Frozen Four 2015: Known Info, Schedule Details Before Field Is Set

Final Four this, Final Four that. College hockey fans are tired of hearing about the Final Four and March Madness and all of that hoopla. College hockey fans are all about the Frozen Four instead. 

And with two teams set and two more to be named Sunday, the buzz only continues to grow. Let's break down the Frozen Four schedule and preview the teams that have already advanced.

Schedule

Date	Time (ET)	Matchup	Watch
April 9	5 p.m.	TBD	ESPN2
April 9	9:30 p.m.	Boston vs. North Dakota	ESPN2

Preview

Elise Amendola/Associated Press

North Dakota is nothing if not resilient. In the lead-up to the team's 4-1 win over St. Cloud State on Saturday, the team was dealing with various illnesses in the locker room. It didn't matter, however.

"I don't think a little cold or a little flu is going to keep us from where we want to go this year," Bryn Chyzyk told Brad Elliott Schlossman of the Grand Forks Herald.

Indeed it didn't. This is a very good squad led by stalwart goalie Zane McIntyre (2.00 goals-against average, .931 save percentage this season). This is a program with a head coach in Dave Hakstol that has reached seven of the last 11 Frozen Fours, so the bright lights shouldn't affect these players. This is a balanced team, with five players with at least 10 goals, led by Drake Caggiula (18 goals, 36 points).

This will not be a team that goes down without a fight.

Of course, when North Dakota faces Boston, it will be facing a program that has won five national championships, though it hasn't reached the Frozen Four since 2009. What makes Boston really scary, of course, is that the game will be played just a few miles from its campus at the TD Garden, which will essentially be a home game for the team.

The Terriers showed resilience of their own against Minnesota-Duluth last round, as Evan Rodrigues scored with 2:24 left in the third period and on the power play to give the team the victory. It was his second goal of the game. The Terriers could have folded after giving up two leads to the Bulldogs, but instead they saved their best for last. 

It shouldn't be a surprise that Rodrigues was the hero. As Andrew Battifarano of The Daily Free Press wrote, he's still the player to come up big for the team:

"

Rodrigues, like so many others on last year’s 10-win team, had poor years, at least statistically. He finished with 14 points, only two higher than his freshman season output. As head coach David Quinn has said more than few times this season, Rodrigues probably did lead the country in something — missing the net.

Yet Rodrigues stayed the course, and more than not, he’s not shooting wide of goal. He’s not leading the nation in that this year, but he is second [in] overall points, only behind his teammate, freshman center Jack Eichel. His propensity to score in big situations can’t be understated either. In both Beanpot games and the two at the Northeast Regional, Rodrigues had a point on every game-winning goal.

"

Rodrigues has certainly been better this year than last year's disappointing campaign, with 21 goals and 61 overall points. And he'll certainly be one of the focal points for Boston's dangerous offense against McIntyre and North Dakota's strong defense. 

Still, Boston really comes at teams in waves, and North Dakota is going to have a tough time containing it. Look for the Terriers to be a bit too much for North Dakota to handle, though the team will keep it close.