Thursday, February 2, 2023

Notes: Beanpot takes 70th lap around rink

Annual Boston tradition returns Monday

By Jayson Hajdu

It’s one of the most anticipated events on the college hockey slate each season and this year it turns 70.

The 70th edition of the annual Beanpot tournament gets underway Monday at TD Garden in Boston, starting with Boston College versus No. 8 Harvard in the opener, followed by No. 3 and defending Beanpot champ Boston University against No. 20 Northeastern in the nightcap.

The tournament crowns its champion the following Monday.

The Beanpot was first played on Dec. 26, 1952, and has become the centerpiece for college hockey bragging rights in the city of Boston. Pre-tournament coverage of this year’s event includes this terrific profile piece by the Boston Herald.

It was also announced that BU alum and current Boston Bruins defenseman Matt Grzelcyk will be inducted alongside his father into the Beanpot Hall of Fame.

Elsewhere around the country, other top-20 PairWise matchups include:

#2 Quinnipiac at #9 Harvard (Friday)
#16 UConn at #19 Northeastern (Friday)
#6 Penn State at #8 Ohio State (Friday, Saturday)
#14 Notre Dame at #18 Michigan State (Friday, Saturday)

Stat Leaders

Alton the Family:

It was a weekend to remember for Canisius sophomore forward Alton McDermott (Oakville, Ontario).

On Friday, McDermott scored twice – the first multi-goal game of his collegiate career – to lift his Golden Griffins to a 5-2 win over Battle of the Bridge rival Niagara.

The following night, McDermott’s grandfather – none other than hockey legend Paul Henderson – dropped the ceremonial faceoff prior to the rematch with the Purple Eagles. Henderson, who was celebrating his 80th birthday, played 13 seasons in the NHL and five more in the WHA. He is best known for scoring the series-clinching goal in the 1972 Summit Series between Canada and Russia.

Riding a Mile High:

It was a pretty good weekend for defending NCAA champion Denver, too.

DU reclaimed sole possession of first place in the NCHC with a 2-0 win over Colorado College on Friday, the first game in their annual Gold Pan series. The game was played in front of 17,952 fans at Ball Arena, home of the NHL’s Colorado Avalanche. According to DU Assistant Director of Communications & Digital Media Ron Knabenbauer, it was the largest indoor crowd in NCAA Division I men’s hockey since Feb. 10, 2018.

“Just an immense amount of pride tonight for the hockey community, but obviously specifically for our fans and the brand and the following that we have within the state and city of Denver,” said head coach David Carle.

It was the Pioneers’ 20th victory of the season, marking the 21st time in the last 22 seasons that DU has won 20-plus games.

Noticing the Nanooks:

Alaska has rattled off eight wins in 10 games since the start of December. During that time, the Nanooks clinched their 12th consecutive Governor’s Cup – the annual rivalry series with Alaska Anchorage – and earned road victories against then-top-ranked Denver and then-No. 17/19 Notre Dame.

The Nanooks have been terrific all season long at suppressing shots against (23.7 per game), ranking fifth nationally in that category. That’s allowed Alaska to be a top-10 team defensively, yielding just 2.3 goals per game. Between the pipes, Holy Cross senior transfer Matt Radomsky (Winnipeg, Manitoba) has been a steady presence, going 13-9-2 with a 2.13 goals against average and .909 save percentage.

Up front, Minnesota grad transfer Jonny Sorenson (St. Louis Park, Minn.) has scored a team-leading and career-high eight goals in 24 games. His 16 points tie him for the team lead with sophomore Payton Matsui (Lakeville, Minn.), who has already nearly tripled his freshman output of six points in 26 games.

You Can Quote Me On That:

“I played in the last game at the old Garden and the first game in the new Garden. Being a Boston kid, whether it was high school or college, it was all about getting to the Garden.”

— Harvard head coach and former Boston Bruin Ted Donato ahead of the 70th annual Beanpot tournament at TD Garden in Boston (source: Boston Herald).

NHL Note of the Week:

Twelve NCAA alumni – more than one-fourth of the 46 total players chosen – have been named to the rosters for the Saturday’s 2023 NHL All-Star Game, representing nine different college programs.

First-time selections include Seattle’s Matty Beniers (Michigan), the New York Rangers’ Adam Fox (Harvard), Philadelphia’s Kevin Hayes (Boston College), the New York Islanders’ Brock Nelson (North Dakota), and Buffalo’s Tage Thompson (Connecticut).

Repeat participants include Columbus’ Johnny Gaudreau (Boston College), Winnipeg’s Connor Hellebuyck (Massachusetts Lowell), Arizona’s Clayton Keller (Boston University), Detroit’s Dylan Larkin (Michigan), Colorado’s Cale Makar (Massachusetts), Anaheim’s Troy Terry (Denver), and Ottawa’s Brady Tkachuk (Boston University).

Fries at the Bottom of the Bag:

St. Cloud State senior F Jami Krannila (Nokia, Finland) enters the weekend with 98 career points … Omaha freshman G Simon Latkoczy (Trencin, Slovakia) has logged shutouts in each of his last two starts … Canisius honored hockey legend Paul Henderson, grandfather of sophomore forward Alton McDermott (Oakville, Ontario), with a ceremonial puck drop prior to Saturday’s game against Niagara. It was Henderson’s 80th birthday. McDermott scored a pair of goals one night earlier in a 5-2 win over Niagara … Arizona State’s 4-0 win over St. Thomas on Friday was the 100th career NCAA victory for ASU head coach Greg Powers … Michigan Tech senior G Blake Pietila (Howell, Mich.) tied his own school record with his NCAA-leading seventh shutout of the season in Friday’s 3-0 win over Northern Michigan. It was also Pietila’s 17th career goose egg, extending his school record in that category … Bowling Green sophomore F Austen Swankler (North Huntingdon, Pa.), the CCHA Forward of the Month, enters the week with an 18-game point streak that is the longest in men’s college hockey since Kyle Connor finished the 2015-16 season with a 27-game run.