HOCKEY EAST HEADLINES

Providence secured its first-ever outright Hockey East regular season title with a 3-2 win on Saturday, using two shorthanded goals to claim victory. With the win, the Friars also set a new program record for wins in Hockey East play with 17.

The final weekend of the men’s regular season will see all 11 teams in action with seeding up and down the table on the line. While Providence and Boston College have secured home ice in the quarterfinal round and UConn has earned a bye, Massachusetts, Maine and Boston University are all jockeying for the final two automatic spots out of the Opening Round.

BU, Northeastern, Merrimack, New Hampshire, and UMass Lowell each are also competing for potential home ice in the Opening Round, with only Vermont assured to be playing on the road.

Michael Hrabal turned in a career-best 50 save performance for Massachusetts in a 3-3 draw on Saturday night, just the second 50-save performance in Hockey East play since 2023. The Minutemen goalie made a total of 87 stops on 91 shots, allowing just two even-strength goals in the series and pushing UMass into fourth place in the Hockey East standings.

Tickets to the 2026 Hockey East Men’s Championship weekend at TD Garden are now on sale at Ticketmaster.com. The premier men’s college hockey conference tournament returns to Friday and Saturday, March 20-21.

BOSTON CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Caelan Fitzpatrick - Merrimack

Caelan Fitzpatrick (So., F; Moose Jaw, Sask.) led the NCAA with six points on three goals and three assists in a 1-0-1 weekend against Vermont. He erupted for a five-point (2g, 3a) outing on Friday, the most points in a single game in Hockey East play since 2024. He scored a shorthanded and the power-play, game-winning goal, while adding two primary assists in the 5-2 win. He also led all Hockey East skaters with eight blocked shots.

PRO AMBITIONS ROOKIE OF THE WEEK

Mathis Rousseau - Maine

Mathis Rousseau (Fr., G; Montreal, Que.) went 2-0-0 with a shutout and one assist, his first collegiate point, in a sweep of Northeastern. He posted a 25-ssave shutout on Friday night and had another 23 saves in a 3-2 win on Saturday. He posted a .960 save percentage and 1.00 goals against average to go with 48 saves on 50 shots over the weekend.

ARMY ROTC DEFENDER OF THE WEEK

Cole Hutson - Boston University

Cole Hutson (So., D; Chicago, Ill.) recorded three assists, the most points of any league defender last week, generated eight shots on goal and was a plus-three in a weekend sweep of No. 10/11 Boston College. He had the primary helper on both game-winning goals and also had a primary assist on a shorthanded goal to put BU ahead of BC, 3-1, early in the third period on Saturday.

STOP IT CO-GOALTENDERS OF THE WEEK

Mikhail Yegorov - Boston University

Mikhail Yegorov (So., G; St. Petersburg, Russia.) was the No. 1 star in both Terrier wins over No. 10/11 Boston College this weekend. He made 24 stops in Friday’s 3-1 home win and then made 28 saves in Saturday’s 5-1 triumph. Yegorov allowed only one even-strength goal on the weekend and made several grade-A stops in both games, including a breakaway chance on Saturday.

Michael Hrabal (Jr., G; Prague, Czechia) made the most saves in the NCAA as helped UMass take five of six points from No. 13/14 UConn, stopping 87 of 91 shots he faced and six of seven shootout attempts on Saturday. His posted a 1.92 save percentage and .956 goals against average. Two of the four goals he allowed came on the power-play and had a career-high 50 saves on Saturday.

HOCKEY EAST TOP PERFORMERS

Ben Merrill, BU (Fr., F; Hingham, Mass.) Scored a career-high two goals, including a shorthanded strike which give BU a 1-0 lead, in the Terriers’ 5-1 road win over No. 10/11 BC on Saturday. Merrill was a plus-two on the weekend and generated five shots on goal.

Josh Nadeau, Maine (Jr., F; St-François-de-Madawaska, N.B.) Led Maine with four points on one goal and three assists in a sweep of Northeastern. He recorded his 100th career point on Friday as part of a three-point night and put nine shots on goal and earned a plus-three rating while blocking three shots on the weekend.

Frank Djurasevic, Maine (Jr., D; New Rochelle, N.Y.) Scored two goals in Maine’s 3-2 victory on Saturday night, picking up a plus-three rating and nine shots on goal in a sweep over Northeastern.

Parker Lalonde, MC (Fr., F; Aberdeen, Sask.) Netted two goals and added an assist in Friday’s win over Vermont.

Ethan Beyer, MC (Fr., D; Denver, Colo.) Dished out two helpers in a win over Vermont on Friday.

Kyle Chauvette, UNH (Sr., G; Goffstown, N.H.) Earned a .949 save percentage and a 1.54 goals against average as he made 56 saves and allowed three goals against No. 6 Providence going, 1-1-0. He recorded his fifth shutout of the season on Friday in a 1-0 win on the road making 23 saves, while he tallied 33 saves on Saturday in a 3-2 loss. His five shutouts are now tied for first in the nation.

Brendan Fitzgerald, UNH (Jr., D; North Reading, Mass.) Posted one goal and one assist for two points against No. 6 Providence as the Wildcats split the weekend. He had a plus-one rating and scored his second game-winning goal of the season when he netted the lone goal in Friday’s 1-0 victory. He helped anchor a defense that only allowed three goals to Providence who is tied for first in Hockey East with 113 goals.

Donovan McCoy, PC (Fr., D; Belleville, Ont.) Averaged a point per game during the month of February, ranking second among defensemen with seven points on two goals and five assists. He scored a shorthanded goal against Vermont on Feb. 7 and registered the game-winning goal against Northeastern on Feb. 14. He led all Hockey East players in February with a +10 rating.