Dave Flint is not worried about having to inspire his Northeastern women’s hockey team for Tuesday’s Beanpot final against Boston College at Walter Brown Arena.
The Huskies have plenty to play for, with the opportunity to knock off the top-ranked team in the nation, end the Eagles’ 28-game win streak, and take hold of the city’s bragging rights for the next year.
“I think the kids are aware of it,’’ said Flint of BC’s win streak. “I think the thing they look at more is the No. 1 team in the country, and also the fact that it’s the Beanpot championship. I don’t think I’ll have to do too much motivating to get them going for this.’’
The 38th women’s Beanpot championship pits the nation’s two hottest teams, with fifth-ranked Northeastern riding a winning streak of its own. The Huskies (24-4-1, 18-2-0 Hockey East), who play Providence Saturday, have won 13 straight games, their last loss a 6-1 drubbing at the hands of BC (28-0-0, 19-0-0) in late November.
“One thing I like is we’re finding ways to win games,’’ said Flint. “I felt we didn’t play a great game on Tuesday against BU [in the first round] but we grinded it out and found a way to win [3-2].
“And that’s the most important thing — you’re not going to be good every night, and even when things aren’t going well, how do you respond? I think that’s one reason we’ve had the success.
“Also, we’re getting scoring from a bunch of different players. Goaltending’s been pretty solid. And all of those things combined and you’re on a 13-game winning streak.’’
Boston College, which travels to Connecticut Saturday, is paced by senior forward Alex Carpenter, the nation’s second-leading scorer, and is in the midst of its second 28-game winning streak in as many seasons.
“I think we’ve learned from last year,’’ said BC coach Katie Crowley. “[The streak] is not the most important thing, where last year that was a big thing for us. Now we know what we want in the end and that’s the ultimate goal for all of our players and staff.
“Obviously you like winning and it’s great, but we just continue to try to make sure we learn from every game and learn to get better so that we’re playing our best at the end of the season.’’
For those reasons, the Eagles won’t be taking anything for granted, despite winning both previous matchups against NU this season by a combined score of 10-3.
“They’re a very good team,’’ said Crowley. “They’ve had a great year so far and especially their second half. They have a real good first line, a potent first line, and they have a team that works extremely hard.’’
Northeastern’s first line includes senior forward Kendall Coyne (66 points), who holds a slim lead over Carpenter (63 points) for the nation’s points lead. The two were teammates for Team USA at the 2014 Olympics in Sochi and are also Hockey East’s top two career scoring leaders (Coyne 156 points, Carpenter 148).
“You can’t say enough about either one of them,’’ said Crowley. “They’re both good players who I think have been great for their teams. But ultimately it’s a team game and that’s what’s going to end up being a bigger factor.’’
“You can’t help but kind of look at those two; they’re certainly both great players. It will make for an even more exciting game.’’
Suiting up
Chuck van Kula has been on the BC bench for plenty of men’s hockey games. But never with the role he had Monday night.
Normally the team’s student manager, the junior dressed as the backup goalie during the Eagles’ 3-2 win over Harvard in the first round of the Beanpot.
Injuries to backups Alex Joyce, Ian Milosz, and Chris Birdsall left BC in a bind, with starter Thatcher Demko as the lone healthy goalie. So coach Jerry York turned to van Kula, who played four years between the pipes for Saint Joseph’s Prep in Philadelphia.
“I’ve been on the bench for our games before, fulfilling duties I have as a manager with the club, but never did I think I would be on the bench in that capacity,’’ said van Kula. “Let alone in the first round of the Beanpot.
“Obviously it was a really, really cool experience, and anything I can do to help the team is what’s important to me. But it’s definitely pretty cool wearing an official Boston College jersey with your name and number on it.’’
For all the beans
The fourth-ranked Eagles (18-4-4, 10-1-4 Hockey East) will meet ninth-ranked BU (15-7-4, 8-4-3) in the men’s Beanpot final Monday night for the 22d time, with the Terriers holding a 12-9 edge. The teams last met in the championship in 2012 (BC, 3-2 in OT). Overall, BU has won 30 Beanpots and BC 19. Seventh-ranked Harvard (12-5-3, 8-3-3 ECAC) meets Northeastern (9-13-4, 4-8-3) in the consolation game . . . BC first will play New Hampshire (9-13-4, 3-7-4) Friday night and will honor York for his 1,000th career victory in a pregame ceremony, while BU travels to UMass.
Eric Russo can be reached at eric.russo@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @erusso22.
