March 26, 2009

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Boston University vs. Ohio State
NCAA Northeast Regional Semifinal - March 28, 2009 - 5:30 p.m.
Verizon Wireless Arena - Manchester, N.H.
TV: ESPN2   Streaming Video: ESPN 360   Radio: WWZN 1510 AM (www.1510thezone.com)

***Listen to WWZN before the game for a 90-minute postseason special, including BU All-Access from 4-5, followed by the Terrier hockey pre-game show***

 

The top-ranked and top-seeded Boston University men's ice hockey team (31-6-4) will begin its quest to reach the Frozen Four when it takes on No. 4-seed Ohio State (23-14-4) in the opening round of the NCAA Northeast Regional on Saturday (March 28) at Verizon Wireless Arena in Manchester, N.H. The game, which will be televised live by ESPN2 and streamed on ESPN 360, will begin at 5:30 p.m.

Fellow Hockey East member New Hampshire (19-12-5), the region's No. 3 seed, will face second-seeded North Dakota (24-14-4) in the other semifinal at 2:30 p.m. The two winners will meet on Sunday at 5:30 p.m. with a spot in the Frozen Four on the line.

North Dakota, New Hampshire and Ohio State were three of the 10 at-large teams in this year's field. The Fighting Sioux lost both of their games at last weekend's WCHA Final Five, while the Wildcats and Buckeyes both lost in their respective conference quarterfinals.

Making their 31st NCAA appearance and fresh off their seventh Hockey East tournament crown, the Terriers are undefeated in their last 15 games (13-0-2), their longest such stretch in program history.

This is the fourth time in five seasons that BU has qualified for the NCAA tournament and it marks the third straight time that the Terriers will be meeting a CCHA opponent in their opening game (Nebraska Omaha, 2006; Michigan State, 2007).

Head coach Jack Parker is bringing the Terriers to the NCAAs for the 23rd time, breaking the all-time record set by Ron Mason, who made 22 NCAA appearances as a coach (19 at Michigan State, three at Bowling Green).

Only one other BU team has won more games than this year's Terriers, as the 1993-94 squad posted 34 victories before falling to Lake Superior State in the NCAA title game. This is the fifth time in program history that the Terriers have reached the 30-win plateau.

The Terriers and Buckeyes have met on two previous occasions -- both in holiday tournaments on neutral ice -- with BU winning both contests by a single goal. In just the second game of Jack Parker's head coaching career, BU posted a 6-5 win over the Buckeyes in the second round of the RPI Holiday Tournament on Dec. 28, 1973. The teams last met on Dec. 27, 1998, in the opening round of the Mariucci Classic, hosted by Minnesota, and BU earned a 2-1 victory.

Ohio State finished fifth in the CCHA standings and swept Bowling Green in the first round of the conference tournament before dropping its quarterfinal series at Alaska in three games. Saturday's contest will be the Buckeyes' first since March 15.

The Buckeyes earned 11 straight wins from Nov. 22 - Jan. 16 as part of a 13-game unbeaten streak that raised their record to 16-6-3, but are just 7-8-1 since.

OSU's offense ranks 11th in the country in scoring offense at 3.41 goals per game, but ranks just 45th on the power play with a 13.9-percent conversion rate.

Senior Corey Elkins leads OSU in both points (40) and goals (18) but is the only upperclassman in the team's top 10 scorers, as 22 freshmen and sophomores dot the roster. Sophomore John Albert is right behind with 39 points on the strength of a team-high 28 assists.

Sophomore Dustin Carlson has emerged as one of the nation's top goaltenders and boasts a 2.40 goals against average and a .920 save percentage.

John Markell is in his 14th season at the Ohio State helm and has a career record of 265-248-50.

The Terriers' 31 NCAA appearances trail only Michigan and Minnesota, which have been in the NCAAs 32 times each. Boston College ranks fourth with 28 appearances, Michigan State is fifth at 26 and North Dakota is sixth at 24.

BU enters the regionals with an all-time record of 34-32-0 (.515) in NCAA tournament play. The 34 wins represent the fourth-highest total in tournament history. The only programs with more victories are Minnesota (49), Michigan (44) and North Dakota (36). The Terriers won the title in 1971, 1972, 1978 and 1995.

Since 1992, when the NCAA moved to a regional format, the Terriers have now been a number one seed six times (1994, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2006, 2009) and been a two seed five times (1993, 1997, 2002, 2003, 2007). BU has been a three seed twice (2000 and 2005) and a four seed once (1992).

Of this year's Terrier roster, nine players have NCAA tournament experience and five of them have figured into the scoring. Thanks to his hat trick as a freshman in BU's first-round victory over Nebraska-Omaha, senior Chris Higgins is one of two Terriers with three points in NCAA play, joining classmate Brandon Yip, who has three assists.