HOCKEY EAST HEADLINES

Massachusetts earned the first bid to the 2019 Frozen Four and i ts first in program history, after posting back-to-back 4-0 shutouts agains t Harvard and Notre Dame. Cale Makar (Calgary, Alta.) was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Northeast Regional while rookie netminder Filip Lindberg (Espoo, Finland) stopped all 30 shots he faced on the weekend. It marked just the fourth time in history that a team posted consecutive shutouts in the regional stage since the field expanded to 16 teams. Boston College and Wisconsin did so in 2006 and the Eagles repeated the feat in 2012.

Providence is moving onto the Frozen Four for the first time since 2015, the year the Friars claimed the NCAA title at the TD Garden in Boston. Josh Wilkins (Raleigh, N.C.) was named the Most Outstanding Player of the NCAA East Regional for his five-point (3g, 2a) performance and Hayden Hawkey (Parker, Colo.) pitched 108:52 of shutout hockey to backbone the Friars into the national championship weekend.

Since regional tournament play began in 1992, 33 of the 54 teams that have advanced to the Frozen Four from the eastern regional tournaments have been from Hockey East. Seventeen Hockey East teams have been sent to the western regionals in the same span, but only two of those have advanced to the Frozen Four.

At least two Hockey East teams have qualified for the Frozen Four in 14 of the conference's 35 seasons, dominating the competition in that span. The WCHA and CCHA are the next closest, with each having six instances of two Frozen Four teams.

On three occasions (1995, 1999, 2015) the NCAA championship game featured two Hockey East squads. The only two other occurrences of this since the inception of Hockey East in 1984-85 were once each by the WCHA (2005) and ECAC (2013).

HOCKEY EAST CO-PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

Josh Wilkins - Providence

Josh Wilkins (Raleigh, N.C.) was named the Most Outstanding Player of the NCAA East Regional for his five-point (3g, 2a) performance to help Providence reach the Frozen Four for the first time since the Friars won the national championship in 2015 in Boston. Wilkins scored two goals and added an assist, all on the power- play, in a come-from-behind, 6-3 win over Minnesota State in the semifinals and added another tally and assist in a 4-0 shutout of Cornell.

Cale Makar - Massachusetts

Cale Makar (Calgary, Alta.) was named the Most Outstanding Player at the NCAA Ice Hockey Northeast Regional and to the All-Tournament Team. The sophomore Hobey Baker finalist logged an assist against Harvard and a goal against Notre Dame with plus-3 rating across the two 4-0 wins. He led a UMass defense that limited its opponents to just 30 shots in a pair of shutouts to help UMass to its first Frozen Four appearance in program history.

PRO AMBITIONS ROOKIE OF THE WEEK

Filip Lindberg - Massachusetts

Filip Lindberg (Espoo, Finland) was selected to the NCAA Ice Hockey Northeast Regional All-Tournament Team after posting back-to-back shutout victories, stopping 17 shots in the regional semifinal against Harvard and 13 from Notre Dame in the final to help UMass to its first Frozen Four appearance in program history.

HOCKEY EAST DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Hayden Hawkey - Providence

Hayden Hawkey (Parker, Colo.) pitched 108:52 of shutout hockey to backbone the Friars to their first Frozen Four appearance since 2015. After allowing three goals in the first 11:08 of the semifinal, Hawkey slammed the door and turned aside a total of 50 shots for Providence. He posted a 19- save shutout against Cornell in the final and was named to the All-Tournament Team for his effort.

HOCKEY EAST TOP PERFORMERS

Brett Boeing, UMass (Sr., F; Barrington, Ill.) Scored two goals in the Minutemen's 4-0 win over Harvard in the Northeast Regional Semifinal and added an assist in the championship game, sending UMass to its first-ever Frozen Four appearance. The senior was named to the All-Tournament Team for his performance.

John Leonard, UMass (So., F; Amherst, Mass.) Picked up three points (2g, 1a) in the Northeast Regional to help propel Massachusetts to its first Frozen Four in program history. Leonard scored a goal and picked up an assist in a 4-0 semifinal win over Harvard before netting a goal against Notre Dame in the 4-0 championship game win. He also earned a spot on the All-Tournament Team.

Jacob Bryson, PC (Jr., D; London, Ont.) Earned a spot on the NCAA East Regional All-Tournament Team for his help in anchoring a Friars defense that posted 108:52 of shutout hockey to guide Providence back to the Frozen Four for the first time since 2015. Bryson chipped in two assists, including setting up the game-winning goal in the regional final against Cornell 10:20 into the game.

Tyce Thompson, PC (Fr., F; Milford, Conn.) Was named to the NCAA East Regional All-Tournament Team after helping Providence claim the regional crown and a trip to the Frozen Four for the first time since 2015. He netted a goal and added two helpers in the semifinal win over the top seed Minnesota State, launching Providence back from a 3-0 deficit to take a 6-3 win. His power-play tally proved to be the game-winning strike.