February brings with it two things without fail.

The first is Valentine’s Day and I’m not going to use this forum to decry the heinous holiday represented by its blood red color, which is obviously the work of the Lord of the Underworld himself.

The second is a tradition that has been a staple of Boston winters for a half century: The Beanpot.

Doesn’t it seem to come just at the right time for the Icedogs? Traditionally slow starters, Coach Parker usually has the scarlet and white flying high and ready to clip the wings of the Eagles come the first two Mondays in February.

‘If this tournament was held in December, we’d be ‘also rans,” said BU Coach Jack Parker last night after BU renewed its olde-tyme rivalry with a gutsy 2-1 victory over the Crimson of Harvard University. ‘I screw up every year but I always seem to have them ready by February.’

With the Terriers’ track record, it’s no wonder why some choose to buck tradition and dub the winter classic ‘The BU Invitational.’ Twenty-Four ‘Pots in 50 tries will breed that sort of cockiness.

While in recent years, BU dominance and an All-Comm. Ave. final have taken center stage, there was a time when the Terriers and the Eagles let the other guys play too.

In the ’50s and early ’60s, BC-Harvard was the hot ticket, with the Terriers bringing home just one Beanpot in the tournament’s first 13 years.

In the late ’60s and ’70s, BU replaced BC as the dominant team on Comm. Ave., battling then-ECAC rival Harvard for the rights to be called Boston’s best team.

In the ’80s Northeastern found fleeting glory.

In the ’90s and up until today, the Harvard student section has been empty except for their very well-dressed band, while Northeastern brings cheerleaders. I mean, cheerleaders at a hockey game? Come on, that’s almost as inexplicable as Shaq not being recognized for his work in Kazaam. He was a rapping genie. Simply genius.

But with 24 victories to speak of, BU is far and away the most decorated team in Beanpot history, unless you count BC’s 20 consolation game victories. You know, nothing makes me happier than Beanpot ineptitude in Chestnut Hill.

Since 24 Beanpot victories are a lot to sort through, I’ve taken the liberty of doing it for you and presenting you with my Top 5 BU Beanpot victories to show you that in the land before the Fleet, BU-BC wasn’t always everything.

5. 1992 – After beating Northeastern in the first round 5-4 despite blowing a 3-0 lead, Parker and a young team consisting of nine freshmen defeated Harvard in the Championship game 5-2. With the win, Parker claimed two Beanpot records outright: most wins (27) and most Championships (9).

4. 1998 – They don’t call him Nick ‘Beanpot’ Gillis for nothing. Despite giving up the game-tying goal late in the third period, the Terriers converted on a rare overtime power-play opportunity in the 1998 final against Harvard. Gillis, a freshman, took a pass from defenseman Tom Poti and tipped it home, giving the Terriers a dramatic 2-1 overtime win.

3. 2002 – For all the freshmen reading this, you came to campus one year too late. In the Beanpot’s 50th installment, the Terriers defeated the Eagles in the first round 5-3, giving BU yet another invitation to the late match-up the following Monday to take on the Huskies of Northeastern. BU dominated the early play taking a 2-0 lead deep into the second period, but three Husky goals followed, including a slap shot from the blue line that trickled through the pads of Sean Fields at 19:50 of the second period. Mike Pandolfo tied the game early in the third and the Fleet Center crowd would have to wait for Justin ‘Time’ Maiser to flip a forehand over the stick of Northeastern goalie Keni Gibson with just 1:12 left on the clock, giving BU a 4-3 lead. An empty netter made the final 5-3.

2. 1966 – BU came back from a 3-0 deficit in the opening round of the 1966 Beanpot to defeat BC 6-4. BU goaltender Jack Ferreira played the entire game despite laying unconscious on the Boston Garden ice after taking a slap shot to the helmet in the second period. Ferreira stood his ground allowing only one goal following the incident. The Terriers then went on to dismantle the Crimson 9-2 in the Championship game. The 1966 Beanpot marked only BU’s second win in the Tournament’s 14 year existence, but it also marked the beginning of Terrier dominance. BU went on to capture seven of the next eight Beanpot titles. The 1966 team can also claim the Trifecta: Beanpot, ECAC and NCAA Championship in the same season.

1. 1978 – The 1978 Beanpot should clearly illustrate just what the Beanpot really means to the city of Boston. The Terriers defeated BC in the first round 12-5 in front of 3,500 fans. Why so few you ask? These were the brave souls who stayed through both games only to find themselves snowed inside the Boston Garden. Some 200 people were left stranded in the Garden by night’s end, leaving them to feed off of leftover food from the concession stands. A majority of those fans were forced to stay out the week at the Garden, sleeping in the skyboxes, showering in the locker rooms and wearing concession vendor uniforms as a clean change of clothing. The championship, played 23 days later, resulted in a 7-1 BU win over Harvard.

Next Monday, the current rivals will drop the puck in the late game at the FleetCenter, hoping to create some Beanpot memories to kick off the next half-century of Beanpot Hockey.