Boston College Athletics
BC Hosts Northeastern on NBC Sports Network
October 30, 2013 | Men's Hockey
Oct. 30, 2013
Game Notes: Boston College | Northeastern
Listen Live (WEEI 850 AM | BCEagles.com)
Play-by-play: Jon Rish | Color: Andy Powers
Watch Live on NBC Sports Network
Play-by-play: Dave Goucher | Color: Ken Hodge
* For those with the NBC Sports Network, NBC Sports Live Extra, NBC Sports Group's live streaming product for desktops, mobile devices, and tablets, will stream all league games telecast on NBCSN
BOSTON COLLEGE VS. NORTHEASTERN
After what seemed to be Big Ten league play to start the season, Boston College finally gets Hockey East play going with a home-and-home series against Northeastern. This cross-town series has been ongoing for 80 years with the first meeting taking place at The Heights on Feb. 4, 1933. The Eagles won that fixture, 8-6, and went on to win 56 of the next 64 contests (56-4-4) into the mid-1960s. Boston College owns the overall series record, 158-47-14, making Friday's game the 220th installment of this Boston-based series. The last time Northeastern knocked off the Eagles marked a significant setback for BC. The Huskies opened their season at Matthews Arena on Oct. 13, 2012, and ousted heavily-favored BC, ending the Eagles 19-game winning streak, dating back to their most recent national championship captured in Tampa, Fla., in 2012. BC has not lost since that game, winning the next three, including last year's Beanpot championship bout, 6-3.
NOTING NORTHEASTERN
Following a nine-win season and last place finish in Hockey East from the 2012-13 campaign, Northeastern has turned some heads with its 5-1 start to the season. The Huskies' 5-0-0 start marked the first time since the 1988-89 season and just the fourth time in program history. Heading into Hockey East play, Northeastern is tied with Providence as the top-scoring unit in all the land. Northeastern has lit the lamp 30 times so far, standing as the benchmark in college hockey, and is averaging 5.00 goals per game. NU backs it up with a 20th-ranked defense, allowing 2.50 goals per game, which yields the country's fourth-best scoring margin to date (+2.50 gpg). One-third of the Huskies' goals have come via the power play as NU has scored 10 times on 35 chances (28.6 percent), good for seventh best in the NCAA. Through six games, Kevin Roy leads the way for NU with 2.00 points per game (7-5-12) and is tied for second in the country in scoring.
NEXT...ON SPORTSCENTER
In Boston College's thrilling 3-3 tie at Minnesota on Oct. 25, freshman defenseman Ian McCoshen made the play of the day...literally. In front of his hometown crowd, the Faribault, Minn., native caught a deflected shot out of thin air just inches from the goal line and flung it to safety with 1:20 remaining in overtime to help maintain a point for the Eagles. McCoshen's play was featured as the No. 1 play of the day on SportsCenter's known commodity of its Top 10 Plays of the Day. Later on, the play was highlighted as the top play in college hockey on the NCAA's "Top Five Plays of the Week".
HOCKEY EAST OPENERS
The Eagles enter their 30th season of Hockey East competition on Nov. 1 against Northeastern. In Hockey East openers, Boston College has amassed an overall mark of 17-8-4 (.655). BC went 5-0-0 in its first five league trials before Northeastern ended that streak in 1989.
GAME OF THE WEEK...EVERY WEEK
Boston College's two-game series at top-ranked Minnesota marked the Eagles' fourth- and fifth-consecutive contests against national ranked opponents. No. 4 BC started off at No. 11 Michigan and followed that with the home opener against No. 15 Rensselaer. On Oct. 18, the Eagles welcomed No. 2 Wisconsin. In Boston College's first four games, the combined rankings between BC and its opponent has been the lowest across the rest of the NCAA's composite schedule. Without RPI rankings available, it can be deduced that BC has had one of the nation's toughest schedules in the opening month. The Nov. 1 game against No. 19 Northeastern counts as BC's sixth-consecutive game against a nationally-ranked foe.
JOHNNY THE CENTURIAN
Johnny Gaudreau became Boston College's 74th player in program history to score 100 points for his career. Gaudreau turned the trick in 82 career games, totaling 44 goals and 58 assists for 102 points. Gaudreau's 1.23points per game for his career is the NCAA's top mark as are his 12-career game-winning goals.
GEAU AHEAD
Through five games, Johnny Gaudreau is tied for 15th in the country in scoring and fourth amongst Hockey East, averaging 1.60 points per game. The Carneys Point, N.J., native has logged three goals, including a pair of power play markers, and five assists in his first five outings. He has scored at least one point in all but one game, including a pair of three-point outings against RPI and Wisconsin.
HOMETOWN HERO
One week after junior Michael Sit curbed his scoring draught as an Eagle and tallied his first-collegiate goal in his 80th outing against Wisconsin on Oct. 18, the following outing was even sweeter. Sit, a native of Edina, Minn., posted his first multi-point performance at BC with a pair of goals at Minnesota on Oct. 25. Sit's two goals occurred 11 seconds apart.
SAVAGED
With one goal and four assists in his first four collegiate games, rookie defenseman Scott Savage is tied for fourth in the country amongst all blue liners with his 1.25 points per game clip. That mark also ties him for ninth amongst all first-year skaters.
BIG TEN / HOCKEY EAST CHALLENGE
Boston College has been at the forefront of the newly-created Big Ten / Hockey East Challenge. This challenge took place over the course of 13 games from Oct. 18 to Oct. 27. The Michigan game did not count towards the challenge, so the Eagles went 1-1-1 to help their league win the challenge by a 7-4-2 margin. Points were awarded as follows: two points for a win, one point for a tie and a bonus point for a road win. Hockey East leads the Big Ten heading into this weekend, 9-4.
DON'T BE OFFENSE-DED
Boston College's 17-goal total through three games is the most for the Eagles since scoring 20 from Dec. 3 to Dec. 30, 2010. BC scored nine and five goals, in that order, over BU before hanging six on Colgate. The Eagles' 17-goal start was the most for the program since the 2002-03 season when Jerry York's club opened with 18 goals from Oct. 13 to Oct. 20, 2002. BC scored six, four and eight goals, to open the season. BC is now averaging 4.20 goals per game, standing as the eighth-ranked offense in the country and third in the conference.
LAMP LIGHTERS
The Eagles lit up Wisconsin for nine goals on Oct. 18. The last time Boston College scored nine goals in a game was a 9-3 victory over Northeastern at Matthews Arena on Jan. 19, 2013. The last time the Eagles lit the lamp nine times at home was in a 9-0 victory against Massachusetts on Jan. 31, 2003.
CONNECT FOUR
Boston College subdued Wisconsin with an early onslaught of a four-goal first period on Oct. 18. BC's four-goal first period is the first for the Eagles since they netted five in the opening frame against Providence on Feb. 25, 2012. The last time BC scored four goals in any period was in the second period against Vermont on March 9, 2013.
MATHeson's ARITHMETIC EQUATION
On Oct. 18 in the 9-2 win over Wisconsin, Michael Matheson was a plus-seven rating, marking the highest career total of any current Eagle. Travis Jeke held the highest mark with a plus-six rating against Northeastern on Jan. 19, 2013. Defensive partner Ian McCoshen was a plus-six in the Wisconsin game, as well.
MAN-DOWN MARKERS
Senior captain Patrick Brown scored his first goal of the season in short-handed fashion on Oct. 18 and first since a 4-1 win over Vermont in the Hockey East Tournament on March 16, 2013. It marks his first-career short-handed goal and BC's first since Bill Arnold netted one in a 4-2 win over Boston University on Nov. 11, 2012. It also marked Brown's first mutli-point game at Boston College with an assist on Scott Savage's first-career goal. With Brown's short-handed marker, the Eagles have matched last year's total.
REMINISCENT OF 2008?
Boston College lost its season opener in a physical battle to No. 11 Michigan on Oct. 10 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 powered past Denver at Conte Forum, 6-2.
25 SEASONS AT KELLEY RINK
BC 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).
#EagleTweetables
• .@BCHockeyNews is 17-8-4 in @hockey_east openers heading into its 30th season of conference play #WeAreBC
• Freshman defenseman Ian McCoshen's defensive play at Minnesota on Oct. 25 was chosen the top play on ESPN's SportsCenter #WeAreBC
• Junior forward Johnny Gaudreau broke the 100-point plateau and became the 74th Eagle to accomplish the feat #WeAreBC
• After scoring his first goal in his 80th-career game, Michael Sit netted a pair 11 seconds apart in his home state on Oct. 25 #WeAreBC
• .@BCHockeyNews is the youngest team in college hockey with an average age of 20 years and 58 days #WeAreBC
