SAINT PAUL, Minn. — The Eagles were everywhere. 

They flocked the net front. They swarmed the offensive zone. They soared past defenseman left and right. The No. 1 seed Boston College hockey team (34-5-1 overall) ultimately showed why it’s the top team in college hockey Thursday night, outpacing Michigan (23-15-3) 4-0 in the Frozen Four semifinal. 

The win lifted the Eagles to their first NCAA Championship appearance since 2012. It simultaneously handed the Wolverines a semifinal loss that ended their season — their third such loss in as many years. 

“We lost to a really good Boston College team,” Michigan coach Brandon Naurato said. “I feel like we were good, but we weren’t great. What we did in the third is probably more of what we are. They have four elite, elite, elite players.” 

And it didn’t take long for these elite Eagles to dig in their talons. 

Boston College was dominant from the start, finding the back of the net less than two minutes into the contest. The Eagles are lethal off the rush, and they made that painfully evident early on. Forward Will Smith cashed in on a 2-on-1 opportunity to secure the 1-0 lead. 

The goal simultaneously highlighted Michigan’s continuous struggles on defense. Dangerous turnovers at the net front, unmarked Eagles around the circle and a series of penalties characterized the defensive troubles for the Wolverines as they struggled to keep pace with Boston College’s offensive firepower.  

“They have high-end skill and they’re good off the rush,” sophomore forward T.J. Hughes said. “We didn’t shut that down as much as we wanted to, and that’s what was the game-breaker.” 

The second period followed much of the same formula as the first – albeit with more scoring. The Eagles put the Wolverines on their heels as soon as the period began, generating a solid scoring opportunity in transition. Graduate goaltender Jake Barczewski stonewalled Boston College at the time, but he couldn’t hold them off for much longer. 

Or more specifically, Michigan couldn’t contain Smith for much longer. 

Buzzing around the net, Smith found the back of the net yet again with a 4-on-4 tally. He utilized his speed to blow past the Wolverine trailing behind him. He then banked the puck off junior defenseman Ethan Edwards’ skates to extend the lead to two goals.  

The Eagles capitalized on their offensive opportunities, but that doesn’t mean that Michigan was short of chances of its own. Indeed, it outshot Boston College by a 32-22 margin by the game’s end. Nevertheless, turnovers and defensive miscues around the net hurt the Wolverines where it mattered most. 

Eagles forward Cutter Gauthier’s breakaway goal serves as a prime example. Seconds after Smith put the Eagles up by two, Michigan coughed up the puck in the offensive zone. Gauthier pounced on the loose puck and fired it five-hole to put Boston College up 3-0. 

Barczewski could only look up at the scoreboard and shake his head in disbelief. 

“This is not an excuse or a disclaimer,” Naurato said, “but the turning point in that game is when one of their players trips over Dylan Duke’s skate. We go 4-on-4 and they score two quick goals after that. Now it’s 3-0.”  

The moment just about summed up the game for Michigan, as nothing went its way. The turnover-turned-goal highlighted the 200-foot woes all in one sequence.  

And the third period didn’t offer any solace, either. The Wolverines made a formidable push in the final frame in an attempt to claw back into the game. However, they relinquished a wraparound goal and squandered a power-play opportunity to render any of those efforts obsolete. 

By failing to contain the wild beast, the Wolverines ultimately walked away with a third-straight Frozen Four loss to their name and an end to their season — all in one fell swoop.