Game-day information: Game 39 vs. Boston College
When	Friday, Mar. 18, 8 p.m.
Where	Boston, Mass.  |  TD Garden  |  Directions
Broadcast and stats	TELEVISION: NESN / NBCSN Live Stats  |  Watch  |  Audio  |  Tickets
Notes and yearbook	Game Notes  |  2015-16 Yearbook
Promotions	Register For The Pre-game Gathering
Social media	WATCH: The Rivalry Renews @GoNUmhockey  facebook.com/GoNUmhockey instagram.com/GoNUathletics  Use GoNU and BeatBC

BOSTON -- The No. 14 Northeastern men's ice hockey team is back in the Hockey East semifinals for the first time since 2011, and looks to advance to its second conference title game in team history when the Huskies battle No. 5/4 Boston College on Friday night at TD Garden. The Huskies are 4-0 in the postseason, including a sweep at No. 10 Notre Dame in the conference quarterfinal last weekend to send NU into the league semifinal for the eighth time in team history. This marks the ninth time that a No. 6 seed has advanced to the Hockey East semifinal.
 
Back to the Garden
NU is back in the Hockey East playoffs for the third straight season, and 25th time in program history. It also marks the 18th time in 25 playoff appearances that Northeastern enters the playoffs as the No. 6 seed or higher.
 
The Huskies will be making their eighth appearance in the Hockey East quarterfinals, owning a 1-7 record dating back to 1987. NU is looking to return to the conference championship game for the first time since 1988. Northeastern is just the ninth team to reach the league semifinal as a No. 6 seed. Only two have advanced to the Hockey East title game (Maine in 1998, Providence in 1995).
 
The all-time series with the Eagles
The Eagles have had the Huskies' number ever since the crosstown rivals first stepped on the ice together, leading the all-time series 163-48-16. BC will pass Boston University as Northeastern's most-faced opponent in program history with their 228th meeting on Friday.
 
Friday will mark the eighth time in league history that Northeastern and Boston College have met in the Hockey East tournament, and first since 2011, with the Eagles holding a 6-1 advantage in the series. The teams have also met two times in the conference semifinals in 1987 and 2011
 
The two teams played a pair of close contests during the regular season, with the Eagles taking the series 1-0-1. Coming off NU's trip to Northern Ireland, the team's met in early December for a home-and-home series, starting with a 3-3 tie at Conte Forum thanks to two goals from Nolan Stevens, including the equalizer with 2:14 remaining in regulation. NU outshot the Eagles 36-26, including a 22-6 edge in the third period and overtime.
 
The following afternoon at Matthews Arena, Boston College scored three goals in the first 10 minutes of the third period to erase a two-goal deficit and defeat the Huskies, 4-3. Eric Williams led NU with two goals while Zach Aston-Reese also scored.
 
Scouting Boston College
Boston College returns to the Hockey East semifinal for the 22nd time, and first since 2013, after defeating Vermont in a decisive game three of the Hockey East quarterfinals in overtime last Sunday, 4-3. Overall, the Eagles are 26-6-5 on the year and earned the league's top seed in the tournament thanks to a 15-2-5 mark in conference play.
 
The Eagles, owners of the conference's top scoring at 3.86 goals per game, are led by junior Ryan Fitzgerald with 43 points (22 goals, 21 assists). He's been flanked by rookie Colin White in 2015-16, who is fourth in the nation in rookie scoring with 40 points (18 goals, 22 assists) on the season.
 
Hobey Baker Top Ten Finalist Thatcher Demko has been rock solid between the pipes for Boston College in 2015-16, leading the league in both goals against average (1.78) and save percentage (.938) in 35 games played. He is 25-6-4 on the season, and set the school record for shutouts in a season (10).
 
Poll position
Northeastern enters Friday's game ranked 14th in the PairWise rankings, and in a position to earn a bid to the NCAA tournament depending on results from the weekend. The Huskies also entered both the USCHO.com and USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine polls for the first time this season, checking in at No. 14 after receiving votes in each of the previous four polls.
 
Streaking
NU is unbeaten in 20 of its last 21 games (18-1-2), and is on an 11-game winning streak, the second longest streak in team history. It's 12-game unbeaten streak (11-0-1), meanwhile, is the longest active streak in the nation and tied for the longest such streak in program history.
 
During this recent stretch, the Huskies are averaging 4.05 goals per game (fourth in the nation in that span) and conceding just 1.81 goals per game (tied for the fifth fewest in the nation in that span). NU's opponents have been held to two goals or fewer in all but five of those games.
 
Northeastern's lockdown defense in the last 21 games has limited its opponents to just 21 goals in the second and third periods of games, tied for the lowest total in the nation. It's +34 goal differential in the second and third periods in the last 21 games is the third highest in the nation. Despite averaging 30.33 shots on goal during the last 21 games, NU's 13.3% shooting percentage is third in the nation in that span led by Nolan Stevens' 24.4% mark (10 goals on 41 shots).
 
Throughout this stretch the Huskies went 10-0-1 in conference games, which is the longest unbeaten streak in league play since Northeastern joined Hockey East at the start of the 1984-85 season.
 
Northeastern's 17 wins since January are the most in the nation this season and the second most in team history (19 wins in 1981-82).
 
A tale of two seasons
Northeastern's sluggish start to the 2015-16 season was well documented, coming out of the gates 1-10-2 before the team's trip to Belfast, Northern Ireland for the first-ever Friendship Four. After an overtime loss to then-No. 4 UMass Lowell, the Huskies rebounded with a 7-1 win against Colgate in the consolation game and haven't looked back since. Since the trip the Huskies are 18-2-3, including a 10-1-2 mark in league play that catapulted NU from 12th to sixth place in the league standings in a span of six weeks.
 
"I thought it was the turning point of our season," said head coach Jim Madigan. "Our lineup had settled in and we knew how we had to play without are two key offensive players, and went into Northern Ireland with a game plan that was."
 
Recapping last Saturday's win at Notre Dame
Kevin Roy's four points, along with points from nine different skaters, set the tone for Northeastern, which competed a sweep of No. 10/10 Notre Dame in the Hockey East quarterfinals on Saturday night at Compton Family Ice Arena, 6-4.
 
After falling behind 1-0 late in the first period, NU responded with six of the game's next seven goals to skate away from the Fighting Irish late in regulation and earn the team's first quarterfinal sweep since 1994.
 
Mike McMurtry (two assists), Dylan Sikura (one goal, one assist), Garret Cockerill (one goal, one assist) and Colton Saucerman (one goal, two assists) all registered multi-point nights on the evening, while Ryan Ruck made 25 stops in net.
 
NU presented with Holt Team Sportsmanship Award
Hockey East proudly recognizes an entire team for its sportsmanlike play with the Charles E. Holt Sportsmanship Award, named after the former University of New Hampshire head coach. The Team Sportsmanship Award was established by the league's directors in 1992 and was renamed to honor Holt in 1998. The award is presented in the form of a shadow box with etched glass depicting the image of New Hampshire's legendary coach.
 
The Huskies averaged just 9.3 penalty minutes per game in Hockey East competition this season to win the sportsmanship award for the fourth time in team history (1994, 2004, 2005, 2016). NU had fewer penalty minutes than its opponent in 15 of the team's 22 conference games this season.
 
Roy named Warrior Player of the Week
Following a four-point night on Saturday at No. 10/10 Notre Dame in the Hockey East quarterfinals, Kevin Roy earned his second straight Warrior Hockey East Player of the Week nod on Monday. Roy potted two goals and added two assists in Northeastern's 6-4 win against the Fighting Irish, completing a weekend sweep.
 
His first goal of the night came on a two-on-one with Sam Kurker early in the second period when the two sprang loose in transition following a turnover, allowing Kurker to slide the puck to Roy on the doorstep for the score. The Lac-Beauport, Quebec native cashed in again early in the third period when he redirected a shot from Colton Saucerman past Notre Dame goaltender Cal Petersen.
 
Roy's four points were a season-high for the senior winger, and tied for the second most among Hockey East skaters last weekend. Overall, Roy has 10 goals and 14 assists on the year, which ranks seventh on the team. He has done most of his damage since his return from an injury that sidelined him for 12 games.
 
Northeastern is 13-1-1 since his return to the lineup on January 22, with Roy tallying 10 goals and nine assists in those games, tied for the second most points in Hockey East in that span.
 
Special teams
During Northeastern's recent run of success, its performance on special teams has been the difference. On the power play, the Huskies started the year 11-of-79 (13.9%) in the first 17 games of the season, which ranked 47th in the nation in that span. In the 21 games since, the power play unit is operating at a 30.8% clip (24-of-78), which is third in the country.
 
The Huskies have scored a power play goal in nine of the last 12 games, including a season-best 4-of-7 performance on Feb. 27 against Maine. Overall, they are eighth in the country with a 22.3% success rate (33-of-151) and they are one of six teams with at least 35 power play goals this season.
 
The penalty killing, meanwhile, has responded with some of its best hockey of the year. It allowed 14 power play goals (45-of-59; 76.3%) in the first 17 games, ranked 52nd of 60 teams. Over the last 21 games, though, the PK unit has surrendered 12 goals (55-of-67; 82.1%).
 
Win after win
Saturday's win at No. 10 Notre Dame marked the 20th win of the season for the Huskies. It's the sixth time in team history, and first since 2008-09, that NU has won at least 20 games, and is tied for the fifth most in program history.
 
Sophomore surge
A pair of sophomores have significantly increased their offensive production in 2015-16, led by Nolan Stevens, who went from a 12-point (three goals, nine assists) freshman campaign to posting 37 points (17 goals, 20 assists) this season. His +25 increase is the fourth largest point improvement from 2014-15 to 2015-16. Dylan Sikura is also having a big sophomore year with 25 points (10 goals, 15 assists), sixth on the team and a +18 increase from last season.
 
The Ruck stops here
Freshman netminder Ryan Ruck made his collegiate debut on Oct. 17 at Bentley, making six saves in relief of Derick Roy in the third period. Ruck arrived at Northeastern after playing for the Des Moines Buccaneers of the USHL for two seasons, posting a 3.17 goals against average and a .903 save percentage in 33 games in 2014-15.
 
The rookie has a 2.21 goals against average and .915 save percentage in 34 games this season, and was named the Pro Ambitions Rookie of the Week on two occasions this season.
 
Over the last 21 games, Ruck is 18-1-2 with a 1.74 goals against average and .931 save percentage. His .905 winning percentage in his last 21 games is the best in the nation in that span, and has allowed two goals or fewer in 16 of his last 19 starts, including two shutouts.
 
His 18 wins are the fourth most in a single-season in team history, and has already cracked the top-ten for single-season games played (34; tied for sixth), minutes played (2005:36; sixth) and shutouts (two; tied for eighth).
 
Points from the point
Northeastern has received significant production from its defensemen in the offensive end of the ice so far this season. NU is tied for sixth in the country in goals from defensemen (25) this season.
 
Garret Cockerill leads all blueliners with eight goals this season, and recorded his first career three-point night on Feb. 12 at UMass. It was the first three-point night for a Northeastern defenseman since Matt Benning against Connecticut on Feb. 13, 2015. Should Cockerill score another goal, it would be the most goals in a season for an NU defenseman since Jake Newton scored nine during the 2009-10 season.
 
Line 7-8-9
Mike McMurtry has six goals and 16 assists in his last 21 games, including a career-long nine-game point streak from Dec. 6 to Jan. 23. Freshman Adam Gaudette has also been hot of late, and has seven goals and 15 assists in his last 19 games, while linemate Dylan Sikura has points in 12 of his last 17 games (eight goals, seven assists).
 
Johnny on the spot
John Stevens is third on the team with 32 points this season (10 goals, 22 assists), and has been on a hot streak ever since February of last season. Dating back to the 2015 Beanpot semifinal vs. Boston College, Stevens has 45 points (13 goals, 32 assists) in 49 games. Stevens has 10 goals in 37 games this season after tallying four in all of the 2014-15 campaign (36 games).
  
Take me to your leader
One of the biggest storylines of the 2015-16 season is senior captain Kevin Roy, who returns for his senior season on Huntington Avenue. He is 11th in career scoring at Northeastern (65 goals, 83 assists, 148 points). He also ranks tied for 12th all-time in career goals and 16th in career assists. He is currently fourth in the nation among active skaters in career points, tied for fifth in assists and tied for sixth among active players in career goals.
 
Last season, the Lac-Beauport, Quebec native became the 21st player in program history to record 100 career points in three seasons or less. He logged 44 points to become the first Husky since 1993-94 to log at least 40 points in consecutive seasons. For his efforts, he was named a CCM Second Team All-American, First Team Hockey East All-Star and was a candidate for the Hobey Baker Award.
 
Roy is one of eight returning All-Americans, and the first Northeastern player since Rob Cowie in 1990 to be named an All-American and return for the following season.
 
On Feb. 8 at the Beanpot, Roy's first period assist moved him into the top-25 of all-time Beanpot scoring with 12 points (seven goals, five assists).