BU talks turkey while overseas
Air Dawg, disguised as Aer Lingus Flight 138, departed Logan Airport for Dublin at 9:30 Sunday night, carrying the Boston University hockey team to a new vista that is sure to provide plenty of memories for one of the country’s most storied programs.
BU will compete for the Belpot Trophy in the annual Friendship Four event Friday and Saturday in Belfast, Northern Ireland, alongside UConn, Union and Yale. This is the fourth year of the international event, which fosters economic development, trade, cultural exchange and tourism between sister cities Boston and Belfast. Previous winners were UMass-Lowell (2015), Vermont (2016) and Clarkson (2017).
When the team arrived, it was welcomed by former Terriers Steve Thornton, the Belfast Giants’ director of hockey operations, and Shane Johnson, the squad’s project manager. Both were members of BU’s 1995 NCAA championship team.
First-year BU coach Albie O’Connell, who captained BU in 1999, played two seasons with Johnson.
“I was a sophomore when he was a senior. It will be good to see him,’’ said O’Connell, who later played professionally in the British National League. “I think that it’s pretty all-encompassing. There is an educational piece. A cultural piece. Then, obviously, we get to play in front of good crowds and have a chance to win and, maybe, prepare for the Beanpot. It’s good teambonding, too.’’
BU’s itinerary for the week features tourist stops at the Titanic Museum and a visit to the rope bridge at Carrick-a-Rede.
Senior co-captain Bobo Carpenter of North Reading visited the Republic of Ireland a couple of years ago with his girlfriend, Haley McCormack, who was on a study semester in Galway.
“It was surreal. You saw how green it was and all of the animals (sheep) all over the road. We got to see the Cliffs of Moher. We went over to the Aran Isles. This will be exciting for me, too. I’ll get the chance to see (Northern Ireland) and a different history,’’ said Carpenter, who will have a personal cheering section in attendance at SSE Arena with Haley, her sister, Paige, and her father, Shaun.
“For me, though, at the end of the day it’s two games and anytime you get the opportunity to win a championship and get a couple of wins it’s important. That’s why you come to a place like Boston University,’’ Carpenter added. “So we want to make sure we stay hydrated and do all the little things that you might not normally think about.’’
A veteran presence for the Terriers, the youngest team in college hockey, is Brown transfer Max Willman of Barnstable. The 23-year-old grad student played in the original Friendship Four event in 2015 when his Bears were upended by Lowell.
“I went during my sophomore year and it was a lot of fun. It’s definitely good to go over there and bond with your teammates and share Thanksgiving Day with your team,’’ Willman said.
Based on his earlier experience, Willman will be relied upon to be a virtual scarletand-white tour guide.
“We went to the Bushmills distillery. We got to see how they make all the different whiskys. Definitely the rope bridge. That was something cool. That’s something the boys will remember,’’ Willman said.
BU defenseman and senior co-captain Dante Fabbro played in Europe with Canada’s Under-18 team.
“From everything that I’ve heard, this should be a unique experience,’’ Fabbro said. “I think the overall feel of it and being away with the team and all the new faces we have will help open guys up and help in the long run. At this point in time, all of us have played hockey at a high level and are familiar with travel. So we’re all dialed in to do our best when we get to (Northern) Ireland.’’
Hockey East commissioner Joe Bertagna, an Arlington native who played professional hockey in Italy, said the players will enjoy the event.
“It will be the first time that a lot of them will get a chance to experience the city,” he said. “They’ll have a fun day to explore and just get a real sense of the history of the city. Once they start to practice they’ll see a beautiful 7,000-seat facility and then they’ll have to make the transition into game mode because the Friday night games are league games for all four teams. Then you have the championship feel to the title game. So there is a lot for them to take in.”
Bertagna said the teams and travel parties should enjoy visiting the Titanic Museum, where they will have a pre-tournament dinner. And with “Game of Thrones,” being filmed in the area, that should spark additional interest.
BU assistant athletic director for communications Brian Kelley said he’s received some help in how to deal with the different logistics of an overseas trip.
“I’ve talked to a couple of guys who have done it in the past like (Pete) Souris of UMass-Lowell and (Matt) Houde of Northeastern. It’s learning what past guys have done and we’ll make sure we bring our film crew along,’’ Kelley said. “I guess it’s like running a Beanpot (tournament) overseas.”