The Chicago Blackhawks will have eight prospects in the NCAA men’s hockey tournament during the next two weeks.
The No. 1 seeds are St. Cloud State (West), Notre Dame (East), Ohio State (Midwest) and Cornell (Northeast), the selection committee reveled Sunday. The Huskies were given the top overall seed despite falling to Denver, the reigning NCAA champion, in the NCHC tournament title game Saturday.
Notre Dame, the Big 10 regular-season and tournament champion, and defenseman Dennis Gilbert are the No. 1 seed in the East Regional. The Fighting Irish are looking to make a return trip to Frozen Four after falling in the semifinals to Denver last year in Chicago. Notre Dame will face Michigan Tech in the first round.
Cornell and forward Beau Starrett are the No. 1 seed in the Northeast Regional. The Big Red meet Boston University and defenseman Chad Krys in the first round.
The Northeast Regional boast the most Hawks prospects with four players. Northeastern’s Dylan Sikura and Ryan Shea will meet Michigan.
Denver, who will try to be the first team to repeat as NCAA champions since the Pioneers did in 2004-05, and defenseman Blake Hillman and Ian Mitchell meet Penn State and forward Evan Barratt.
WEST – Sioux Falls, South Dakota
No. 1 St. Cloud State vs. No. 4 Air Force
No. 2 Minnesota State vs. No. 3 Minnesota-Duluth
MIDWEST – Allentown, Pennsylvania
No. 1 Ohio State vs. Princeton
No. 2 Denver vs. No. 3 Penn State
NORTHEAST – Worcester, Massachusetts
No. 1 Cornell vs. No. 4 Boston
No. 2 Michigan vs. No. 3 Northeastern
EAST – Bridgeport, Connecuticut
No. 1 Notre Dame vs. No. 4 Michigan Tech
No. 2 Providence vs. No. 3 Clarkson
The winners of each regional will advance to the Frozen Four on Thursday, April 5 at Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, Minnesota. The championship game will be Saturday, April 7.
SCHEDULE
Bracket with game times and broadcast channels.
All games will also be available through WatchESPN. pic.twitter.com/KIFpFLm1GX— NCAA Ice Hockey (@NCAAIceHockey) March 18, 2018
Friday, March 23
East Regional: No. 1 Notre Dame vs. No. 4 Michigan Tech, 2 p.m. ESPN2
West Regional: No. 1 St. Cloud State vs. No. 4 Air Force, 3 p.m. ESPNU
East Regional: No. 2 Providence vs. No. 3 Clarkson, 5:30 p.m., ESPNU
West Regional: No. 2 MSU-Mankato vs. No. 3 Minnesota-Duluth, 6:30 p.m. ESPN3
Saturday, March 24
Northeast Regional: No. 1 Cornell vs. No. 4 Boston, Noon ESPNews
Northeast Regional: No. 2 Michigan vs. No. 3 Northeastern, 3:30 p.m. ESPNews
Midwest Regional: No. 1 Ohio State vs. No. 4 Princeton, 2:30 p.m. ESPNU
East Regional: Title game, 5 p.m. ESPNU
Midwest Regional: No. 2 Denver vs. No. 3 Penn State, 6 p.m. ESPN3
West Regional: Title game, 8 p.m. ESPN2
Sunday, March 25
Northeast Regional: Title game, 3 p.m. ESPN2
Midwest Regional: Title game, 5:30 p.m. ESPNU
Thursday, April 5
Semifinal 1: West Regional champ vs. Midwest Regional champ, ESPN2
Semifinal 2: East Regional champ vs. Northeast Regional champ, ESPN2
Saturday, April 7
Championship: Semifinal winner 1 vs. Semifinal winner 2, 6:30 p.m. ESPN2