By: Neil Simmons | Follow me on Twitter / X: @NSimmz
This weekend in Bruins college hockey was all about the beans. Five Bruins prospects went head-to-head in the Beanpot championship, the 300th installment of the Battle of Comm Ave between Boston College and Boston University, and the Deanpot prophecy was fulfilled as BC won their first title since 2016.
While the Beanpot took center stage, the undercard delivered as well, with two multipoint weekends elsewhere, and Cole Spicer celebrated returning from a two-month injury absence by scoring a game-winning goal.
James Hagens (C/LW) – Boston College – Hagens started the weekend by lighting the lamp for the 15th time this season on Friday night, BC’s only goal of the game in a 6-1 loss to UVM, and ended it with a pair of assists in their 6-2 romp over BU in the Beanpot title game, where he was named tournament MVP. The Bruins top prospect has been on fire since the calendar turned to 2026, with 5-8-13 in eight games, including five multipoint nights.
Andre Gasseau (C) – Boston College – Gasseau scored two power-play goals on Monday night to help the Eagles capture their 21st Beanpot title and continue his own 2026 hot streak. BC’s co-captain now has 5-6-11 in eight games after returning from injury, and 6-9-15 in 13 games overall. His 1.15 points-per-game pace for the season ranks second on the Eagles behind Hagens, and he has registered a point in all but one game since the duo was grouped with Oscar Hemming on the top line.
Elliott Groenewold (D) – Quinnipiac – Groenewold recorded a point in each game of Quinnipiac’s dominant weekend sweep over Brown and Yale, defeating their Ivy League opponents by a combined score of 17-1. He logged an assist on Friday night and then a goal on Saturday, while pumping up his already nation-leading plus/minus to +37, nine points ahead of second place. The goal, his fifth of the season, marked a new career high for the Vermont native, giving him 5-13-18 in 30 games, while averaging 20:09 of ice time per night.
Will Zellers (RW) – North Dakota – Zellers was a key figure in NoDak’s 4-1 Saturday night win over Minnesota-Duluth, setting up the first goal of the game, and then scoring the eventual game winner to secure the road split. Both of his points came in the third period, within four minutes, and on the power play. The freshman winger is up to 14-9-23 in 27 games, tied for second on the Fighting Hawks in goalscoring, and leads the team in game-winning goals (5) and power play goals (7).
Looking Ahead
Fresh off their Beanpot championship, Hagens, Gasseau, Dean Letourneau, and Kristian Kostadinski have a home-and-home with Merrimack starting in North Andover on Friday, their first meeting with the Warriors this season. It is unclear if Will Moore or Oskar Jellvik will return to the Eagles lineup for the weekend. Moore missed the Beanpot final with an injury sustained last Friday against Vermont, while Jellvik has been out of the lineup since early November.
Jonathan Morello and Boston University will look to rebound with a home-and-home against UNH, starting in New Hampshire on Friday night. Philip Svedeback remains out of the lineup for Providence, as they will host Northeastern for two games in Schneider Arena.
Mason Langenbrunner and Harvard will hit the road to face Brown and Yale for their weekend matchups. As will Ryan Walsh, with Cornell heading to RPI and Colgate, with a chance to leapfrog Quinnipiac atop the ECAC, while the Bobcats are on a bye week.
Will Zellers will welcome Casper Nassen to Grand Forks, as Miami OH journeys up to North Dakota for a weekend series. Fresh off his return, Cole Spicer and Western Michigan will host Arizona State in Kalamazoo as they look to gain ground on North Dakota in the NCHC conference standings. Beckett Hendrickson and Minnesota will head to South Bend for a weekend series with Notre Dame, and a chance to generate some positive momentum against the Fighting Irish.
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