April 9, 2008
NCAA Frozen Four Notebook
Nick of Time
BC's Petrecki has developed into a force, coinciding with the Eagles' Frozen Four run.

By Joe Gladziszewski and Jeff Howe

Stop sign: Nick Petrecki and Boston College will focus on shutting down North Dakota's T.J. Oshie.

DENVER – There’s a switch that Boston College freshman defenseman Nick Petrecki can flick that turns him from a playful, cartoon duck into a lethal enforcer on the ice. And that, according to his teammates, are the best thing about the rookie blue liner.

“It’s great that you can turn that switch on and off when you get on the ice, and off the ice, you can be a really great guy,” BC senior defenseman Mike Brennan said. “It’s just that one switch when you get on the ice, you’re a different person. I think you need that intensity on the team, and he definitely has it.

“I call him ‘Baby Huey’ because he’s just like a little kid off the ice. He loves everything, and on the ice, he doesn’t know his own strength. He just crushes guys. He crushes our own guys from time to time. He gives them a bump and just puts them through the boards.”

It’s true, Petrecki has been just as vicious to his own brethren as he has to the opposition. He nearly decapitated freshman goalie John Muse while trying to check a New Hampshire forward in overtime of the Eagles’ Hockey East semifinal victory against the Wildcats. But last week against Miami, Petrecki got into it with Ryan Jones 40 seconds into the game, and they earned matching minors.

The intensity Petrecki has played with over the last month is a direct result from his rising confidence. While there wasn’t anything necessarily wrong with his game earlier this season, he didn’t always stick out. Now, it’s impossible to miss the energy and physicality he brings each shift.

“He’s been great,” junior forward Nathan Gerbe said. “I think he’s one of the top defensemen in the country, and he’s very physical. A lot of teams are scared to go in his corner.”

And recently, there have been a number of guys who have paid that price, whether it was during the Hockey East tourney or a nondescript player from Minnesota or Miami. The Jones incident was just the most high profile.

“Everybody asks me about it,” Petrecki said. “It was kind of an innocent play. The play developed. [Jones] curled back in his zone, and I believe he was coming down the left wall. I definitely jumped at the opportunity to hit him, and it just went back and forth. It got me into the game.”

“Anytime you bring that hard-nosed play against one of their top players, [Petrecki] has that ability to do that,” Brennan said. “He went out there, and he kind of got in his face. And you take that trade any day. You take one of the Hobey Baker finalists off the ice for one of our bigger, tougher guys, and that’s a great tradeoff. I think that lifts the team, gets us ready to grow and that’s a great starter for us.”

Though there isn’t one specific moment or day when everything clicked to spark Petrecki’s run of outstanding play, which earned him a spot on the Worcester Regional All-Tournament Team, it’s easy to look at the Beanpot in February. He scored his first two career goals in the final against Harvard — one that gave BC a 3-2 lead in the second period, and the other in overtime — and lifted a small weight off his shoulders in the process.

He’s never been known as an offensive juggernaut, but he’s been used to scoring a goal or two here and there.

“You always want to help your team in more than one area,” Petrecki said. “I wouldn’t say I was down about it. It was definitely frustrating at some points because you know you want to help your team. It was definitely something I thought about.”

Either way, Boston College isn’t a team that will ever rely on consistent scoring from its defensemen. But the Eagles will need Petrecki’s fearlessness and head-banging tenacity.

“It really doesn’t matter to me who the team’s top players are,” Petrecki said. “If you’re going to come down my left side on the first shift of the game, I think you’ve got to be prepared to take a hit because that’s really what I’m looking for that first shift to get myself and hopefully the team into the game.”

Brennan — who Petrecki calls “one of the best captains I’ve had in a long time” — is thrilled to see the growth of a player he heard so much about before the season, a mean kid who could change the game one bone-crushing hit at a time.

Brennan is also impressed with the way Petrecki continually works with assistant coach Greg Brown on things like defensive positioning and maneuvering. Attributes such as those lead Brennan to believe Petrecki will go down as one of the best blue liners in the program’s history.

“It’s been amazing,” Brennan said. “He does the switch on the ice. He’s the meanest guy on the ice, but off the ice, he’s just the greatest teammate, the greatest guy. Watching him develop, he’s come on with some timely goals. He’s known for his physical play, but he’s really settled down with the puck and making great plays. It’s going to be fun to watch him over the next couple years, and I think he’s going to be a great, great player for BC.”

FROZEN FOUR FLASHBACKS

Michigan coach Red Berenson, on the ice for the Wolverines' Wednesday practice at the Pepsi Center, has played and coached in his share of Frozen Fours.

It's been a while, but Boston College head coach Jerry York remembers what it was like when he was a player at BC and participated in the 1965 Frozen Four. The games were played at Meehan Auditorium on the campus of Brown University in Providence, R.I. Attendance for that season's championship game between the Eagles and Michigan Tech was just 2,600.

That number means it was a sellout, and hence a very popular ticket at the time. The popularity of the event remains high but so much has changed over the years. York has been fortunate to have been a part of this tournament for so long that he has a unique and comprehensive perspective on how the tournament has evolved.

"The reception we've had from the Denver community, and the host University of Denver has been outstanding. It's really exciting for our players and our staff to come to an event that's so well organized. The NCAA deserves a lot of credit for it," York said. "The whole process seems so much better now than it was 10, 12, 15 years ago. The process of the selection show, everything is just really first class."

Jeff Jackson led Lake Superior State to the Frozen Four as a head coach for three straight seasons in 1992 (Albany), 1993 (Milwaukee), and 1994 (St. Paul) and returns this year in an official capacity for the first time since then. He's attended some of the Frozen Fours since then as a fan and has witnessed the growth of the event.

"Even though I was away from college hockey for a few years I still followed it pretty closely and attended a few of them in the meantime," Jackson said. "Back when we were playing in St. Paul or Milwaukee they were always full houses and the environment was spectacular for college athletics. It's a great celebration where a lot of people come from across the country every year to celebrate college hockey, not just the fans of the four teams.

"It's an awesome event and a thrill for these players. You don't get here every time so you have to enjoy it and take advantage of the opportunity."

Notre Dame coach Jeff Jackson knows the Frozen Four well. He led Lake Superior State to three straight trips from 1992-94.

Michigan coach Red Berenson played in his first Frozen Four during his senior season with the Wolverines in 1962 in Utica, N.Y. He's seen the growth of the game over more than four decades and reflected back on what it was like back then.

"In those days it was played in a smaller rink and there wasn't much fanfare. I don't know if there was a banquet. It was pretty much a non-event," Berenson said. "Certainly there was no TV coverage of the championship, no video, and no internet. When you look at the information and exposure and the facilities now, the coverage as well as the turnout, it's a major hockey event."

There are cases when bigger isn't necessarily better, but not in the case of the Frozen Four.

SEEN AND HEARD AT THE PEPSI CENTER

Lamoureux leap: Finally, we know the story behind the picture INCH photographer Larry Radloff snapped following North Dakota's OT win in the Midwest Region final.

• Senior goaltender Jean-Phillippe Lamoureux and North Dakota's post-game celebration from the team's overtime win over Wisconsin in the Midwest Region final were the subject of a recent Found on a Cocktail Napkin here at Inside College Hockey and a blown-up version the photo (right), taken by INCH's Larry Radloff, was shown during the North Dakota press conference.

Afterward, we got the first-hand explanation from Lamoureux who said that he tried to jump into the celebration pile and one of the teammates already in the celebration blocked his leap attempt and sent him sprawling backward. Lamoureux also noted that the photo generated positive feedback from friends and fans and the notoriety is good for the game.

• A long hallway in the bottom level of the Pepsi Center that connects the dressing rooms is decorated with huge banners from each of the four participating teams and sweaters from most of the NCAA Division I hockey programs hanging overhead.

• The four coaches that are leading their teams this weekend have combined for 1,804 career wins, led by Jerry York with 801.