IT'S HERE!

2008 Football Schedule... hard to believe I'll be a junior when the season gets underway - whoa

Aug 30 @ Kent State
Sep 6 vs. Georgia Tech
Sep 13 Open
Sep 20 vs. Central Florida
Sep 27 vs. Rhode Island
Oct 4 @ FSU
Oct 11 Open
Oct 18 vs. Va. Tech
Oct 25 vs. Clemson
Nov 1 @ Wake
Nov 8 vs. Notre Dame
Nov 15 @ UNC
Nov 22 vs. Maryland
Nov 29 @ NC State

Big win for WBB

Nice, nice win tonight @ Clemson on what appeared to be an off night for Stef Murphy (she only had 2 points with about 15 min remaining). I missed almost all of the 2nd half as I was at work, but from what I saw, it was a good team effort.

Next up: Miami on Sunday, at home. That'll be another tough one.

In a "State of Hockey" State of Mind

This column about my trip to Minnesota will appear in tomorrow's Heights.
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“Dad, you won’t believe this. There’s more Bruins stuff here than there is at home.”

I had to call my father; who else would I call when walking into a great shrine of hockey?

‘Here’ was the Mall of America, the bastion of American consumerism lying on the outskirts of the great city of Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Naturally, I had to check out every store with sports memorabilia. (There are times when I am glad that I have no money. If I ever did come into money, I’m sure most of it would go to such stores. Who wouldn’t pay $3,000 for an autographed panoramic photo of the 1980 US Olympic Team?)

As one would expect in the state that dubs itself ‘the State of Hockey,’ the game is omnipresent – and it’s hard to walk too far without finding NHL and college hockey apparel.

Like the baseball fan’s trip to Fenway Park, the football fan’s journey to Lambeau Field, the music lover’s visit to Carnegie Hall, and the history buff’s walk through the Freedom Trail, every member of the great church of hockey should make the pilgrimage to the Holy Land that is Minnesota.

When I was around ten years old, I saw Boston University (yeah, them) play against the Minnesota Golden Gophers on TV at Marriucci Arena in Minneapolis. Something about that arena and that game resonated with me, and stuck in my consciousness for years – and the more I read about it and thought about it, the more I decided that I had to get out there for a game. I finally made it this month, as a Gopher men’s game coincided with the Boston College women’s hockey team’s visit to Minnesota.

I’m not really sure what it was that drew me in. Fans at BU’s Agganis Arena and UNH’s Whittemore Center are just as loud, and their stadiums nearly as nice as Mariuicci (sadly, our antiseptic Conte Forum, with its half-empty seating bowl at the drop of the puck, does not make that list).

But there is something about the way people live the game in Minneapolis that makes it different, and makes it special.

Everywhere I went in Minneapolis, I saw people wearing Gophers jackets and sweatshirts. Every store seemed to carry something with the “M” logo on it. The local newspaper provided wall-to-wall coverage of the weekend’s series.

The only real comparison that I can come up with for the love that people have for the Golden Gophers in Minneapolis is the way Boston embraces the Red Sox.

But even that seems like a flawed analogy. The unique thing about the University of Minnesota’s team is that it is composed almost entirely of players from in-state. With so much talent in-state (an estimated 45,000 Minnesotan kids play youth hockey each year), it seems unnecessary to go elsewhere.

As such, the following for the Gophers seems more akin to Italians following their national soccer team.

On the night I went, the Gophers were playing against in-state rival St. Cloud State. Over 10,500 people filled the arena and seemingly all of them were decked out in maroon and gold (I can’t help but love the colors).

It’s quite a feeling to walk into Mariucci Arena for the very first time. The first thing that struck me was just the size of the place. There is one seating bowl, and it is very steep in order to give everyone in attendance a great view of the ice. Because of that incline, the bowl seems massive. If you’ve ever been to BU, picture the Agganis Arena – then add about 4,000 seats and a ring of very impressive luxury boxes.

The walk around the concourse is also jaw-dropping for the first time visitor. Murals, posters, and banners highlighting great moments in Gopher history are all around. One of the greatest trophies in sports, the McNaughton Cup, given annually to the WCHA’s regular season champion, was proudly on display in the trophy case.

The game itself is also a different experience from what we get at home. While I’m proud to say that our student section is just as good if not better than theirs (they are more creative with their chants, but we are louder throughout the game), the way the entire crowd was so involved in the game was such a jolt from the usual emotionless BC crowd. Great saves, great chances, and good plays brought the entire crowd to its feet.

And when the Gophers scored, the arena sprung to life as the fans went into their favorite cheer: “M-I-N-N-E-S-O-T-A! Minnesota! Minnesota! Yeahhhhhhhhhh……… GOPHERS!”

I’m not impressed by much, since I tend to hold sporting venues to the nearly impossible standard of Fenway Park. But that particular moment was quite impressive.

Living hockey in Minneapolis is not just limited to the Gopher men’s team. The Gopher women’s hockey team has its own beautiful 4500 seat arena. Indoor and outdoor skating rinks are everywhere. And one of the crown jewels of Minnesota sports, the annual High School Hockey tournament, draws over 16,000 fans each year to the Xcel Energy Center, home of the Minnesota Wild.

So I guess the right analogy is some sort of cross between Texas football, Italian soccer, and Boston baseball. Sound good?

I’m a Boston guy, through and through, and BC is the only place where I could ever see myself. But now that I’ve made my dream visit to Minneapolis a reality, there will always be a place in my heart for the hockey-loving school on the banks of the Mississippi.

BC women's hockey plays their best 65 minutes of the year

BOSTON COLLEGE 2
#8 DARTMOUTH 2
F/OT

I am so pleased right now. F the result, win loss or draw, that was the hardest full 65 minutes of hockey BC has played all year.

EVERY SINGLE LINE, top to bottom, played their hearts out tonight and got their job done. Really, effort was there from each and every player. It was awesome.

The Eagles were a ridiculous Carli Clemis save away from getting their biggest win of the year - Clemis robbed Thunstrom on a breakaway in OT.

BC came out and set the tone early in the first but the Green got the first goal. I thought that would break the Eagles' early momentum but they kept on fighting, and Deb Spillane's goal was a product of hard work around the net.

Dartmouth's 2nd goal was unfortunate - I thought it was a poor defensive play. Trunzo came in with Kennedy two on one and Taverna skated backwards a few feet behind the play, leaving both the shot and the pass open. She should have either pressured Kennedy and forced a tough pass, or took care of the passing lane and let Schaus focus on the shot... instead she just kind of glided (is that a word?) backwards and left all the options open. It was the only play that stood out as really, really poor and it burned us.

Despite that Taverna still had a good game from that point forward - AS DID Becky Zavisza (I thought it was her best game of the year). She was great on the forecheck and made things happen with her strength. She got an assist on Fardelmann's game tying goal. The Brie/Harris/Webster combo did the 3rd line thing, working hard and keeping Dartmouth off the board.

What can I say about Katelyn Kurth? She is BC's best defender, I think. Not only is she the only BC defenseman to consistently use her body and her stick to force off balance passes, she also starts rushes with passes out of the zone, and most importantly STAYS OUT OF THE PENALTY BOX, something that BC did a lot better today than in other recent games.

Just a solid 65 minute effort... more of these and BC will rack up conference wins.

Even better than BC sports

BC tied BU last night 2-2, blah blah, lucky to earn the point, etc.

This morning, I got to do something even more fun and more rewarding than watching BC sports.

I volunteered at Admitted Eagle Day, the university's reception for students accepted early action into the Class of 2012.

I spent a few hours sitting down with accepted students, having breakfast , chatting, and answering questions. I eased some people's fears (no, you don't have to go to mass; no, not everyone is a J. Crew catalog model; no, not everyone is from Boston), gave a few people the truth even if it wasn't ideal (no, you can't have a car; yes, it gets cold here; no, we don't have a student union; no, we won't win the Beanpot), and gave them tips and hints on what to do if/when they matriculate (go to the hockey games [obviously, what else would I recommend], do community service, take the D line instead of the B line to go to Boston, eat at Roggie's your first weekend).

My biggest focus was just trying to have natural, relaxed conversations and let my true genuine enthusiasm for BC come through - and avoid cliches and statistics that every college in America tries to throw at prospective students. (It feels big and small! You're a name not a number!) One of the things I like best about the people who work for BC admissions is that there's a real sincerity to the whole process. This school sells itself, we just need to nudge people in the right direction.

I also like how enthused and passionate people are to talk about their interests here at BC. This really is a special place, and it rings through to a lot of these visitors when they get to sit down and have one-on-one conversations with us about the things we love to do and the opportunities we have here.

I tried to stress the idea of community, and being proud of fellow BC students and alums. That community is what makes BC special, and that network can be very helpful after graduation.

We have 3 or 4 more of these events coming up this year and I really can't wait. It's a lot of fun and it really brings me back to senior year in high school (although hearing "Class of 2012" makes me feel old).

Important win for hockey

Last night didn't start very well for the Eagles. UMass Lowell dominated play in the first period and jumped out to a very quick 2-0 lead. (Their second goal, by the way, came on a sick deke by Jonathan Maniff, the pride of Revere, MA.)

But as has so often been the case this year, the Eagles' lethal power play unit got things going in the right direction. Joe Whitney scored with a rocket from the point to cut the lead to 2-1, It was the first of three consecutive goals for the Eagles, as Greene and Filangeri tallied goals to put BC on top.

Hobey Baker candidate Nate Gerbe got his only point of the night on Filangeri's goal. It was his 100th career point and it extended his point streak to nine games.

The hosts weren't going to go down without a fight, however. Falite scored for Lowell with just over three minutes left in the second period to tie the score going into the locker room.

BC then kicked it into overdrive early in the 3rd to secure the victory. Ferriero got the goal that would put BC on top for good 1:27 into the 3rd, then Gibbons added insurance with a sweet goal six minutes later. He stripped a Lowell defender just beyond the blue line, flew in toward the net, and ripped a shot past Hutton.

It was one of the most impressive wins of the year for BC, who, despite their recent resurgence, have struggled against quality opponents this season. The victory also moves BC into 2nd place in the Hockey East standings with a chance to pick up two more against a garbage BU team tonight. :)

WTF? Husky Women beat BC again

I don't even know what to say. That was... frustrating? aggravating? disappointing? I don't know. There's just no logical explanation for this kind of drop-off. Making HET is going to be a battle now. They don't have a lot of points to spare.

Five minutes into the game I turned to Grant and said 'the last time BC looked this disinterested was the game against Providence in October.' Just like in that game, BC lost 3-2. They had their chances, but none that were particularly frightening or solid, and they left no reasonable person with the impression that they were the better team and that the opponent just got lucky.

Two of the goals for Northeastern came on unforgivable defensive breakdowns. The winning goal came off a turnover by Taverna just beyond the blue line. Jones stepped in and roofed it.

Whenever BC had solid possession, it wasn't very meaningful. Not a lot of creativity. Lots of shots, but lots of them were garbage shots, low, right at Sulyma. I think that there are certain players who probably need to be reminded to pass from time to time, as well.

But the biggest problem was just intensity. I know BC can skate faster and harder than that. I'm not unrealistic, I don't think anyone can expect full speed, full tilt 100% of the time, but they looked like they were going through the motions even when the goalie was pulled and they needed a goal with under a minute remaining.

Just leaves a bitter taste in your mouth.

That kind of lackadaisical play + disorganization will lead to another Ivy League blowout on Sunday.

Ladies Night

After a night dedicated to (blech) homework, I get to hit the rink again tonight as BC women's hockey takes on Northeastern at Conte. Meanwhile, down the coast, the women's basketball team has a huge game @ UNC. They are heavy underdogs, but I have faith that they can make it a game. NC State played them tough.

The aforementioned Minnesota photos and such will probably be posted tomorrow.

U Who? BC BB wins big over Miami

First of all, before I get to hoops, I took my hockey trip to Minnesota this past weekend. It was absolutely AMAZING and I recommend the trip to anyone who loves hockey. I'll have more to say about it, and pics to share, in my next blog post which will come in the next day or two.

As for hoops: Wow, what a difference two games makes. After RMU, everyone, myself included, wrote the team off for this season. That game was obviously a wakeup call as BC has now improved to 3-0 in the ACC after squashing Miami at Conte Forum. The win is BC's 2nd over ranked opposition - the other came against URI earlier in the season.

I thought Miami was overrated coming into this game, and seeing them in person confirmed my suspicions. They are a one-trick pony, and their one trick - jacking up threes - wasn't working until very late in the game.

Still, even if they did shoot 3s reasonably well today, the Eagles still would have won. With the exception of a few lapses and struggles against the press in the 2nd half, BC controlled the tempo and played solid basketball.

Rakim Sanders is going to be a superstar. He put up 20 tonight.

Tyrelle Blair was the 'Iron Curtain' on defense, and even made a few solid offensive contributions en route to a double-double.

Oates was once again troubling, turning the ball over several times on inbounds plays and jacking up stupid 3 pointers.

Shamari had a decent game - 12 points and 5 rebounds.

The student section had a pretty solid turnout tonight as well, although I'm disappointed that the students in the red seats behind the baskets continue to sit. Baby steps. The crowd was generally on time, which I hope would be the case for a 9 PM start.

All in all, a positive step for the Eagles. I still think making NCAAs will be tough but they've obviously found some sort of second gear for these ACC games.

Next up is at UVA on Saturday night. The game will be televised, but I'll be at the BC-BU men's hockey game.

Women's Hockey at Harvard Preview

Tonight in Cambridge the women's hockey team has its biggest game of the year to date, a matchup with #3 Harvard. Last year, the Eagles beat Harvard 4-3 in the women's Beanpot semifinal in an incredible, 3OT game. I'm hoping for a similar result this year, but Harvard is better this year than they were last year. This one is going to be a challenge.

I made a few posts on USCHO looking toward the game:

"I've been looking up lots of stats and info for Harvard, trying to figure out just what it is that's made this year's version better than last year's.

They are outscoring their opponents 46-12 and only give up 1 goal per game on average. That's unreal.

They outshoot opponents by an average 34.7-19.0, but BC typically gets outshot so that stat doesn't really worry me; if Harvard only gets 35-40 shots I'm sure Schaus would consider it a relief after last year

It sounds pretty obvious, but BC is going to have to stay out of the box as Harvard's PP rate is 27.4%.

A few things encourage me: despite getting outshot badly, UConn hung with Harvard, not giving up a goal until more than halfway through the 3rd and losing 2-0. Also, Providence lost 4-1, which isn't exactly a slaughter. I think that BC will definitely be in the game and have a chance, which is all you can really ask for.

Also, in the Harvard thread, Skate79's (rightfully) glowingly positive analysis also included one sign of trouble - Harvard made many bad passes and gave up a lot of odd man rushes to Cornell, who did not convert due to a lack of offensive firepower. BC is kind of the hockey equivalent to basketball's fast break offense - if the Eagles get '8-10' odd man rushes as Cornell apparently did, I expect a few to end up in the back of the net.

BC definitely won't be afraid going into the game, having beaten Harvard twice in a row. That's really important from a mental aspect.

Something else interesting I've noticed is that BC has done pretty well against the teeth of the ECAC in the last three seasons:

1/4/08: WIN vs. St. Lawrence, 5-2
1/3/08: LOSS vs. St. Lawrence, 3-1
3/10/07: WIN @ Dartmouth, 3-2
2/6/07: WIN vs. Harvard, 4-3
1/5/07: TIE vs. St. Lawrence, 4-4
12/31/06: LOSS @ Dartmouth, 2-1
2/14/06: WIN @ Harvard, 2-0
11/8/05: LOSS @ Dartmouth, 3-2

4-3-1 against three of the powerhouses of women's hockey, with two losses coming by just one goal. 3-1-1 in the last 5.

The moral of the story?

Harvard's really good, but I'm not fearing a blowout or anything of the sort. It's going to have to be the same predictable script if BC is going to win: tons of incredible saves by Schaus, really hard work in the defensive zone, and opportunistic offense - but I don't mind predictable scripts, as long as the movie has a good ending. "

--

Just a few rambling thoughts watching video of the HAR-DAR game from earlier this year:

-I hope coach King skates the Fardelmann line against the Vaillancourt line whenever possible. I think Fards has the speed and two-way ability to keep up with her. We also need our faster d-men on the ice against that line.

-I'd love to see a pairing of Kurth and Taverna on the blue line. A nice juxtaposition of one of BC's better defensive players with a great offensive defenseman.

-Quick shifts, quick shifts, quick shifts... it's going to take a high intensity, 60 minute effort to skate with Harvard. I hope the 3rd line is ready to carry their share of the load.

-Harvard is an incredibly skilled team, but I don't think they are dominant in the way UNH is. I get this sense from the three times I saw them in person last year + the video this year. They don't smother the life out of you the way the 'Cats do. I think the Eagles will have their share of chances in the offensive zone, I really do.

-Harvard's penalty kill is just ferocious. Power play is going to need to continue the good work they did against SLU. I'm thinking it might be a good idea to switch Stack and Taverna's spot on the power play, putting Taverna on the point and Stack on the wing... Taverna is a stronger puck handler and has a better shot. I think the only way to crack the Crimson PP is shots from the point. Even the Big Green, who are better on paper than BC, had trouble getting anything going down low.

-Way too obvious, but NO STUPID PENALTIES. Harvard PP is lethal.

-The Crimson create a lot of turnovers and just feast on dumb passes so BC needs to be careful. No hanging Schaus out to try.

-Decent shots become low percentage shots against Molly Schaus. Don't be deceived by the shot totals. I'm sure BC will let Harvard get a lot of shots off, but as long as she can see the shot and it's not coming on an odd man rush, I feel good about Schaus's chances of turning it away.

This is going to be fun. Harvard is much deeper, faster and stronger on paper (and they are much better at handling the puck) but they are definitely beatable.

--

Prediction: Harvard 3, BC 2

Now THAT ruins my day

I had no expectation to win today's basketball game, but I thought all along that tonight's hockey game would be our saving grace. No such luck. Clarkson improved to 10-0-0 all time against Boston College (wow!) with a 4-2 win tonight in Potsdam. Kiss our momentum buh-bye.

Nate Gerbe opened up the scoring with a breakaway goal in the first and all looked well. Clarkson got the goal back late in the period, and then scored two straight in the 2nd to make it 3-1. Ben Ferriero scored a sweet goal halfway through the 2nd to cut the lead to 1, but that was as close as BC would get. Clarkson stifled BC down the stretch and looked to be the better team on the night.

It was a very chippy, physical game with lots of penalties and lots of extracurricular activity after the whistle. BC kind of initiated a lot of that garbage in an attempt to set the tone in the game, but were unable to get Clarkson off of their game.

There's no shame in losing to a quality team like Clarkson, but it plants that seed of doubt about whether the recent hot streak was because of how good BC is or how bad the competition was. It should be interesting to see how the team recovers against Vermont later on this week.

Upcoming men's hockey games:

Wed 1/9 vs. Vermont
Fri 1/11 vs. Vermont
Fri 1/18 @ UMass-Lowell
Sat 1/19 vs. Boston University

Kansas is really good

I had low expectations today, so I'm not all that disappointed. I am a little disappointed that Tyrese Rice tried to do everything himself starting midway through the first half despite being double- and triple-teamed. Based on his ball hogging in the first half, I'm not surprised that BC had its best run in the 2nd half when he was out of the game.

Rakim Sanders was beastly today. He is going to be a special player. I just wish he wasn't so terrible from the free throw line, because he's going to earn a lot of foul shots.

Shamari Spears is not that good. His shot selection is baffling to me. He has no stroke at all from more than a few feet away from the basket.

Oates wasn't bad today. Paris was decent.

All around, the biggest factor today was just sheer talent differential - no more, no less.

I took a few pictures, but of course my batteries crapped out about five minutes into the game and I forgot to bring extras. I'll put up the pictures I have tomorrow.

BC Hockey is playing at Clarkson tonight (the game will be webcast on b2live.com) - I'm pumped for that!

A sunnier day

I didn't even bother posting after yesterday's women's hockey game. I was too ticked off at what was some blatantly piss-poor officiating. The Eagles should have squeaked out a tie against #4 St. Lawrence, but they were denied a tying goal by a brain-dead goal judge.

Today, BC played with renewed vigor and heart, turning out a performance that reminded me of last season. Molly Schaus stood on her head, making 57 (!!!) saves as BC beat the Saints 5-2. Allie Thunstrom scored two goals, Lindsay Wright got her first goal of the year, and Becky Zavisza got out of a skid with a nice goal.

Molly Schaus and Allie Thunstrom were the MVPs today, but I think a nod has to go to Katelyn Kurth, who had a goal in addition to playing rock-solid defense. She was everywhere in the defensive zone, blocking shots, making poke checks, making solid clearances - just doing all the little things that have been missing from BC's defense.

The Eagles special teams were also incredibly encouraging.

-BC notched a power play goal in the first period to tie the game at 1 after starting off poorly
-The Eagles killed off a 1:13 5-on-3 at the start of the second period, which was absolutely the turning point in the game

It was an all around encouraging day and I can't wait to see if they keep it up Tuesday night @ #2 Harvard. It will be a challenge, no doubt - but I always believe in Molly Schaus. If BC's forwards can get it cranking, then we're in business. There's a long way to go before we can get too excited, but let's treat this as we should: an encouraging, exciting upset win over a very good St. Lawrence team.

The women's basketball team also made me smile last night, scoring a huge win in their ACC opener at Virginia Tech. Making it more impressive was the fact that Murphy played limited minutes. Swords (20 points), Thoman (a career high 14 points) and Brown (11) led the way - very encouraging indeed.

Maybe it's all an omen for Kansas tomorrow!!! We can only hope.

Hockey begins in earnest this week...

... and I am SO excited.

Happy New Year, everyone. For all 3 or 4 of you who anticipate my blog posts, sorry for disappointing you lately. I've been extremely lazy all week.

This week saw two home basketball games - an exciting win for the women's team over Northeastern on Tuesday and a boring, sloppy game against horrific Longwood for the men's team last night.

Don't be fooled by how close Tuesday's game was: the women played well. It was one of those days where Northeastern just couldn't miss. BC consistently played sound, tough defense, but the Huskies kept draining 3s. The Eagles fought hard to get the win and it will serve them well as ACC play gets underway today at Virginia Tech.

The real story of this game was (as usual) Stefanie Murphy, who came in off the bench and rescued BC after a cold start. She wound up scoring 22 points, reaching her scoring average despite playing hurt and only playing about half the game. Mickel Picco was also a savior off the bench, hitting four huge three pointers including two back-breakers right in a row late in the 2nd half to help secure the win.

Ayla Brown had another Ayla Brown day (up and down). She really can be a special player, but she still hasn't put it all together. I thought Swords was a little off; I don't think she's athletic enough to handle tough ACC teams. We'll see.


No, this picture isn't from the women's game

The men's game was torture. It was so viciously cold out that people apparently didn't want to leave their homes, as the place was deserted (<4000). onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipH73g8MSETYrDGd500w28oJNFGYFxsd2j1dF4RucclUdERDNVvCdmBcj4fwnP0JwxZyrUvZsGZugOjqxv1ZMyoEMUw67tsKCG0E5Qu4FAZzMu4r9ee4cTwH27qZHAkhniPsu-wol7Ot97/s1600-h/break+073.JPG">



The good thing about the terrible turnout: someone gave me a free ticket, and I plopped down in really nice seats. I saw Alex holding down the fort basically by himself in the 'student section.' I thought about joining him, but I was enjoying my Whalepants moment.



I eavesdropped on the conversations of a father and son behind me. The kid was maybe 13 and he was really into BC hoops. I hope I can share something like that with a son or daughter some day.

A final b-ball note: here's a video I took at the game last night of BC running the flex and picking up two points in the first half. It should give you a good idea of the 'atmosphere' at the game. ;)

BCBB - Get Video Code

Anyway, on to my true topic du jour: HOCKEY.

Hockey season is too much of a marathon to get really into it right from the beginning, but the true hockey blitz will now begin for me. With college football basically over, hockey will dominate my sports consciousness from now until, hopefully, the first week of April. (Actually, hopefully longer than that, if the Bruins make the playoffs).

Today, the women's hockey team begins an absolutely crucial stretch of five consecutive games against ranked teams which will really make or break the season. #4 St. Lawrence is in town for two games at Conte Forum, today and tomorrow at 4 PM.

I really don't know how BC can keep up with St. Lawrence's high-powered attack - they are too deep and have too many weapons on offense (Sabrina Harbec, Chelsea Grills, and Carson Duggan are all among the nation's leaders in points). SLU has made the Frozen Four four years in a row.

But as formidable as the ECAC powers are, BC had a lot of success against them last year, going 2-1-1 against the conference's top 3 (1-1 vs. Dartmouth including the win in the NCAA tournament, a win against Harvard in the women's Beanpot, and a tie against SLU).

Why? Well, when you have the best goalie in America and four of the nation's most explosive forwards, you really can beat anyone.

BC's had almost a month to recover from their disappointing first half. The stretch run begins today and there is very little margin for error.

I am a bit worried about how tough the schedule is, but I also have faith in this team.

The men's hockey team gets back in action Saturday night @ Clarkson (the game will be available on pay-per-view webcast for $6), looking to keep up their unreal hot streak.

It's hockey time :)