Boston College Athletics
Men's Hockey Opens Up at Conte vs. RPI
October 12, 2013 | Men's Hockey
Oct. 12, 2013
Games Notes: Boston College | Renssealer
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BOSTON COLLEGE VS. RENSSELAER
Sunday afternoon’s showdown against the Engineers marks the first meeting with RPI since Oct. 13, 2007, in the third-place contest of the IceBreaker Tournament in St. Paul, Minn. In fact, the Eagles have never lost to RPI in a neutral game contest, holding an unblemished mark of 6-0-0. Boston College has also been dominant against RPI at home, owning a 9-1-5 win-loss-tie total over Rensselaer. The Engineers have defended home ice well, winning 9-of-13 games in Troy, N.Y. In that game at the IceBreaker Tournament, BC surrendered the first tally before Mike Brennan, Ben Smith, Nathan Gerbe and Dan Bertram scored to power past RPI. Sunday marks the 36th meeting between Boston College and Rensselaer as the Eagles own the overall advantage, 19-14-1. The last 10 meetings have split right down the middle with each team winning the last five outings. The two historic clubs first met on Dec. 18, 1954, where BC emerged victoriously, 5-3.
EYE ON THE ENGINEERS
Fifteenth-ranked Rensselaer got off to a strong start with a 6-0 pummeling of Sacred Heart on Friday night, Oct. 11, at Webster Bank Arena in Bridgeport, Conn. Junior Ryan Haggerty scored two goals and sophomore goaltender Jason Kasdorf sopped all 13 shots in the victory. With the victory, RPI head coach Seth Appert clinched his 100th-career victory in his eighth season, bringing his overall total to 100-136-31. The Engineers return a team with heavy veteran leadership in 2013-14. RPI returns 12 forwards, consisting of three seniors, five juniors and four sophomores. Eight of them were among the team’s top 10 leading point producers. Expectations are high in Troy, N.Y., after RPI finished second in the ECAC last season, its highest finish since the 1992-93 campaign. The Engineers finished 18-14-5 after starting off league play with a 0-5-1 mark. RPI battled back and won 12 of its remaining 16 games to finish 12-6-3 in the conference.
REMINISCENT OF 2008?
Boston College lost its season opener in a physical battle to No. 11 Michigan on Thursday night at Yost Ice Arena. The Eagles and Wolverines initiated one another seasons in 2007-08, where Michigan won a 4-3 overtime contest at the IceBreaker Tournament in St. Paul, Minn. Despite that lost, Boston College’s season culminated by winning its third national championship over Notre Dame on Apr. 12, 2008, in Denver, Colo.
EVEN EAGLES
Boston College has won the NCAA championship each of the last three even years (2008, 2010, 2012). The Eagles defeated Notre Dame in 2008, Wisconsin in 2010 and Ferris State in 2012. In fact, Boston College has made the Frozen Four the last five even years, finishing as runner-up in 2006 to Wisconsin and losing in the 2004 semifinals to Maine.
McCAUTION
Freshman defenseman Ian McCoshen scored Boston College’s first goal of the season at Michigan on Oct. 10, 2013. The Faribault, Minn., native is first defenseman to score the Eagles’ first goal of the season since Patrick Eaves on Oct. 15, 2004. In that contest, BC power past Denver at Conte Forum, 6-2.
BATTLE OF THE TITANS
The Boston College - Michigan matchup symbolized lots of college hockey history. Since 1997, the Eagles and Wolverines sit atop the most prestigious categories in the game. BC owns the most national championships (4), NCAA Tournament victories (32), Frozen Four appearances (10) and national runners-up showings (4) over any other program in college hockey. Michigan leads the way in total victories (436) and NCAA Tournament appearances (15). In all, U-M owns the most national championships all-time (9) while BC has captured five in its course of history. In regards to overall tournament appearances U-M and BC rank first and third, respectively. The Wolverines have appeared 35 times in the NCAA Tournament while BC has gone 32 times. Michigan and BC also rank first and second, in that order, when it comes to Frozen Four appearances. U-M holds the slightest of margins, 24-23.
YORK vs. BERENSON
When Boston College head coach Jerry York and University of Michigan head coach Red Berenson met on Oct. 10, 2013, more history was on the line. Those two coaches represent the most active career win total amongst college hockey coaches today. York’s 935 victories is the college hockey benchmark while Berenson’s 771 victories is second-best amongst active coaches and fifth highest all-time. Together, the two have won 1,706 college hockey games.
IN YORK WE TRUST
Jerry York, The Schiller Family Head Hockey Coach at Boston College, is a cornerstone of college hockey. York begins the season as the game’s all-time winningest coach with 935 victories. On Dec. 29, 2012, York surpassed Ron Mason (Michigan State) to become the active leader with a victory over Alabama-Huntsville in Minneapolis, Minn, securing his 925th career win.
UNPRECEDENTED PUCKDROP
The Oct. 10, 2013, contest between Boston College and Michigan marked the beginning of a new era. Yost Ice Arena played host to the first-ever contest between the Hockey East Association and the newly-formed Big Ten hockey conference. It also marks the first team of the Big Ten Conference to play a regular season game.
EAGLES TABBED CO-FAVORITES TO WIN HOCKEY EAST TITLE
Boston College has been chosen as the preseason co-favorite to win the Hockey East regular-season crown voted on by the league coaches and announced at the conference’s annual media day at TD Garden on Sept. 24, 2013. The Eagles received the same amount of points as UMass Lowell (104 points) and garnered four of the league’s 11 first-place votes. The Eagles’ co-favorite pick marks the sixth straight season and 13th time in the last 15 seasons that BC has been picked as the preseason favorite, or co-favorite, to win the league title.
EAGLE(T)S
Boston College is the youngest team in college hockey. As of Oct. 1, 2013, the Eagles’ collective average age is 20 years and 58 days, 180 days younger than ironically, their opponent on Thursday night. Michigan is the second youngest team in the country with an average age of 20 years and 238 days. One of the biggest reasons Boston College is the youngest team, collectively, in the country is because it has college hockey’s youngest player, rookie goaltender Thatcher Demko. The San Diego, Calif., native was born on Dec. 8, 1995. Boston College is one of nine teams to usher in a class of 10 freshmen in 2013-14 (Michigan is one of those clubs). Northeastern and Sacred Heart lead the way with 12 while Alabama-Hunstville welcomes in 11.
PRO-RATED EAGLES
Boston College’s 2013-14 roster sports 11 players selected in the NHL Entry Draft. Only North Dakota (15), Minnesota (14) and Michigan (12) have more. Notre Dame also has 11 on its squad. Five of BC’s incoming freshmen were drafted in either 2012 or 2013, including Ian McCoshen (Florida – 2nd round – 31st – 2013), Steve Santini (New Jersey – 2nd round – 42nd – 2013), Chris Calnan (Chicago – 3rd round – 79th – 2012), Ryan Fitzgerald (Boston – 4th round – 120th – 2013) and Adam Gilmour (Minnesota - 4th round - 98th - 2012). Senior Kevin Hayes and sophomore Michael Matheson are Jerry York’s 10th and 11th first-round draft picks he has secured, respectively. Hayes was selected by Chicago in the first round (24th overall) in 2010 while Matheson’s rights were dealt to Florida in 2012 (23rd overall). Matheson became the 14th Eagle in the last 26 years to have been selected in the first round of the NHL Entry Draft.
HERE’S JOHNNY
College hockey’s leading scorer (in points per game) is back. Johnny Gaudreau, a fourth-round selection (104th overall) of the Calgary Flames in 2011, logged 51 points (1.46 ppg) in 35 games by way of 21 goals and 30 assists. The Carneys Point, N.J., native is college hockey’s active leader in career game-winning goals with 11. The next closest is Allan McPhearson of Clarkson with nine. For his career, the 5-8 left hander is averaging 1.20 points per game and is four points away from reaching the 100-point plateau (42-54-96). Gaudreau is the reigning Hockey East Player of the Year, an ACHA All-America East first-teamer, the Leonard Fowle Award as New England MVP and was one of three finalists for the Hobey Baker Memorial Award in 2013, given to the nation’s premier collegiate player. Gaudreau missed two games later year while representing his country at the World Junior Championship.
NESTING EAGLES
The BC hockey program now has three coaches on staff that are Boston College alums. Including York (’67) and Associate Head Coach Greg Brown (’90), the addition of Marty McInnis (’90) comprises the triumvirate. All three coaches have been inducted into the Boston College Varsity Club Hall of Fame. Mike Ayers (New Hampshire ‘04) is also new to this year’s coaching staff.
BOSTON COLLEGE AND THE NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
The Boston College hockey program is tied for the lead with Wisconsin in having the most names from one college on the Stanley Cup. Both BC and the Badgers have 16 names from their respective programs on hockey’s silver chalice. BC’s representatives are Joe Mullen (1989 – Calgary, 1991, 1992 - Pittsburgh), Kevin Stevens (1991, 1992 – Pittsburgh), Brian Leetch (1994 – NY Rangers), Bill Guerin (1995 – New Jersey, 2009 - Pittsburgh), Doug Brown (1997, 1998 – Detroit), Brian Gionta (2003 – New Jersey), Ryan Shannon (2007 – Anaheim), Rob Scuderi (2009 – Piitsburgh, 2012 – Los Angeles), Brooks Orpik (2009 – Pittsburgh) and Ben Smith (Chicago – 2013).
BC LEADS HOCKEY EAST IN NHL RANKS
Boston College led all Hockey East members in number of alumni to open the 2013-14 season on National Hockey League rosters. Fifteen former Eagles will help constitute Hockey East’s group of 50 alumni to start off the season. Nine active Hockey East alums have won the Stanley Cup, including BC’s Ben Smith who won it last season with the Chicago Blackhawks. Boston University is the only other Hockey East team with more than ten former players who made NHL teams this season, finishing second behind the Eagles with 11.
YORK IN SEASON-OPENING GAMES
Since Jerry York took over the BC program in 1994, the Eagles have amassed a 12-7-1 mark in season opening games of the season.
25 SEASONS AT KELLEY RINK
Boston College celebrates its 25th season of playing hockey on Kelley Rink at Conte Forum. Starting in 1988, the BC’s overall record at Kelley Rink is 277-107-34 (.700). The Eagles played at McHugh Forum prior from 1958-86 when Boston College posted an overall mark of 282-95-10 (.748).
FOLLOW @BCHockeyNews ON TWITTER
Be sure to follow the Boston College hockey program via Twitter at twitter.com/BCHockeyNews (@BCHockeyNews) and by using the hashtag WeAreBC and BCHockey. This account will provide insight to the program and provide in-game updates along the way. Also, be sure to follow BC’s other main Twitter account, @BCSportsNews, and ‘Like’ us on Facebook at Facebook.com/BostonCollegeAthletics. The Eagles are also on Instagram at Instagram.com/bcathletics.
