Eagles Peak Heading Into Beanpot Final

It's not just about getting even; it's about winning a trophy. That is the ultimate goal of the Boston College men's hockey team when it goes to the TD Garden tonight to face off against its biggest rival, the Boston University Terriers, in the championship game of the 58th Annual Beanpot tournament.

"Whenever you can play for a trophy, it's certainly a big game," said head coach Jerry York. "Considering the fact that it's the next game and it's for a trophy, we consider it a huge game for us."

The last time the two teams played one another in the Beanpot championship was back in 2007, when the four leading seniors for the Eagles – Matt Lombardi, Matt Price, Ben Smith, and Carl Sneep – were all freshmen. The game was a typical BU-BC nail-biter, and the Terriers came out on top that night with a 2-1 overtime victory.

This year, especially after two straight losses to the Terriers, the Eagles are more focused than ever on the task at hand. Not only does a win even the season series, but it also rewards BC with a 15th Beanpot trophy and a solid resume credential come NCAA tournament time.

None of this is lost on any of the players donning the Eagles' maroon and gold.
"The temperature of our locker room is excellent," York said. "The kids are pulling together, and they're working real hard."

The game will mark the squads' fourth meeting of the year, and, interestingly enough, it will be played in the fourth different venue (the first was in BU's Agganis Arena, the second in Fenway Park, and the third in Conte Forum).

The Terriers hold the season series lead, but this BC team is different than the one that BU took down in overtime on Jan. 22. Since that overtime loss and a loss to UMass Lowell the very next day, the Eagles have reeled off three straight victories. More impressively, they have done so in blowout fashion, outscoring Providence, Harvard, and UMass, 18-3.

While the offense is clearly clicking, with forwards Joe Whitney, Cam Atkinson, and Brian Gibbons providing the biggest output, York is most impressed with the way the defense is playing. Despite the absence of sophomore Tommy Cross and freshman Patrick Wey, the defensemen have kept it together, allowing just one late, meaningless goal over their past two games.

"If we can keep [opponents] to one goal, then you're going to win 99 percent of your games," York said. "So that's the most important part of this run we're on."
Cross returns to the lineup after three and a half weeks of rehab on an injured knee. The Eagles' defense will be provided a little extra rest, and that little rest, particularly against BU, could mean all the difference late in the game when fatigue begins to set in for both squads.

As for Sneep and his fellow defensemen, they will need all of the rest they can get in order to maintain the type of impressive pressure that they have against the likes of BU's Nick Bonino, who won the tournament's Most Valuable Player award last year. Bonino leads the Terriers in points, with 23 on the season.

The main test for the Eagles, however, will be combating a core group of great BU defensemen, as well as solid goaltender Kieran Millan.

"Their personnel from the blue line back is probably the key to their game," York said. "We're going to have to try to keep them off of their offensive games, because they can produce a lot of points for them from the blue line."

Aside from being good defenders, the Terriers' blue-liners pack a potent offensive punch. Captain Kevin Shattenkirk is tied for a team-leading 17 assists, and Colby Cohen leads all BU players with 10 goals.

Offensively potent defensemen are not foreign to the Eagles either. Sneep is tied for second on the team in assists, and fourth in overall points this season. Together with the speed and power of forwards Smith, Price, Atkinson, Gibbons, and Whitney, the Eagles have plenty of weapons to turn to in order to try and generate opportunities with the puck.

The game marks the fourth time in eight years that BC and BU have played one another in the championship game of the Beanpot. All four of those championship games were decided by just one goal, and York sees no reason why this year will be any different.
"It's going to be decided by either one big stop in the game or one big offensive thrust," he said. "Despite BU's record (11-11-3), they're playing very, very solid now. I don't think there's any real decided advantage. I think it's a pretty good toss up."

The significance of a win goes beyond just evening the season series up at two games apiece and coming home with a Beanpot trophy. The past two years, the winner of the Beanpot went on to win the National Championship.

"I think if you can win a Beanpot trophy in February, it gives you an awful lot of confidence as you go through the bigger stages," York said.

In order to once again reach the level of success that his team did in 2008, York is looking to the seniors, who experienced defeat first hand against the Terriers in the Beanpot championship two years ago.

"The play of Lombardi, Price, Smith, and Sneep has really been a source of great motivation for all of us," York said.

Their dedication and focus goes beyond just when they put their skates to the ice.
"I see it in the weight room, and I see it in the dressing room," York said.
If the Eagles hope to skate out of the Garden with a trophy in hand, they'll certainly need to maintain their focus for a full 60-minute effort. If they can do that, recent history says their next stop just might be the Frozen Four in Detroit.