You've got to feel sorry for Northeastern men's hockey Coach Don McKinney.

He coaches the Hockey East's last place Huskies (4-21-2 overall, 1-14-2 Hockey East). He has lost his team's MVP from last year and a key defender for the season. And tonight, he faces archrival and the nation's fifth-ranked team, Boston College (22-7, 12-4) at 6 p.m. in the Boston Garden in the opening round of the Beanpot.

There is a cliche that anything can happen in the Beanpot. True or not, the cliche is a source of solace for McKinney, who faces the unsettling prospect of getting blown out by a superior Eagles squad.

"B.C. has an excellent team, but you never know how a team will do in the Beanpot," McKinney said. "Look at us. We haven't been winning, but we're not playing poorly. It's just a matter of when the hell you will win. The Beanpot depends on who's playing well on that given night."

The Hockey East-leading Eagles will come out on the attack with the infamous "HEM" line, named after right wing Steve Heinz (18 goals, 23 assists, 41 points), center David Emma (24-36--60) and left wing Marty McInnis (18-26--44). Emma, a speedy 5'9", 170-lb. senior, captains the squad and anchors the offense.

The Eagles also get significant offensive production from their blueliners. Sophomore defender Ted Crowley (11-17--28) is the team's fourth-leading scorer and Joe Cleary, Jr. (3-14--17) provides some punch from the point. Both defenders have done well to get the puck out of the B.C. zone and up to the wings.

If Northeastern gets by the Eagles defense, the Huskies will still have Scott LeGrand (3.07 goals-against-average, 883 save percentage), a tough sophomore goaltender, to overcome.

The loss of last season's MVP, junior forward Jay Schabel, to an ankle injury will hurt the Huskies' offensive chances. They will rely heavily on Sebastian LePlante (17-15--32), a crafty 5'10", 175-lb. sophomore left wing, and freshman center Mike Taylor (7-20--27) to make runs on LeGrande.

"We've had three 20-goal scorers out for a month this year," McKinney said. "We're not that deep on talent. We don't have enough ability with the rest of the kids. If you take away Heinz and Emma of B.C., or Donato and Vukonich of Harvard, it makes a hell of a difference."

Because of its lack of prolific scorers, Northeastern needs to keep the score low. Returning All-America and Captain Rob Cowie (14-12--26), a burly 6'1", 190-lb. defender and the Huskies' third-leading scorer, may skate double shifts to keep out a B.C. barrage. Cowie is flanked by senior Will Averill (4-12--16), a 6'1", 190-lb. offensive defender who is known to rush the puck.

Junior Tommy Cole (5.19, .848) has given Northeastern steady goaltending. But McKinney said he will be relying on the defense to keep his team in the game.

"We just have to work on keeping the goals against down," he said. "If it's 2-1, 3-2, 4-3, we have as good a chance as they do. But if there are 12-13 goals scored. I don't think we'll be the winner."