BU, Yale Kick Off NCAA Tournament Friday in Manchester
March 26, 2015 | Men's Ice Hockey
BU Hockey Tournament Central
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Inside BU Hockey - Episode 24
MANCHESTER, N.H. - Fresh off its eighth Hockey East title and riding a five-game win streak, Boston University faces Yale in the opening game of the 2015 NCAA tournament on Friday (March 27) at Verizon Wireless Arena. The game, which starts at 2 p.m., is the first of two Northeast Regional semifinals and will be broadcast live on ESPNU and TSN2.
The Terriers, who are the No. 3 overall seed in the tournament, are making their 33rd NCAA appearance and first since 2012. The BU-Yale winner will take on the winner of the second semifinal between Minnesota-Duluth and Minnesota on Saturday (March 28) at 5:30 p.m.
This will be David Quinn's first NCAA tournament game as a head coach, as the second-year bench boss has led the Terriers to a remarkable turnaround. BU has matched Michigan Tech for the biggest improvement of any team in the nation, as it enters the NCAAs with 25 wins after posting only 10 last season. The Huskies have 29 victories after earning 14 last season.
BU boasts the nation's best offense, scoring 3.89 goals per game, while Yale has the nation's best defense, allowing just 1.59 goals per contest. The Elis went 6-6-0 against teams that are currently in the top 25 in goals per game this season, but four of those wins were against archrival Harvard.
The Terriers went 3-2-1 against ECAC schools this season while Yale posted a 2-1 record versus Hockey East teams.
Friday marks the 64th contest between Boston University and Yale and the teams are an even 30-30-3. It's the first NCAA tournament meeting between the New England schools, who last met on Nov. 25, 2006 in a 2-1 overtime victory by the Terriers at Agganis Arena.
BU is undefeated in its last eight contests against Yale, posting a 6-0-2 record during the stretch. The teams first met on Feb. 13, 1924, with Yale posting its first of 20 straight victories against the Terriers in a 6-0 shutout on Bishop's Pond in New Haven.
Yale was the last at-large team in the NCAA tournament field for the second time in the past three years. In 2013, the Bulldogs made the most of their opportunity, capturing the first national title in school history.
The Bulldogs were upset by Harvard in the ECAC quarterfinals, falling in three games with the decisive contest going into double-overtime.
Yale is the least penalized team in the country, averaging only 7.2 penalty minutes per contest.
Sophomore forward Frankie DiChiara (8g, 13a) and junior defenseman Rob O'Gara (6g, 15a) share the team lead in points at 21 while sophomore Mike Doherty is right behind with 20 points, including a team-best 12 goals.
Sophomore goaltender Alex Lyon leads the nation in both goals-against average (1.58) and save percentage (.939).
BU's 33rd NCAA appearances ranks fourth all-time amongst Division I programs and the Terriers sport a record of 38-33-0 (.535) in 71 NCAA tournament games. The 38 wins represent the fifth-highest total in tournament history.
The Terriers hold a 3-3-0 record this season against teams that qualified for this year's NCAA tournament with splits against Harvard, Boston College and Providence.
Since 1992, when the NCAA moved to a regional format, BU has been a number one seed seven times (1994, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2006, 2009, 2015). The Terriers have a 10-9-0 (.526) in their 19 previous regional contests.
BU has the highest-scoring freshman class in the nation with 139 points (44g, 95a). The freshmen from the other three teams at the Northeast Regional have 111 points combined.
Leading not only the BU freshman class, but the entire nation in scoring is Jack Eichel. He joined Brian Leetch as the only players to win Hockey East Player of the Year, Hockey East Rookie of the Year and Hockey East Tournament MVP in the same season.
Eichel, a top-10 Hobey Baker finalist, leads the country in points (66), assists (42) and plus-minus (+46) and has a team-best 24 goals. Senior linemate Evan Rodrigues is tied for second in the country in scoring with 57 points on 18 goals and 39 assists. The third member of college hockey's top line is junior Danny O'Regan, who has contributed 45 points (21g, 24a).
In goal, junior Matt O'Connor leads the nation in winning percentage at .828 with a record of 22-3-4. He sports a .928 save percentage - just shy of the .929 school record held by Tim Regan - and a 2.12 goals-against average.
BU has scored at least one goal in 17 of its past 18 periods and has killed off 19 of its opponents' past 20 power plays.
