Sept. 9, 2011

2011-12 Men's Hockey Schedule

Eleven dates against participants from last winter's NCAA Championship, nine non-conference games including three tournaments - the Ice Breaker, the Great Lakes Invitational and the 60th annual Beanpot - as well as a regular 27-game Hockey East Association slate, represent the 2011-12 Boston College men's hockey schedule.

"We feel this is a very strong schedule," Boston College head coach Jerry York said. "In addition to our regular Hockey East rivalries and participation in the Beanpot, we are going to play in two prestigious tournaments in the Ice Breaker and the Great Lakes Invitational. We have away dates at Notre Dame and Yale and a home date with Denver, so we will play quite a few teams that are returning NCAA participants."

Boston College will open the season in the Ice Breaker Tournament at Ralph Engelstad Arena in Grand Forks, N.D. The Eagles will face Central Collegiate Hockey Association opponent Michigan State in college hockey's season-opening game on Friday, Oct. 7 at 5 p.m. EST. BC will play either Air Force or host North Dakota, both NCAA Tournament qualifiers in 2010-11, the next night.

The team's non-conference highlights also include participation in the Great Lakes Invitational in late December at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Mich., where BC will face CCHA member Michigan on Thursday, Dec. 29 and will face either Michigan State or Michigan Tech the next night, and the 60th Beanpot. 2012 Beanpot dates are set for Feb. 6 and Feb. 13 in TD Garden. BC opens play in this February's four-team tournament against Northeastern in TD Garden.

In addition to trips to Grand Forks, N.D. and Detroit, Mich., the Eagles non-conference road schedule also features trips to South Bend, Ind., to face Notre Dame on Friday, Nov. 18, and New Haven, Conn., to face Yale, the No.1 overall seed at last year's NCAA Championship, on Saturday, Nov. 26.

The team's home opener will be against Denver, also a NCAA Tournament qualifier last year, on Friday, Oct. 14, with the beginning of the Hockey East portion of the schedule at New Hampshire coming the next night.

October's eight-game slate also includes home dates with Massachusetts (Oct. 21) and UMass-Lowell (Oct. 29), while the home conference portion of the schedule includes games against Maine (Nov. 4), Northeastern (Nov. 11, Jan. 14), Boston University (Nov. 13 and Dec. 2), Providence (Dec. 6 and Feb. 25), New Hampshire (Jan. 27), Merrimack (Jan. 8 and Feb. 17) and Vermont (March 2-3).

Quarterfinals of the Hockey East Tournament will be held at campus sites from Friday, March 9 to Sunday, March 11, while the semifinals and championship are set for Friday and Saturday, March 16 and 17 at TD Garden at 8 p.m.

The NCAA Tournament will begin with regional play from Friday, March 23 through Sunday, March 25. The NCAA "Frozen Four" is set for Thursday, April 5 and Saturday, April 7 at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa, Fla.