BC Eagles Soar to Frozen Four Finals with Shutout Win

The Boston College Eagles continued their scorching hot streak, shutting out the Michigan Wolverines 4-0 in the NCAA Frozen Four semifinals on Thursday night. The top-seeded Eagles will now face off against No. 3 Denver in the championship game on Saturday, with a chance to claim their fifth national title and first since 2012.

Leading the charge for BC was sophomore sensation Will Smith, who tallied two goals in the convincing victory. Smith opened the scoring just 80 seconds into the game, firing a shot past Michigan goaltender Jake Barczewski to give the Eagles an early 1-0 lead. He then doubled the advantage in the second period, banking the puck off a Wolverine defender and into the net.

“We had a lot of anger after losing the Beanpot tournament earlier this season,” said BC center Cutter Gauthier. “That definitely put some fire in the pot for us, and we’ve been riding that motivation ever since.”

The Eagles have now won 15 consecutive games, with their last loss coming in that Beanpot final against rivals Boston University back in February. On Thursday, they showed no signs of slowing down, with Gauthier and Gabe Perreault also finding the back of the net to support a stellar performance from freshman goaltender Jacob Fowler, who recorded his third shutout of the season.

Despite holding a 32-22 edge in shots on goal, the Wolverines simply had no answer for BC’s high-powered offense and stifling defense. Michigan had entered the Frozen Four looking to capture its first national championship since 1998, even keeping that trophy in the locker room as a source of inspiration. However, the Eagles swiftly extinguished those title hopes, making a statement with their dominant display.

“We never allowed ourselves to be satisfied this season,” said BC head coach Greg Brown. “We were constantly finding ways to improve, and that mentality really showed tonight against a very tough Michigan team.”

With the victory, the Eagles set a new program record with their 34th win of the campaign. They’ll now turn their attention to the championship clash with Denver, aiming to cap off this remarkable season by hoisting that coveted NCAA trophy. Having already avenged their Beanpot disappointment, Boston College is hungry to bring home some more prestigious hardware.