Top-ranked Boston College and Quinnipiac face off in regional final

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Boston College and Quinnipiac have a made a regional showcase out of the NCAA Providence Regionals.

The No. 1 ranked and top-seeded Eagles (32-5-1) will engage the reigning national champion and No. 3 seed Bobcats (27-9-2) in the regional final on Sunday (4 p.m.) at Amica Mutual Pavilion. The winner will advance to the Frozen Four on April 11 at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn.

Boston College plays in Hockey East while Quinnipiac competes in the ECAC, two neighboring conferences represented by schools from states that border Rhode Island. BC is 54.3 miles due north of Amica Mutual Pavilion while Quinnipiac is 112 miles away in southwest Connecticut.

BC advanced with a 6-1 victory over No. 4 seed Michigan Tech in Friday’s opening semifinal while Quinnipiac outlasted No. 2 seed Wisconsin, 3-2, in overtime in the nightcap. Because of the geographical proximity of the programs, the players can expect a packed house and an electric atmosphere.

“The crowd was great,” said BC second-year coach Greg Brown after the win over Michigan Tech. “We’ve had unbelievable support the whole season in Conte Forum, the Boston Garden and now down here.

“I can’t say enough to thank our student body and our fans, they have been showing up all year. It’s really helped us.”

Boston College is riding a 13-game win streak, have been on a scoring binge in the postseason and are special-teams phenomenon. The Eagles have outscored their last three postseason opponents 20-4 and possess the nation’s second-ranked power play. The Eagles had a pair of power-play goals in the third period against Michigan Tech.

The Eagles possess the top penalty kill in the country, something needed to get them to the regional final. BC has taken a five-minute major in the last three games and gave up one goal. Freshman left wing Gabe Perreault was assessed a five-minute major and a game misconduct for contact to the head at 12:18 of the second against Michigan Tech.

“You don’t want to be taking fives, especially at this time of year,” said Brown. “We are playing against dangerous teams in the national tournament.”

Sophomore center Cutter Gauthier, a 6-3, 190-pound native of Scottsdale, Ariz., was selected fifth overall by the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2022 NHL Draft and was later traded to Anaheim.

Gauthier has been scoring at a record pace this season and he potted bookend goals against Michigan Tech. He scored his first 36 seconds into the contest and closed the scoring in the third. Gauthier leads the nation with 37 goals and is one shy of tying the BC single-season record set by David Emma in 1990.

“The more chances we get off our structure, more times than not we’re going to put the puck in the back of the net,” said Gauthier. “We’ve had some good bounces go our way these past few games, and we’re just thankful that we can get behind the goal as we play.

“We’ve played some pretty good teams recently with strong defenses and some good goalies so it was huge for us to stick to our game plan. Stick to a simple match and we’re thankful that all the goals went in.”

The one area where the Bobcats hold a significant edge over the Eagles is NCAA Tournament experience across its four lines, three defensive pairings and in goal. Quinnipiac has 14 players back from last season’s title run along with freshmen from accomplished USHL programs and several transfers with big game experience.

Quinnipiac coach Rand Pecknold addressed the issue of tournament experience after the Bobcats’ win over Wisconsin. Quinnipiac has now won four straight NCAA Tournament games against Big 10 opponents, having dispatched Ohio State, Michigan and Minnesota in 2023.

“You’ve been there before and you know how to do it and we had a great year last year right with the national championship,” said Pecknold. “We certainly have experience but some of the guys we brought in, the transfers, have played in big games.”

Boston College hasn’t participated in the NCAA Tournament since the pandemic affected 2021 season in the Albany Regional. Senior captain Eamon Powell, a defenseman from Marcellius, N.Y., and 2020 Tampa Bay draft pick, and senior right-wing Colby Ambrosio, a 2020 Colorado Avalanche draft pick from Welland, Ontario, were on that team.  BC got a first-round bye when Notre Dame had a COVID outbreak before falling, 4-1, to St. Cloud State.

The other BC skater who participated in a regional final is third-line center Jack Malone, a graduate transfer from Cornell. Malone played for the Big Red last season in the Manchester Regional where they lost to Boston University 2-1 in an epic encounter at SNHU Arena.

“It’s a huge honor,” said Gauthier. “I have never had an opportunity to play in a Frozen Four and just watching it as a younger kid, it’s a pretty special feeling I’ve heard. That would mean the world for our group and me personally to achieve that with a couple of more wins.”

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/YaqePs6