MILWAUKEE - They were different teams, and it was a different year.
But Michigan's 4-0 upset of Boston University last season will be very relevant when the two teams meet in the NCAA semifinals again tonight. The puck drops at 7:30, and the game will be televised on ESPN2.
"It's on our mind that we got beat 4-0," Boston goalie Michel Larocque said. "Obviously we want to prove that we're a better team than that."
And the Terriers wouldn't mind a little revenge.
"We definitely owe them at least a good game," Boston center Chris Drury said.
Last year, Boston was favored to repeat as national champion until Michigan knocked the Terriers from their throne. Now, the roles are reversed, as Michigan tries to become the first team to repeat as champion since Boston won back-to-back titles in 1971 and '72.
The Terriers have played up their role as underdogs all week.
"We'll have our hands full playing Michigan," Boston coach Jack Parker said. "They are the team to beat. Watching Michigan play Minnesota was like a firestorm flashback for our team."
Larocque said: "We need to keep it really close and hopefully it will be a squeaker on our side."
And Drury said all the pressure is on Michigan.
But the Wolverines don't buy it.
"They might say they're the underdogs, but I think there's a lot of confidence over in that lockerroom," Michigan defenseman Harold Schock said. "They're going to be as good as any team we've faced all year. I really don't buy that underdog thing."
Brendan Morrison said that while Parker's complimentary remarks are nice, the Wolverines aren't going to fall into the trap.
Parker is "the Lou Holtz of hockey, trying to tell us how good we are," Morrison said.
This Boston team will look different than the high-octane offensive team the Wolverines blanked last year.
The Terriers have a 60-point scorer in Hobey Baker finalist Drury (37 goals, 23 assists), but have switched to a philosophy of defense this season.
"Last year we were the top scoring team in the country. We learned quick that's not the way you win championships," Larocque said.
Larocque has taken over the starting duties in goal from Tom Noble, who was the starting goalie on Boston's 1994-95 championship team.
The sophomore netminder is enjoying a six-game win streak, with a paltry 1.61 goals-against average and .935 save percentage in those games. He was named Most Valuable Player of the Hockey East tournament after giving up four goals in two games and stopping 47 shots.
"BU claims they're a much better defensive team at this point and a different kind of a team then they were last year," Michigan coach Red Berenson said. "They feel they're a more solid team this year even if they're not as experienced.
"This whole thing will come down to goalkeeping, special teams, and maybe a little bit of luck."
Although the Wolverines won last year's contest convincingly and haven't looked back since, they aren't taking anything lightly.
"Last year we were the top scoring team in the country. We learned quick that's not the way you win championships," Larocque said.
Larocque has taken over the starting duties in goal from Tom Noble, who was the starting goalie on Boston's 1994-95 championship team.
The sophomore netminder is enjoying a six-game win streak, with a paltry 1.61 goals-against average and .935 save percentage in those games. He was named Most Valuable Player of the Hockey East tournament after giving up four goals in two games and stopping 47 shots.
"BU claims they're a much better defensive team at this point and a different kind of a team then they were last year," Michigan coach Red Berenson said. "They feel they're a more solid team this year even if they're not as experienced.
"This whole thing will come down to goalkeeping, special teams, and maybe a little bit of luck."
Although the Wolverines won last year's contest convincingly and haven't looked back since, they aren't taking anything lightly.
"Last year we played one of the best games we've ever played against Boston University, and that's what it's going to take again this year," Jason Botterill said.
Botterill, who was named the most outstanding player of last weekend's NCAA West Regional, has been Michigan's hottest scorer recently. He scored twice and had two assists on Michigan's first four goals Sunday.
The other semifinal tomorrow pairs North Dakota against the surprise team of this year's tournament, Colorado College, in a 1 p.m. faceoff.
The Tigers were a No. 5 seed in the East Regional, and advanced to the semifinals after upsetting New Hampshire and Clarkson.
As of yesterday afternoon, approximately 300 tickets were still available for today's games and Saturday's championship game. For information, call (414) 227-0893 between 11 a.m. and 7 p.m.
Tickets are $75 for all three games, $30 for today's games and $35 for Saturday's championship.
FILE PHOTO
Michigan netminder Marty Turco was phenomenal in last year's semifinal win over the Terriers. Turco stopped Boston University's top-ranked offense on the way to a 4-0 shutout. Bubba Berenzweig and the rest of the Wolverines' defense was equally spectacular, limiting the offensive wizards to just 17 shots on goal.