Tuesday, April 15, 2025

Frozen Four thoughts + QMJHL playoff update

The Western Michigan Broncos won their first NCAA Frozen Four title on Saturday.

The Broncos needed double overtime just to earn a spot in the final, edging the defending champion University of Denver 3-2 on Thursday. They met Boston University in the final and were by far the better team, skating to a 6-2 win at St. Louis' Enterprise Center.

It was a dominant season for Western Michigan, a program not well known outside of college hockey circles. The Broncos went an impressive 34-7-1 this season, winning their first conference championship en route to a national title.
From a recruiting standpoint, the Broncos could be a program to watch moving forward. Winning a national championship obviously helps, but the team also plays in a powerhouse conference (the NCHC), is just a few hours from the Canadian border and will be getting a new arena in the coming years.

Here are a few more takeaways from the Frozen Four plus some other updates...

  • This was the first Frozen Four I attended and it was... fine. I definitely prefer the longer tournaments like the world juniors or Memorial Cup, where it feels like you have the time to really immerse yourself in the event. Here, you get three games over three days and that's it.
  • The atmosphere for the final was quite good and was dominated by Western Michigan fans (their Kalamazoo, MI campus is about six hours from St. Louis). The semifinals on Thursday were a bit rough (I bought a ticket day of for $20 USD). It's a single ticketed day, so a lot of fans simply left after the Western Michigan game ended – and it didn't help that the game went to double OT. The late game crowd for BU/Penn State was pretty flat.
  • It was awesome to see how many fans travel to this event every year – whether their team is in it or not. It's definitely a much larger base than the Memorial Cup, which is understandable given how short the event is in comparison.
  • Really weird that the Fan Fest (and even the merchandise spot) was closed during the event's off day on Friday. For fans, there were really no Frozen Four activities to do that day. Fortunately the Cardinals were playing that evening.
  • This was quite possibly the final Frozen Four without any CHL alumni playing in it. Crazy times.
  • Newfoundland's Ryan Greene, who just completed his third season at Boston University, made his NHL debut with the Chicago Blackhawks on Monday.
  • Things aren't looking good for the Halifax Mooseheads. After pulling off that stunning upset over the Drummondville Voltigeurs in the opening round, the Mooseheads now trail the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies 3-0 following a 4-1 loss on Tuesday at Scotiabank Centre.
  • The Moncton Wildcats suffered their first loss since Feb. 8 on Tuesday, falling 5-2 to the Baie-Comeau Drakkar. The Wildcats trailed 2-0 entering the third period, tied it up and then fell behind again. The Wildcats lead that series 2-1.
  • Former Sea Dogs forward Eriks Mateiko did not play in Tuesday's 3-0 Rimouski Oceanic loss to the Chicoutimi Sagueneens. The Oceanic lead the series 2-1. Mateiko left Saturday's Game 2 with an apparent injury and was listed as injured on Tuesday. The Oceanic are hurting right now with Mateiko, Mathieu Cataford, William Lacelle and Jack Martin all out, joining Spencer Gill.
  • The Shawinigan Cataractes went up 3-0 on the Sherbrooke Phoenix thanks to a 5-2 win on Tuesday. Former Sea Dogs forward Vince Elie had two shots in the win.
  • The Maritime Hockey League final is set to begin on Friday and will feature the top-seeded Edmundston Blizzard taking on the underdog Pictou County Weeks Crushers. 
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