Isles Prospect Report: College Hockey Playoff Preview

The end of the 2018-19 NCAA season is just around the corner. With the regular season over, the conference playoffs are in full swing this weekend, leading up to the national tournament from March 29-April 13.
Eight of the New York Islanders nine NCAA prospects qualified for the playoffs, but only six are left competing in their respective conference playoffs this weekend. The conference playoffs will open up with a best-of-three quarterfinal series to determine which teams advance for the respective conference championships the following weekend.

HOCKEY EAST

Providence (2) vs Boston College (7):
Among the Hockey East conference, three prospects will be competing in the postseason. Oliver Wahlstrom of Boston College (11-20-3, 10-11-3 Hockey East) will clash head-to-head against defenseman Benjamin Mirageas of No. 7-ranked Providence College (21-9-6, 14-7-3 Hockey East).
The two programs meet for the second week in a row and fourth time this season. As far as conference seeding, Providence is a two seed, while BC is a seven seed. Boston College leads the season series 2-1-0.
Through 31 games this season, Wahlstrom, the Isles 2018 first-round pick (11th overall), has 16 points (7G, 9A) in his freshman season. For Providence, Mirageas, the Isles 2017 third-round pick (77th overall) has 11 points (2G, 9A) through his 36 appearances in his sophomore season.
Providence vs Boston College Schedule (best of three):
Fri. March 15 Boston College at Providence 7 p.m.
Sat. March 16 Boston College at Providence 7 p.m.
*Sun. March 17 Boston College at Providence 5 p.m.

Boston University (5) at UMass Lowell (4):
Sophomore forward Logan Cockerill and the Boston University Terriers (14-16-4, 12-9-3 Hockey East) begin their conference title defense against No. 18-ranked University of Massachusetts Lowell (18-11-5, 12-7-5 Hockey East). The Terriers received the fifth seed in the conference while UMass Lowell is fourth. The teams split their regular season series with Lowell winning 5-3 on Dec. 7, while BU won the rematch 5-2 on Dec. 8.
Cockerill recorded nine points (4G, 5A) over his 33 games played this season.
Boston University at UMass Lowell Schedule (best of three):
Fri. March 15 Boston College at Providence 7 p.m.
Sat. March 16 Boston College at Providence 7 p.m.
*Sun. March 17 Boston College at Providence 5 p.m.

BIG 10 CONFERENCE:

Notre Dame (2) vs Minnesota (3):
In the Big Ten conference, Jacob Pivonka and the No. 16-ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish (20-13-3, 11-11-2-2 B1G) will face the Minnesota Golden Gophers (18-15-4, 11-10-3-0 B1G) in a single-elimation semifinal.
Notre Dame swept their best-of-three series 2-0 against Christian Krygier and Michigan State last weekend, while Minnesota swept Nick Pastujov and Michigan 2-0.
Notre Dame enters the semifinals as a two seed, while Minnesota is a three seed. Minnesota leads the season series 3-1-0, while Pivonka recorded one point (one assist) in four games against the Gophers this season. In 36 games this season, the freshman center has 10 points (2G, 8A).
Notre Dame vs Minnesota Schedule (single elimination):
Sat. March 16 Notre Dame vs Minnesota 7 p.m. (B1G TEN Network)

Cornell (2) vs Union (7)
Defenseman Andong Song and the No. 10-ranked Cornell Big Red (17-18-4, 13-5-4 ECAC) take on Union for the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) tournament. Second-seeded Cornell leads the season series 2-0 over seventh-seeded Union. Song has dressed in one game this season.
Cornell vs Union Schedule (best-of-three):
Fri. March 15 Cornell vs Union 7 p.m.
Sat. March 16 Cornell vs Union 7 p.m.
Sun. March 17 Cornell vs Union 4 p.m.

North Dakota (5) at Denver (4)
In the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC), Collin Adams of the No. 19 North Dakota Fighting Hawks (18-15-2, 12-11-1-0 NCHC) drew a matchup against No. 8-ranked University of Denver (19-10-5, 11-10-3-3 NCHC). North Dakota was seeded fifth and Denver was seeded fourth. North Dakota enters the series coming off of a three-game winning streak with a win over Colorado College and sweeping University of Nebraska-Omaha. Denver leads the season series 2-1-1.
Adams, a sophomore left winger, has one goal this season against the Pioneers and has posted seven points (2G, 5A) through his 30 games played this season.
North Dakota at Denver Schedule (best-of-three):
Fri. March 15 North Dakota at Denver 9 p.m. et
Sat. March 16 North Dakota at Denver 9 p.m. et
Sun. March 17 North Dakota at Denver 8 p.m. et