The men's path to the Frozen Four begins in earnest with the conference tournament, where six automatic spots will be contested.
The 16-team NCAA field will be announced on March 24 (7 p.m. ET, ESPNU, ESPN+), with regionals running from March 28 to March 31 and Frozen 4 in April. It is scheduled to be held in St. Paul, Minnesota on the 11th and 13th. .
The winners of six conference tournaments – Atlantic, Big Ten, CCHA, ECAC, Hockey East and NCHC – and 10 at-large teams will make up the 16-team field. General teams are determined by PairWise rankings.
Let's take a look at the tournament schedule and results for each conference.
All NCAA men's hockey tournament games, including the Frozen Four and championship game, will be available on ESPN+. Subscribe and watch!
atlantic ocean
RIT won its second consecutive Atlantic regular season title and sixth overall. After the first round of matches between the six lower seeds is completed, the top four seeds will host a best-of-three quarterfinal series. The four quarterfinal winners advance to his best-of-three semifinals, and the winners advance to the single-game finals. All games are on campus.
Quarterfinals, March 8th-10th
(Best of 3 series)
No. 11 Robert Morris vs. No. 1 RIT — Game 1: RIT wins 7-0.Game 2: RIT wins 5-1.
No. 8 Canisius, No. 2 Holy Cross — Game 1: Holy Cross wins 4-3.Game 2: Holy Cross wins 2-1 (2OT)
No. 7 Niagara vs. No. 3 Sacred Heart — Game 1: Niagara wins 6-3.Game 2: Niagara wins 5-1
No. 5 AIC vs. No. 4 Air Force — Game 1: AIC wins 3-1.Game 2: AIC wins 3-2 (OT)
Semi-finals, March 15th-17th
(Best of 3 series)
AIC at Holy Cross — Game 1: Holy Cross wins 5-2.
Niagara vs. RIT — Game 1: RIT wins 4-1.
Final, March 23rd
big ten
Michigan State (22-9-3) earned a bye in the quarterfinals after winning its first Big Ten regular season title. Seeds No. 2 through No. 7 will play a best-of-three quarterfinal series, all at campus venues, before the single-game semifinals and final.
Quarterfinals, March 8th-10th
(Best of 3 series)
No. 7 Ohio State vs. No. 2 Wisconsin — Game 1: Ohio State wins 3-1. Game 2: Wisconsin won 4-2.Game 3: Ohio State wins 3-1.
No. 6 Penn State vs. No. 3 Minnesota — Game 1: Minnesota wins 5-1.Game 2: Minnesota wins 3-2.
No. 5 Notre Dame vs. No. 4 Michigan — Game 1: Michigan wins 5-4.Game 2: University of Michigan wins 4-3.
Semi-finals, March 16th
Ohio State University, 1st place Michigan State University
michigan in minnesota
Final, March 23rd
Cha
Ending the regular season with eight straight wins, Bemidji State won its first regular season title since 2017. The best-of-three quarterfinals will be hosted by the top four seeds, followed by the single-game semifinals and finals, all held on campus. .
Quarterfinals, March 8th-10th
(Best of 3 series)
No. 8 Ferris State vs. No. 1 Bemidji State — Game 1: Bemidji State wins 5-4 (OT).Game 2: Bemidji State wins 4-0.
No. 5 Northern Michigan vs. No. 4 Minnesota State — Game 1: Minnesota State wins 2-1.Game 2: Minnesota State wins 6-1.
No. 6 Bowling Green vs. No. 3 Michigan Tech — Game 1: Michigan Tech wins 5-0.Game 2: Michigan Tech wins 6-5.
No. 7 Lake Superior State University vs. No. 2 St. Thomas State — Game 1: Lake Superior State University wins 4-1. Game 2: St. Thomas wins 4-2.Game 3: Superior State wins 3-2.
Semi-finals, March 16th
Lake Superior in Bemidji
Minnesota State University Michigan Technological University
Final, March 22nd
ECAC
Defending national champion Quinnipiac has won its fourth consecutive regular season title. The top four teams will get a bye in his first round, and seeds 5-12 will play one game in the first round. After reseeding, the top four seeds will host his best-of-three quarterfinal series. Winners advance to the single game semi-finals and finals. (All games available on ESPN+.)
Round 1, March 8th and 9th
No. 9 Princeton vs. No. 8 Harvard — Harvard wins 1-0.
No. 10 Yale vs. No. 7 St. Lawrence — St. Lawrence wins 4-2.
No. 11 Brown vs. No. 6 Union — Union wins 6-0.
No. 12 RPI vs. No. 5 Clarkson — RPI wins 3-2.
Quarterfinals, March 15-17
(Best of 3 series)
RPI, No. 1 Quinnipiac — Game 1: Quinnipiac wins 5-1.
Harvard vs. No. 2 Cornell — Game 1: Cornell wins 4-3.
St. Lawrence, No. 3 Colgate — Game 1: St. Lawrence wins 3-2 (2 OT).
Union vs. No. 4 Dartmouth — Game 1: Dartmouth wins 3-1.
Semi-finals and finals, March 22nd and 23rd
in Lake Placid, New York
hockey east
With one week left in the regular season, Boston College, the top-ranked team in the country, has won its 18th Hockey East regular season title and first since 2021. All games in the Hockey East Tournament are single-elimination. Seeds 6-11 will play in the first round, and the remaining eight teams will be reseeded for the quarterfinals. Winners advance to the semi-finals and finals. (All games available on ESPN+.)
Round 1, March 13th
6th place: University of New Hampshire 1, 11th place: University of Lowell, Massachusetts 0
7th Northeastern 4, 10th Merrimack 0
8th place UConn 4, 9th place Vermont 1
Quarterfinals, March 16th
No. 5 UMass at No. 4 Providence
8th place UConn, 1st place Boston College
7th place Northeastern University 2nd place Boston University
No. 6 UNH, No. 3 in Maine
Semi-finals and finals, March 22nd and 23rd
At TD Garden in Boston
NCHC
North Dakota State won the regular season title for the sixth time in the NCHC's 11-year history and fourth in the past five years. The top four seeds will host a best-of-three quarterfinal series, with the winner then advancing to his one-game semifinals and finals.
Quarterfinals, March 15-17
(Best of 3 series)
No. 8 Miami vs. No. 1 North Dakota — Game 1: North Dakota wins 5-1.
No. 7 Minnesota Duluth vs. No. 2 Denver — Game 1: Denver wins 4-0.
No. 6 Western Michigan vs. No. 3 St. Cloud State — Game 1: St. Cloud wins 5-2.
No. 5 Omaha vs. No. 4 Colorado College — Game 1: Colorado College wins 4-3 (OT).
Semi-finals and finals, March 22nd and 23rd
At Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota
