2009 NCAA Tournament: The Frozen Four

I’ve taken this time to digest what’s happened in college hockey over the past few weeks.  Well.. to be honest, I got into another car accident so I’ve been trying to deal with that, and working a lot also.  But its been a crazy few weeks for college hockey and college hockey fans.  Making the trip to Manchester, I don’t think I’ve ever watched so much college hockey.  We literally drove around to find places to watch more, and it was a ton of fun.  Add to that the two BU victories, and a trip to the Frozen Four for the first time ever for the Terriers.  It was a great weekend.  Continuing on, it’s still one and done the rest of the way, but the usual cast of characters are definitely not there.  The way the tournament has shaped up so far has provided one of the most interesting Frozen Fours to date.

Let’s recap on some of the great surprises of the tournament so far:

• Air Force took down #3 Michigan in the first game of the 2009 Tournament.
• Miami took it to Denver in the West Regional, taking out the #4 Pioneers.
• Bemidji State smoked Notre Dame, 5-1, in the Midwest Regional.
• Minnesota Duluth tied Princeton with 0.8 seconds left in their game.  Then proceeded to win in overtime.
• UNH tied North Dakota with 0.1 second left in their game.  Then proceeded to win in overtime.
• After a nearly 20 minute review, a shot by Vermont that went through the net proved to be the game winner, knocking Air Force out and punching Vermont’s ticket to the frozen four.  This review happened 5 minutes after the initial shot…
• Bemidji State destroyed Cornell 4-1, punching the first ever ticket to the Frozen Four by a non-big 4 conference team.
• Miami held off Duluth… making it 2 #4 seeds in the Frozen Four.

BU, actually, was the only team to hold serve.  However, it was just barely, as New Hampshire coach Dick Umile formulated an excellent defensive plan, and his team executed it nearly to perfection, keeping the game tied at 1 until an unfortunate re-direction by Senior Jerry Pollastrone put the puck in his own net. With only 14.4 seconds left.  That’s how close it was for the Terriers.  One lucky bounce and either one of the two teams could be in the Frozen Four.

That being said, BU is the overwhelming favorite to win it all now.  However, they by no means have the easiest road to a title.  The Terriers next face #9 Vermont, the only team to defeat them twice this year.  Both of those victories happened at Agganis Arena as well, and only weeks after BU thumped Vermont 7-2 at the Gut.  Another interesting tidbit: Both of these teams are undefeated at neutral sites…. one of those teams will have that streak ended for this season.

The strangest thing is that there will definitely be a #4 seed in the championship game.  I don’t know the last time that happened (or if it ever happened before), but it shows that there really is parity in college hockey.  Any one team can win on any given night.  I don’t think it’s possible that anyone would have picked these four teams to be duking it out for the national championship.  My bracket was busted after the first night.  The only one regional that turned out the way I thought it would was the Northeast Regional.  Luckily, it turned out the way I wanted, and I got to see some excellent hockey…. despite some aggravation provided by BU’s own fans, but I’ll leave that to be discussed at a later time.

In about 4 days time, we’ll have crowned a new champion in Division 1 college hockey.  I may be there for it, I may not be.  But the excitement is building, and I can’t wait.  Stay tuned for more.. as we preview the games, and reflect back on the season as it winds to an end.

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Terriers Take Home Denver Cup

In two very impressive outings this past weekend, the Boston University Terriers captured the Wells Fargo Denver Cup, defeating RPI 6-2 and Denver University 4-1.  The tournament marked the opening of the 2009 half of the Terriers’ ice hockey campaign, and if this is indicative of what we can expect from BU in 2009, things are looking very good. Read more

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