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Tonight on NBCSN: Hockey East playoffs — No. 5 Boston College hosts Vermont

By Joe YerdonMar 15, 2013, 12:26 PM EDT

It’s Game One of the Hockey East quarterfinals and this is when Jerry York’s Eagles usually start to shine.

Boston College Eagles (20-10-4) vs. Vermont Catamounts (11-17-6) – 7:00 p.m. ET

Season series: Boston College went 2-0-1 against Vermont

Things didn’t quite go how BC expected them to. They’ve become accustomed to finishing high atop the Hockey East standings when the regular season ends. This time around they are but the No. 2 team behind UMass-Lowell it what turned out to be a very close race for No. 1. Don’t let that fool you into thinking there’s something wrong with these Eagles.

Boston College can score plenty of goals. Calgary Flames prospect Johnny Gaudreau (pictured) finished the regular season tops in points with 46 including 18 goals. Senior forward Steven Whitney has been just as dangerous as well scoring 24 goals and finishing with 41 points. BC also boasts two more players with over 30 points (Pat Mullane and Flames prospect Bill Arnold) and junior Blackhawks prospect Kevin Hayes is nearly there himself.

When you compare that to what Vermont has, it makes the Catamounts pale in comparison. Junior forward Chris McCarthy is their only player with 30 points and he leads the team in goals with 13. He’s also their only double-digit goal scorer so far this season. Sophomore forwards Jacob Fallon and Kyle Reynolds are their only other two players with 20 or more points.

If Vermont stands a chance of pulling a huge upset, they’ll need freshman goalie Brody Hoffman to play out of his mind while sustaining the BC attack. They’re also going to need help from Eagles senior netminder Parker Milner in hoping he’s not-so sharp. Vermont was able to score on him a bit during last weekend’s final games earning a 4-4 tie on Friday night, but they’ll have to forget about the 7-2 drubbing they took the following night.

If there’s anything that can help Vermont it’s that Boston College hasn’t dominated at home this year going just 9-5-2 at Conte Forum and just 7-5-1 in Hockey East games. All that said, this is the time of year when we start to see the best out of Jerry York’s teams, don’t expect that to change this weekend.

Tonight on NBCSN: College doubleheader teeming over with prospects

By Joe YerdonFeb 10, 2012, 9:19 AM EST

Friday Night Ice is set to have an explosive doubleheader on NBCSN tonight with up to 42 players that have been drafted by NHL teams.

No. 5 Boston College (16-10-1) kicks things off at 7:30 p.m. ET traveling to Burlington to take on the University of Vermont (5-21-1). BC is led by Rangers prospect, junior forward Chris Kreider whose 30 points is tops for the Eagles. Kreider’s had a feisty year scoring 16 goals and leading the team with 48 penalty minutes. The rest of their offense, however, is strong with undrafted senior Barry Almeida, junior Steven Whitney, and  sophomore Bill Arnold (Calgary) leading the charge.

With junior defenseman Brian Dumoulin (Carolina) on defense and junior goalie Parker Milner there to keep opponents off the board, the Eagles are putting things together at the right time leading up to the postseason.

Dealing with a struggling Vermont team tonight led by junior forward Sebastian Stalberg, brother of Chicago’s Viktor Stalberg, as well as sophomore forward Connor Brickley (Florida) and sophomore defenseman Drew MacKenzie (Buffalo) on their home ice at Gutterson Field House might be a bit easier than expected. Vermont is coming off a weekend that saw them soundly humbled by No. 7 UMass-Lowell. If ever there was a team to get fired up for, however, it’s Boston College.

source: In the night cap, a pair of ranked teams do battle in a potential Frozen Four showdown as No. 2 Minnesota (19-9-1) visits No. 14 Denver (15-9-4) (10:00 p.m. on NBCSN). Leading the way for Minnesota ( is Panthers prospect, and Team USA World Junior Championships teammate of Chris Kreider, sophomore Nick Bjugstad. With 21 goals and 33 points Bjugstad has been a monster for the Golden Gophers.

Bjugstad getting support from fellow Panthers draftee, freshman Kyle Rau as well as sophomore and Wild prospect Erik Haula has helped get the Gophers back into the national spotlight. Senior forward and Blue Jackets prospect Jake Hansen hasn’t been a slouch either. Goalie and Avalanche prospect Kent Patterson has the unenviable job of being the guy to carry the full load in net as he’s played every minute in goal this season. Things haven’t always been easy for Minnesota against Denver, however.

Denver comes in angry after not earning a win last weekend against rival Colorado College, especially after rattling off wins in seven of their previous eight before that (losing only in a shocker to Alabama-Huntsville). The Pioneers are led by Panthers prospect junior forward Drew Shore. Shore has been dominating with 17 goals and 40 points. Getting to team up with his brother, sophomore Kings prospect Nick Shore, has made life easier in Denver but the most dynamic player for the Pioneers might be Jason Zucker.

Zucker, a sophomore, is a draftee by the Minnesota Wild and a player we’ve seen playing great for Team USA at the World Juniors. With 14 goals and 19 assists he can do it all and when out there at all with the Shore brothers, coach George Gwozdecky’s Denver team is a dangerous one. They’ll all need to be on top of their game against the Gophers, however, as their top line will give them fits.