The Beanpot is one of the most storied and exciting traditions in all of New England sports. For two weekends in February, sports fans in the Hub take a break from following the Patriots, Bruins, Celtics and Red Sox to follow their favorite local college hockey teams as they battle for the prestigious Beanpot Championship.
Boston College, Boston University, Northeastern and Harvard are the four colleges that take part in the Beanpot, which is played annually on the first and second Mondays of the month of February. The tournament features a two-round format, with all four teams playing in a semifinal round before playing in either the championship or consolation game.
BU is the winningest program in Beanpot history, amassing an 84-34 all-time record while winning 29 championships. In addition, the Terriers have made 48 appearances in the championship game while scoring a tournament-best 197 goals. Boston University has finished second 19 times, third seven times and fourth only four times in its history.
Boston College, the defending Beanpot champion, has the second most wins in the tournament, compiling a 69-49 record while winning 16 championships. The Eagles have placed second 15 times, third 22 times and finished last six times. BC has appeared in 31 championship games, netting 103 goals, which is the second most in the tournament.
Harvard is 49-69 all-time and Northeastern is a tournament-worst 34-84 overall. The Crimson have 10 Beanpot titles, 15 second-place finishes, 14 third-place finishes and 20 last-place finishes. Meanwhile, the Huskies have just four Beanpot championships and have placed second 10 times, third 16 times and have come in last a grand total of 29 times.
The tournament began in 1952, with the first Beanpot being played at Boston Arena in December. However, the tournament was not played 1953. In 1954 and 1955, the tournament was held in January before being moved to the month of February in 1955, when it has been played every since (with the exception of 1978 due to the Blizzard).
Harvard was the winner of the first ever Beanpot in 1953, emerging with a 7-4 victory over Boston University in the championship game. BC owned the tournament's early days, though, winning eight of the first 13 titles. The Eagles won three straight titles from 1962-63 through 1964-65, but then Boston University began its reign of dominance.
The Terriers rattled off three straight Beanpot titles from the 1965-66 season through the 1967-68 campaign and went on to win seven of 11 titles spanning from 1965 through the 1978-79 season. BU once again dominated the 1990's, winning an impressive nine Beanpots from 1989-1990 through 1999-2000.
In recent years, Boston College has had a resurgence, winning four of the last eight tournaments. The last time a school other than BU or BC won the Beanpot was in the 1992-1993 season, when Harvard defeated Boston University.
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