This Weekend’s BC Eagles Hockey Rooting Interests
By Joe Micik
#19 BC Eagles hockey not only needs to do some serious winning to get back in position for an at-large bid, but they need help to get in Hockey East position as well.
The more avenues the Eagles can open for themselves in terms of making the NCAA Tournament, the better their lot will be in March. The PairWise looks like a tough mountain to climb, and though Hockey East might not ultimately be any better, there’s no sense in avoiding trying, right?
What are (or should be) the BC Eagles hockey rooting interests for this weekend in upcoming conference play?
Boston College currently has 16 points in conference play, but the bad news is that they have played 14 games, several more than all other teams in range of them in the conference standings. No team has played more conference games than the Eagles. Really shoulda won that Maine game, guys.
BC Eagles Hockey Rooting Interests: Weekend Series
• UMass vs. Merrimack (2 games): If you care about the Eagles’ Wednesday win looking better, root for Merrimack. If you want the Warriors to not be a threat to pass the Eagles in the conference, and for other reasons, root for UMass. As of now, the Warriors have nine points, seven behind the Eagles, but Merrimack has four games in hand.
A bad weekend against UMass would kill their PairWise and do serious harm to their ability to win Hockey East. UMass would likely also get the Warriors out of our way in the PWR, meaning one fewer team to jump.
• New Hampshire at Maine (2 games): No real preference. The Eagles split against both these teams; not much advantage to either one winning.
Boston College Eagles
• Notre Dame vs. Northeastern (2 games): Pull for Northeastern. Notre Dame is closer in the standings to the Eagles than the Huskies are.
• Boston University vs. Vermont (2 games): The ideal situation would be some sort of split. Neither team would advance, and hopefully not gain much ground on the Eagles. Let these two heavyweights beat each other up. If only they could both lose.
• Providence vs. UMass-Lowell (2 games): If you’re looking to make a move to the top in Hockey East, go for Providence. If you want Providence to drop in the PairWise and hopefully start falling out of the Eagles’ way, pull for UMass-Lowell.