SCHENECTADY, NY - Coming off its second straight ECAC Hockey Tournament Championship, the Union College men's ice hockey team (21-12-5, 10-8-4 ECAC Hockey) earned a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament and will take on No. 2 seed Boston College (22-11-4, 15-9-3 Hockey East) Saturday night at 9:00 p.m. in the East Regional at the Dunkin Donuts Center in Providence, RI.

Saturday's meeting will mark the first time in the program's 22-year Division I history that Union and Boston College will meet. The Eagles earned an at-large berth after finishing second in Hockey East. Boston College fell in the Hockey East Semifinals to Boston University, 6-3. The defending national champions will be making their 32nd all-time NCAA Tournament appearance. Boston College has won five national titles in program history (1949, 2001, 2008, 2010, and 2012). Union is 1-2-0 against Hockey East opponents this season, including a 4-1 win over Merrimack in the Catamount Cup on Dec. 30.

»Union In The NCAA Tournament
2013 will mark the program's seventh appearance in the NCAA Tournament in school history and third straight in the Division I era. Union has earned an automatic bid to the tournament as ECAC Hockey Tournament champions for the past two seasons.

In 2012, Union earned a trip to the Frozen Four with wins over UMass-Lowell and Michigan State as the No. 1 seed in the East Regional of the NCAA Tournament before falling to Ferris State, 3-1, in the national semifinals. In 2011, Union earned a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament as an at-large selection but fell 2-0 to eventual national champion Minnesota-Duluth in the opening round of the East Regional. The Dutchmen also earned a bid to the Division III NCAA Tournament four times, the last coming in 1989, when Union fell to Babson in the NCAA Quarterfinals.

»Union Returns To Dunkin Donuts Center
The Dutchmen will be making their first trip to the Dunkin Donuts Center since the 2004-05 season, when Union particpated in the Dunkin Donuts Coffee Pot on Nov. 27-28, 2004. Current volunteer assistant coach Joel Beal '05 was on the team then, which lost to Merrimack in shootout after a 4-4 regulartion tie, then fell to Holy Cross, 3-1, in the third place game.

»Grosenick Continues Run of Solid Play in Net
Junior goaltender Troy Grosenick has been at his best during Union's six game winning streak, allowing just five goals in five starts during that span. Grosenick is 5-0-0 with a 1.04 goals-against average and .966 save % in his last five games.

»Union's Stellar Special Teams
Union is the only team in the nation with a power play and penalty kill unit among the top 7 in the nation. Union's power play is No. 5 in the nation at 23.0% (40-for-174) on the season, while its penalty kill is No. 7 in the nation at 86.7% (130-for-150). Union is 19 for its last 20 on the penalty kill and has scored a PPG in 26 of 38 games this season, with a record of 14-7-5 in those contests.

»Scouting Boston College
Top Players (2012-13 Stats): So. F Johnny Gaudreau (20 goals, 30 assists), Sr. F Steven Whitney (26 goals, 19 assists), Sr. F Pat Mullane (16 goals, 27 assists), Jr. F Bill Arnold (17 goals, 18 assists), Fr. D Michael Matheson (8 goals, 17 assists), Jr. F Kevin Hayes (6 goals, 19 assists), Sr. G Parker Milner (22-10-4, 2.59 GAA, .912 Save %).

Synopsis: Since starting the season as the near unanimous No. 1 team in the nation at 10-1-0, the Eagles are 12-10-4 since Nov. 30, and for the first time since the 2009-10 season, Boston College is entering the NCAA Tournament coming off a loss, as the Eagles fell, 6-3, to Boston Univeristy in the Hockey East Semifinals on March 22.

But still, the defending national champions are among the most dangerous teams in the nation, led by college hockey's all-time winningest head coach, Jerry York. For the first half of the season BC's top three forwards were united on the same line - Hobey Baker finalist Johnny Gaudreau, Walter Brown Award winner Steven Whitney, and Pat Mullane. Since Jan. 26, Mullane and Whitney have stayed together, with Gaudreau, the nation's leading scorer at 1.47 points per game, playing most often with Bill Arnold and Destry Straight (6 goals, 9 assists). BC's offense has been among the nation's best for most of the season, scoring four or more goals in 17 games this season. The Eagles are 2nd in the nation at 3.43 goals/game.

BC features a relatively young defensive corps, with two regular freshman defenseman in Michael Matheson and Teddy Doherty, and another who has seen significant action in Colin Sullivan. Hockey East Best Defensive Defenseman winner Patrick Wey leads the group, along with junior Isaac McLeod. A mid-season injury to Clifton Park native Patch Alber forced some shuffling of the defensive corps, including sophomore Danny Linell (three goals, nine assists) moving to the backline and Sullivan moving to forward. Since Alber returned on March 15, Linell has remained on defense, and Sullivan up front. BC is 31st in the nation in scoring defense at 2.76 goals allowed/game.

Senior goaltender Parker Milner had a solid campaign in net for the Eagles and was outstanding for BC during their postseason run in 2012.

Boston College has one of the top power play units in the nation (No. 8 NCAA) at 22.1% (34-for-154). The Eagles are also solid on the penalty kill at No. 17 in the nation with an 84.8% kill rate (156-for-184), but allowed three power play goals to BU in the Hockey East Semifinals.

»Union Against Hockey East
Union played three games against Hockey East opponents this season, and had a record of 1-2-0 in those contests. Union opened the season against Merrimack on Oct. 6, falling 4-1 to the Warriors. The Dutchmen would take on Vermont and Merrimack in the Catamount Cup later in the season on Dec. 29-30. The Dutchmen dropped a 2-1 decision to the Catamounts on Dec. 29. Union beat Merrimack, 4-1, the following night, rallying for four goals in the third period.

Union took on UMass-Lowell in the East Regional Final last season, defeating the River Hawks, 4-2 to earn a trip to the Frozen Four. This was previously the only time Union has faced a Hockey East opponent in the NCAA Tournament.

»An Arnold Sibling Rivalry
Boston College junior forward Bill Arnold is the younger brother of former Union women's lacrosse captain Tory Arnold '12.
Tory Arnold, a four year starter for the Dutchwomen and three-time Liberty League All-Academic Team member, played in 63 games with 60 caused turnovers and 96 ground balls for her career. Arnold earned First-Team All-Liberty League honors last season.

»Boyle Has BC Connections
Freshman forward Tim Boyle is the younger brother of former Boston College standout Brian Boyle, who currently plays for the New York Rangers. Brian Boyle graduated from BC in 2007, the same year he led BC to its second straight national title game with 53 points (19 goals, 34 assists) in 42 games and was a First Team AHCA All-American.

»Gostisbehere and Gaudreau Won Gold at World Juniors
Union sophomore defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere was teammates with Boston College sophomore forward Johnny Gaudreau on the Team USA squad that earned a gold medal with a 3-1 win over Sweden at the 2013 IIHF World Junior Championships in Ufa, Russia. Gostisbehere saw significant ice time in the deciding game, and was on the ice for both of Team USA's even strength goals, finishing the night with a +1 rating.

It is the third gold medal for Team USA, which also won in 2004 and 2010. Gostisbehere recorded a goal and an assist in six tournament games for Team USA. Gaudreau, who was named to the tournament's all-star team, was the leading goal-scorer in the competition with seven goals in seven games.

»Union and BC Finally Meet
Boston College is one of seven current Division I teams that Union had never played entering the 2013 NCAA Tournament. In addition to BC, Union has not faced Robert Morris, Miami, Northern Michigan, Boston University, Michigan Tech, and North Dakota.