The journey to the 2025 NCAA Frozen Four is intensifying as the six major college hockey conferences have concluded their tournaments, determining the 16 teams that will compete in the national championship.
With the six conference tournament winners automatically qualifying, the remaining ten spots in the 16-team bracket are filled by the highest-ranked at-large teams according to the PairWise rankings. These teams, along with their PairWise rankings, are as follows:
Conference Champions
- Michigan State (Big Ten) – Rank 2
- Maine (Hockey East) – Rank 3
- Western Michigan (NCHC) – Rank 4
- Minnesota State (CCHA) – Rank 14
- Cornell (ECAC) – Rank 17
- Bentley (Atlantic) – Rank 22
At-Large Teams
- Boston College – Rank 1
- Minnesota – Rank 5
- UConn – Rank 6
- Boston University – Rank 7
- Providence – Rank 8
- Denver – Rank 9
- Ohio State – Rank 10
- UMass – Rank 11
- Quinnipiac – Rank 12
- Penn State – Rank 13
First Teams Out: Michigan, Arizona State
The NCAA tournament bracket, including team matchups, locations, and game times, will be announced Sunday at 3 p.m. on ESPNU and ESPN+.
Regional tournament play will commence on Thursday, with regional finals scheduled for Saturday and Sunday. The Frozen Four is set to take place in St. Louis on April 10th and 12th. All tournament games will be broadcast on ESPN networks and streamed on ESPN+.
Below is a summary of each conference tournament and an overview of each league`s representation in the NCAA tournament.
Atlantic Hockey
Bentley has achieved a program milestone, securing their first NCAA tournament berth in 26 years, and their second under coach Andy Jones. Holy Cross, after claiming their first regular-season title since 2006, reached the conference semifinals, defeating AIC in a hard-fought quarterfinal series that went to overtime in the decisive Game 3. AIC`s efforts to extend their Division I program status fell short with this loss.
Quarterfinals, March 7-9
(Best of three series)
No. 8 AIC vs No. 1 Holy Cross
Game 1: AIC 3, Holy Cross 2
Game 2: Holy Cross 3, AIC 2
Game 3: Holy Cross 4, AIC 3 (OT)
Holy Cross wins series 2-1
No. 5 Army vs No. 4 Niagara
Game 1: Army 3, Niagara 2 (2 OT)
Game 2: Niagara 4, Army 3
Game 3: Army 4, Niagara 3 (OT)
Army wins series 2-1
No. 6 Canisius vs No. 3 Bentley
Game 1: Bentley 4, Canisius 0
Game 2: Bentley 2, Canisius 0
Bentley wins series 2-0
No. 7 Air Force vs No. 2 Sacred Heart
Game 1: Sacred Heart 4, Air Force 1
Game 2: Air Force 3, Sacred Heart 2 (2 OT)
Game 3: Sacred Heart 4, Air Force 1
Sacred Heart wins series 2-1
Semifinals, March 14-16
(Best of three series)
Army vs Holy Cross
Game 1: Holy Cross 3, Army 2 (OT)
Game 2: Holy Cross 5, Army 1
Holy Cross wins series 2-0
Bentley vs Sacred Heart
Game 1: Bentley 5, Sacred Heart 2
Game 2: Bentley 3, Sacred Heart 0
Bentley wins series 2-0
Final, March 22
Bentley 6, Holy Cross 3
Big Ten
Penn State`s strong finish to the regular season propelled them into NCAA tournament contention. Michigan, however, saw their tournament hopes dashed when the ECAC conference gained a second bid due to Quinnipiac`s semifinal loss. Big Ten tournament champion Michigan State will enter the NCAA tournament as the No. 2 overall seed. Minnesota and Ohio State will also represent the conference in the tournament.
Quarterfinals, March 7-9
(Best of three series)
No. 5 Penn State vs No. 4 Michigan
Game 1: Penn State 6, Michigan 5 (OT)
Game 2: Penn State 5, Michigan 2
Penn State wins series 2-0
No. 6 Wisconsin vs No. 3 Ohio State
Game 1: Wisconsin 4, Ohio State 1
Game 2: Ohio State 3, Wisconsin 2 (OT)
Game 3: Ohio State 3, Wisconsin 2
Ohio State wins series 2-1
No. 7 Notre Dame vs No. 2 Minnesota
Game 1: Notre Dame 3, Minnesota 2
Game 2: Minnesota 4, Notre Dame 2
Game 3: Notre Dame 4, Minnesota 1
Notre Dame wins series 2-1
Semifinals, March 15
No. 1 Michigan State 1, Notre Dame 0
Ohio State 4, Penn State 3 (OT)
Final, March 22
Michigan State 4, Ohio State 3 (2 OT)
CCHA
Minnesota State dominated the CCHA, going 6-0-1 in their final seven regular-season games, securing an automatic NCAA bid even before winning the conference championship. Their finals opponent, St. Thomas, is ineligible for NCAA participation due to their transition from Division III to Division I. No other teams from the CCHA are expected to receive at-large bids.
Quarterfinals, March 7-9
(Best of three series)
No. 8 Lake Superior vs No. 1 Minnesota State
Game 1: Minnesota State 4, Lake Superior 1
Game 2: Minnesota State 3, Lake Superior 2
Minnesota State wins series 2-0
No. 5 Michigan Tech vs No. 4 Bowling Green
Game 1: Bowling Green 2, Michigan Tech 1 (OT)
Game 2: Bowling Green 4, Michigan Tech 0
Bowling Green wins series 2-0
No. 6 Ferris State vs No. 3 St. Thomas
Game 1: St. Thomas 7, Ferris State 3
Game 2: St. Thomas 4, Ferris State 0
St. Thomas wins series 2-0
No. 7 Bemidji State vs No. 2 Augustana
Game 1: Augustana 3, Bemidji State 1
Game 2: Bemidji State 4, Augustana 3
Game 3: Bemidji State 3, Augustana 2 (OT)
Bemidji State wins series 2-1
Semifinals, March 15
Minnesota State 4, Bemidji State 0
St. Thomas 3, Bowling Green 1
Final, March 21
Minnesota State 4, St. Thomas 2
ECAC
Cornell will return to the NCAA tournament for the third consecutive year, having won the ECAC championship. Quinnipiac also secured an at-large bid to the tournament.
First Round
March 7
No. 8 Brown 3, No. 9 Princeton 2
No. 7 Harvard 5, No. 10 Rensselaer 2
March 8
No. 5 Dartmouth 6, No. 12 St. Lawrence 2
No. 6 Cornell 5, No. 11 Yale 1
Quarterfinals, March 14-16
(Best of three series)
Brown vs No. 1 Quinnipiac
Game 1: Quinnipiac 4, Brown 1
Game 2: Quinnipiac 4, Brown 0
Quinnipiac wins series 2-0
Harvard vs No. 2 Clarkson
Game 1: Clarkson 3, Harvard 2
Game 2: Harvard 3, Clarkson 2 (OT)
Game 3: Clarkson 2, Harvard 1 (OT)
Clarkson wins series 2-1
Cornell vs No. 3 Colgate
Game 1: Cornell 4, Colgate 1
Game 2: Cornell 3, Colgate 0
Cornell wins series 2-0
Dartmouth vs No. 4 Union
Game 1: Dartmouth 3, Union 2
Game 2: Dartmouth 7, Union 2
Dartmouth wins series 2-0
Semifinals, March 21
at Lake Placid, N.Y.
Cornell 3, Quinnipiac 2 (OT)
Clarkson 4, Dartmouth 1
Final, March 22
at Lake Placid, N.Y.
Cornell 3, Clarkson 1
Hockey East
Despite a quarterfinal loss to Northeastern, Boston College remains the top-ranked team in the nation. Northeastern`s subsequent loss to Maine in the semifinals prevented them from potentially stealing a tournament bid. Maine secured their sixth Hockey East title, their first since 2004, while runner-up UConn will make their inaugural NCAA tournament appearance. Hockey East will send a total of six teams to the 16-team NCAA tournament, including Boston University, Providence, and UMass.
First Round, March 12
No. 6 UMass 2, No. 11 Vermont 1
No. 7 UMass-Lowell 3, No. 10 New Hampshire 2 (OT)
No. 9 Northeastern 3, No. 8 Merrimack 2 (2 OT)
Quarterfinals
March 14
No. 4 UConn 3, No. 5 Providence 1
March 15
Northeastern 3, No. 1 Boston College 1
No. 2 Maine 7, UMass-Lowell 1
No. 3 Boston University 3, UMass 2 (OT)
Semifinals, March 20
at Boston
UConn 5, BU 2
Maine 4, Northeastern 3 (2 OT)
Finals, March 21
at Boston
Maine 5, UConn 2
NCHC
Western Michigan and Denver have both secured spots in the NCAA tournament. Western Michigan is in contention for a No. 1 seed, while Denver will be defending their national championship title.
Quarterfinals, March 14-16
(Best of three series)
No. 8 St. Cloud State vs No. 1 Western Michigan
Game 1: Western Michigan 6, St. Cloud 2
Game 2: Western Michigan 6, St. Cloud 2
Western Michigan wins series 2-0
No. 7 Minnesota Duluth vs No. 2 Arizona State
Game 1: Arizona State 4, Minnesota Duluth 3
Game 2: Arizona State 6, Minnesota Duluth 5 (OT)
Arizona State wins series 2-0
No. 6 Colorado College vs No. 3 Denver
Game 1: Colorado College 3, Denver 1
Game 2: Denver 6, Colorado College 3
Game 3: Denver 9, Colorado College 2
Denver wins series 2-1
No. 5 North Dakota vs No. 4 Omaha
Game 1: North Dakota 3, Omaha 2
Game 2: North Dakota 3, Omaha 2
North Dakota wins series 2-0
Semifinals, March 21
at St. Paul, Minnesota
Denver 4, Arizona State 2
Western Michigan 4, North Dakota 2
Finals, March 22
at St. Paul, Minnesota
Western Michigan 4, Denver 3 (2 OT)
