Seems like both games got pretty good coverage on the list, so I'll only
make a few comments about each game.
 
LSSU vs. Harvard/Greatest Hits
Too bad this wasn't the final.  These were the best two teams.  Watching this
game was like looking at a greatest hits film for the '94 hockey season.  I
have never seen such a physical game the whole season, and never seen so many
bone crushing checks.  So how did LSSU win?  The same way they always win.
It's the machine.  Take any LSSU team from the last five years and tell me you
could tell which year?  Last year maybe they had a little more offense with
Rolston.  But other than that the picture would be the same.  Blue and Gold
player creaming an opposing player against the side boards.  Puck staying
in the corners.  No real offensive rushes.  I can't understand why more college
coaches haven't copied the Jeff Jackson system.  Sure it's boring and your
players have to be in top condition.  But look at the results.
 
Now Harvard played an outstanding game.  In fact they probably make the top 5
best hits list.  They played 3 periods of flawless, intense hockey.  However
one defensive lapse gives the system the win.  Aaron Israel played slightly
behind Lacher, so guess who won?  Lacher apparently has regained his end of
season form.  Some of his stops were virtually unconscious.
 
The game started off the worst possible way for Harvard.  LSSU starts its
board slamming routine, and Israel can't come up with his first save.  A slight
Harvard miscue has their defense bunched to the left of the net with the puck
bouncing to the right.  Barnes alertly flies in and lays a tough wrister by
Israel.  Before the score Harvard starts its own highlight film. McCann lays
a crushing hit on a LSSU player, and McCann and Ferreri sandwich LSSU's Beddoes
with a nasty pile driver hit.
 
The period continues with Harvard smacking LSSU players, LSSU smothering
Harvard against the boards.  As usual commentator Norton makes a good analysis
noting that LSSU's forechecking of the Harvard's D's into the boards prevents
Harvard from getting any kind of offensive rush.  While Harvard's forwards,
like Steve Martins, force the puck up-ice, they have no trailers to dish off
to.
 
The second period starts with another good Norton comment.  He notes Harvard
had modified its break-out play to try and screen off the initial LSSU
forechecker.  And Harvard begins to find a little more open ice to operate
in.  From midway through the first through most of the second, Harvard is
able to dominate play.  Lacher however dominates the scoreboard.  It takes a
perfect shot from Brian Farrell to get Harvard on the board.
 
Farrell takes the puck at his own blue line and skates through center ice.  As
soon as he enters the offensive zone he lets loose with a screamer that ends
up in the LSSU net.  At first I thought Lacher had choked, but a replay shows
Farrell had made an almost impossible shot.  Skating to his left, Farrell lets
loose a shot traveling to his right.  Lacher, properly positioned to cut the
angle, sees the shot cross in front of him, and squeezes between his glove
and the right post.  Norton quite correctly points out there is nothing Lacher
could have done to prevent that shot.
 
The period ends with a near LSSU score.  Although dominated by Harvard, they
still end up with a 2 on 1, with Israel coming up big to save the tie score.
And one other Norton gem.  Commenting on Harvard's Cory Gustavson, "nifty as
can be, like the Ice Capades..."
 
Third period continues the LSSU re-assertion.  Tallaire scores on an illegal
pick play.  The replay shows Beddoes takes out McCann and his defensive partner
with an guide missile hit.  Harvard's Farrell comes right back shortly
thereafter on a nice power play goal to re-tie the game at 2-2.
 
The remaining seven minutes see LSSU and Harvard hanging on.  Lacher manages
to push Steve Martins shot, after his flight up the right side, over the net.
Harvard manages to skate through a 5 minute major, the result of an out-of-
control Nielsen boarding.  Aaron Israel comes up big repeatedly for Harvard,
getting them out of the period and into overtime.
 
In the overtime LSSU makes it 3 OT's, 3 wins.  Harvard makes its only major
defensive mistake of the game.  The two Harvard defensemen get caught up-ice,
actually only to the right of the blue line.  But the machine, perfectly
positioned as always, has two LSSU forwards free on the right at mid-ice.
Beddoes takes the puck in on a breakaway, actually a 2-0, shoots 5 hole, and
Israel can't save the game.  3-2 LSSU, take a ticket for the next victim.
 
Minnesota/BU
Not going to report much about this game.  It was boring.  Minnesota, except
for a momentary flurry in the first 8 minutes of the second period, never
was in the game.  Not to say the crowd wasn't.  I think that was one of the
loudest college hockey crowds I have ever heard.  At times you could barely
hear the announcers.  BU however eventually silenced them by the third.
 
BU should be awarded the title WCHA wrecker of the year.  Playing a virtually
identical game as the semi-final win over Wisconsin, BU's suffocating defense
never allows Minnesota to skate.  I thought Linna and O'Sullivan had
particularly strong games.  Most of the Gopher shots are of the weak variety,
single shot episodes that JP McKersie easily picks off.  I was surprised to see
McKersie in net.  But I guess that makes Jack Parker look like a genius.  Now
he has a rested Herlofsky for Saturday night.  And Herlofsky could definitely
use the rest.
 
Pomichter is the BU star of the game, coming up with the second and fourth BU
goals.  The other posts cover the scoring more than adequately.  It was BU from
start to finish.  A good rehearsal for their next game, which will be unlike
any they have played all year.
 
Officiating in both games IMO, was a little strange.  The first two periods
of LSSU/Harvard saw few penalties called, despite the bodies that seemed to be
littering the ice.  Then in the third *mild* hits get whistled.  But I can't
say the officials affected the outcome.
 
Similarly the BU/Minnesota game didn't see a lot of penalties.  Shegoes and
his CCHA crew allowed a lot of nasty hits throughout the game without blowing
their whistles.  Minnesota seemed to have dished out a lot of illegal hits,
but I would guess the refs let the players skate on, since BU dominated play
without any help from the zebras.
 
Saturday night look for an all-out defensive brawl.  BU will try to hold up
LSSU forwards everywhere on the ice.  LSSU will slam BU's talented defensemen
against the boards.  BU will be unable to generate any offense from its
defense.  LSSU will only score off BU errors.  Either team could win this one,
but I like LSSU because the machine will just go on, and Lacher will come up
big.  It won't be an offensive showcase, just a textbook on how to play hockey.
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