BRIDGEPORT REGIONAL
When: Friday, March 24 & Sunday, March 26
Where: Total Mortgage Arena, Bridgeport, Conn.
Matchups (all times Eastern): Harvard vs. Ohio State, March 24, 2 p.m., ESPNU; Quinnipiac vs. Merrimack, March 24, 5:30 p.m., ESPNews; championship, March 26, 4 p.m., ESPN2
1. QUINNIPIAC
How they got here: At-large bid
Overall season record: 30-4-3
Top players: F Collin Graf (20-35-55), F Ethan de Jong (18-19-37), F Sam Lipkin (12-23-35), D Zach Metsa (8-24-32), G Yaniv Perets (30-4-3, 1.52 GAA, .929 SV%)
Why they will advance to the Frozen Four: Don’t let the semifinal exit in the ECAC postseason fool you. Quinnipiac was a consistent and elite team all season, and the top-flight scoring is bookended by arguably the nation’s best goaltender. It’s a very winnable regional, doubled up by the fact that Bridgeport is less than a half hour from the Hamden, Connecticut-based campus.
Why they won’t advance to the Frozen Four: Quinnipiac has won over 200 games since it won the ECAC postseason crown prior to advancing to the national championship game in 2016, but the Bobcats haven’t won a single conference championship banner, nor have they appeared in a Frozen Four. The loss to Colgate also exposed the same flaw from previous years, which is that a tough, physical team can crack a fabled defense’s code.
2. HARVARD
How they got here: At-large bid
Overall season record: 24-7-2
Top players: F Sean Farrell (20-32-52), F Alex Laferriere (21-21-42), F Matthew Coronato (20-16-36), D Henry Thrun (7-24-31), G Mitchell Gibson (18-6-2, 2.05 GAA, .925 SV%)
Why they will advance to the Frozen Four: Harvard is a nightmare matchup for anyone in this regional. The offense alone can skate with a high-flying Big Ten team, and a rugged, tough defense held opponents to less than 28 shots per game. It’s incredibly difficult for a team like Quinnipiac to beat a team like Harvard three times in a season, and Merrimack is a slightly worse version of the Crimson’s style. This is very similar to the same team that gave third-ranked Minnesota State all it could handle in last year’s Regional Semifinals.
Why they won’t advance to the Frozen Four: This is a Murderer’s Row of a regional, and drawing Ohio State is going to put the Crimson’s No. 2 seed to the test against a team from one of the country’s best conferences. Those two games in November against Michigan resulted in eight goals allowed, and games against top-tier teams included losses to Boston University, Northeastern, and a failure to repeat as league champions.
3. OHIO STATE
How they got here: At-large bid
Overall season record: 20-15-3
Top players: F Stephen Halliday (9-31–40), F Jake Wise (12-23–35), F Tate Singleton (11-16–27), D Mason Lohrei (3-26–29), G Jakub Dobeš (20-15-3, 2.33 GAA, .918 SV%)
Why they will advance to the Frozen Four: The Buckeyes are sneaky good. If Dobeš can rise to the occasion, he may be unbeatable. He anchors the top penalty kill in the country and Ohio State’s team defense five-on-five is respectable. The Buckeyes can score, too, and when they turn it on full force and work as a unit, they look as good as any team in this field.
Why they won’t advance to the Frozen Four: It’s the “working as a unit” part that may be Ohio State’s downfall. Their game is good but sometimes inconsistent, and when their defense breaks down, Dobeš may stop the first three shots but not the fourth because he is, after all, merely mortal. Also, they haven’t played since March 11 and that rust may work against them.
4. MERRIMACK
How they got here: At-large bid
Overall season record: 23-13-1
Top players: F Alex Jefferies (14-27-41), D Slava Demin (3-13-16), G Zach Borgiel (13-4-1, 1.97 GAA, .921 SV%), G Hugo Ollas (10-9-0, 2.32 GAA, .915 SV%), F Matt Copponi (14-15-29).
Why they will advance to the Frozen Four: A reported 20 buses full of Merrimack fans made the trip from North Andover, Mass., to Boston for the Hockey East tournament. If that many (or even more) show up for the regional, the Warriors might feel like they’re playing on home ice.
Why they will not advance to the Frozen Four: The Warriors were 3-3-1 against ECAC Hockey teams this season, mostly from the middle of the pack or lower. They face a tall task in facing the league’s regular-season champions.
