My first college hockey memory involved sitting in the stands for a game between Boston College and Boston University. It was 1996, and BU was a defending national champion with a roster stocked with guys easily identifiable to a 10-year old kid from Malden. BC had a new, young head coach in Jerry York, who, like Jack Parker, grew up in the area and returned home to coach his alma mater, but even the most upstart, plucky team would have had issues facing off against that Terriers team.
I was a BC fan to my core after my dad purchased football season tickets during the Tom Coughlin era, and scoring tickets to a BC-BU game because his friend had a commitment and couldn't use his seats at Walter Brown felt like a golden ticket to the Wonka factory.