ST. LOUIS — All week, Western Michigan coach Pat Ferschweiler has told anyone who would listen that his team was the underdog at the Frozen Four.
Well, now he can tell people that his Broncos are national champions.
Western Michigan played a fast, physical brand of hockey from the opening faceoff, jumped out to an early lead and closed out a close game late to capture the program’s first national title 6-2 over Boston University on Saturday at Enterprise Center.
The Broncos are the 24th team all-time to win a Division I men’s national championship and the sixth first-time champion in the last 12 years.
It took almost no time for the Broncos to grab the lead, in fact scoring on their first shot. Iiro Hakkarainen threw a puck toward the net that Wyatt Schingoethe redirected over Mikhail Yegorov’s shoulder for a 1-0 lead at 1:38.
Western Michigan kept the pressure but couldn’t extend the lead and at 7:12, Boston University found the equalizer.
Devin Kaplan drove the net, creating a chaotic situation in front of goaltender Hampton Slukynsky and Cole Eiserman, known more for his quick release, kept banging at the loose puck until it went in.
The Broncos regained the lead at 15:01 of the first when Cole Crusberg-Roseen fired a hard wrister from the right point through traffic, handing Western back the lead at 2-1.
The period ended with Western Michigan holding a slight 9-8 lead in shots on goal.
In the second, the Broncos extended the lead on a center-ice faceoff play. After making a play at the blue line, Tristan Lemyre, who dressed as the extra skater on Saturday, drove the net and fed Ty Henricks, who fired a shot high over Yegorov.
Boston University had a response to pull the Terriers within a goal. When Brian Kramer was whistled for holding, the Terriers scored 15 seconds into the power play as captain Shane Lachance poked a rebound through Slukynsky’s legs as the netminder fell at 10:42.
Western Michigan challenged unsuccessfully for goaltender interference, thus losing its timeout.
The Terriers had the equalizer on the stick of their best goal scorer — Eiserman — at 5:05 of the third but Slukynsky’s anticipation robbed the BU rookie.
And just about two minutes later at 7:16, Owen Michaels — the double-overtime hero on Thursday in a win that propelled the Broncos to the finals — delivered the dagger, a rip to the far side while skating 2-on-1.
With 8:04 remaining, it appeared Boston University had scored to get within a goal but the referee ruled he lost sight of the puck, something confirmed on an unsuccessful BU challenge.
Hakkarainen scored late and Michaels added an empty-net goal to seal the victory.
The win was the sixth for a member of the NCHC, which has won six titles since 2016.
