Eagles go forth - again

York, BC know how to wing it

WORCESTER - It was up in Maine in January after a tie that felt like a loss, that Jerry York talked about the Rockies in April. "It's a shame you won't be going to Denver with me," Boston College's hockey coach told his varsity. "I have a ticket, I have a plane reservation, I have a hotel room. I understand that Denver in the springtime is an outstanding place to be. We're not going to be there as a team, and that's the worst feeling for any college coach."

That, remembered center Matt Greene, was a harsh shot of reality. No matter what history may imply, BC doesn't have a standing invitation to the Frozen Four. If the Eagles didn't straighten up and fly right, York would be sipping a Coors at altitude without them. They had to earn it.

And so BC did yesterday for the eighth time in 11 years, knocking out second-ranked Miami, 4-3, in overtime to win the NCAA Northeast Regional at DCU Center. As it has in virtually every big game this season, BC did it the longer, harder way.

Down two goals, up by one, then even. Caged in its own end for almost all of overtime, then busting out and winning it on a diving, swatting shot by freshman Joe Whitney, who came to The Heights to be part of victories like this. "They know how to win," he said. "It shows in the record."

What the record shows is that the same man has been behind the bench for all eight of those Frozen Four appearances, garbed in jacket, sweater, and tie with nary a trickle of perspiration. This is Jerry York's team, his philosophy, his demeanor. As he coaches, the Eagles play.

"What happens on the bench dictates what happens on the ice," said Greene. "He doesn't get rattled, so we don't get rattled. That's why he's won 801 games."

The Eagles won both Beanpot games in overtime. They were three goals down to New Hampshire in the Hockey East semis and won in triple overtime. Yesterday, they were two goals down to a Miami team that had been 22-0-0 when it scored first. They were one bounce from being evicted in overtime, with the puck skittering around their end and freshman goalie Johnny Muse (10 saves in OT) whirling like a Hibernian dervish.

So York did what he does best. He called for a timeout and a chillout. There was a mini-lecture on avian behavior. Eagles are not vultures. They do not sit around waiting for their prey to die. They attack it aggressively with talons out. "We just reassured the kids," said York, whose squad has won seven straight. "Let's not think about Denver and the chance to go to the Frozen Four. Let's just try to win a hockey game."

If there was a difference between these two hockey teams - and after more than 72 minutes, there wasn't much - it may have been that one of them goes to the Big Skatearound almost every year and the other never has. Three straight times now, Miami has met BC in this regional. Three straight times, BC has prevailed. "This team is going to be there someday," vowed RedHawks coach Enrico Blasi.

If BC is there, again and again and again, it may be because it expects to be. "We know the tradition 10 years in the making," said captain Mike Brennan. "Guys like Marty Reasoner, [Brian] Gionta, Brooks Orpik. They want to win championships when they put that sweater on. That's what we're trying to achieve here and I think we have the team to do it."

There were a couple of stretches this season, in November (0-3-3) and after the Beanpot (1-5-1) when it looked likely that the Eagles would be playing golf in April. But when they had to take wing this month, they did. BC has had better teams with more victories and loftier rankings. But this one is unmatched in grit and glue.

"This is the best team I've had," said York. "Making the most of what they have. The karma in the room. The confidence they have. They just know how to get things done."

This isn't nearly the team that York thought he'd have. Cory Schneider, his All-American goaltender, signed with the Canucks in July. That made Muse, who was last seen playing for Nobles against Milton, his main man. Then, just after the season started, York threw two of his best defensemen off the team for disciplinary reasons. Then Brock Bradford, one of BC's top guns, broke his left humerus twice.

What happened is what usually happens in Chestnut Hill. The seniors took charge and the freshmen stepped up. Nobody wanted to be left at sea level going to class when the coach was kicking back on a Colorado junket. So they got it done, later rather than sooner.

"A lot of people probably felt that this team wasn't going to make it, with the ups and downs we were having this year," mused Brennan. "But I think the 24 guys in that room never doubted the fact that we were going to do it." By now, it has become a rite of spring at The Heights. "When you keep going to Frozen Fours, you begin to develop a pedigree," York said. "A feeling of, we belong here."

John Powers can be reached at jpowers@globe.com.