Frozen Four 2016: Final Results, Scores, Highlights and Twitter Reaction

It's a tradition unlike any other. Not the Masters Tournament. The Frozen Four—NCAA hockey's version of the Final Four taking place on Thursday.   

The Boston College Eagles, winners of five national titles and looking for their first since 2012, took on the Quinnipiac Bobcats. They came hoping for their first appearance in the national title game since 2013.

In the nightcap, the No. 3-seeded North Dakota Fighting Hawks were on a quest for their eighth national title in school history and their first since 2000. They took on the Denver Pioneers, also searching for their eighth national title and their first since back-to-back championships in 2004 and 2005.

Here's a recap of the day's action.

No. 1 Quinnipiac vs. Boston College	Quinnipiac, 3-2
No. 3 North Dakota vs. Denver	North Dakota, 4-2

Quinnipiac 3, Boston College 2

The Bobcats scored two goals in the first seven minutes, 20 seconds of the first period and clinched a spot in the national title game after defeating Boston College 3-2 on Thursday night at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida.

Quinnipiac Hockey noted the achievement on its Twitter account:

If this match were based on Frozen Four history between the two programs, this would have been a one-sided affair, per ESPN Stats & Info:

But this was a match of two of the hottest teams in the country, per College Hockey Inc.:

That didn't appear to be the case early on. Quinnipiac was the aggressor. The Bobcats not only attacked the net often, but they were more assertive in capturing loose pucks than the Eagles.

With 17:29 remaining in the first period, Quinnipiac defenseman Kevin McKernan gathered a loose puck near the front of the Boston College net and scored the game's first goal, via Ryan Biech of Canucks Army:

Nearly five minutes later, Quinnipiac struck again on an Andrew Taverner goal off a find from Travis St. Denis to give the Bobcats a commanding 2-0 lead. Dirk Shadd of the Tampa Bay Times shared the first-period celebration:

NCAA Ice Hockey also provided a radio call of the score that put the Bobcats ahead by two goals:

It took only 23 seconds in the second period before Boston College broke through in the scoring department thanks to a goal from Minnesota Wild prospect Alex Tuch.

The sophomore's goal came off a pass from a defenseman, and he redirected it to the back of the net, via CJ Fogler of The Cauldron:

But that one-goal deficit didn't last long, as Quinnipiac continued to attack the net to put pressure on BC goalie Thatcher Demko. That paid off, with Landon Smith poking the loose puck to the back of the net for the Bobcats' third goal, via Biech:

With the final minutes ticking down, Boston College took advantage of a power-play opportunity with 4:16 remaining in regulation. Ryan Fitzgerald scored with the man advantage and made it a one-goal game once again, per Guy Flaming of TSN 1260:

Despite its efforts to trim the lead, Boston College failed to score the equalizer, and the Bobcats are on their way to the national title game. The Eagles had an empty net with just over a minute left, but Quinnipiac goalie Michael Garteig made the save of the game, via NCAA Ice Hockey:

 When it came to being aggressive and taking advantage of opportunities around the opposing net, Quinnipiac made it count. Because of that, the Bobcats will get a chance for redemption after they came up short against Yale in a 4-0 loss in the 2013 title game.

Postgame Reaction

Quinnipiac coach Rand Pecknold raved over his goalie's big-time save that preserved Quinnipiac's victory.

“Garzie is a winner,” Pecknold said, per the Associated Press (via the New York Times). “All year long he has been going up head-to-head with the top goalies in the country, and he finds a way to win. That’s what he does.”

Even Boston College coach Jerry York couldn't help but give Garteig his praise for that save.

“He made a terrific save,” York said, per the AP. “It ended our season.”

Despite Boston College making it a one-goal game with a few minutes remaining, Garteig believed his teammates would do everything they could to keep the score as is.

"Unfortunately, they got one with about three minutes left, but the boys did everything they could to keep it a 3-2 lead," Garteig said, per Courtney Martinez of NCAA.com. "Blocking shots and doing everything that we could. It was a special win. It was a big one for our program.”

North Dakota 4, Denver 2

Nick Schmaltz's goal with just under a minute remaining sent the Fighting Hawks to the national championship with a 4-2 win over Denver in Tampa.

NCAA Ice Hockey provided this GIF of North Dakota celebrating at the other end after its thrilling win:

After a scoreless first period, North Dakota broke through in the second with two goals in the first six minutes, 15 seconds, both scored by Drake Caggiula.

Caggiula streaked down the ice and started the scoring, via Fogler:

Denver Hockey did not take too kindly to Caggiula's wrister:

Caggiula scored again five minutes later to give North Dakota a two-goal lead heading into the third.

These two goals continued a stellar run against Denver, per the National Collegiate Hockey Conference:

Aaron Matas of 9News in Denver thought it was a one-sided affair:

But the Pioneers clawed back to tie the game thanks to two third-period goals. Will Butcher scored with 17 minutes, 10 seconds remaining to put Denver on the board. With nine minutes, nine seconds remaining, Matt VanVoorhis tied the game off a lucky bounce, via Fogler:

With time running down in the third period, it was Schmaltz scoring the game-winning goal with 56.8 seconds remaining off a face-off at North Dakota's end. Schmaltz put in the rebound for the winner, via Fogler:

NCAA Ice Hockey had this tweet to close the night and make it official:

North Dakota will be making its first appearance in the national title game since 2005 and is looking for its first title since 2000. The Fighting Hawks can't afford to give up two goals like they did in the third period, especially against a Quinnipiac team that attacked the net recklessly on Thursday night. The stage is set for a high-scoring match for the championship.

Postgame Reaction

It was a play North Dakota had practiced all week in that faceoff. All the Fighting Hawks had to do was go about executing it.

"We wanted to come off the play and win a draw, then get a puck to net," said North Dakota head coach Brad Berry, per Mike McMahon of College Hockey News. "Brock Boeser took the draw for Schmaltz and Drake whiffed a bit but Brock took it back made a great play to Nick on the backdoor."

Denver coach Jim Montgomery thought that winning goal symbolized the night as a whole for the Pioneers.

“We got outmuscled at the net front,” Montgomery said, per McMahon.

Despite trailing 2-0, Denver never gave up on the game and believed it would make a comeback, no matter the score.

“We're never going to give up no matter what the score is,” said Denver’s Grant Arnold, per McMahon. “It could have been 5-0 in the third and we would have come out with a ton of fire regardless. That's just Denver hockey. That's how Monty coaches.”

It's been almost two decades since North Dakota won a title in hockey, but the Hawks are one win away from making that a reality. And the seniors are making it known they want it.

“I think when you first step on North Dakota campus, the first thing you talk about is winning a National Championship,” Caggiula said, per McMahon. “For the first three years we came up short. As a senior class we wanted to leave this program with a National Championship. We're one step closer there."