Michigan at Boston College: Pregame Notes and Line Combinations

CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. -- For the first time since 1990 and just the third time ever, Michigan treks to 16th-ranked Boston College for a Saturday night contest at Kelley Rink. Faceoff is set for 7 p.m. in the final game of the first semester for both sides.

Head coaches Jerry York (BC) and Red Berenson (Michigan) bring their 1,767 combined wins into the game. Michigan owns a 12-6 in the all-time series between the two teams, which have combined for 14 national championships.

The Wolverines opened the season as the No. 8 team in the country but dropped out after winning just two of seven games over five weeks, including four games against Hockey East foes. U-M split a home weekend with New Hampshire Oct. 17-18 before winning at UMass Lowell and falling at Boston University the following week.

BC got back on track and jumped above .500 with a three-point effort over New Hampshire last weekend, including a 4-2 win at home seven days ago. Sophomore Austin Cangelosi posted his first multi-point contests of the season against the Wildcats, including a goal and two assists in the victory.

In addition to an excellent coaching class, the game also features the top two 2015 NHL Draft-eligible defensemen in BC's Noah Hanifin and Michigan's Zach Werenski.

Werenski leads all Wolverine blueliners with nine assists and 12 points in 14 games, while classmate and Detroit prospect Dylan Larkin's 13 helpers and 15 points lead all Big Ten rookies.

Five players from each of the two teams, including Hanifin and Werenski, were selected to the preliminary 2015 U.S. National Junior Team which holds its training camp this upcoming week at BU's Walter Brown Arena.

Here are tonight's lines:

WOLVERINES (8-6-0, 2-1-0 B1G)

Tyler Motte - Andrew Copp - Tony Calderone
Alex Kile - Dylan Larkin - Zach Hyman
Max Shuart - JT Compher - Boo Nieves
Dexter Dancs - Travis Lynch - Justin Selman

Michael Downing - Brennan Serville
Zach Werenski - Kevin Lohan
Cutler Martin - Nolan De Jong

Zach Nagelvoort
Steve Racine

EAGLES (8-7-1, 4-4-1 Hockey East)

Zach Sanford - Ryan Fitzgerald - Austin Cangelosi
Destry Straight - Adam Gilmour - Alex Tuch
Quinn Smith - Michael Sit - Chris Calnan
Cam Spiro - Matthew Gaudreau - Brendan Silk

Teddy Doherty - Michael Matheson
Noah Hanifin - Ian McCoshen
Scott Savage - Danny Linell

Thatcher Demko
Brad Barone
Alex Joyce