Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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ND SPORTS BY DAN MURPHY T here won't be many places in the country this season that will host a longer and steadier stream of college hockey than the Compton Family Ice Arena on Notre Dame's campus. The Irish will host four of the top five col- lege hockey teams in the nation this winter, along with three tournaments, including an NCAA regional round. Last year 's national champions, Hockey East champions and the top two seeds heading into the 2014 NCAA Tournament will all make trips to South Bend in the coming year. Boston College, which finished No. 3 last season, will play a two-game series at Compton to wrap up the regular season during the final weekend of February. The Irish and BC end their regular seasons against one another for the second year in a row in a rivalry that Hockey East has done its best to promote since Notre Dame joined the league last season. UMass-Lowell, which knocked the Irish out of the Hockey East playoffs last year, comes to town Nov. 20 for a weekend series. Defending national champion Union visits as one of four teams in this year's Shillelagh Tourna- ment on Thanksgiving weekend. The Dutchmen play Notre Dame Nov. 28. Minnesota — coached by Irish hockey alum Don Lucia, who is also the fa- ther of Notre Dame's leading returning scorer, Mario — will take part in the Ice Breaker Tournament to open the season in early October. Irish head coach Jeff Jackson has Hockey Team To Host Top Competition This Season Notre Dame will host last year's national champi- ons, the Hockey East champions and the top two seeds heading into the 2014 NCAA Tournament. PHOTO BY JOE RAYMOND