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Last weekend went about as well as it could possibly go for the Eagles. One game, one resounding win over a powerful Big Ten foe, in a 9-2 trouncing of Wisconsin. The degree of difficulty gets cranked up this weekend as BC travels to Minnesota for two games at the #1-ranked Golden Gophers. BC played out at Mariucci Arena last year against Minnesota and it, uh, eh, uh, ooh, eh, did not go well. Here's hoping for better success this weekend.
BC Roster Notes
- As expected, the straight up goalie rotation will continue. Thatcher Demko will start in game one on Friday night, with Brian Billett getting the nod on Sunday.
- No other lineup changes are expected.
Projected lines:
Gaudreau-Arnold-Gilmour
Fitzgerald-Hayes-Cangelosi
Smith-Brown-Calnan
Straight-Sit-Silk
McCoshen-Matheson
MacLeod-Linell
Savage-Santini
Demko in game 1, Billett in game 2
Game Time: 8:00 PM Friday, 2:00 PM Sunday
TV: FRIDAY: Big Ten Network; SUNDAY: Fox Sports North (DirecTV), Fox College Sports Central (Comcast)
Radio: WEEI 850 AM; BCEagles.com
Record: Minnesota is 4-0-0; BC is 2-1-0.
Last Time Out: The Gophers seized the nation's #1 ranking with a steady-as-she-goes sweep of Bemidji State, winning 6-3 and 5-1.
Common Foes: Minnesota faced Hockey East's UNH in the championship game of the Icebreaker Tournament two weeks ago, edging the 'Cats 3-2. BC is 1-1 against B1G foes this year, losing to Michigan on the road before the win vs. Wisco.
Storylines: Everyone is feeling good after last week's smackdown of Wisconsin, but now the focus turns to how the young Eagles handle the big ice and star-laden lineup of Minnesota. BC may have some revenge on its mind after last year's pasting at the hands of the Gophers. It will also be interesting to see if the freshmen continue their growth they showed last weekend.
Players to watch: Where to start? Junior Sam Warning is off to a blazing 5-4--9 start in 4 games (!). A pair of freshmen, Hudson Fascning and Justin Kloos, are off to 2-4--6 starts. Stalwart junior Kyle Rau already has a goal and four assists.
Fun Fact: BC is 1-9 against Minnesota in their home rink. Wait, that's not fun at all.
Lingering Questions
Will one goalie seize the job this weekend for BC? Will Austin Cangelosi continue to emerge as a star for BC? How will the young defense handle the Olympic-sized ice sheet? Can BC pick up its first road win of the season?
Scoreboard Watching: Out-Of-Town Notes
Much like last weekend, there's lots to keep an eye on. The fun starts, for whatever reason, at 5:20 PM, when Providence hosts Miami in a big Hockey East-NCHC clash between two top teams. BU and UMass-Lowell both head out to Michigan this weekend, with BU playing Michigan tonight and Lowell playing State; they swap places tomorrow night. If you're looking for a great matchup outside of our conference, Notre Dame is facing Minnesota-Duluth. Wait, Notre Dame is in our conference? That's stupid.
The Pre-Game Watering Hole
I have a lot of great things to say about the fine city of Minneapolis. My pre-game spot when I was out there was Sally's Saloon and Eatery, which features a wonderful, relaxed pub vibe, pool tables, and delicious chicken wings. Much to my dismay, when looking to see if they have a website, I discovered that they are closed for the year and will reopen next summer. Lame. However, the entire area surrounding the stadium is filled with great places to eat and drink.
Predictions
Joe Gravellese:
BC and Minnesota split: Eagles win a tight game, 3-1, on Friday night, potting a late empty netter. Thatcher Demko has his first standout appearance as an Eagle. Minnesota recovers with a 4-3 win on Sunday. It's going to be a great series either way.
Providence sweeps Miami: Yes, this is my BOLD prediction of the week. It will require Gillies absolutely stealing a game, but he will do just that.
BC women will defeat Syracuse tonight and win the ACC women's hockey championship.
BU sweeps the two Michigan schools: Mostly just to troll us, in re: their game at Yost.
UMass-Lowell goes 1-1 on their trip: continuing Sparty's pain, but losing to Michigan.
Northeastern's super-impressive undefeated start comes to an end: they will split their weekend series with St. Lawrence.
Bentley and Harvard will face one another in a hockey game, and the score will probably appear in the newspaper the next day.
Brian Favat:
Minnesota sweeps. Hate to be all doom-and-gloom and small sample size, but the young Eagles squad struggled at Michigan and looked brilliant at home. Think BC comes back down to earth a bit this weekend after getting swept by the Gophers.
Dan Rubin:
I'm taking a split. I think BC can take one game, but Minnesota is way too strong to pick a BC sweep. This will be Demko's coming out party though. No way Jerry can bench him after he steals a show at some point.
Miami-PC is a series everyone should watch. I think this is a chance for PC to really show everyone that they're for real. I'm taking Miami in a sweep because I don't think PC is there yet. But they will be before the year's over. They're just not ready for the big time quiiiiite yet, but they're knocking on the door.
SLU has a serious offense, and NU hasn't beaten much of anything. I'm all for SLU going for a sweep, and I flat out refuse to take Northeastern at this point. They don't belong in the top 20, and if they sweep this weekend, then they do. But they're still a bad hockey team waiting to bust through.
BU loses to Michigan, then beats Michigan State. Maybe if the game was at Agganis I'd take them to win two. UMass-Lowell gets swept.
Maine and UMass split. I think Maine isnt as bad as they are, and if the offense is clicking, they're pretty good. The goalie there is really solid.
ND splits with Minnesota-Duluth in a series we don't care about.
Bentley beats Harvard. I hate Harvard more than any other school. Period. Ever period.
Grant Salzano:
BC splits with Minnesota. I think we lose the first game but take #2 to give us the warm & fuzzies coming back home.
Miami sweeps Providence. I like PC but I don't think they are quite at the caliber of the Redhawks.
Lol Northeastern.
And I think this is the weekend where BU's lack of talent catches up to them. They get swept by Michigan and Michigan State.
A.J Black:
I'm going to say that BC rides their recent success into Minnesota and takes Game 1 5-4 after falling behind the Eagles storm back and cap it off with a late goal from Kevin Hayes
Game 2: Going with Minnesota here, they go up early again, and this time BC can't muster up enough offense to overcome it 6-4 Gophers.
Conrad Kaczmarek:
I think we split. We'll win the game that Demko starts. I'm on the Demko bandwagon. I think he has a cool name.
BCI Prediction Standings
5 points for a correct prediction, minus one point for how far off you were from the victory margin. i.e., predicting a 4-goal win and it ends up being a 2-goal win = 3 points. Also, 1 bonus point for getting a team's score correct. Enter this week's contest by leaving your BC-Wisconsin prediction in the comments.
Last week:
Boston College 9, Wisconsin 2
Staff
Joe: BC 3, Wisconsin 3 - 0 points
Grant: BC 5, Wisconsin 3 - 0 points
Dan: Wisconsin 4, BC 3 - 0 points
Brian: BC 3, Wisconsin 2 - 0 points
AJ: BC 5, Wisconsin 4 - 0 points
Conrad: BC 4, Wisconsin 1 - 1 point!
Fans
Patty: BC 4, Wisconsin 3, in OT. Cam Spiro with the GWG = 0 points
Amy C: Wisconsin 4, BC 3 = 0 points
Adam M: BC 3, Wisconsin 2 = 0 points
Maureen: BC 3, Wisconsin 3 = 0 points
So, last week's winner was...... Conrad. With one point. Good work everybody.
Leaderboard:
Joe - 1 win (Week 1)
Conrad - 1 win (Week 2)
How are you feeling about the series? Want to register your prediction this week? Leave your thoughts in the comments.