Frozen Four!
Frozen Four Q&A With Boston College Eagles blog BC Interruption (The Daily Gopher)
In case you haven't heard, the Minnesota Gophers and Boston College Eagles face off Thursday night in Tampa in the semis of the Frozen Four. Boston College is the top ranked team in the country, and one of the top defensive teams in the nation against the Gopher's top ranked offense. For such a monumental occasion we thought we'd talk to the opposition and get some background and perspective on the Eagles.
Warm welcome for Frozen Four teams (BostonHerald.com)
"Boston College and Minnesota, this rivalry goes back a long, long way," BC coach Jerry York said before the Eagles arrived in Tampa. "It’s not just the color of the uniforms that are the same. These are two teams that value hockey on their campuses and have great, great traditions. We are honored to be looking across the ice at the Gophers."
Fennelly: Bolts' NCAA memories frozen in time (TBO.com)
"The thing that'll jump out at people is the speed and passion," said Lightning winger Ryan Shannon, who played for Boston College in the 2004 Frozen Four. College programs typically play half as many games as NHL teams. "Guys are in the weight room all week, ready to go," said Bolts defenseman Brian Lee, who also played for North Dakota in Frozen Fours, where players hit the ice "like rabid dogs," Shannon said.
The matchup: Boston College, Minnesota could reach a high tempo (USCHO.com)
"It’s a great matchup and I’m really looking forward to watching the game," said Michigan Tech coach Mel Pearson, whose team faced both the Golden Gophers and Eagles during the first half of the year. "They’re both outstanding hockey programs with great traditions so the game itself will come down to small things like faceoffs and taking care of the puck."
BC hockey took off with Parker Milner in net (The Boston Globe)
‘‘His work ethic raised in practice and his play raised in practice,’’ York said. ‘‘He sought out Jim Logue for extra work. All of a sudden, he got on a roll. He’s surpassed all of our expectations as to where he’d be and I think the whole confidence of the team is raised. The ebb and flow of your club is tied directly to the goaltender’s play. It’s hard to hide a goaltender who isn’t playing well.’’
Weymouth’s Paul Carey takes aim at another NCAA hockey crown with Boston College (The Patriot Ledger)
"That was tough, going up to Orono and losing two games in that fashion," senior right wing Paul Carey of Weymouth recalled Monday. "Coming back, the bus ride was real quiet. It gave guys a good chance to think about what we wanted to do and what we wanted to accomplish. We’ve really turned it around since then."
FF: Looking in a Mirror (College Hockey News)
Patterson's play will be especially important for the Gophers against BC. Even against the most defensively astute clubs, BC can create frequent scoring chances. Minnesota coach Don Lucia plans to unleash his club Thursday night, letting his gifted players go shift for shift the Eagles. Patterson will need to be at his best to set aside the inevitable BC counter attacks. Ultimately, Lucia's confidence in Patterson is obvious, as the coach wouldn't groom his club for such a plan if he didn't trust his netminder.
Paul Carey, Brian Dumoulin Excited for Chance to Bring Another Championship to Boston College (Video) (NESN.com)
Forwards Paul Carey and Brian Dumoulin have been a major part of the Eagles' success this season, and the pair stopped by the NESN Daily studios on Tuesday to discuss an already trophy-laden season, as well as the team's chances of winning a national title. Check out the video above to hear all about BC's historic run and their mindset heading into this weekend's Frozen Four.
Why Sit in Minnesota? (BostonHerald.com)
Michael Sit grew up in Edina and came of age as a hockey player enthralled by the University of Minnesota’s storied program. When his tenure at Edina High School started to grow short while his reputation as a hockey player was expanding, Sit decided to escape the obvious.
Frozen Four Coach’s Take: Minnesota vs. Boston College (Inside College Hockey)
You’ve got to put pressure on their defense, get pucks in behind their defensemen, and forecheck aggressively. You can also generate offense by being patient with the puck. Not turning pucks over is very important. Both [Minnesota at Boston College] have good offensive transition and their defensemen activate off the rush and, generally, you’re going to see at least a three-man rush and in many instances, four.
High Risk, Higher Reward (College Hockey News)
"Our entire game is set up around playing up-tempo, and making other teams uncomfortable," Kreider said. "I think that's really evident in the way we kill penalties. When we're doing a poor job killing penalties, we're not skating, we're not making teams play at a level they're uncomfortable at. So, starting with their breakout, we're trying to make them move the puck to a place where they don't want to move the puck."
Linell Hopes to Add to Team's List of Accomplishments (BCEagles.com)
"We just go out and we work as hard as we can," Linell said. "We have a lot of chemistry because we're always with each other. Michael's my roommate and Quinn lives right down the hall so we have a lot of chemistry with each other off and on the ice, which really helps us with our play. We always have time to talk about the game."