National Championship On Deck for Boston College - Boston College Athletics (2024)

Eddie Shabomardenly

Men's Hockey April 12, 2024 Athletic Communications

Top-seeded Eagles face three-seed Denver Pioneers Saturday on ESPN2.

NCAA National Championship

#1 Boston College:No. 1/1, 34-5-1, 20-3-1 HEA
#3 Denver:No. 3/3,31-9-3, 15-7-2 NCHC
Saturday, April 13:6 p.m. ET at Xcel Energy Center (Saint Paul, Minn.)
TV (Stream):ESPN2 (ESPN+)
John Buccigross (play-by-play), Colby Cohen (analyst), Taylor Tannebaum (reporter)
Radio:WEEI850 AM, Varsity App,BCEagles.com/Watch
Jon Rish (play-by-play), Andy Powers (analyst)
Live Stats:Saturday

SAINT PAUL, Minn. --No. 1 overall seed Boston College takes on No. 3 Denver in the National Championship on Saturday from Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, Minn. The game will be broadcast on ESPN2 at 6 p.m. ET.The Eagles are the No. 1 overall seed for the third time in 37 NCAA Tournament appearances.Boston College is making its 12th National Championship and seeking the program's sixth title. The Wolverines are tied with Denver for the most National Championships, while the Eagles have five; tied with BU for the most in Hockey East.BC, which is No. 1 in the country for the 11th week in a row, is making its first National Championship appearance since defeating Ferris State in 2012.

EAGLES IN THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
• Boston College is 5-6 in National Championship game. The Eagles have won its last three title game appearances in 2008, 2010 and 2012. BC also won championships in 1949 and 2001. The Eagles are 51-43 all-time in the NCAA Tournament.
• Greg Brown becomes the fourth head coach to lead Boston College into a National Championship game. Snooks Kelly led BC to the 1949 title and Jerry York won four titles between 2001 and 2012. Len Ceglarski also guided the Eagles into the 1978 National Championship game.

CUT TO THE CHASE
• Cutter Gauthier is the Hockey East and NCAA leader in goals at 38. He is the first Eagle to reach 30 goals in a season since Hobey Baker Award winner Johnny Gaudreau in 2013-14.
• His 38 goals tie him with David Emma (1989-90) and Scott Harlow (1985-86) for the BC single-season record.
• He is the first player in the NCAA to score 38 or more goals in a season since Minnesota's Ryan Potulny scored 38 in 2005-06, tied for the most this century.
• Gauthier had a career-best 14-game point streak, with a 11-10-21 scoring line, snapped against BU (2/5) at the Beanpot. He bounced back from his streak being snapped with a four-point, two-goal performance against No. 17 New Hampshire (2/9).
• Gauthier scored his first career hat trick at Merrimack (1/19).
• He leads the country in game-winning goals with 10, including the Hockey East Championship Game against BU (3/23).
• Gauthier's 13 power play goals are the most in Hockey East and second most in the NCAA.

NOW THIS IS A STORY
• Will Smith has set the BC record for points and assists in a season by a freshman at 71 and 46, respectively. He broke Ken Hodge's (1984-85) records of 64 and 44.
• Totaled five points in the Hockey East Championship Game; the first five-point game for an Eagle since Alex Newhook against UMass Lowell in the 2021 Hockey East Semifinals. His four-goal effort was the first since Nathan Gerbe against Harvard in 2007.
• Smith's NCAA-best 18-game point streak was snapped vs. UNH (3/3).
• He is first in the nation and Hockey East in points (71) and assists (46) and fourth in the league in goals (25).
• Smith has recorded a team-leading 23 multi-point games.
• Smith was named the HCA National Rookie of the Month for January as well as the Hockey East Player of the Month for January.
• One of two Eagles to be named a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award.

RICHTER AWARD FINALIST
• Jacob Fowler posted his 31st win of the season in the NCAA Tournament's quarterfinal. He passed Al Montoya (Michigan, 2002-03) for the most wins in a season by a freshman across the NCAA.
• Fowler is first in the league and ranks fourth nationally with a .926 save percentage.
• The rookie's 2.14 GAA ranks eighth among NCAA goalies and is third in Hockey East.
• Fowler was been named one of three finalists for the Mike Richter Award, recognizing the top goalie in the country. BC's Thatcher Demko previously won the award in 2016.
• His 1,014 saves passed Parker Milner (2012-13) for seventh most in a season in BC history. Only seven players in BC history have recorded 1,000 saves in a season.