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	 	Hingham, MA; Played for the Madison Capitols of the USHL.
Tim Lovell 	Defenseman	 	Hingham, MA; Played for the Des Moines Buccaneers of the USHL.
Eamon Powell 	Defenseman	 	Marcellus, NY; Drafted 116th overall by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2020 Draft, played for the USNTDP of the USHL.
Jack Agnew 	Defenseman	 	Oakville, ON; Played for the Chilliwack Chiefs of the BCHL.
Nikita Nesterenko	Forward 	 	Brooklyn, NY; Drafted 172nd overall by the Minnesota Wild in the 2019 Draft, Played for the Chilliwack Chiefs of the BCHL.
Gentry Shamburger	Forward 	 	Atlanta, GA; Played for Avon Old Farms in the New England prep league, the Founders League.
Trevor Kuntar 	Forward 	 	Buffalo, NY; Drafted 89th overall by the Boston Bruins in the 2020 Draft, played for the Youngstown Phantoms in the USHL.
Danny Weight 	Forward 	 	Lattingtown, NY; Played for the Penticton Vees of the BCHL.
Harrison Roy 	Forward 	 	Lakeville, MA; Played for the Des Moines Buccaneers of the USHL.
Colby Ambrosio 	Forward 	 	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 	 	Blackie, AB; Sophomore transfer from the Alabama–Huntsville Chargers, playing in the WHCA.
Henry Wilder 	Goalie 	 	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 atBoston College	Alma Mater
Jerry York 	Head Coach 	27th 	Boston College (1967)
Mike Ayers 	Assistant Coach 	8th 	University of New Hampshire (2004)
Brendan Buckley	Assistant Coach 	3rd 	Boston College (1999)
Marty McInnis 	Assistant Coach 	8th 	Boston College (1992)
Brooks Orpik 	Volunteer Assistant Coach	1st 	Boston College (2001)
==Standings==
==Schedule==
|-
!colspan=12 ! style=""; | Regular Season
|-
!colspan=12 ! style=""; | 
|-
!colspan=12 ! style=""; | 
† 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 	— 	
USA Today	2 	2 	2 	2 	2 	2 	2 	2 	2 	3 	1 	1 	1 	2 	2 	2 	2 	1 	1 	3 	7 	
==Statistics==
===Skaters===
2020–21 Statistics	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
{| class="wikitable sortable" width="100%"	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
No. 	Player	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
1 	 	G	SR	0 	0 	0 	0 	0 	0 	0	0 	E 	0
2 	 	D	SR	24	1 	2 	3 	18 	0 	0	0 	+10	33
3 	 	D	JR	18	1 	5 	6 	6 	0 	0	0 	–1 	34
4 	 	D	SO	22	4 	11 	15 	8 	1 	0	1 	+23	50
5 	 	D	SO	23	3 	8 	11 	27 	0 	0	1 	+13	47
6 	 	D	FR	18	0 	2 	2 	6 	0 	0	0 	+3 	0
7 	 	D	FR	24	2 	12 	14 	6 	1 	0	0 	+12	25
8 	 	D	FR	6 	0 	0 	0 	0 	0 	0	0 	–1 	1
9 	 	F	SR	11	4 	7 	11 	10 	0 	0	0 	+11	37
10 	 	D	SO	24	0 	1 	1 	9 	0 	0	0 	+2 	10
11 	 	F	JR	24	6 	13 	19 	12 	0 	0	1 	+14	60
12 	 	F	SO	22	11	20 	31 	4 	2 	3	2 	+15	71
13 	 	F	FR	24	8 	11 	19 	18 	0 	1	1 	+12	49
14 	 	F	FR	12	0 	0 	0 	4 	0 	0	0 	–1 	0
15 	 	F	FR	23	6 	4 	10 	33 	1 	0	1 	+2 	53
17 	 	F	FR	19	1 	1 	2 	0 	0 	0	1 	–1 	14
18 	 	F	SO	12	7 	9 	16 	8 	4 	0	1 	–1 	48
19 	 	F	SO	24	10	9 	19 	14 	1 	0	1 	+5 	59
21 	 	F	SO	4 	0 	0 	0 	0 	0 	0	0 	–1 	2
22 	 	D	JR	23	5 	3 	8 	0 	0 	0	1 	+2 	39
24 	 	F	JR	24	3 	9 	12 	16 	0 	0	1 	+8 	41
25 	 	F	JR	24	10	14 	24 	6 	2 	3	5 	+16	49
26 	 	F	FR	23	2 	1 	3 	19 	0 	0	0 	–2 	24
27 	 	F	FR	24	7 	8 	15 	6 	1 	1	0 	+9 	62
30 	 	G	SO	21	0 	1 	1 	2 	0 	0	0 	+36	0
31 	 	G	FR	3 	0 	1 	1 	0 	0 	0	0 	–2 	0
32 	 	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===
2020–21 Statistics	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
{| class="wikitable sortable" width="100%"	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
No. 	Player 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
1 	 	SR	0 	0 	0:00 	0 	0	0	0 	0.00	0 	0 	1.00 	0
30 	 	SO	21	21	1296:27	16	4	1	47	2.18	691	644	0.932	3
31 	 	FR	3 	3 	187:43 	1 	2	0	10	3.20	110	100	0.909	0
32 	 	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
==Awards and honors==
Hobey Baker Award
*Spencer Knight, G – Top 10 Finalist
*Matt Boldy, F – Top 10 Finalist
Mike Richter Award
*Spencer Knight, G – Top 3 Finalist
CCM/AHCA All-Americans
*Spencer Knight, G – First Team East
*Matt Boldy, F – First Team East
*Drew Helleson, D – Second Team East
Hockey East Awards
*Spencer Knight, G – Goaltender of the Year, Player of the Year
*Marc McLaughlin, F – Best Defensive Forward, Three Stars Award (Shared with Jonny Evans, Connecticut and Aidan McDonough, Northeastern)
*Drew Helleson, D – Best Defensive Defenseman
*Nikita Nesterenko, F – Co-Rookie of the Year (Shared with Josh Lopina, Massachusetts)
*Jerry York, Coach – Coach of the Year
Hockey East All-Stars
*Spencer Knight, G – First Team
*Matt Boldy, F – First Team
*Drew Helleson, D – First Team
*Marc McLaughlin, F – Third Team
*Eamon Powell, D – All-Rookie Team
*Nikita Nesterenko, F – All-Rookie Team
Hockey East Goaltender of the Month
*Spencer Knight, G – Month of December
Hockey East Player of the Week
*Matt Boldy, F Week of November 30, 2020Week of December 7, 2020Week of February 15, 2021 (Shared with Aidan McDonough, Northeastern)Week of March 8, 2021 (Shared with Jáchym Kondelík, Connecticut) 
*Spencer Knight, G – Week of December 7, 2020
*Marc McLaughlin, F – Week of February 22, 2021
Hockey East Defensive Player of the Week
*Drew Helleson, D – Week of November 30, 2020
Hockey East Rookie of the Week
*Colby Ambrosio, F – Week of November 30, 2020
*Nikita Nesterenko, F – Week of January 18, 2021, Week of March 15, 2021
*Henry Wilder, G – Week of December 14, 2020
==References==
==External links==
*BC Men's Hockey Home Page
*BC Men's Hockey Page on USCHO
Category:Boston College Eagles men's ice hockey seasons
Boston College Eagles
Boston College Eagles