Trophy Season: Eagles Eye Northeastern in Beanpot Semifinals

Monday, February 5

5:00 PM

Boston College

Northeastern University

Trophy Season: Eagles Eye Northeastern in Beanpot Semifinals

February 04, 2018 | Men's Hockey

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The 20-time Beanpot champions look for a strong performance on Monday night at TD Garden against a hungry Northeastern team at 5 p.m. in the first Beanpot semifinal

By: Athletic Communications

BOSTON COLLEGE IN THE BEANPOT
Boston College returns to Causeway Street for the 66th annual Beanpot Tournament on February 5, 2018. The Eagles will take on Northeastern in the first game of the semifinal matchup for the first time since 2014-15. Boston College looks to avenge last year's disappointing showing in Boston's mid-winter classic as the Eagles skated to their first fourth-place finish since head coach Jerry York took over in 1994. After a 3-1 loss to archrival Boston University in the semis last season, Northeastern clipped BC in the consolation bout, 4-2, on Feb. 13. The 2017 Beanpot result was a far cry for Boston College's last tournament victory which took place in historic fashion in 2016. Alex Tuch scored the overtime winning goal over the Terriers on Feb. 8, 2016, in the tournament's first-ever 0-0 scoreless regulation finish. This season, Boston College will look to knock off Hockey East's hottest offense in Northeastern and avenge a 5-2 loss on The Heights on Dec. 9 before the first half came ot a close. Northeastern snapped BC's attempt at tying the Beanpot record of six-straight titles in 2015 when the Huskies topped the Eagles in the first round. The Eagles five-straight Beanpots from 2010 to 2014 are a school record. York has has won nine Beanpot titles (2001, 2004, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2016), surpassing legendary BC skipper John "Snooks" Kelley. York is now second, all-time, in the pantheon of Beanpot coaches behind BU's Jack Parker (21 Beanpot trophies). In all, Boston College has won the Beanpot 20 times with 15 runners-up showings, 23 third-place finishes and only seven last-place finishes. In all, York is 31-15 in the Beanpot. Over the course of the tournament, Boston College has been awarded 17 MVP trophies and 12 Eberly awards. The most recent recipients of those trophies was Kevin Hayes (MVP) and Thatcher Demko (Eberly) in 2014. Last season, Harvard broke up the Battle of Comm Ave. party and hoisted the coveted Beanpot to close out the 65th annual tournament last year, ending a streak that stood since 1993 where only Boston College of Boston University had won the Beanpot. In that run from 1993 to 2016, BC had won 10 trophies and BU has claimed 12 titles.

BOSTON COLLEGE vs. NORTHEASTERN IN THE BEANPOT
Boston College and Northeastern will skate in the early affair in the semifinal round of the 66th installment of the annual Beanpot Tournament. Monday's early bout in the semifinal contest marks the 46th fixture between the Commonwealth Ave. and Huntington Ave. residents in the Beanpot as Boston College owns a significant 34-11 overall advantage over Northeastern, although recent history has favored the Huskies. The 2018 semifinal marks the first time BC has played Northeastern in the semifinal since 2015 where NU snapped BC's attempt at tying the Beanpot record of six-straight titles as the Huskies topped the Eagles in the first round, 3-2. The last time Boston College and Northeastern met in the Beanpot, the Huskies sent BC to its first fourth-place finish under York, winning 3-2, and possible keeping the Eagles out of the NCAA Tournament picture according to the Pairwise rankings. Monday marks the 23rd semifinal contest between Boston College and Northeastern as the Eagles have won seven of the last 10 of those encounters and possess a 17-5 mark, total, in semifinal bouts with NU. Aside from the last two meetings in 2015 and 2017, Boston College and Northeastern have squared off with the Beanpot right in front of their eyes. From 2011 to 2014, three of the last four Beanpot title games had been between the Eagles and Huskies. BC won all three (2011 – 7-6 (ot) | 2013 – 6-3 | 2014 – 4-1) and owns a 4-1 record against NU, all-time, in the Beanpot finals. Northeastern's first-ever Beanpot trophy came when Wayne Turner scored the overtime winner against the Eagles in 1980. BC and NU have also played in 18 consolation affairs and the Eagles have won 13 of those contests. Northeastern is BC's most common opponent in the Beanpot and Monday's encounter marks the 46th game between the two. BC is 34-11 against NU, all-time, in the Beanpot. Monday denotes Jerry York's 13th Beanpot game against Northeastern. He currently possesses a 9-3 mark against the Huskies.

HOUNDING THE HUSKIES
It would be difficult to find a more balanced, dynamic club than Northeastern currently as the Huskies not only sport two of college hockey's most prolific scorers, but also has a top-10 defense on the back end. Despite their 15-7-5 record, the Huskies are currently on their first three-game winless (0-1-2) after going 8-1-1 from the beginning of December until mid-January. Northeastern's Dylan Sikura and Adam Gaudette, two Hobey Baker hopefuls, are currently tied for first and third, respectively, in the country in points per game. Sikura is averaging 1.50 points per game while Gaudette is logging 1.44 points per game. Those two totals are best in Hockey East while senior Nolan Stevens is fourth in the conference, averaging one point per game. Gaudette is tied for scoring the second-most goals in the nation (19) and is third in the NCAA with 0.70 goals per game. Sikura leads the nation in assists, doling out near one assist (0.96 APG) per outing. All three aforementioned Huskies (Gaudette, Sikura, Stevens) are tied for second, nationally, as all three have accounted for eight power play goals this season. On the blue line, sophomore Jeremy Davies is tied for 12th in the NCAA amongst all defensemen with 0.80 points per game (4-16-20). Newcomer Zach Solow is tied for 34th, nationally, amongst all first-year players with 0.63 points per game (4-13-17). Northeastern's defensive anchor, freshman goaltender Cayden Primeau, boasts some pretty lofty numbers as the first-year backstopper is seventh in the nation in goals against average (2.01) and 11th in save percentage (.921). Primeau's 11-5-5 (.643) record and winning percentage are tied for 11th in the country. In all, Northeastern's offense is ranked seventh (3.41 goals per game) in the NCAA while the defense is slotted in eighth (2.26 gpg). Both of those units rank best in Hockey East.

ATOP THE LEADERBOARD
Despite coming away with any points in Hartford on Feb. 2 after a 5-3 loss to UConn, the Eagles maintained their first-place lead on Hockey East after Northeastern tied New Hampshire and Providence lost to Vermont. Boston College is 13-11-3 in Hockey East with five games to go and is in search for its 16th regular-season crown.

HIGH-FLYIN' FIN
After Julius Mattila strung together a nine-game pointstreak from Nov. 17 to Jan. 6, the Finnish product went on a five-game point draught. Mattila snapped that scoreless string with his seventh and eighth goals of the season at UConn on Feb. 2. Mattila accounted for his second-career two-goal performance and second of the season (Nov. 24 vs. Harvard), including his second power play goal of the year.

McPHEELIN' IT
Sophomore Graham McPhee leads the Eagles with 11 goals on the season seven of which since the turn of the calendar year. Against UMass Lowell, McPhee scored a pait of goals on the 26th and then scored the game winner on the 27th, his second of the season and first since his one at Northeastern on Nov. 18. The Las Vegas native is tied for 73rd, nationally in goals per game (0.41 gpg) and tied for ninth in Hockey East.

CAN'T KEEP UP WITH COTTON
Sophomore David Cotton scored his third power play goal of the season, second in four games, against Lowell on Jan. 27. It marked the sophomore's seventh goal of the season and team-leading seventh-career power play tally. After a seven-game point streak from Dec. 2 to Jan. 14, Cotton had gone scoreless his last two outings but ended that quick dry spell last week.

SPECIAL TEAMS SPREE
Julius Mattila's power play goal at UConn on Feb. 2 extended Boston College's streak to six games in which BC has scored at least one power play goal in a game. Boston College's penalty-killing unit has done a nice job of turning a positive into a negative as the Eagles are tied for sixth in the nation with four short-handed goals this season. Boston College is one of 13 teams in the NCAA with at least four short-handed goals as Julius Mattila, Graham McPhee, Christopher Brown and Christopher Grando have all accounted for a short-handed goal this season.

THE BRICK WOLL
Sophomore backstopper Joseph Woll has stopped 508-of-564 shots faced in his first 21 outings for a .901 save percentage which is currently 53rd in all of college hockey while his 2.74 goals against average ranks 38th in the game. Woll has stopped 1,420 - of - 1,563 shots faced (.909 save percentage) with a career mark of 2.68 goals against average. Woll was also one of 20 goalies named to the watch list for the 2018 Mike Richter Award, which annually honors the most outstanding goaltender in NCAA Division I men's hockey. Woll recently returned from the 2018 IIHF World Junior Championship where he backstopped Team USA to a bronze medal.

DEFENDING THE NEST
Boston College's defense continues to limit the opposing lamp being lit as BC is now holding its opponents to 2.81 goals per game. That number is tied for 28th, nationally, and sixth overall in the league. Over the course of the last five games, BC has only given up more than three goals twice.

EDDIE THE EAGLE
Sophomore goaltender Ryan Edquist secured his first-career shutout on Dec. 30 via 23 saves against UConn in his fourth start of the season, tenth of his career. The Lakeville, Minn. native's shutout marks BC's first shutout of the season and first shutout for the Eagles since Joseph Woll blanked Vermont on March 10, 2017. Edquist also stopped a career-best 42 shots at St. Cloud on Oct. 20. The Lakeville, Minn. native came in with 1.6 seconds left at Merrimack and made a game-tying save to preserve an Eagle victory. Edquist is 3-2-1 on the season with a .927 save percentage and a 2.11 goals against average.

CASE'N THE JOINT
Captain Casey Fitzgerald is BC's leading scoring defenseman (4-10-14), which is tied for 17th in the conference. The junior leads the Eagles in shots on goal (73), second in blocked shots (25) and scored his first power play goal of the season on Jan. 6 vs. NMU.

LOOSE CHANGE FROM UCONN on FEB. 2
- After Julius Mattila strung together a nine-game pointstreak from Nov. 17 to Jan. 6, the Finnish product went on a five-game point draught. Mattila snapped that scoreless string with his seventh and eighth goals of the season at UConn. Mattila accounted for his second-career two-goal performance and second of the season (Nov. 24 v. Harvard), including his second power play goal of the year.

- Mattila's two tallies at UConn marks the 10th time this season an Eagle scored two goals in a game.

- Mattila's power play goal in the second period extended Boston College's streak to six games in which BC has scored at least one power play goal in a game.

- JD Dudek scored his fifth goal of the season and second in as many games late in the third period. It marks the second time in his career that he's scored back-to-back goals and first time since Jan. 20-24, 2017.

- Michael Karow recorded assists in back-to-back outings for the second time this season the Green Bay, Wisc. native helped out on Mattila's marker in the first period. Christopher Grando also set up Mattila on his first goal for his 10th helper of the season and second in as many games.

- Michael Kim has assisted on power play goals in back to back contests after setting up Mattila on his second-period sniper. It marks the first time the Toronto native has assisted in consecutive outings this season. Logan Hutsko also assisted on Mattila's power play goal, marking his second-straight game with an assist on the power play. Hutsko has 12 assists on the season and upped his point total to 17 (5-12-17) through 27 games.

- Jacob Tortora assisted on Dudek's third-period goal, marking the second time this season the rookie has recorded points in back-to-back outings (Nov. 11-17, 2017).