Legendary turnabout kept their dream afloat
WASHINGTON - It simply had to be the greatest college hockey game ever played.
Trailing, 3-1, with less than a minute remaining in last night's national championship game, Boston University scored twice before the end of regulation, then beat Miami University on a deflected slap shot by Colby Cohen in the 12th minute of overtime.
So how can this not be the greatest of them all?
"I think it is," said Jack Parker, a veteran of 36 years behind the BU bench. "I might be a little biased, but I think this is the best."
Not everyone was watching - college hockey tends to be a cult sport, even in our region - but what happened at the
Playing without a goaltender, the Terriers scored twice in a span of 42.1 seconds to force overtime.
"Bernie Carbo's homer," said Parker. "That's what I was thinking about when we tied it."
Indeed. Given the long odds, the stakes, and the outcome, Boston University's 4-3 victory goes right up there alongside Carbo and Carlton Fisk homering in Game 6 of the 1975 World Series and Doug Flutie throwing the Hail Mary against Miami of Florida in 1984.
The game appeared lost. Top-ranked BU simply let 12-loss Miami hang around too long. The RedHawks scored a pair in the third period and Parker first emptied his crease with a full 3 1/2 minutes remaining.
It paid off with 59.5 seconds left when Zach Cohen (no relation to Colby) potted a left-of-the-crease backhand after a scramble in front of the net. With 17.4 seconds remaining, Nick Bonino buried a one-time slapper from the right circle to tie it, 3-3.
Sorry, but this just doesn't happen. Especially in a national championship game. It was the college hockey equivalent of the Red Sox trailing the Yankees, three games to none, in the American League Championship Series, then winning four straight.
Someday these young men will take their places as stockbrokers, teachers, parents, and hockey coaches. Many of them will skate professionally and a couple no doubt will play "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire" in the National Hockey League.
But late last night they were just a bunch of college kids hugging and sliding along the Verizon Center ice, wearing "Burn the Boats" T-shirts under their white jerseys. This afternoon they'll carry the hardware back to Commonwealth Avenue and for the rest of their lives they'll remember the Easter weekend when they became NCAA champions in the city of cherry blossoms. They'll remember the night they forced overtime with a pair of goals in a 42-second span in the final minute of regulation.
BU's seniors finish with a career record of 100-43-21, including three Beanpots and two Hockey East tournament championships. They went unbeaten in their last 19 games played away from Agganis Arena. Parker, who came to BU via Somerville and Catholic Memorial, now has three national championships and an NCAA-record 30 tournament victories.
Burn the Boats? It was first uttered by Spanish explorer Hernando Cortez, who ordered his own fleet torched after coming ashore in what is now Mexico in 1519. Cortez wanted 100 percent commitment. No option to retreat.
"We decided that was going to be the theme," said Parker. "We wanted that level of commitment."
He got it from his 2008-2009 Terriers. Winning its first NCAA crown since 1995, Boston University went 21-1-3 after Jan. 15, including a pair of one-goal victories in the regional final and national semifinal.
Many felt BU had already beaten the best teams in the country by getting past New Hampshire (2-1) in the Northeast Regional final, then scoring two goals in the last seven minutes to beat Vermont (5-4) in the Frozen Four semifinals Thursday night. Miami had never played for a championship in any sport.
But it looked like it was all over when the Terriers trailed, 3-1, with a minute to play.
It was so bad that the BU mascot took off his costume.
The BU skaters never quit and Zach Cohen's goal with 59.5 seconds left gave them hope.
"Nobody's ever seen anything like it," said Hockey East commissioner Joe Bertagna. "When BU scored that second goal, all of a sudden they had the jump."
It's hard to imagine what was said in the Miami locker room after losing a two-goal lead in the final minute of the national championship game. Still, the RedHawks came out strong in overtime and would have won if not for a couple of stellar saves by BU freshman Kieran Millan.
Then Colby Cohen struck. His booming shot bounced off the leg of Miami defenseman Kevin Roeder and past the left side of goalie Cody Reichard.
That was it. Boston University's hockey team was No. 1 in the land.
Time to burn the boats on the banks of the Charles.
Dan Shaughnessy is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at dshaughnessy@globe.com. 
