Northeastern, Boston University honored to be part of first Women's Beanpot Championship at TD Garden

BOSTON -- Tuesday night is going to be an extremely special night at TD Garden. For the first time ever, the Garden ice will play host to the Women's Beanpot Championship game. 

The original Boston Garden began hosting the Men's Beanpot in 1954, with the new Garden taking its place in 1996. But the Women's Beanpot was never played on the big stage, and was instead rotated between the four schools: Boston College, Boston University, Northeastern, and Harvard.

On Tuesday, the women will finally get to play a title game in front of the giant crowd at TD Garden. Northeastern will go for its second straight Beanpot crown, while Boston University hopes to win for just the third time in school history.

No matter which way the game goes Tuesday night, both teams are honored to be part of such a historical evening in women's sports.

"It's so exciting. I keep hearing the fan count and it keeps going up and up," said NU goaltender Gwyneth Philips. "It's going to be a lot of fun."

"It's a game that is much bigger than all of ourselves," said NU captain Megan Carter. "It's for all the women who have come before us and all the girls that will come behind us. It's definitely a monumental time and we're just excited to be a part of the first-ever Beanpot [title] game at [TD Garden]."

"It's probably the best thing that could happen. Between our fanbase and BU's fanbase, it's going to get rowdy but I'm excited," said Phillips. "To win at TD would mean that much more, so I know we're hungry for it."

The BU Terriers last won the Beanpot in 2019.

"It definitely feels way bigger," said BU forward Lacey Martin. "This is my first year in the championship game, which is really special. It just adds another ounce of excitement for us. Playing at TD Garden makes a big difference."

"I think we're all just extremely excited. It's a huge accomplishment for us to be at TD Garden," said BU assistant coach Reagan Rust, who was on that 2019 Beanpot-winning team. 

"We used to have to beg for championship hats. Now it's at TD Garden and girls are getting interviewed, so it's great to see how it's progressed over the years," added Rust.

"I grew up going to the Men's Beanpot, BU-BC, big rivalries. It was always the men, and I never got to see the women play," said BU senior Madison Caraci, who grew up in Westminster. "Having this on this stage and being part of it is so special to me because I'm from Massachusetts, and to the rest of the team because we represent Boston as a city. It's so special."

"It means so much to us. It really shows younger girls – I know a ton are coming to the game -- that they can do the same thing the boys have been doing all these years," said Martin. "We get to be the first team to do it and we're all really proud."

The TD Garden added a Women's Beanpot banner to its rafters last week, and on Tuesday night, BU or Northeastern will be the first school to etch its name to it. Players are hoping that fans pack the house and get to share that moment with them. 

"Go to the game!" said Rust. "Everybody I've talked to about playing hockey and watching hockey, they all say watching women's hockey is one of the best things you can do. It's a different game compared to the men. There's a lot of skill and they know how to use each other and find each other in different ways. It's a beautiful sport.

"If that doesn't sell you, I don't know what will," said Rust. "Women's hockey and women's sports in general are growing, so you better jump on board now."

Boston College and Harvard will play in the consolation game at 5 p.m., with the puck scheduled to drop for the NU-BU title bout at 8 p.m. Tickets are still available through Ticketmaster.