badgers seemed to dominate puck possession and zone time throughout the game. They outshot Clarkson 13-5 in the first period, though it ended in a scoreless draw.
In the second, junior Abby Roque opened the scoring midway through the period off a brilliant drop pass from freshman Britta Curl. Roque had transitioned to a supporting role to linemates Curl and WCHA Rookie of the Year Sophie Shirley and leads the team with 31 assists, but found herself in the perfect position in the slot to pick up her 11th goal of the season.
“What led to that was a good forecheck by my linemates. Britta Curl made a nice play to break it up right before that. She got a good pass from the defense and kept that puck together, too. The puck was bouncy and she did a great job. Sophie drove the net and left me wide open and I figured I’d shoot it as fast as I can before the goalie got over and I was lucky enough to have it sneak in on the ice,” said Roque.
The Badgers took four penalties in the game, including three through the first two periods, but their penalty kill was up to the task. The Golden Knights could not get a rhythm going and weren’t able to pick up momentum with the extra attacker. With each successful penalty kill, Wisconsin grew more confident.
The game was a rematch of the 2017 title game where Clarkson blanked the Badgers 3-0 and the revenge was sweet for Wisconsin, who held the Golden Knights to just 14 shots on Friday. Clarkson has the two top scorers in the country, but the Badgers held them scoreless. Goalie Kristen Campbell earned her 10th shutout of the season. The victory was also her 34th, setting a program record for wins in a season by a goalie, breaking the previous mark that was shared by Olympians Ann-Renee Desbiens, Alex Rigsby and Jessie Vetter.
Clarkson’s Loren Gabel and Elizabeth Giguère accounted for 10 of the Golden Knights’ 14 shots, meaning the rest of the team combined for just four shots in the 60 minutes. The pair were also each minus-3 on the night.
“We knew they had a pretty potent top line, but (we) more just focused on the things that we needed to execute. (We were) aware when they were on the ice, but not putting so much focus on those players. (We knew) that if we execute our own game plan, we were going to shut those players down,” said Campbell. “We did a really good job, especially on the penalty kill, keeping them to the outside and not allowing their top players to get really clean looks from in tight.”
The game broke open just past the midway point in the third period for Wisconsin when Cogan scored on what was meant to be a pass from behind the net, but deflected off two Clarkson players and ended up in the net. Less than three minutes later, Pankowski carried the puck into the zone and held off a defender before sniping a goal top shelf to make it 3-0.
Clarkson tried to make a comeback, but Pankowski added an empty-net goal and junior Presley Norby scored with 55 seconds left to ice the 5-0 win.
“They’re deep. You just have to play a really good, solid game. As the game went on, they made us have to change the way we were playing. We had to start pressing and that gave them more opportunities. They do a good job at making you have to battle,” said Clarkson coach Matt Desrosiers.
Wisconsin will face WCHA foe and border-rival Minnesota in the national championship game Sunday at 2:30 p.m. EDT. The Badgers and Gophers have been the top two ranked teams in the country the entire year and have played each other five times so far this season. They split their regular season series, with each team winning two games and the goal differential coming down to a single empty-net goal back in October. Wisconsin took the most recent meeting, a 3-1 win in the WCHA tournament championship game two weeks ago.
The game will be televised on Big Ten Network.
Woll makes 36 saves as Boston College overcomes UMass
BOSTON — It was a matchup between the Talented Upstart and the Grizzled Veteran. As so often happens, the Grizzled Veteran emerged victorious, in this case Boston College over Massachusetts, 3-0 on Friday in the Hockey East semifinals.
For UMass, the trip to the Garden was its first in 12 years, third all time, and first ever as a favorite and a number one seed.
At the other end of the experience spectrum, BC was making its fourth straight appearance, and under coach Jerry York had won nine Hockey East titles and gone 62-22-1 in the tournament.
Yet UMass was the decided favorite. This year, the Minutemen quickly became the standard-bearer for the league, spending most of the season in first place and ranked among the top teams in the country. As the number one tournament seed, they swept New Hampshire, albeit needing double overtime in the opener.
Regardless of its fate on this evening, UMass was assured of a berth in the NCAA tournament, almost certainly as a No. 1 seed.
By contrast, Boston College struggled to an uncharacteristic seventh-place finish. It lost seven of its last eight regular season games, then needed three games in the quarterfinals to get past Providence.
With barely a win in nonconference play to go with its seventh place finish, BC entered the tournament knowing it had to win it to gain entrance into the NCAAs.
Desperation and experience combined for a powerful and winning elixir for the Eagles.
“Nobody wants to give up their sticks,” York said. “We fully understood if we didn’t win tonight our sticks were gone. We love hockey. So there was a little more desperation in our game.”
UMass did not match the Eagles’ desperation and quality of play.
“They were playing with purpose tonight and desperation and the appropriate enthusiasm for a game of this magnitude,” UMass coach Greg Carvel said. “My team just wasn’t.
“Very discouraging. It was a big opportunity for our program. Honestly, [it was] one of the poorer games we played this year.”
Carvel gave credit to BC for its part in his team’s sub-par performance.
“They had a very strong game plan,” he said. “They competed harder than we did. There aren’t many nights this year I’d say we got out-competed.”
While York downplayed the experience factor, Carvel considered it a major factor in why his team faltered on the Garden’s big stage.
“It was definitely a factor that we didn’t want to discuss all week with the kids,” Carvel said. “We didn’t want to give them an excuse.
“But I’m sure most of the kids on the Boston College team have played six to eight to ten games here. That was a distinct advantage. For our kids, this was a big stage that they’re not used to.”
As a result, the game played like home ice for the Eagles even though UMass fans overwhelmed their BC counterparts in both numbers and volume.
BC goaltender Joseph Woll also was a force, stopping all 36 shots he faced.
In the end, Boston College became the first seventh seed to advance to a Hockey East championship game. York also collected his 63rd Hockey East tournament win, breaking a tie with BU legend Jack Parker for tops in the league. York also collected his 600th win at BC.
UMass had the advantage in the first period, but Woll sparkled, especially midway through the period with tough saves on Mitchell Chaffee and Jake Gaudet and then later on Chaffee and Jack Suter.
Then with 13 seconds remaining in the first, BC struck. Top scorer David Cotton received a puck from behind the net and roofed a backhander short side for the 1-0 lead.
Arguably, the critical, late-period goal added to UMass’s uncertainty on the big stage.
In the second, BC got a glittering opportunity to widen the lead midway through the period with a 1:15 five-on-three advantage. Control of the game seemed ripe for the taking. Instead, the Minutemen killed both penalties with Filip Lindberg making a gigantic, potentially game-saving stop on Julius Mattila.
Appearing rejuvenated, the Minutemen went on the attack, swarming until they forced a penalty. BC’s penalty kill, however, rose to the challenge as did its team defense through the rest of the period and arguably much of the game.
“We checked really well,” York said. “Covering people, whether it was on the forecheck, making it difficult to break out of the zone or backchecking to limit their chances. We played in synch and very cohesive through all three zones.”
A BC two-on-one at 12:36 of the third period, pounded a deciding nail in UMass’s coffin. J.D. Dudek passed from the right wing across to Chris Grando who put it into the open net.
Mattila added an open-netter with 38 seconds remaining in regulation.
Boston College plays Northeastern on Saturday for the Hockey East title and an opportunity to, as York would say, “keep their sticks” for the NCAA tournament.
Shepard’s 25 saves, Koepke’s two goals lead Minnesota Duluth over Denver
ST. PAUL, Minn. — A year ago, Minnesota Duluth lost to Denver, 3-1, in the NCHC Frozen Faceoff in its first year in the Xcel Energy Center, and then lost the third-place game as well, jeopardizing their chances of an NCAA tournament berth. Ultimately, other results broke their way, and three weeks later the Bulldogs won their second national championship, again winning at the Xcel.
Friday night, in front of an announced combined crowd of 9,517, the Bulldogs rode 25 saves from Hunter Shepard and an early third-period goal from Cole Koepke to a win over the Pioneers.
The victory sets up an all-Minnesota Frozen Faceoff final, and an all-Colorado third-place game, as the Bulldogs play St. Cloud State and the Pioneers play Colorado College.
“It was a real good win for our team, a real good third period,” said UMD coach Scott Sandelin. “It was a battle, like we’ve had with them many, many times. Not a lot of room to do a lot of things.
Duluth carried the early part of the play, but Denver started to rally in the latter half of the first period. That carried over into the second period. Early on, Cole Guttman had a breakaway, but he lost control of the puck as he drove toward the UMD net. On Denver’s first power play of the game, Hunter Shepard robbed Jarid Lukosevicius on his redirect from down low in front of the slot.
“He’s been outstanding for us,” said Sandelin of Shepard. “If there are breakdowns, he’s made that save, or timely save, and tonight was no different. When you play good teams, you’re going to get tested, and they’re going to get opportunities, it’ s how many you give them. He was there tonight to answer that.”
Duluth gained momentum from its kill and started to put sustained pressure on the Pioneers as the period wore on. On their own power play, their second of the game, the Bulldogs had good puck movement and kept getting the puck low, forcing Filip Larsson to make several big saves.
At the end of the period, Denver again generated several strong chances, with the puck bouncing around near the crease. Shepard kept it scoreless through two. It was just the second time in the tournament’s history that a game had been scoreless after two periods; the last time it happened also involved Denver, when the Pioneers lost to North Dakota, 1-0, in the 2017 tournament.
“We talked about what we needed to do, what I felt we needed to do to try and generate some offensive chances, and I thought our guys did a good job of that,” said Sandelin of what he told his players in between the second and third periods. “We fortunately came up with the goal. I said it could be a one-shot, one-goal game, just like the last game we played them.”
Duluth got on the board just 42 seconds into the third period, taking the 1-0 lead when Koepke’s shot from the top of the left circle beat a screened Larsson after a mad scramble.
“I had just come off the bench on a change, I was the late guy on the rush, and Dylan took the puck wide and cut in front of the net and kind of created a commotion in front of the net, him, Parker (Mackay), and Richie (Justin Richards),” said Koepke. “I was just trying to stay out, the puck popped right out to me. I was lucky enough to get it through traffic, and it went in.”
The Bulldogs appeared to make it 2-0 at just before the halfway point of the third when a shot from the right point ricocheted off the end boards and came back and hit Larsson in the back of the legs. The puck just sat there while a scramble ensued. Riley Tufte knocked into Larsson while Larsson was trying to find the puck, and then a Duluth played knocked it in. The goal was reviewed for goaltender interference on Tufte, and it was overturned.
“There was an opportunity there that was taken away, but we stuck with the game, and good things come when you stick with it,” said Louie Roehl.
The Pioneers then had a chance to get back in it when they went on a power play, but they were unable to generate any sustained pressure during their opportunity.
“That was a good hockey game, tight checking, similar to most of our games against Duluth,” said Denver coach David Carle. “There wasn’t a lot of time and space out there. They made one more play than we did, and ultimately that was all that was needed.”
With just under two minutes to go, Carle pulled Larsson looking for the equalizer, but Roehl intercepted in the neutral zone and sent it into the open net. Carle again pulled Larsson, and this time Denver defenseman Ian Mitchell lost the puck at the offensive blue line, and Koepke picked it up and skated down, scoring at 19:39 for his second of the night and final margin of victory.
Cornell, Clarkson advance to ECAC Hockey championship game
Brown had already beaten one of ECAC Hockey’s co-regular season champions. Cornell made sure it didn’t take down the second one.
The No. 2 Big Red scored three first-period goals on seven shots en route to a 6-0 win over eighth-seeded Brown Friday at the 1980 Herb Brooks Arena in Lake Placid, N.Y.
Cornell (20-9-4) advances to its second league championship game in three years, but it’s looking for its first title since 2010. The Big Red will face No. 3 Clarkson at 7:30 p.m. Saturday.
Matthew Galajda made 30 saves for his fifth shutout of the season and Tristan Mullin had a goal and an assist. Six different players scored for Cornell, who finished 3-for-6 on the power play.
Brown reached the league semifinals for the first time since 2013 by sweeping top-seeded Quinnipiac in the last weekend. The Bears finished with an overall record of 15-14-5, the program’s first winning record since that 2013 season.
Clarkson 5, Harvard 2
For the second straight season, Clarkson faced Harvard in the ECAC Hockey semifinals. And for the second straight year, the Golden Knights beat the Crimson to advance to the conference title game.
Clarkson beat Harvard 5-2 in the second semifinal game of the night Friday at 1980 Herb Brooks Arena in Lake Placid. The third seeded Golden Knights will face Cornell in the conference championship at 7:30 p.m. Saturday.
Five different players scored for Clarkson (25-10-2), while Jake Kielly had 26 saves. The Crimson (19-10-3) will await a potential NCAA bid on Sunday.
The win means that Golden Knights’ coach Casey Jones with face his alma mater as Clarkson look to win its first league title since 2007.
The Golden Knights jumped out to a 3-0 lead midway through the second period thanks to goals by Haralds Egle, Anthony Callin, and Nick Campoli.
But Adam Fox and Jack Rathbone scored for Harvard to pull the Crimson within one goal. But that’s as close as they got, as Jack Jacome and Jordan Schneider scored to provide the final margin for Clarkson.
Harvard goalie Michael Lackey started for the first time since Feb. 16, also against the Golden Knights. Lackey, who missed the last month with an injury, finished with 19 saves before being pulled for Cameron Gornet in the second period.
Gallery: Minnesota, Wisconsin win women’s Frozen Four semifinals
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Karty provides the answer as Wisconsin-Stevens Point downs Hobart for spot in championship game
STEVENS POINT, Wis. — Not only will Wisconsin-Stevens Point have a chance for the program’s sixth men’s hockey national championship, but the top-ranked team in the country will look to make some history.
Never has a Division III program finished a season unbeaten. UWSP is the second team in the history of the tournament to reach the title game without a loss on its record.
The top-ranked Pointers will get their chance to cap off an unbeaten run to the title after knocking off Hobart 5-3 in a national semifinal at K.B. Willett Arena on Friday night.
UWSP (28-0-2) meets Norwich (23-4-3) in the championship contest at 7 p.m. CDT Saturday.
RIT was the first and last team to reach the championship game in 2001 without a loss on its Frozen Four resume. Plattsburgh denied the Tigers perfection.
“This has been our goal since Day 1,” said Pointers defenseman Danny Kiraly of playing for a national championship. “For us it’s an amazing opportunity to be able to do it here in Stevens Point and in front of our home crowd.”
Nothing came easy for the Pointers in their bid to play for the school’s first national title since 2016.
Hobart put up a gallant challenge, especially after being shocked just 46 seconds into the game when the Pointers lit the goal light.
“That (first goal) I thought kind of engaged us,” UWSP forward Tanner Karty said. “We get that one and it’s kind of like ‘OK, let’s keep going.’ We kind of let up after that, kind of like, ‘this is going to be easier than we thought.’ Maybe we took them a little lightly.”
Even when the Statesmen found themselves in a 3-1 hole midway through the second period there was never any panic.
Back-to-back power-play goals in a span of 38 seconds brought Hobart back to even and made the semifinal a whole new game.
The only problem is the Statesmen (21-8-2) could never get a taste of the lead at any point.
“I think they had a cause behind their back and I think that pretty powerful,” Statesmen coach Mark Taylor of the quick start by the Pointers and how they’re flirting with history.I think they are good in every area, deep in every area and talented.”
The momentum was sitting on the Hobart bench after Travis Schneider and Zach Tyson found the back of the net with the man-advantage.
Karty, who chipped in with a pair of assists, had the answer for the Pointers just 39 seconds after Hobart knotted the game to give them the lead for good at 4-3.
The Pointers proceeded to return to their defensive roots over the final period. No team had scored more than three goals against them all season.
So it came as no surprise the Pointers clamped down over the final 20 minutes. Quality scoring chances came at a minimum for the Statesmen.
When they did create some opportunities, WIAC Player of the Year Connor Ryckman made sure nothing got past him. The sophomore goalie finished with 23 saves, including all seven shots he faced in the third period.
“We knew they were going to capitalize on the little mistakes we made,” Schneider said. “We tied it up and regardless that they came back and scored to make it 4-3, it gave us momentum and let us know we could win this game.”
Those chances vanished when UWSP’s Austin Kelly scored into an empty net with one minute left in regulation to account for the final margin of victory.
He’ll take the win, but UWSP coach Tyler Krueger was less than pleased with the overall performance. He made it clear his team will need to be a lot better if its wants to cap off perfection.
“We were poor at times and not ready for pressure (from Hobart),” Krueger said. “We didn’t have our ‘A’ game from the get-go and had to find a Plan B. We stuck with each other through it all and didn’t get frazzled. We found a way to win at the end and did what we’ve done all year.”
Gallery: NCHC semifinals see St. Cloud State, Minnesota Duluth advance
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Gallery: Northeastern, Boston College advance to Hockey East final
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