Boston University plays Harvard in the opening round at TD Garden
February has arrived and with it comes one of Boston’s most iconic college sports events: the annual Men’s Beanpot, now marking its 72nd year. The ice hockey tournament pits four major greater Boston college teams against one another.
The 2025 Dunkin’ Beanpot begins Monday, February 3. The No. 10 Boston University men’s hockey team will take on the tournament’s only nonconference opponent when they play Harvard at 5 pm at TD Garden. The two teams met earlier this season in an October 19 exhibition game: a 2-2 nailbiter shoot-out.
Following Monday’s semifinal matchup, reigning champion Northeastern will battle No. 1 Boston College at 8 pm in a top-billed matchup. The winners of each game will return on Monday, February 10, at 7:30 pm to crown a champion, with the losers playing a consolation game, at 4:30 pm. “I don’t think it matters how any of the four teams are doing throughout the course of the year. This tournament takes on a life of its own,” BU head coach Jay Pandolfo (CAS’96) said during the January 27 Beanpot Media Day. “You can’t replicate this tournament anywhere else.”
Here’s what you need to know about each team heading into the semifinals:
Boston University
The Terriers have had an up-and-down season to date. Looking to fill the glaring vacancy left by last season’s departing point leaders Macklin Celebrini, winner of the 2024 Hobey Baker Award (given to the top NCAA men’s ice hockey player), and Lane Hutson, the team reloaded with a crop of new talent, including eight freshmen and two transfers. The team stands at 14-9-1 on the season, ranking third in Hockey East standings.
The program’s youth was on display throughout the roller-coaster first half of the season before they began to find their groove as the new year started. The Terriers won four straight games before the late January high-tension Boston College series, where the Terriers dropped two to their crosstown foe.
Two freshmen who have stood out for the Terriers are forward Cole Eiserman (CAS’28) and defenseman Cole Hutson (CAS’28). The two, along with forward Brandon Svoboda (SHA’28), won a gold medal as part of Team USA in the World Juniors Championship over winter break. Eiserman leads the team in goals, with 15, and Hutson leads the team in assists, with 17.
Three members of the team’s leadership group round out the top five in scoring for the Terriers. Assistant captain Quinn Hutson (SHA’26) leads the team with 30 points, followed by cocaptains Ryan Greene (COM’26) at 26 and Shane Lachance (SHA’27) at 23.
In net, goaltender Mathieu Caron (CAS’25) has started for the majority of the season, posting a .898 save percentage and a 3.17 goals-against average. Freshman goaltender Mikhail Yegorov (CAS’28), who arrived at BU just last month, earned the start in BU’s January 25 game against Boston College. He dominated in that one appearance, with 23 saves and one goal allowed.
It’s unclear whether Pandolfo will lean on experience or the hot hand for the first Beanpot game. He wasn’t shy about praising the new netminder’s performance during Beanpot media day, however.
“We gave [Yegorov] the opportunity, and I thought he was excellent. The composure, the confidence,” Pandolfo said. “Never playing a college team and playing against the No. 1 team in a hostile environment on the road, he was pretty damn good.”
When the Terriers, who own the most Beanpot Championships, with 31, take on Harvard in the opening round of play, they’ll have history on their side: they own a 30-18 Beanpot record against the Crimson. And, they are in search of their first Beanpot title since 2022, when they defeated Northeastern 1-0.
“This is when the season starts to ramp up and starts to get more fun, more competitive games, more meaningful games, so we’re really excited,” says assistant captain Devin Kaplan (SHA’26).
Boston College
The top-ranked Eagles enter the Beanpot with a 19-4-1 record and a 5-1 record against Beanpot teams this season. The only outlier is the team they face on Monday—Northeastern, who bested them 3-0 on November 22.
While the Eagles find themselves a national championship contender year after year, they haven’t found much success in recent Beanpots. They haven’t played in a championship game since 2019, when they lost to the Huskies 4-2, and their last Beanpot title came in 2016.
This year’s team is one of the program’s most formidable in recent memory. Its top line,which includes sophomore Gabe Perreault and freshmen James Hagens and Teddy Stiga, is one of the best in the nation. Sophomore assistant captain Ryan Leonard leads the NCAA in goals per game and is a front-runner for this year’s Hobey Baker award.
Sophomore goaltender Jacob Fowler is a brick wall in net and leads Hockey East in save percentage. He earned his sixth shutout of the year against BU on January 25.
Northeastern University
While the Huskies have the fewest Beanpot titles of the four participating teams, they’ve been on a hot streak in recent years. They’re in search of their third-straight Beanpot title, their sixth in the last seven years.
But Northeastern has skated to an underwhelming 9-12-3 record on the season, ranking ninth in Hockey East.
Forward Jack Williams leads Northeastern in scoring, with 12 goals and 17 assists, ranking fifth in the conference. The team’s top-six scorers enter the tournament with championship experience.
The Huskies are 14-34 against BC in the Beanpot, but their recent tournament magic and experience defeating the Eagles earlier this season could be all they need to pull off a win.
Harvard University
The Crimson are the only non–Hockey East team in the tournament and their 7-11-2 record places them sixth in the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC). Harvard has won 11 Beanpot titles, their most recent in 2017, marking the longest drought among the four teams.
The last time BU and Harvard met in the semifinals, the Terriers won 4-3, en route to the 2022 championship.
Junior forward Joe Miller leads the Crimson in scoring, with 15 points, while junior Casey Severo leads the team in goals, with 8. The team runs a two-goalie system, with freshman Ben Charette, who owns a .920 save percentage, and junior Aku Koskenvuo, who is at .903.
A key for Harvard will be discipline since their 41st-ranked penalty kill may struggle against BU’s 7th-ranked power play. Luckily for the Crimson, the team owns the second-least penalty minutes per game in the NCAA.
The BU Student Alumni Association is hosting a free watch party for students at Sunset Cantina during the Beanpot semifinal game, starting at 4:30 pm. Light appetizers will be provided. Advance registration is required; register here. The first 100 students to arrive will receive a specialty Beanpot swag item.
The 72nd Dunkin’ Men’s Beanpot semifinal games are Monday, February 3, at TD Garden, 100 Legends Way, Boston. BU will take on Harvard at 5 pm; Northeastern will face BC at 8 pm. The consolation and championship games will be Monday, February 10, at 4:30 pm and 7:30 pm. All games will be played at TD Garden. Purchase tickets for the men’s Beanpot tournament here; all games will be broadcast live on NESN and streamed live on ESPN+