Upcoming Event: Men's Ice Hockey versus Simon Fraser (Exhibition) on October 3, 2025 at 7:00 P.M.
Men's Ice Hockey
vs Simon Fraser (Exhibition)
7:00 P.M.
Providence College Athletics
Thursday, April 11
Buffalo, N.Y. / KeyBank Center
5:00 P.M.
Providence College
vs
Minnesota Duluth
Photo by: Rich Gagnon
Men's Hockey to Clash with Minnesota Duluth in Frozen Four Semifinals on Thursday
4/9/2019 11:16:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
FOLLOW THE FRIARS (24-11-6, 14-7-3 HEA)
Matchup: No. 4 Providence College vs. No. 1 Minnesota Duluth (27-11-2, 14-9-1 NCHC)
Faceoff: 5:00 PM (Thurs.) – KeyBank Center – Buffalo, N.Y. – NCAA Frozen Four Semifinal
TV: ESPN2/TSN2/TSN App | Play-by-play: John Buccigross, Color: Barry Melrose
Stream: WatchESPN
Radio: NewsRadio 104.7 FM | TuneIn Radio | Friars.com | Play-by-play: Mike Logan
Live Stats: NCAA.com
Twitter:Â @Friarshockey
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Matchup: No. 4 Providence College vs. No. 2 UMass/No. 3 Denver
Faceoff: 8:00 PM (Sat.) – KeyBank Center – Buffalo, N.Y. – NCAA Frozen Four Final
TV: ESPN2/TSN.ca/TSN App | Play-by-play: John Buccigross, Color: Barry Melrose
Stream: WatchESPN
Radio: NewsRadio 104.7 FM | TuneIn Radio | Friars.com | Play-by-play: Mike Logan
Live Stats: NCAA.com
Twitter:Â @Friarshockey
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LAST TIME OUT…
- Providence advanced to their fifth Frozen Four after blanking Cornell, 4-0, in the NCAA East Regional Final on Sunday, March 31.
- Hayden Hawkey turned away all 19 shots to post his second career NCAA Tournament shutout and the program's fourth in 36 games. He leads all NCAA goaltenders with eight shutouts in 2018-19.
- Josh Wilkins was named the East Regional's Most Outstanding Player after finishing the weekend with three goals and two assists. His 45 points are the most by a Friar since 2002-03 (Jon DiSalvatore - 48). - Tyce Thompson, Jacob Bryson and Hayden Hawkey were also named to the NCAA East Regional All-Tournament Team.
- After going down 3-0 to Minnesota State on Saturday, the Friars scored 10 unanswered goals over the final 108:52 of play on the weekend.
- Providence finished the weekend 5/9 on the power play, while limiting opponents to 0/6.
Scott Conway's goal with 0.6 seconds remaining in the second period marked his 100th career point. He has 50 goals and 51 assists in 152 games played after adding an assist on Brandon Duhaime's empty net goal.
- The Friars have four 30-plus point players for the first time since 2014-15.
- Nate Leaman is 8-4 in the NCAA Tournament while at Providence.
- Providence is 2-2 all-time in the Frozen Four Semifinals, defeating Nebraska-Omaha in 2015 and Boston College in 1985.
                                                 Â
                                                TALE OF THE TAPE
Providence (NCAA Rank)Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 2018-19Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Minn. Duluth (NCAA Rank)
         3.22 (9th)              Goals Per Game                                   3.15 (11th)
       1.95 (T-4th)          Goals Against Average                1.95 (T-4th)
         34.1 (5th)              Shots Per Game                    34.6 (4th)
37-167 (.222) (13th)             Power Play             31-141 (.220) (14th)
145-167 (.868) (5th)             Penalty Kill             120-140 (.857) (10th)
        .513 (23rd)                Faceoff %                     .522 (14th)
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ESPN'S COVERAGE OF THE NCAA MEN'S HOCKEY CHAMPIONSHIP
For the 15th consecutive year, ESPN will present the NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Championship in its entirety, with the 15-game, 16-team tournament beginning with regional action March 29-31 and concluding with the Frozen Four on April 11 and 13. The three-day regional action will be played in Manchester, N.H. (Northeast), Providence (East), Fargo, N.D. (West) and Allentown, Pa. (Midwest) with games on ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPNEWS and ESPN3. The Frozen Four will be in Buffalo, N.Y. with all three games on ESPN2. Every game will be available on the ESPN app.
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John Buccigross, Barry Melrose and Quint Kessenich team up together once again as the network's lead broadcast trio and this year welcome Colby Cohen to their crew. The group will call the Northeast Regional and all three games of the Frozen Four. This is the seventh consecutive year Buccigross and Melrose will join forces in the booth, with Kessenich linking up with the longtime commentating crew in each of those years. Kessenich will report, while Cohen will be between the benches.
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ALL GAMES TO AIR LIVE ON NEWSRADIO 104.7 FM
Beginning with the 2018-19 hockey season, all Friars men's hockey games, in addition to all pregame and postgame network programming will be carried live on NewsRadio 104.7 FM. The agreement also includes 10 editions of the Nate Leaman Coaches Show that will air throughout the season. Mike Logan, who is entering his 24th season as the voice of the Friars, will call all the live action this season on 104.7 FM. Logan also will host the Nate Leaman Coaches show on 104.7 FM.
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SECOND HALF SUCCESS AGAINST TOP TEAMS
The Friars are 5-0 in the second half of the season against top-10 teams in the nation - UMass (1-0), Northeastern (2-0), Minnesota State (1-0) and Cornell (1-0).
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WILKINS NEARING 20 GOALS
Josh Wilkins has reached a career-high with 19 goals, tied with Denver's Jared Lukosevicius for most by any player in the Frozen Four. Wilkins has 10 goals and 16 points over his last nine games.
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DUGAN NEAR ROOKIE MILESTONE
Jack Dugan sits one point shy of 40 points this season. No Friar freshman since Rob Gaudreau and Mike Boback in 1988-89 has reach the 40-point mark.
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THREE IS THE MAGIC NUMBER
The Friars are 150-14-15 all-time under Nate Leaman when scoring three or more goals in a game.
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AFTER 40
The Friars are 136-5-12 all-time under Nate Leaman when holding a lead after two periods.
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LEAMAN VS. THE NCHC
Nate Leaman teams are 14-4-7 against NCHC schools since his arrival in 2011-12.
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HAWKEY ACTIVE NCAA WINS LEADER
Hawkey leads all active NCAA goaltenders with 72 career wins. He was one of three goaltenders in this year's tournament field to be in the top-10 active wins leaders - Jake Kielly (Clarkson, 64), Hunter Shephard (Minn. Duluth, 52).
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EIGHT WITH 20+ POINTS
Eight Friars have posted at least 20 points this season - Josh Wilkins (45), Jack Dugan (39), Brandon Duhaime (33), Kasper Björkqvist (30), Scott Conway (29), Jacob Bryson (27), Tyce Thompson (25) and Spenser Young (21).
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HISTORY VS. FROZEN FOUR TEAMS
- It will be the fourth NCAA game between the Friars and Bulldogs next Thursday night. They previously met in the 1983 NCAA Quarterfinals, with the Friars sweeping two games at Schneider Arena. In 2016, the Bulldogs knocked off the Friars, 2-1, in double overtime at the DCU Center in Worcester, Mass. All-time, Providence is 7-16-2 (.320) against Minnesota Duluth.
- Should Providence and UMass meet in the final, it will mark the fourth meeting between the schools this season. All games ended in 3-2 finals this season, with the Minutemen claiming two of the three matchups. All-time, Providence is 48-27-6 (.630) against Umass.
- A Providence-Denver final would signal the third meeting between the schools this season. The Pioneers went 1-0-1 against Providence in a two-game home series back in November. The Friars claimed the only NCAA Tournament meeting, a 4-1 win in the 2015 NCAA East Regional Final. All-time, the Friars are 9-7-3 (.553) against the Pioneers.
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HOCKEY EAST AT THE FROZEN FOUR
- Since 1985, Hockey East has had more teams qualify for the NCAA Tournament than any other conference (115). The league also boasts the most Frozen Four teams over the last 20 seasons, with 28 of the 84 qualifiers coming from Hockey East.
- The league has had nine National Championship teams, with Providence College bringing home the last trophy (2015).
- At least one Hockey East team has appeared in the National Championship game in 18 of the last 28 years. A league member has captured the trophy in five of the last 11 seasons.
- This is the 14th time that Hockey East has sent two teams to the Frozen Four. No other conference has achieved that feat more than six times.
- Two Hockey East teams have met in the National Championship three times (1995, 1999, 2015). The 2015 game featured Providence and Boston University.
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FRIAR TOURNAMENT TIDBITS
- Josh Wilkins has six points in five NCAA Tournament games. Five of those came in this year's East Regional, as he posted three goals and two assists. He's tied for third among Frozen Four participants in NCAA Tournament points.
- Providence has the most 20+ point players of the four Frozen Four teams. The Friars have eight players above this threshold.
- The Friars have the most draft picks of any of the Frozen Four teams. Providence (nine) is followed by Minnesota Duluth (seven), Denver (six) and Massachusetts (three).
- Three teams in the Frozen Four own the longest-active NCAA appearance streaks. Denver leads the pack with 12-straight appearances. Providence has six straight, while Minnesota Duluth is making its fifth-straight appearance.
- Kasper Björkqvist is one of only two Europeans to be a team captain in all of college hockey. He is the only European captain playing in this year's Frozen Four.
- The Friars are the ninth No. 4 seed to reach the Frozen Four in the last 12 years.
- Providence has more states represented on its roster than any other team at the Frozen Four. The Friars have representation from 13 different states and three different countries.
- Tyce Thompson's brother Tage Thompson has played in 65 games this season for the Buffalo Sabres. He's racked up 12 points on seven goals and five assists. Their dad, Brent, is the head coach of the Bridgeport Sound Tigers of the AHL.
- Saturday's game vs. Minnesota State marked the 13th time a team has overcome a three-goal deficit to win an NCAA Tournament game.
- Jacob Bryson, the lone Buffalo Sabres prospect playing in the Frozen Four, has competed in the last two Sabres' development camps.
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For more updates on the Providence College men's hockey program, follow the team on Twitter @FriarsHockey.
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Matchup: No. 4 Providence College vs. No. 1 Minnesota Duluth (27-11-2, 14-9-1 NCHC)
Faceoff: 5:00 PM (Thurs.) – KeyBank Center – Buffalo, N.Y. – NCAA Frozen Four Semifinal
TV: ESPN2/TSN2/TSN App | Play-by-play: John Buccigross, Color: Barry Melrose
Stream: WatchESPN
Radio: NewsRadio 104.7 FM | TuneIn Radio | Friars.com | Play-by-play: Mike Logan
Live Stats: NCAA.com
Twitter:Â @Friarshockey
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Matchup: No. 4 Providence College vs. No. 2 UMass/No. 3 Denver
Faceoff: 8:00 PM (Sat.) – KeyBank Center – Buffalo, N.Y. – NCAA Frozen Four Final
TV: ESPN2/TSN.ca/TSN App | Play-by-play: John Buccigross, Color: Barry Melrose
Stream: WatchESPN
Radio: NewsRadio 104.7 FM | TuneIn Radio | Friars.com | Play-by-play: Mike Logan
Live Stats: NCAA.com
Twitter:Â @Friarshockey
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LAST TIME OUT…
- Providence advanced to their fifth Frozen Four after blanking Cornell, 4-0, in the NCAA East Regional Final on Sunday, March 31.
- Hayden Hawkey turned away all 19 shots to post his second career NCAA Tournament shutout and the program's fourth in 36 games. He leads all NCAA goaltenders with eight shutouts in 2018-19.
- Josh Wilkins was named the East Regional's Most Outstanding Player after finishing the weekend with three goals and two assists. His 45 points are the most by a Friar since 2002-03 (Jon DiSalvatore - 48). - Tyce Thompson, Jacob Bryson and Hayden Hawkey were also named to the NCAA East Regional All-Tournament Team.
- After going down 3-0 to Minnesota State on Saturday, the Friars scored 10 unanswered goals over the final 108:52 of play on the weekend.
- Providence finished the weekend 5/9 on the power play, while limiting opponents to 0/6.
Scott Conway's goal with 0.6 seconds remaining in the second period marked his 100th career point. He has 50 goals and 51 assists in 152 games played after adding an assist on Brandon Duhaime's empty net goal.
- The Friars have four 30-plus point players for the first time since 2014-15.
- Nate Leaman is 8-4 in the NCAA Tournament while at Providence.
- Providence is 2-2 all-time in the Frozen Four Semifinals, defeating Nebraska-Omaha in 2015 and Boston College in 1985.
                                                 Â
                                                TALE OF THE TAPE
Providence (NCAA Rank)Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 2018-19Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Minn. Duluth (NCAA Rank)
         3.22 (9th)              Goals Per Game                                   3.15 (11th)
       1.95 (T-4th)          Goals Against Average                1.95 (T-4th)
         34.1 (5th)              Shots Per Game                    34.6 (4th)
37-167 (.222) (13th)             Power Play             31-141 (.220) (14th)
145-167 (.868) (5th)             Penalty Kill             120-140 (.857) (10th)
        .513 (23rd)                Faceoff %                     .522 (14th)
Â
ESPN'S COVERAGE OF THE NCAA MEN'S HOCKEY CHAMPIONSHIP
For the 15th consecutive year, ESPN will present the NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Championship in its entirety, with the 15-game, 16-team tournament beginning with regional action March 29-31 and concluding with the Frozen Four on April 11 and 13. The three-day regional action will be played in Manchester, N.H. (Northeast), Providence (East), Fargo, N.D. (West) and Allentown, Pa. (Midwest) with games on ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPNEWS and ESPN3. The Frozen Four will be in Buffalo, N.Y. with all three games on ESPN2. Every game will be available on the ESPN app.
Â
John Buccigross, Barry Melrose and Quint Kessenich team up together once again as the network's lead broadcast trio and this year welcome Colby Cohen to their crew. The group will call the Northeast Regional and all three games of the Frozen Four. This is the seventh consecutive year Buccigross and Melrose will join forces in the booth, with Kessenich linking up with the longtime commentating crew in each of those years. Kessenich will report, while Cohen will be between the benches.
Â
ALL GAMES TO AIR LIVE ON NEWSRADIO 104.7 FM
Beginning with the 2018-19 hockey season, all Friars men's hockey games, in addition to all pregame and postgame network programming will be carried live on NewsRadio 104.7 FM. The agreement also includes 10 editions of the Nate Leaman Coaches Show that will air throughout the season. Mike Logan, who is entering his 24th season as the voice of the Friars, will call all the live action this season on 104.7 FM. Logan also will host the Nate Leaman Coaches show on 104.7 FM.
Â
SECOND HALF SUCCESS AGAINST TOP TEAMS
The Friars are 5-0 in the second half of the season against top-10 teams in the nation - UMass (1-0), Northeastern (2-0), Minnesota State (1-0) and Cornell (1-0).
Â
WILKINS NEARING 20 GOALS
Josh Wilkins has reached a career-high with 19 goals, tied with Denver's Jared Lukosevicius for most by any player in the Frozen Four. Wilkins has 10 goals and 16 points over his last nine games.
Â
DUGAN NEAR ROOKIE MILESTONE
Jack Dugan sits one point shy of 40 points this season. No Friar freshman since Rob Gaudreau and Mike Boback in 1988-89 has reach the 40-point mark.
Â
THREE IS THE MAGIC NUMBER
The Friars are 150-14-15 all-time under Nate Leaman when scoring three or more goals in a game.
Â
AFTER 40
The Friars are 136-5-12 all-time under Nate Leaman when holding a lead after two periods.
Â
LEAMAN VS. THE NCHC
Nate Leaman teams are 14-4-7 against NCHC schools since his arrival in 2011-12.
Â
HAWKEY ACTIVE NCAA WINS LEADER
Hawkey leads all active NCAA goaltenders with 72 career wins. He was one of three goaltenders in this year's tournament field to be in the top-10 active wins leaders - Jake Kielly (Clarkson, 64), Hunter Shephard (Minn. Duluth, 52).
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EIGHT WITH 20+ POINTS
Eight Friars have posted at least 20 points this season - Josh Wilkins (45), Jack Dugan (39), Brandon Duhaime (33), Kasper Björkqvist (30), Scott Conway (29), Jacob Bryson (27), Tyce Thompson (25) and Spenser Young (21).
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HISTORY VS. FROZEN FOUR TEAMS
- It will be the fourth NCAA game between the Friars and Bulldogs next Thursday night. They previously met in the 1983 NCAA Quarterfinals, with the Friars sweeping two games at Schneider Arena. In 2016, the Bulldogs knocked off the Friars, 2-1, in double overtime at the DCU Center in Worcester, Mass. All-time, Providence is 7-16-2 (.320) against Minnesota Duluth.
- Should Providence and UMass meet in the final, it will mark the fourth meeting between the schools this season. All games ended in 3-2 finals this season, with the Minutemen claiming two of the three matchups. All-time, Providence is 48-27-6 (.630) against Umass.
- A Providence-Denver final would signal the third meeting between the schools this season. The Pioneers went 1-0-1 against Providence in a two-game home series back in November. The Friars claimed the only NCAA Tournament meeting, a 4-1 win in the 2015 NCAA East Regional Final. All-time, the Friars are 9-7-3 (.553) against the Pioneers.
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HOCKEY EAST AT THE FROZEN FOUR
- Since 1985, Hockey East has had more teams qualify for the NCAA Tournament than any other conference (115). The league also boasts the most Frozen Four teams over the last 20 seasons, with 28 of the 84 qualifiers coming from Hockey East.
- The league has had nine National Championship teams, with Providence College bringing home the last trophy (2015).
- At least one Hockey East team has appeared in the National Championship game in 18 of the last 28 years. A league member has captured the trophy in five of the last 11 seasons.
- This is the 14th time that Hockey East has sent two teams to the Frozen Four. No other conference has achieved that feat more than six times.
- Two Hockey East teams have met in the National Championship three times (1995, 1999, 2015). The 2015 game featured Providence and Boston University.
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FRIAR TOURNAMENT TIDBITS
- Josh Wilkins has six points in five NCAA Tournament games. Five of those came in this year's East Regional, as he posted three goals and two assists. He's tied for third among Frozen Four participants in NCAA Tournament points.
- Providence has the most 20+ point players of the four Frozen Four teams. The Friars have eight players above this threshold.
- The Friars have the most draft picks of any of the Frozen Four teams. Providence (nine) is followed by Minnesota Duluth (seven), Denver (six) and Massachusetts (three).
- Three teams in the Frozen Four own the longest-active NCAA appearance streaks. Denver leads the pack with 12-straight appearances. Providence has six straight, while Minnesota Duluth is making its fifth-straight appearance.
- Kasper Björkqvist is one of only two Europeans to be a team captain in all of college hockey. He is the only European captain playing in this year's Frozen Four.
- The Friars are the ninth No. 4 seed to reach the Frozen Four in the last 12 years.
- Providence has more states represented on its roster than any other team at the Frozen Four. The Friars have representation from 13 different states and three different countries.
- Tyce Thompson's brother Tage Thompson has played in 65 games this season for the Buffalo Sabres. He's racked up 12 points on seven goals and five assists. Their dad, Brent, is the head coach of the Bridgeport Sound Tigers of the AHL.
- Saturday's game vs. Minnesota State marked the 13th time a team has overcome a three-goal deficit to win an NCAA Tournament game.
- Jacob Bryson, the lone Buffalo Sabres prospect playing in the Frozen Four, has competed in the last two Sabres' development camps.
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For more updates on the Providence College men's hockey program, follow the team on Twitter @FriarsHockey.
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Players Mentioned
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/ Men's Ice HockeyMen's Ice Hockey vs. Boston College
Thursday, March 07
Men's Ice Hockey vs. Boston University
Thursday, February 28
Men's Ice Hockey vs. Massachusetts
Saturday, February 23
Men's Ice Hockey vs. UMass Lowell
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