Western Michigan is your 2025 NCAA Division I hockey national champion!

The USCHO crew breaks down Saturday's national championship game, a 6-2 victory for Western Michigan over Boston University to give the Broncos their first national championship.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
We have an ashbout champion. It's Western Michigan University a
sixteen win over PU at the Frozen Four Live from
the Frozen Four on us ECHL. I know Trumpster with
Jim Connery, UH Robert Morris University head coach Derek Schully
and St. Lawrence University head coach Brent Prackey, both of

(00:23):
them coincidentally Western Michigan alums, who are very happy.

Speaker 2 (00:27):
Here were the happier people. I have a state of
Missouri right now. Let's start out about.

Speaker 1 (00:32):
The game play out of each team.

Speaker 3 (00:34):
How did these two teams carry out what they intended
to do?

Speaker 4 (00:37):
I thought we talked about an NHL style game, and
I think that they played in the Western. Western got
bodies in traffic to the net, a big first goal,
Everything happened, and they just kept extending. They played long,
they put Putson the one time they turned the puck over.
We had a big Chancellor three too, Westernton backdellon spy

(00:57):
May four two ball game.

Speaker 5 (00:59):
Frank, did you feel that Boston University was unable to
do what they wanted to do?

Speaker 1 (01:05):
Was Western slowing them down?

Speaker 5 (01:07):
Doing things that it looked like b You had a
hard time getting through that note neutral zone.

Speaker 4 (01:11):
Yeah, at the end of the day, they both played
their identity.

Speaker 6 (01:14):
BU has been out there and Telor you know, they're
still they're gonna make plays. They're not going to vary
from that. The Western did a phenomenal job a stick
position taking away some time and space. Now you're gonna
give up chances. They did, but they weathered the storm.
They got to bend but not break, and they were unbelievable.
But if there's stick position to jam things up, and
Bu stuck to who they wanted to be and make
the plays and try to make that extra passive times.

(01:35):
And Western just did a great job defensively.

Speaker 3 (01:38):
It wasn't fancy goals that weren't for Bu like Racy
ones Ierman and my Chance both both pushing back the.

Speaker 2 (01:46):
Terrier stilled in the game.

Speaker 6 (01:47):
There was three two.

Speaker 2 (01:48):
At the end of two.

Speaker 7 (01:49):
Yeah, I mean they had their chances, a couple of
review goals and in my opinion, kind of wanted either
worry about they counted next thing and all they want
to give to their game. And I really like the
fact I said to got ware of watching there was
a whistle at five oh two. I really want for
a five minute. I want the media timeout to stand
as long as possible when you're protecting the league.

Speaker 4 (02:10):
They got the next call.

Speaker 7 (02:12):
They never got to the media timeout because they just
kept scoring and shut them down. No minion time out
in the last five minutes. Again, big deal for Western
because nobody on on both teams, because nobody on timeout,
the team had their time out.

Speaker 5 (02:24):
It felt like the save that was made, you've referenced
it Schools on Eisman, that's same. And then exactly two
minutes later to come down Owen Michaels. He scores the
big game winner res and I mean not game winner,
but kind of the game the goal that put this
game away.

Speaker 6 (02:44):
Yeah, And as a coach, I have a firm believer
momentum I think most coaches are. You lose more in them,
you gotta find a way to get it back.

Speaker 7 (02:50):
That's the momentum change or that type of a save.

Speaker 4 (02:52):
Yeah, it gives you an opportunity, the confidence on the bench,
or that type of a save, Like they get that opportunity.
We got a guy between the pipes. We know he's
gonna make that, and then you go the other way.

Speaker 1 (03:01):
The thing I thought was unbela the.

Speaker 6 (03:03):
Western they never got in the position where they looked
anxious or nervous, especially down when it was a two
goal lead, and you get in this moment of the
biggest game of your season, that's where you can start
to squeeze the stick, you start to force some players
your panel with the Parking miss Hamlet, they were just.

Speaker 4 (03:17):
True to who they were the entire game. It was awesome.
There was an ut controversy.

Speaker 3 (03:20):
It could have become four to three goals raved off
on the ice after review and was still waved off.
What's your take on what we saw there?

Speaker 4 (03:28):
We were worried about that continuation that a big thrown
on this continuation they hit. They said, we saw a
couple of guys down there. They said their strip pushed it.
So it wasn't a continuation fire, so obviously was a
Western one. You liked it, hey, I like all.

Speaker 5 (03:45):
I thought that if there was anything you had, maybe
the p textl of the referee had lost sight of
the pop. He could blow it dead for that. Even
if he didn't blow the whistle, you can make that
call that it was.

Speaker 1 (03:55):
It was.

Speaker 7 (03:56):
That was the decision of the referee.

Speaker 3 (03:57):
I didn't disagree with that.

Speaker 5 (03:59):
One did change the momentum of the game. Maybe a little,
but I really thought think that whatever the call was
on the ice was the one you had to go with.

Speaker 3 (04:07):
Well, we're gonna wrap it up here from the Frozen
Core us Echo Live at the Frozen Floor.

Speaker 2 (04:14):
I want to thank our colleague and guests both Derek Stooley,
Robert Morris, head coach and Western alum, and also Saint
Lawrence has spret Rerecky.

Speaker 3 (04:25):
It's been a pleasure to be working with you guys
this weekend, and also my season one colleague Jim Connelly,
I met Truster and this has been us eh O
Live at the Prosen Floor. Find more coverage at us
echo dot com.