Boston University coach Jay Pandolfo is the embodiment of the Frozen Four in two capacities.

Pandolfo has guided the Terriers to back-to-back appearances in the Frozen Four in his first two seasons as BU’s head coach. BU (28-9-2) downed RIT and Minnesota in the Sioux Falls Regional and will face perennial power Denver (30-9-3) on Thursday, April 11, in the semifinal opener at the Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, Minn.

Minnesota knocked BU out of last season’s Frozen Four semifinal, so beating the Golden Gophers in Souix Falls was a huge confidence booster. Denver took out UMass and Cornell by scores of 2-1 in the Springfield Regional.

No. 1 ranked and top-seeded Boston College (33-5-1) will engage the Wolverines of Michigan (26-9-3) in the nightcap at 8:30. The final will take place on Saturday, April 13, at 6 p.m.

Pandolfo the coach has a lot of catching up to do to replicate what he did as a Terriers’ forward, prior to embarking on a 14-year NHL career. Pandolfo, a Burlington native, participated in four straight Frozen Fours (1993-96) under legendary coach Jack Parker that included winning the national championship in 1995.

“I’m really excited about the opportunity to get back to the Frozen Four,” said Pandolfo. “It was a great experience for our group last year but disappointing with the result when we ran into a very good Minnesota team.

“But I think this year we have a lot more experience. The guys last year had never been in that situation, but this year the core of our group is back and we know what to expect. So, we are excited for it and looking forward to going out to Minnesota next week.”

The 2024 Frozen Four has been appropriately labelled the “Blue Bloods” championship because of the rich history and winning traditions the four programs bring to the event.

Between them, the four programs have combined to win 28 NCAA Division 1 titles. Michigan and Denver are tied with a record nine titles while BC and BU have five apiece.

BC has won four of its five in this century with its last in 2012 under Jerry York, the winningest coach in NCAA Division 1 history. Denver was the last to take home the title, beating Minnesota State on April 9, 2022 at the TD Garden in Boston. BU was last victorious in 2009 and Michigan in 1998.

All four coaches, Pandolfo, BC’s Greg Brown, Michigan’s Brandon Naurato and Denver’s David Carle, played at their respective programs, a first in the history of the Frozen Four.

“When you see these four schools that are at the Frozen Four it’s pretty impressive,” said Pandolfo. “These are the blue blood programs that have great traditions and history so it is great for the game.”

BC took over the No. 1 spot from BU by sweeping a home and home series and ran the table to the Frozen Four. BC avenged its loss to BU in the Beanpot semifinal by eliminating the Terriers in the Hockey East championship game at the Garden.

BC rolled over Michigan Tech 6-1 in the opener of Providence Regional but needed overtime to dispatch reigning national champion Quinnipiac 5-4 in the final. BC enters the Frozen Four riding a 14-game win streak

“We are excited to have this opportunity and the guys have put a lot in this year and worked very hard,” said Brown. “The best part for the coaching staff is we never got complacent when we started to string some wins together.

“You learn something every time you go to the Frozen Four with the distractions. Each time you learn to tweak your schedule and tighten your schedule to make sure everything gets covered. You have to adapt to be comfortable in that situation and have everything organized and everything ready.”

Five of the 10 finalists for the 2024 Hobey Baker Award will participate in the Frozen Four. They are Macklin Celebrini and Lane Hutson from BU, Cutter Gauthier and Will Smith from BC, and Denver’s Jack Devine.

Gauthier leads the nation with 37 goals, Smith leads the nation with 69 points and Hutson is tops among defensemen with 49 points. But it was Celebrini, 17, who was named the Hockey East Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year and is expected to be the first player taken in the 2024 NHL Draft.

“Macklin in a special player,” said Pandolfo. “We are not where we are today without Macklin Celebrini and he has been a great example for our group on how to play the right way.”

Pandolfo was the runnerup for the 1996 Hobey Baker Award.