Games To Watch Around College Hockey

Story posted February 11, 2016 in CommRadio, Sports by Bria Donnelly

It will be another great weekend for college hockey as the No. 2 team in the nation faces off in Denver, and Boston University will take to the ice four days after losing the Beanpot final to Boston College. Both series will take place Friday and Saturday.

No. 2 University of North Dakota vs. No. 13 Denver

These two teams met in early December at Ralph Engelstad Arena with UND taking both games in high fashion winning 5-1 and 4-0. This weekend, they will face off in Mile High City on Denver’s home ice. These two teams are no stranger to each other having faced off over 250 times, with UND leading the series 142-120-10. Both teams have also won seven NCAA championships, with DU defeating UND for the championship three times while UND has defeated DU only once for the championship. UND is led by Vancouver Canucks prospect freshman Brock Boeser and his linemate, Drake Caggiula. Both men have 30 or more points through 26 games. North Dakota currently has the best record in the NCAA for away and neutral games, sitting at 12-1-1. The Fighting Hawks last away game loss came on November 21 at St. Cloud. North Dakota has not been able to sweep Denver at Magness Arena in 12 years.

No. 7 Boston University vs. No.11 University of Massachusetts – Lowell        

After losing in the Beanpot final to Boston College on Monday night, Boston University is back in action this week facing off against the University of Massachusetts – Lowell. The last time these two teams met was in last March in the Hockey East championship game. BU took the title winning 5-3. The year, UMass has the third best defense in the nation, behind only Yale and UND, averaging only 1.71 goals against per game, thanks in part to their senior goaltender Kevin Boyle. Boyle currently has a .935 save percentage. The River Hawks are going to need big games from their defense going up against a team with four or more goals in 21 of their 28 games, compared to just eight games for the Hawks. Ahti Oksanen and Matt Lane lead the Terriers with 14 goals while Danny O’Regan leads the team in points with 32. The teams take the ice on Friday in Boston, Massachusetts at Agganis Arena and on Saturday in Lowell, Massachusetts at the Tsongas Center.

 

Bria Donnelly is a sophomore majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact her email bmd5311@psu.edu