Christmas is about giving and spending time with your family. It is also about the Dodge Holiday Classic for the Bowling Green hockey team.
Just two days after Christmas the Falcons will travel to Minneapolis, Minn. to partake in this event.
“We have a two and a half week break,” said head coach Scott Paluch. “We don’t play again until we go to the Minnesota Christmas Tournament, which is in the elite, elite field right now.”
They will take on Paluch’s former team in Boston College on Dec. 27 and then follow up with either Minnesota or Yale Dec. 28. “There will be two teams ranked in the top 10, with Minnesota and Boston College, and also Yale, who has the opportunity to crack the top 10,” Paluch said. “It’s a great field and we’re excited about the challenge of being in such a big tournament.”
Boston College is currently No. 6 in the Nation in college hockey with a 9-3-3 record.
However, the Falcons hold the upper hand with an inside look at Boston College from Paluch on how they play, their strengths and weaknesses.
“Sometimes the schedule sets up some interesting match-ups in that playing Boston College, where I spent eight years, is going to be a unique game,” Paluch said. “Obviously we know a lot about how they play the game after being there for eight years.”
However, this might not be enough to defeat the 2000-2001 National Champions.
“They’re off to a tremendous start,” Paluch said. “They’re extremely skilled. … They are well coached. They’ve got a great staff and a great hockey tradition there, too, so we’re excited about that match-up.”
Boston College won’t be the Falcons’ only tough opponent at the tournament. The Falcons will play either Minnesota or Yale the second night.
“Both teams are off to a great start,” Paluch said. “Minnesota and Yale will be a great game.”
Yale has a 7-3 record so far this season in their league and a 7-4 overall record, while Minnesota is 9-4-4 overall and ranked No. 8 in the Nation.
“Holiday hockey sometimes gets a little interesting,” Paluch said. “Our biggest focus will be maintaining our physical conditioning so that we can come back Christmas night and give ourselves a day to get ready before he head to Minnesota.”
