BC vs. Quinnipac: Preview & Predictions
Boston College men's hockey opens up their 2021-22 season against the Quinnipiac Bobcats on Friday night at the DCU Center in Worcester. This season, the 27th under head coach Jerry York, is the 100th in school history. Last season the Eagles went 17-6-1 with losses to UMass Lowell in the Hockey East tournament, and St. Cloud State in the NCAA tournament. This weekend's Ice Breaker challenge will feature matchups against the aforementioned QU Bobcats, and Holy Cross Cruasders.
Series History: Boston College has never beaten Quinnipiac, with a 0-3-1 record against the squad. The Eagles lost the last time they played in 2018-19, 1-0 in Hamden Connecticut.
When: 4:30 ET, DCU Center in Worcester
How to Watch: The game can be found on NESN and NESN+
Follow Along: We will be watching the game and giving our feedback on Twitter @BulletinBC and @AJBlack_BC
Quinnipiac Notes:
* Ethan De Jong and Zach Metsa both earned Preseason All-ECAC Hockey honors
* Team is loaded with transfers, with five on the roster including Dylan St. Cyr (Notre Dame), Griffin Mendel (Denver), Oliver Chau (UMass), Brendan Less (Dartmouth), and Tony Stillwell (Brown).
* Preseason ECAC favorites to win the conference, lost the championship game last year to St. Lawrence.
* Beat Maine 7-0 in their lone exhibition game.
Three Keys to the Game:
1. Returners need to lead the way. Boston College has had loads of turnover due to NHL departures and transfers. Players like Nesterenko, Jack McBain and Colby Ambrosio are now going to need to be the steady veteran hands to a team filled with new names.
2. Dop or Wilder. At the time of this writing a starting goalie has yet to be named, but it looks like Bowling Green transfer Eric Dop may get the start. He has huge skates to fill with Spencer Knight gone. He just needs to be solid out there, like he did against AIC in BC's lone exhibition game.
3. Win on Special Teams. Boston College was incredibly strong last year on the kill, going 27 of their last 29. On top of that BC also led the nation with 11 goes on the kill. If the Eagles can play like that against Quinnipac they should be in good shape to win the game.
AJ's Fearless Prediction: You'd think that a team with so many new or young faces may come out rusty or sloppy, but when legendary head coach Jerry York is on the bench, I think that will be neutralized. BC has a lot of young talent, led by Jack McBain that is complimented by some solid veteran transfers. This is going to be a close one, but BC should get their first win against Quinnipiac in school history. Boston College 4 Quinnipiac 3
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