WORCESTER — Air Force Academy head hockey coach Frank Serratore knew if his team was going to upset Boston College tonight during the Northeast Regional semifinals here the DCU Center, they’d have to do so in a low-scoring affair.
Tonigh’ts game was just that, with only one player scoring for either team.
Unfortunately for Serratore and his squad, that player was Chris Kreider, the Boston College junior star from Boxford.
“The kid who scored the two goals for BC, where’s he going to be playing in three weeks: New York?” asked Serratore, alluding to the rampant speculation that Kreider will join the NHL team that drafted him in the first round three years ago, the New York Rangers, when his college season is over. “That’s what special players do.”
The 20-year-old Kreider certainly performed like a special player tonight. With a jump in his stride and a burst towards the net seemingly every time he hopped over the boards, he was easily the best player on either team, dominating at times with his skating and brushing off defenders with his strength down the walls.
The two goals give the former Masconomet star and 2007 Salem News Player of the Year 22 this season, increasing his team lead in that category as well as total points (43).
Asked if he felt he had ‘it’ on this particular night, Kreider deflected the attention towards his linemates, sophomore center Kevin Hayes and freshman right wing Destry Straight.
“I don’t know if you’d say that,” Kreider mused after the question was posed to him. “Once again, I think my linemates played unbelievable, and when you’re got your linemates going it’s not hard to cap off some of the chances they give you.”
Kreider’s first goal, coming 7:39 into the first period, came with Kreider in the slot and taking a behind the net dish from Hayes to snap a one-timer past Air Force netminder Jason Torf. His second, coming with just 1:21 remaining in this tightly-contested matchup, was a power play strike that salted the game away for the top-ranked Eagles (30-10-1).
“I think he’s an outstanding athlete,” BC head coach Jerry York said of the 6-foot-3, 225-pound Kreider. “He rises to the competitive level. He’s had a tough stretch here as far as points the last 10 games, but his play has been pretty good. But tonight, I think two goals, it’s a testament to his competitivness he’s shown us over (his) three years.
“I love how he talks about his linemates making a good play. He’s a pretty humble kid. But he’s had a history of having really good tournaments, so we hope it continues.”
Later on, Kreider said he likes to work up a strong dislike for his opponents, trying to find a nugget he can use to his advantage in a particular game. That’s easy against rivals like Boston University and Maine, but not so much so against an unfamiliar opponent — one that has a much greater goal awaiting them down the road.
“I can’t hate those guys,” Kreider admitted of the Falcons. “I have so much respect for those Air Force guys and what they do — and will have to do, to protect our country.”
Kreider and the Eagles will take on No. 2 seed Minnesota-Duluth, a 5-2 victor over Maine in last night’s other Northeast semifinal, back at the DCU Center tonight (8 p.m.) for the right to advance to the Frozen Four in Tampa in two weeks. Boston College won the national championship two years ago when Kreider was a freshman, 5-0 over Wisconsin, a game in which he scored in.
