ST. LOUIS — For all the talk about the Frozen Four experience of the Boston University men’s hockey team, the Terriers are glad to find themselves back in uncharted waters.
For the first time since 2015, BU will play in the national championship game.
After Thursday’s 3-1 win over Penn State at the Enterprise Center in St. Louis, the Terriers will play Western Michigan in the title game Saturday night at 7:30 p.m. ET.
BU and Western Michigan both practiced at the Enterprise Center Friday, with each team also holding a pregame press conference.
Here’s what you need to know.
BU preparing for ‘pro-style’ Western Michigan
In Friday’s press conference, BU head coach Jay Pandolfo said he watched all of Western Michigan’s semifinal against Denver.
His takeaways: Western Michigan is a “pro-style” team that plays with “structure.”
“They’ve had a terrific season. They’re a really good team,” Pandolfo said. “They want to get pucks behind you, play below the goal line. They have some bigger bodies. They’ll get to your net.”
Asked if the Broncos reminded him of any Hockey East opponents, Pandolfo said UMass is “maybe a little similar,” referencing how the Minutemen are “heavy on pucks,” “get to your net” and “keep you away from their net.”
Western Michigan’s Owen Michaels scored 26 seconds into double overtime to seal a 3-2 win over defending champion Denver in the semifinals. The Broncos dominated the Pioneers for most of the game, building a 2-0 lead and lopsided shot differential through two periods, before Denver roared back to force overtime.
Western Michigan is led by sophomore forward Alex Bump (23 goals, 24 assists, 47 points), grad student Tim Washe (16-20-36) and sophomore Grant Slukynsky (10-26-36). Starting goaltender Hampton Slukynsky enters Saturday night with a 1.90 goals against average and .922 save percentage in 24 starts.
As of Friday morning, the Terriers had yet to look at Western Michigan as a team, but Pandolfo said the group would begin breaking down film on the Broncos later Friday night and into Saturday.
Kamil Bednarik playing through sickness, Cole Hutson and Gavin McCarthy don’t dress for practice
Bednarik did not practice Tuesday at Agganis Arena or Wednesday in St. Louis due to an illness, but he suited up for Thursday’s semifinal.
Before Friday’s practice, the freshman forward said he was still battling through an illness.
“I’m pretty sick, but battling through it,” Bednarik said. “Don’t really know what I have, some virus or something, but just pushing through.”
He added that there was never a doubt he’d play in the Frozen Four, given the magnitude of the games. He did not fully participate in Friday’s practice, but spent a few minutes doing stickhandling drills by the bench wearing a t-shirt and shorts.
Defensemen Cole Hutson and Gavin McCarthy both sat out the practice as well, joining Bednarik for the brief stickhandling work by the bench.
It’s unclear whether there is injury concern for either of the two, but Hutson (24:40) and McCarthy (26:05) logged more ice time in Thursday’s semifinal than any other Terrier. Their decision not to practice was likely related to rest management.
Western Michigan coach Pat Ferschweiler compares BU to late-2010 Boston Bruins
Asked if he’d spent any time pre-scouting BU, Ferscheweiler referenced his days as an assistant with the Detroit Red Wings from 2015-19.
“I pre-scouted BU for years. They were called the Boston Bruins. And their style of play is exactly what Boston did,” Ferschweiler said. “Certainly, Coach Pandolfo has brought that style
down. Somewhat unique to college. It’s pretty popular in the NHL. But there’s a lot of similarities there.”
Ferschweiler said the Broncos “have a good idea” of what BU is trying to accomplish, and said they’ll look to neutralize the Terriers’ strengths while still playing their style of hockey.
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