Anyone tired of the 'Eagles soar to Frozen Four' headlines? BC isn't

By Chris Maza
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

(Note: This is the last of a three-part series analyzing the performances of all three Hockey East teams in their respective regionals in the NCAA tournament.)

It's probably the most cliche headline in the history of journalism when referring to a team with a bird as its mascot. And for Boston Colllege, it seems every trip it takes to the Frozen Four, it is accompanied by at least a few headlines that read, "Eagles soar" etc., etc., etc. As one who has written a few headlines in my day - and is pretty good at it, if I do say so myself - I have one thing to say to those headline writers: It's not original. It's not clever. It's lazy and shame on you.

The reason I start with that little rant is because by using the same old cliche, it cheapens the accomplishment of being one of the four best teams in the NCAA hockey tournament. It's being one step away from the pinnacle of these players' hockey careers to this point and for a lot of them, it's the highest they will ever get.

Some think that especially by missing North Dakota in the second round, the Eagles had an easy go of it this tournament. Not so, my friends.

The Eagles won a 3-1 decision in the first round against Alaska-Fairbanks in a game that was surprisingly close. Alaska was especially good at pinching on defense, which prevented BC's skaters from odd-man rushes in transition and while in the end the better team won, you couldn't help but walk away impressed with the play of the Nanooks.

What might have BC fans concerned was the play of the Eagles' defense in the second round against an explosive Yale team. The Eagles beat the Bulldogs, 9-7, in the highest-scoring regional game ever. Going into the game, Yale's high-powered offense was thought to be severely weaker because of the loss of its best player, but a team doesn't become the top scoring team in the country simply because of one guy.

Boston College proved its offense can be explosive as well and really was in control of the game most of the way, despite the high goal totals. The goals were mostly scored in bunches and always with Yale trying to chip away at the Eagles' leads. And while BC on a couple of occasions let them back into the game, give them credit for not giving it up, even when Yale played nearly the last four minutes of the game with an extra attacker, which is a pretty gutsy move.

Those who are still concerned about the defense can rest assured that the next team BC faces in Miami (OH) will not have nearly the firepower and is much more of a defensive minded team. The question I have more than whether or not the Eagles can stop Miami from scoring is whether or not the Eagles will be able to put one past whichever goalie Miami throws out there. Both are at the top of the list in goals against average and Miami is one of the very best in goal prevention.

But if there's one thing we've learned from watching the Bruins, it's that goal prevention doesn't mean anything if you can't score. No one ever won a hockey game without scoring a goal.

Eagles make Frozen Four, but it's RIT I'll be watching

By Chris Maza
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

The stage is set for the Frozen Four and once again Boston College will be there.

The Eagles earned their seventh trip in the last 11 seasons (2000-2010) with a 9-7 win over Yale Sunday evening. That's right. There were 16 goals between the two sides, which was an NCAA record for a regional game, eclipsing the previous mark of 13.

BC will face Miami (OH), who survived a double-overtime battle with Michigan, 3-2.

But with all the exciting action going on in the tournament, there is no better story than RIT, which has become this year's Bemidji State. RIT made heavily favored Denver (the No. 2 overall team in the tournament) look just plain bad in the opening round, then made New Hampshire look even worse with a 6-2 win to propell itself to Detriot.

Maybe it was the home-ice feel in Albany. Maybe the stars aligned just right. Maybe they caught Denver in the midst of a badly-timed slump (remember, they lost two games in the conference tournament, too). Maybe they dodged a bullet in having UNH upset Cornell. Or maybe the Tigers are really just that good.

I knew RIT was a balanced team, but the Tigers surprised me in how well they skated, making Denver look slow and how good their transition game is, as was displayed in the UNH game.

Do they have enough to get past Wisconsin and get to the title game? I'm still not sure and I don't know if anyone else can be, either. After all, most of the nation has only seen this team play for 120 minutes so far this year.

But in a tournament that now has three No. 1 seeds and a No. 4 remaining, I'm becoming a Tigers fan.

Here's how my bracket is shaping up (Click on the bracket for a larger view). Check back for analysis on how each Hockey East team has performed in the tournament thus far.

March Madness, Frozen Style

By Chris Maza
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

So here it is, my bracket for the 2010 NCAA Division I hockey tournament.
(Click on the bracket for a bigger view)

As you can see, there are not many surprises in the regionals, with one notable exception. I think in the East, Denver is vulnerable. Not only did they falter down the stretch, but they also go up against an RIT team that has all the momentum in the world and a fanbase that almost instantly sold out of its allotment of tickets, giving the Tigers a distinct home-ice feel with over 1,000 orange-clad maniacs in the stands.
Michigan over Bemidji State is somewhat of an upset, but given how well Michigan has played over the last month, I'm not going to call it one.
I think it will be Miami, Boston College, Wisonsin and Cornell in the Frozen Four with Wisconsin and Miami moving on for a CCHA-WCHA title game.
Sure, I think Wisconsin is the softest of the No. 1 seeds, but I think they also have the softest regional bracket overall and I can see Cornell suffering a letdown after what is sure to be an emotion-filled slugfest between the Big Red and the Tigers in Albany.
Boston College and Miami should be a clinic on goaltending, but I just think BC lacks the star power this year to go back to the title game.

Hockey East teams face rough roads to Frozen Four

By Chris Maza
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

The Hockey East conference has had a representative in the national championship game in 16 of the last 20 seasons and each of the last four. Can one of the three teams in this year's field make it? The paths of each team are not easy, but if there's one thing a couple of them have, it's history on their side.

But before we get into that, let's just take the time to go over some general Hockey East history within the tournament and let's see if you can make an argument it being the toughest conference in college hockey. All of these facts are according to Hockey East.

• At least two Hockey East teams have qualified for the Frozen Four 13 times since the league formed in the 1984-85 season. The second-highest number of times that has happened for a conference in that span is five (WCHA, CCHA).
• Since 1993, 17 of the 34 teams that have advanced to the national championship game have been Hockey East teams and twice both teams vying for the title were from the conference. Since the formation of Hockey East, only one other conference has been able to do it once (WCHA).
• Over the last 12 seasons, Hockey East has dominated in terms of Frozen Four qualifiers with 20. The WCHA is second with 14.
  

We'll let those facts just speak for themselves. But with that said, are any of the teams in this year's field at all strong enough to make it to Ford Field for this year's Frozen Four?

Boston College: Northeast Regional (DCU Center - Worcester, Mass.)

History: BC holds an impressive 31-20 (.608) record in what we'll call from here on out at the Hockey East Era (1985-Present). No team in the conference has made more tournament appearances and only one Hockey East team has made more Frozen Four appearances than the Eagles, who sit at 18 and 10, respectively. The Eagles have gone to six title games in that time and have won two of them. They are the only Hockey East team to win more than one national championship in the 2000's. BC won the whole thing in its last tournament appearance in 2008 before missing the tourney altogether last year.

This year: Boston College has the shortest trip to its regional game, needing to just drive down the Pike about 30 minutes to Worcester. But that just might be the easiest part of the whole trip. Boston College is ranked third in the USCHO Poll and also in their bracket are No. 4 North Dakota, No. 8 Yale. It's the only bracket that has more than one team that received first-place votes in the poll.

The Eagles, who are the first seed in the Northeast Regional, will take on Alaska, who scooted in as the last at-large team. But make no mistake, the Nanooks are not to be looked past. Boston College is third in the nation in goals per game, but Alaska has done a pretty good job of keeping the puck out of the net, ranking ninth overall. Some think the travel might have an adverse affect on the Alaska squad, but seeing as the team has to travel to Michigan, Ohio and Indiana just to play a lot of its league games, it shouldn't be much more of a problem than any regular-season game. The problem for the Nanooks will be the fact that they have had difficulty scoring this season and the tandem of Parker Milner and John Muse has been one of the best in the nation behind a terrific defense.

Should the Eagles get past Alaska in the first round, either North Dakota or Yale will stand between them and the Frozen Four.

The Boston College-North Dakota history in the tournament has been well-documented. The two teams met in the 2000 and 2001 NCAA championships, each taking one apiece. Since then, the Sioux and the Eagles have met up in the tournament four times, all in consecutive seasons from 2005 to 2008. In 2005, North Dakota topped the BC in the quarterfinals, but the Eagles have had the last laugh(s), beating the Sioux for a spot in the title game the next three years. And, of course, we can't forget the regular season game in 2007 in which the ice at Conte Arena started to melt after a power outage and the game was called after two periods because there was too much fog. This year, North Dakota comes into the tournament as one of the hottest teams in the nation, winning 12 of their last 13 games, including the WCHA Final Five (beating the nation's 11th, 1st and 6th-ranked teams consecutively). Goalie Brad Eidsness is eighth in the nation in terms of goals against average with an impressive 2.09 mark over nearly 2,330 minutes this season.

Should the Eagles take on Yale, they will be facing oneof the most dynamic scorers in the nation in Broc Little. In fact, Yale is the top-scoring team in college hockey overall, averaging more than four goals per game. Especially impressive is Yale's power play, which converts on nearly one quarter of all of its opportunities. The Bulldogs are missing their best play in Sean Backman, which has to be a major concern, but the rest of the team has proven itself to have more than enough firepower to compete. On top of that, the Bulldogs live up to their name with physical play, which could come into play against a smaller team like Boston College.

New Hampshire: East Regional (Times Union Center - Albany, NY)

History: UNH has made 16 appearances, including the second-longest active streak in college hockey with nine consecutive tournament bids. Honestly, it could be said that this team more than any other has squandered its chances in the tournament with an unimpressive 11-15 mark in the playoffs, but they have been to four Frozen Fours and two title games. Last year very easily could have been another appearance for the 'Cats, who outplayed Boston University for most of the game, only to have a puck go off the Jerry Pollastrone's glove as he attempted to stop a shot and into the net in a game even BU coach Jack Parker said his team was "very, very fortunate" to have won.


This year: In Albany, New Hampshire may face two teams that will hold distinct home ice advantages in RIT and Cornell. And let's not forget No. 2 overall Denver, who at several points this season held the top spot.

Cornell will be the Wildcats' first-round opponent in a battle of two contrasting styles. Cornell is defensive-minded all the way and it shows in their stats. They boast what some consider the best goalie in the nation in Ben Scrivens, whose 1.78 GAA is tops in the country. As a result, Cornell is tied with top-ranked Miami for first in the Division I in team defense (1.85 goals/game). UNH, on the other end of the spectrum, relies on outgunning opponents, ranking 11th in the nation in team scoring, led by Hobey Baker hopeful Bobby Butler, who is second in the country in goals scored.

Should the 'Cats move on to play Denver, they run into a team that still feels like it has something to prove after losing two WCHA tournament games. Denver is a very ballanced team with good offense and a better defense. Bruins draft pick Joe Colborne is the man to watch with the game on the line as he is tied for first with eight game-winning goals this year. It would also be an interesting storyline of two Florida Panthers draft picks between the pipes in Brian Foster and Marc Cheverie. Cheverie is second in the nation in winning percentage behind BC's Parker Milner, but keep in mind Cheverie has played 32 games (24-5-3) to Milner's 13 (10-2-1).

If the 'Cats next opponents be RIT, they would be facing a true Cinderella story. RIT was ranked 25th in the PairWise Rankings and was a far cry from an at-large bid, but won the AHA, so none of that mattered. The Tigers are in the first national tournament in the school's history and carry with them a 10-game winning streak. Should they be able to beat No. 2 Denver, the momentum would definitely be on their side. RIT has been a pretty explosive offensive team and their team defense has been subperb with Jared DeMichael (2.00 GAA) between the pipes. Granted, some stats might be skewed a bit by the fact they play in a weak conference, but the fact of the matter is RIT is a balanced team, something UNH has had some difficulty with this season.

Vermont: West Regional (Xcel Energy Center - St. Paul, Minn.)

History: Vermont has only been a part of Hockey East since the 2005-06 season, but have already become a viable threat as part of the league, going to the Frozen Four last year in its first appearance as a Hockey East team. They beat Yale, then Air Force in a double-overtime game and then were victimized by a tough-luck goal in a loss to BU after outplaying the Terriers pretty much all game, preventing them from moving on to the title game. The Catamounts, who were part of the ECAC before joining Hockey East, have been to five tournaments altogether and have made it to the frozen four in two of them.

This year: As the No. 4 seed in the West, Vermont takes on maybe the softest of the top seeds in Wisconsin. The Badgers are certainly a great team, but some consider North Dakota or even Cornell to be better squads. Wisonsin lost to St. Cloud State in the Frozen Five, but salvaged the tournament with a win over Denver, otherwise the Badgers surely would have lost a No. 1 seeding. If there's one thing Wisconsin knows how to do, it's score. In a year when the WCHA has been very tough, the Badgers ranked first in the league and second in the nation in scoring offense. Scoring has been a problem for Vermont this year, ranking in the bottom half of th3 country in that respect, so the Catamounts may end up relying heavily on Rob Madore, who has had a habit of coming up with big perfomances in the postseason.

Should the Catamounts advance, it could be the team that beat the Badgers in the Final Five that they face next. St. Cloud State has been in the top-10 in the polls for the better part of the season. While not an elite team in any area, St. Cloud is proficient in all of them and has hung with what might be the most difficult conference schedule this year. The one place where St. Cloud is deficient is on the penalty kill, but likewise, Vermont is one of the worst in the country in that department.

Northern Michigan is another team that isn't overly impressive in any area, but gave itself a major boost by making it to the CCHA final. What would make this matchup interesting is in making it to the final, the Wildcats knocked Ferris State out of tournament consideration in the process and was one of the reasons UVM ended up in the tournament at all. As one of the better defensive teams in the nation, Northern Michigan could prove a challenge to a UVM team that just plain doesn't score many goals. Even a couple of goals could end up in a win and a ticket to the Frozen Four for the Wildcats.