TAMPA — Boston College has reached the looking glass as it heads into a one-and-done showdown with upstart Ferris State for the national title, which will be up for grabs tonight at the Tampa Bay Times Forum.
BC (32-10-1), the top seed for the NCAA tournament, rolled through the Northeast Regional bracket by blanking Air Force, 2-0, and defending national champion Minnesota-Duluth, 4-0, before dispatching a hopelessly outgunned Minnesota squad, 6-1, in Thursday night's national semifinal. The win, BC's 18th in a row, advanced the Eagles to the championship game for the 11th time and second time in three years. BC is 4-6 in title appearances.
"I don't think we talk about it much," BC coach Jerry York said about the recent winning streak. "You know, here's our next opponent. Like (BC captain) Tommy Cross said, we play so many different opponents in hockey that you can't adjust to every team you play. So you better keep your own ship ready, you know."
BC leads the series with Ferris, 1-0-1, with the Eagles taking a 9-6 victory over the Bulldogs in the Minnesota-Duluth Holiday Classic on Dec. 28, 1983, and the teams skating to a 3-3 tie on Dec. 30, 2005 in the Denver Cup.
Ferris (26-11-5) edged Union, 3-1, in Thursday's other semifinal.
York, who has guided BC to 10 Frozen Four trips, disputed any talk about a David vs. Goliath matchup.
"Someone said this morning, Ferris State has nothing to lose and you have everything to lose. We want to win trophies. So everybody's got something to lose at this point, unless you don't want to win a trophy. So there's nobody here that has nothing to lose," said York, who hopes to guide BC to its fifth national title and a fourth since arriving at The Heights in 1994.
"I have great respect for the CCHA. I coached in the CCHA for 15 years (at Bowling Green) so I understand the dynamics of Big Rapids (Mich.) and I understand the kind of program they have. It's unique to hockey when a Division 3 school can play on the Division 1 level. It doesn't happen in football. But all hockey people know (about Ferris)."
BC junior goalie Parker Milner said it's simply fun to still be playing at this time of the year.
"I think waking up today and seeing some of the other teams pack up and leave really sets in how special it is to still be one of the two teams left," said Milner, who made 30 saves in Thursday's win over the Golden Gophers. "Coming to the rink every day with this group of guys it's so easy. It's so much fun to be around them. The older guys, we want to get a title here for the younger guys who haven't won it.
"I think Ferris is a really strong defensive team. They're going to be tough to play against. I think we're ready for it."
Ferris nearly dropped its hockey program two decades ago when administrators opted to de-emphasize athletics, but the Board of Trustees overruled that decision. Now, the Bulldogs are a game away from their first national title.
"You always want to play the best to be the best," said Jordie Johnston, the Bulldogs' leader in goals scored with 20.
"It's a perfect opportunity for us to a play a team that's been here numerous times, countless times. That's obviously exciting for us. Being this is our first time, we can hopefully start creating a dynasty of our own."
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