# 2020–21 Boston College Eagles men's ice hockey season

The 2020–21 Boston College Eagles men's ice hockey team represented Boston College in the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey season. The team was coached by Jerry York, '67, his twenty-seventh season behind the bench at Boston College. The Eagles played their home games at Kelley Rink on the campus of Boston College, competing in Hockey East.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, no out-of-conference games were scheduled for the regular season, nor any traditional mid-season tournaments. As a result, the Eagles did not compete in any tournaments, including the annual Beanpot championship, which would have been in its 69th year of competition.
The Eagles finished the season 17–6–1, and 16–4–1 in conference play, good for 1st place in Hockey East, however, no regular season title was officially awarded due to disparate scheduling among the conference. They advanced to the semifinals of the Hockey East tournament where they lost 5–6 in double overtime to the UMass Lowell River Hawks. Boston College returned to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2016, as the top seed of the Northeast Regional hosted in Albany, New York. Their first round meeting with Notre Dame was ruled a no-contest as the Fighting Irish were forced to withdraw from the tournament due to COVID-19 protocols, and the Eagles advanced to the Regional final via forfeit. There, they were defeated by the St. Cloud State Huskies by a score of 1–4.

## Previous season recap

The Eagles entered the 2020–21 season following a strong 2019–20 effort. With a 24–8–2 record, going 17–6–1 in conference play, the Eagles finished first in Hockey East and captured their 20th regular season title; rebounding from a 7th-place finish in the previous year. However, that would be the only post-season trophy possible to earn, as both the Hockey East and NCAA tournaments were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic before any games were played. The Eagles were a likely NCAA tournament qualifier which would have ended a three-year drought from the nationals. Additionally, they failed to secure any mid-season tournament title, their only tournament result being their third-place Beanpot finish.

## Departures

Thirteen Eagles departed from the program from the 2019–20 roster:
Graduation:
* Luke McInnis, Senior – D
* Ben Finkelstein, Senior – D
* Connor Moore, Senior – D
* Jesper Mattila, Senior – D
* Zach Walker, Senior – F
* David Cotton, Senior – F
* Mike Merulla, Senior – F
* Julius Mattila, Senior – F
* Graham McPhee, Senior – F
* Ron Greco, Senior – F
* Ryan Edquist, Senior – G
Signed Professionally:
* Aapeli Räsänen, Junior – F (Kalevan Pallo of the Finish Elite League)
Not Retained:
* Adin Farhat, Junior – G
Mid-Season Departures:
* Stephen Davies, Freshman – D (Halifax Mooseheads of the QMJHL, did not dress for any games and signed during the winter break)
* Logan Hutsko, Senior – F (Florida Panthers, signed after season-ending injury in February 2021)

## Recruiting

Boston College added eleven freshmen for the 2020–21 season: six forwards, four defensemen, and a goalie. Additionally, sophomore forward Liam Izyk transferred into the program from the Alabama–Huntsville Chargers.
| Player | Position | Nationality | Notes |
| Stephen Davis | Defenseman | United States | Hingham, MA; Played for the Madison Capitols of the USHL. |
| Tim Lovell | Defenseman | United States | Hingham, MA; Played for the Des Moines Buccaneers of the USHL. |
| Eamon Powell | Defenseman | United States | Marcellus, NY; Drafted 116th overall by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2020 Draft, played for the USNTDP of the USHL. |
| Jack Agnew | Defenseman | Canada | Oakville, ON; Played for the Chilliwack Chiefs of the BCHL. |
| Nikita Nesterenko | Forward | United States | Brooklyn, NY; Drafted 172nd overall by the Minnesota Wild in the 2019 Draft, Played for the Chilliwack Chiefs of the BCHL. |
| Gentry Shamburger | Forward | United States | Atlanta, GA; Played for Avon Old Farms in the New England prep league, the Founders League. |
| Trevor Kuntar | Forward | United States | Buffalo, NY; Drafted 89th overall by the Boston Bruins in the 2020 Draft, played for the Youngstown Phantoms in the USHL. |
| Danny Weight | Forward | United States | Lattingtown, NY; Played for the Penticton Vees of the BCHL. |
| Harrison Roy | Forward | United States | Lakeville, MA; Played for the Des Moines Buccaneers of the USHL. |
| Colby Ambrosio | Forward | Canada | Welland, ON; Drafted 118th overall by the Colorado Avalanche in the 2020 Draft, Played for the Tri-City Storm of the USHL. |
| Liam Izyk | Forward | Canada | Blackie, AB; Sophomore transfer from the Alabama–Huntsville Chargers, playing in the WHCA. |
| Henry Wilder | Goalie | United States | Needham, MA; Played for the Hotchkiss School in the New England prep league, the Founders League. |
Additionally, some mid-season roster additions occurred during the winter break:
* Junior defenseman Jack St. Ivany transferred from Yale and was immediately eligible to play.
* Senior goaltender Adin Farhat was officially recalled from the club team, as he not retained on the roster at the beginning of the season.

## 2020–2021 roster
### 2020–21 Eagles

As of January 9, 2021.

### Coaching staff

| Name | Position | Seasons at Boston College | Alma Mater |
| Jerry York | Head Coach | 27th | Boston College (1967) |
| Mike Ayers | Associate Head Coach | 8th | University of New Hampshire (2004) |
| Brendan Buckley | Associate Head Coach | 3rd | Boston College (1999) |
| Brooks Orpik | Assistant Coach | 1st | Boston College (2001) |

## Standings

2020–21 Hockey East Standingsvte :
| | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Overall record | Overall record | Overall record | Overall record | Overall record | Overall record |
| | GP | W | L | T | OTW | OTL | SOW | HEPI | GF | GA | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA |
| #6 Boston College | 21 | 16 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 58.61 | 82 | 46 | 24 | 17 | 6 | 1 | 91 | 58 |
| #11 Boston University | 14 | 10 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 56.36 | 49 | 37 | 16 | 10 | 5 | 1 | 52 | 45 |
| #1 Massachusetts * | 22 | 13 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 55.44 | 76 | 42 | 29 | 20 | 5 | 4 | 103 | 48 |
| Connecticut | 22 | 10 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 52.01 | 69 | 63 | 23 | 10 | 11 | 2 | 70 | 69 |
| #16 Providence | 23 | 10 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 50.80 | 63 | 61 | 25 | 11 | 9 | 5 | 71 | 67 |
| Northeastern | 20 | 9 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 49.94 | 68 | 60 | 21 | 9 | 9 | 3 | 69 | 64 |
| #19 Massachusetts–Lowell | 16 | 7 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 48.00 | 46 | 53 | 20 | 10 | 9 | 1 | 59 | 63 |
| Maine | 15 | 3 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 46.66 | 41 | 61 | 16 | 3 | 11 | 2 | 43 | 68 |
| Merrimack | 18 | 5 | 11 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 45.38 | 47 | 66 | 18 | 5 | 11 | 2 | 47 | 66 |
| New Hampshire | 21 | 5 | 13 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 43.66 | 51 | 83 | 23 | 6 | 14 | 3 | 60 | 88 |
| Vermont | 12 | 1 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 38.02 | 17 | 37 | 13 | 1 | 10 | 2 | 20 | 42 |
| Championship: March 20, 2021 No Regular Season Champion Awarded * indicates conference tournament champion (Lamoriello Trophy) Rankings: USCHO.com Top 20 Poll ||||||||||||||||||

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent$^#$ | Rank$^#$ | Site | TV | Decision | Result | Attendance | Record |
| Regular season ||||||||||
| November 27 | 6:00 pm | #7 Massachusetts | #2 | Kelley Rink • Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts | NESN | Knight | W 4–3 | 0 | 1–0–0 (1–0–0) |
| November 28 | 4:30 pm | at #7 Massachusetts | #2 | Mullins Center • Amherst, Massachusetts | NESN+ | Knight | W 6–3 | 0 | 2–0–0 (2–0–0) |
| December 4 | 6:00 pm | #12 Providence | #2 | Kelley Rink • Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts | NESN | Knight | W 3–0 | 0 | 3–0–0 (3–0–0) |
| December 5 | 7:00 pm | at #12 Providence | #2 | Schneider Arena • Providence, Rhode Island | NESN | Knight | W 9–0 | 0 | 4–0–0 (4–0–0) |
| December 11 | 6:00 pm | Connecticut | #2 | Kelley Rink • Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts | NESN | Wilder | W 4–3 $^{OT}$ | 0 | 5–0–0 (5–0–0) |
| December 12 | 3:30 pm | at Connecticut | #2 | Freitas Ice Forum • Storrs, Connecticut | | Wilder | L 1–3 | 0 | 5–1–0 (5–1–0) |
| January 8 | 7:00 pm | New Hampshire | #2 | Kelley Rink • Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts | NESN | Wilder | L 3–4 $^{OT}$ | 0 | 5–2–0 (5–2–0) |
| January 10 | 4:00 pm | at New Hampshire | #2 | Whittemore Center • Durham, New Hampshire | | Knight | W 3–2 $^{OT}$ | 0 | 6–2–0 (6–2–0) |
| January 16 | 7:00 pm | Merrimack | #3 | Kelley Rink • Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts | NESN | Knight | W 2–1 | 0 | 7–2–0 (7–2–0) |
| January 17 | 4:00 pm | at Merrimack | #3 | Lawler Rink • North Andover, Massachusetts | | Knight | W 5–3 | 0 | 8–2–0 (8–2–0) |
| January 22 | 4:00 pm | Connecticut | #1 | Kelley Rink • Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts | | Knight | T 3–3 $^{SOL}$ | 0 | 8–2–1 (8–2–1) |
| January 23 | 4:00 pm | at Connecticut | #1 | Freitas Ice Forum • Storrs, Connecticut | | Knight | W 4–2 | 0 | 9–2–1 (9–2–1) |
| February 2 | 7:00 pm | at #14 Northeastern | #1 | Matthews Arena • Boston, Massachusetts | NESN+ | Knight | W 6–2 | 0 | 10–2–1 (10–2–1) |
| February 5 | 7:00 pm | #15 Boston University | #1 | Kelley Rink • Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts (Green Line Rivalry) | NESN+ | Knight | W 4–3 $^{OT}$ | 0 | 11–2–1 (11–2–1) |
| February 6 | 7:00 pm | at #15 Boston University | #1 | Walter Brown Arena • Boston, Massachusetts (Green Line Rivalry) | | Knight | L 1–3 | 0 | 11–3–1 (11–3–1) |
| February 12 | 7:00 pm | UMass Lowell | #1 | Kelley Rink • Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts | NESN+ | Knight | W 7–1 | 0 | 12–3–1 (12–3–1) |
| February 13 | 6:00 pm | at UMass Lowell | #1 | Tsongas Center • Lowell, Massachusetts | | Knight | W 4–3 | 0 | 13–3–1 (13–3–1) |
| February 19 | 7:00 pm | Maine | #1 | Kelley Rink • Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts | NESN+ | Knight | W 4–2 | 0 | 14–3–1 (14–3–1) |
| February 20 | 5:00 pm | Maine | #1 | Kelley Rink • Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts | NESN | Knight | W 3–0 | 0 | 15–3–1 (15–3–1) |
| February 26 | 7:00 pm | #9 Massachusetts | #1 | Kelley Rink • Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts | NESN+ | Knight | L 2–3 $^{OT}$ | 0 | 15–4–1 (15–4–1) |
| March 5 | 5:00 pm | #18 Northeastern | #2 | Kelley Rink • Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts | | Knight | W 4–2 | 0 | 16–4–1 (16–4–1) |
| Hockey East Tournament ||||||||||
| March 14 | 4:30 pm | New Hampshire* | #1 | Kelley Rink • Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts (Quarterfinals) | NESN | Knight | W 3–2 | 0 | 17–4–1 (16–4–1) |
| March 17 | 4:30 pm | UMass Lowell* | #1 | Kelley Rink • Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts (Semifinals) | NESN | Knight | L 5–6 $^{2OT}$ | 0 | 17–5–1 (16–4–1) |
| NCAA Tournament ||||||||||
| March 27 | 1:00pm | vs. #18 Notre Dame* | #2 | Times Union Center • Albany, New York (Regional semifinal, Holy War on Ice) | ESPNews | | No Contest $^†$ | | |
| March 28 | 5:30pm | vs. #7 St. Cloud State* | #2 | Times Union Center • Albany, New York (Regional final) | ESPN2 | Knight | L 1–4 | 1,136 | 17–6–1 (16–4–1) |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from USCHO.com Poll. All times are in Eastern Time. Attendance data from Hockey East. $^{OT}$Denotes game ended in the overtime period. $^{SOW}$ or $^{SOL}$Denotes game resulted in an official tie with a shootout win/loss. ||||||||||
† Notre Dame was forced to withdraw from the regional semifinal match on March 27, as the team received multiple positive COVID tests on March 25. The game was ruled a no-contest and the Eagles automatically advanced to the regional final.

## Rankings

| Poll | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | Final |
| USCHO.com | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | — | 6 |
| USA Today | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 6 |

## Statistics
### Skaters

| No. | Player | POS | YR | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | PP | SHG | GWG | +/- | SOG |
| 1 | Adin Farhat | G | SR | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | E | 0 |
| 2 | Michael Karow | D | SR | 24 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +10 | 33 |
| 3 | Jack St. Ivany | D | JR | 18 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | –1 | 34 |
| 4 | Drew Helleson | D | SO | 22 | 4 | 11 | 15 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 1 | +23 | 50 |
| 5 | Marshall Warren | D | SO | 23 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 27 | 0 | 0 | 1 | +13 | 47 |
| 6 | Tim Lovell | D | FR | 18 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +3 | 0 |
| 7 | Eamon Powell | D | FR | 24 | 2 | 12 | 14 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | +12 | 25 |
| 8 | Jack Agnew | D | FR | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | –1 | 1 |
| 9 | Logan Hutsko | F | SR | 11 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +11 | 37 |
| 10 | Mitch Andres | D | SO | 24 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +2 | 10 |
| 11 | Jack McBain | F | JR | 24 | 6 | 13 | 19 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 1 | +14 | 60 |
| 12 | Matt Boldy | F | SO | 22 | 11 | 20 | 31 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 | +15 | 71 |
| 13 | Nikita Nesterenko | F | FR | 24 | 8 | 11 | 19 | 18 | 0 | 1 | 1 | +12 | 49 |
| 14 | Gentry Shamburger | F | FR | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | –1 | 0 |
| 15 | Trevor Kuntar | F | FR | 23 | 6 | 4 | 10 | 33 | 1 | 0 | 1 | +2 | 53 |
| 17 | Danny Weight | F | FR | 19 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | –1 | 14 |
| 18 | Alex Newhook | F | SO | 12 | 7 | 9 | 16 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 1 | –1 | 48 |
| 19 | Mike Hardman | F | SO | 24 | 10 | 9 | 19 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 1 | +5 | 59 |
| 21 | Liam Izyk | F | SO | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | –1 | 2 |
| 22 | Casey Carreau | D | JR | 23 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | +2 | 39 |
| 24 | Patrick Giles | F | JR | 24 | 3 | 9 | 12 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 1 | +8 | 41 |
| 25 | Marc McLaughlin | F | JR | 24 | 10 | 14 | 24 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 5 | +16 | 49 |
| 26 | Harrison Roy | F | FR | 23 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | –2 | 24 |
| 27 | Colby Ambrosio | F | FR | 24 | 7 | 8 | 15 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | +9 | 62 |
| 30 | Spencer Knight | G | SO | 21 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +36 | 0 |
| 31 | Henry Wilder | G | FR | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | –2 | 0 |
| 32 | Jack Moffatt | G | SO | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | E | 0 |
| | Bench | | | | | | | 8 | | | | | |
| | Team | | | 24 | 91 | 152 | 243 | 242 | 13 | 8 | 17 | +33 | 808 |

### Goaltenders

| No. | Player | YR | GS | GP | MIN | W | L | T | GA | GAA | SA | SV | SV% | SO |
| 1 | Adin Farhat | SR | 0 | 0 | 0:00 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 | 1.00 | 0 |
| 30 | Spencer Knight | SO | 21 | 21 | 1296:27 | 16 | 4 | 1 | 47 | 2.18 | 691 | 644 | 0.932 | 3 |
| 31 | Henry Wilder | FR | 3 | 3 | 187:43 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 3.20 | 110 | 100 | 0.909 | 0 |
| 32 | Jack Moffatt | SO | 0 | 0 | 0:00 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 | 1.00 | 0 |
| | Empty Net | | | 8 | 8:01 | | | | 1 | | 1 | | | |
| | Team | | 24 | 24 | 1492:11 | 17 | 6 | 1 | 58 | 2.33 | 802 | 744 | 0.928 | 3 |

## Players drafted into the NHL
### 2021 NHL Entry Draft

| Round | Pick | Player | NHL team |
| 3 | 94 | Aidan Hreschuk$^†$ | Carolina Hurricanes |
| 7 | 213 | Andre Gasseau$^†$ | Boston Bruins |
† incoming freshman