BC's Leonard Named Hobey Baker Finalist

The accolades keep rolling in for Boston College men's hockey for its completed 2024-25 season.

Ryan Leonard, who recently signed with the Washington Capitals and made his NHL debut on Tuesday after two seasons at BC, is a Hobey Baker Award hat trick finalist long with Denver sophomore defenseman Zeev Buium and Michigan State junior forward Isaac Howard. The winner will be announced on April 11 at the NCAA Frozen Four in St. Louis.

Leonard, a sophomore forward, led all NCAA Division I men's hockey players with 30 goals this season, and finished his college career with 61 goals and 109 points. He also won this season's Walter Brown Award as the top American-born men's player in Division I hockey, the 25th BC player ever to do so. 

Also from the Heights, forward Gabe Perreault signed with the New York Rangers and made his NHL debut on Wednesday, while goaltender Jacob Fowler just signed with the Montreal Canadiens. Both were sophomores and 2023 NHL draft choices. Perreault tallied 35 goals and 108 points in two years with BC, while Fowler fashioned a 57-13-3 career record with a 1.90 goals-against average and seven shutouts while with the Eagles. Along with Leonard, they led BC to last year's national title game, and a Hockey East regular-season title this year. 

Hobart, Wisconsin-River Falls Win NCAA Titles

One NCAA Division I ice hockey championship has already been decided, with another to be settled in a week's time. Both NCAA Division III champions, however, have already been crowned.

Hobart won its third consecutive national men's title by besting host Utica, 2-1, in overtime on March 30. Kahlil Fontana notched the game-winning goal late in the extra session, while Damon Beaver made 39 saves in all for the Statesmen. That same day, on the women's side, Bailey Olson scored one goal and set up two others as host Wisconsin-River Falls outlasted Amherst, 3-1, as the Falcons claimed their second straight NCAA championship.

There are no NCAA Division II hockey national tournaments, with the men's championship suspended after 1999title game.

NCAA Undergraduates Jumping to NHL

A number of NCAA hockey underclassmen, with their team's 2024-25 seasons having recently coming to an end, have signed professional contracts with NHL organizations. Some of the more notable recent signings, as listed by player's last name:

Player, Class, Position (School)           NHL Team

Damien Carfagna, Jr., D, (Ohio State) #    Edmonton

Trevor Connelly, Fr., F (Providence)       Vegas

Karsen Dorwart, Jr., F (Michigan State) #  Philadelphia

Connor Kurth, Jr., F (Minnesota)           Tampa Bay

Joey Larson, Jr., F (Michigan State) #     NY Islanders

Ryan Leonard, So., F (Boston College) *    Washington

Dans Locmelis, So., F (Massachusetts)      Boston

Gabe Perreault, So., F (Boston College)    NY Rangers

Chase Pietila, So., D (Michigan Tech) #    Pittsburgh

Isak Posch, So., G (St. Cloud State) #     Colorado

Jimmy Snuggerud, Jr., F (Minnesota) *      St. Louis

Trey Taylor, Jr., F (Clarkson) #           Dallas

Callum Tung, Fr., G (Connecticut) #        NY Rangers

Matthew Wood, Jr. F (Minnesota)            Nashville

More signings can be found here. 

# Signed as free agent

* 2025 Hobey Baker Award top 10 finalist

Penn State, Denver Make 2025 Frozen Four

Penn State is off to its first-ever NCAA Division I Frozen Four, while defending national champion Denver is going back.

In Allentown, Matt DiMarsico scored with just over two minutes remaining in overtime to lift Penn State to a 3-2 victory over UConn at the PPL Center. In Manchester, Zev Buium tallied a goal and an assist as Denver held off Boston College, 3-1, at SNHU Arena.

Both teams advance to the Frozen Four in St, Louis on April 10. Denver will take on NCHC opponent Western Michigan in one semifinal, while Penn State will meet Boston University in the other. The semifinal winners will face off two days later for the national title.

Third Day of 2025 NCAA Men's Regionals Done

The third day of the 2025 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey regionals are complete, and two spots have been secured for the NCAA Frozen Four in St. Louis in two weeks' time.

At the Toledo, Ohio regional, Quinn Hutson's overtime goal propelled Boston University to a 3-2 win over Cornell. The Terriers (23-13-2 overall) are now headed to their third consecutive Frozen Four, and 25th all-time. The loss by the Big Red (19-11-6) also ended the career of longtime Cornell head coach Mike Schafer, who finishes with an overall record of 561-300-117.

At the Fargo, N.D. regional, Western Michigan outlasted Massachusetts, 2-1, on an early third-period power-play goal by Tim Washe, and 28 saves overall from Hampton Slukynsky. The Broncos (32-7-1) are now headed to the first Frozen Four in program history, while UMass (21-14-5) was seeking its first Frozen Four since the Minutemen won their first-ever national championship in 2021.

The last two regionals conclude on Sunday, with UConn facing Penn State in Allentown, Pa., and Boston College taking on Denver in Manchester, N.H. 

Second Day of 2025 NCAAs in the Books

The 2025 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey championship continued on Saturday, with the Allentown and Manchester Regionals getting underway.

At the PPL Center in Allentown, Pa., Connecticut made the most of its first-ever Division I national tournament appearance to rout Quinnipiac, 4-1, getting goals from four different players and 21 saves from freshman goaltender Callum Tung. In the nightcap, host Penn State ousted top-seeded Maine by a 5-1 count thanks to two goals from Matt DiMarsico and three assists by Charlie Cerrato. UConn will now face Penn State in the regional final on Sunday at 4:30 p.m. ET (ESPN2).

At SNHU Arena in Manchester, N.H., number-one overall seed Boston College survived Bentley, 3-1, on a late wraparound goal by freshman forward James Hagens. In the second game, defending national champion Denver got three points apiece from Zeev Buim and Carter King in eliminating Providence, 5-1. BC and DU will meet on Sunday at 7 p.m. ET (ESPN2) in a rematch of last year's national title game.

Two tickets to this year's NCAA Frozen Four in St. Louis will be punched today, when Cornell meets Boston University in the Toledo regional final (4 p.m. ET, ESPNU), and Massachusetts meets Western Michigan in the Fargo regional final (6:30 p.m. ET, ESPNU).

First Day of 2005 NCAA Tournament Finished

The 2025 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey championship got underway on Thursday in Toledo, Ohio and Fargo, N.D.

In the tournament opener in Toledo, Boston University broke a three-all tie with five third-period goals, as the Terriers topped Ohio State, 8-3. Cole Hutson scored one goal and set up three others for the Terriers, who advanced to the regional final at the Huntington Center against Ivy League opponent Cornell. The Big Red ousted Big Ten champion Michigan State, 4-3, on a power-play goal by Sullivan Mack with 10 seconds remaining in regulation, and will now face BU on Saturday. 

In Fargo, Western Michigan outlasted Minnesota State, 2-1, in double overtime on a goal by Grant Slukinsky to make their regional final. In the nightcap at SCHEELS Arena, Aydar Suniev's second goal of the game less than five minutes into OT lifted UMass to a 5-4 comeback win over Minnesota and a spot in Saturday's Fargo final.

The Manchester, N.H. and Allentown, Pa. regionals get underway today.