Frozen Four 2012 Results: Scores, Highlights, Recap and Analysis
Tradition collided with the times on Thursday at the 2012 Frozen Four in Tampa, as the cold-weather sport of college hockey staged its championship semifinals in the summery climate of Florida.
The clash between old and new extended to the ice inside the Tampa Bay Times Forum, or, at least, is bound to in the national championship game on Saturday.
Union College and Ferris State, both first-timers to the Frozen Four, kicked off the festivities in the Sunshine State, with the Bulldogs earning a 3-1 win over the Dutchmen.
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Union, the first ECHC school to advance this far into the NCAA Tournament since Cornell in 2003, got off to a solid start when Daniel Carr slotted a pass from Jeremy Welsh past Bulldogs goalkeeper Taylor Nelson at the 7:56 mark of the second period.
From that point on, though, it was all Ferris State.
Kyle Bonis scored the equalizer on a power play less than 10 minutes later and put the Bulldogs ahead for good with another score around Union goalie Troy Grosenick at the 15:17 mark of the third.
Union head coach Rick Bennett pulled Grosenick with 1:19 left in the game, only to see Aaron Schmit score on a breakaway just seconds later.
The result snapped the Dutchmen's seven-game winning streak and propelled Ferris State onto the tournament final, where the Bulldogs will face Boston College for the national championship.
The Eagles gashed Minnesota in a clash of collegiate titans in the nightcap by a score of 6-1.
The game was practically over by the end of the second period, as B.C. built up a 4-0 cushion behind goals by Steven Whitney in the first period and Kevin Hayes, Chris Kreider and Paul Carey in the second.
Jake Hansen broke the drought for the Golden Gophers with a score at the 1:26 mark of the third period, though it took all of 22 seconds for Carey to respond with his second goal of the night for the Eagles. Brian Dumoulin added a sixth on a power play at 5:51.
As a result, BC will have the opportunity to parlay its 23rd trip to the Frozen Four into the fifth national title in school history and the fourth under long-time head coach Jerry York.
The blue-blood Eagles will be heavily favored against the upstart Bulldogs on Saturday, thanks to a slew of prospects bound for the 2012 NHL Draft.
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