National Collegiate Hockey Conference tournament
| National Collegiate Hockey Conference tournament | |
|---|---|
| Conference hockey championship | |
| Sport | Ice hockey |
| Conference | NCHC |
| Format | Single-elimination (Semifinal & Final) Best two-of-three tournament (Quarterfinal) |
| Current stadium | Xcel Energy Center |
| Current location | Saint Paul, Minnesota |
| Played | 2014–present |
| Last contest | 2025 |
| Current champion | Western Michigan (1st title) |
| Most championships | Denver (3) Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs (3) |
| TV partner(s) | CBS Sports Network |
| Official website | The Official Site of NCHC Hockey |
| Host stadiums | |
| Target Center (2014–2017) Xcel Energy Center (2018–2019, 2022–present) Ralph Engelstad Arena (2021) Campus sites (2026–) | |
| Host locations | |
| Minneapolis, Minnesota (2014–2017) St. Paul, Minnesota (2018–2019, 2022–present) Grand Forks, North Dakota (2021) Campus sites (2026–) | |
The National Collegiate Hockey Conference tournament is the conference tournament for the NCHC. The winner of the tournament receives an automatic berth into the NCAA Division I men's ice hockey tournament.
The inaugural tournament was held in 2014 and included all 8 member teams in a three-round championship.
Format
The NCHC Tournament begins with four best-of-three series featuring the conference's top eight teams held at campus sites. The semifinals and finals are single-elimination games held at the Xcel Energy Center.
Prior to Arizona State joining the NCHC during the 2024–25 season, all eight conference teams made the tournament. Initially, the eighth and ninth seeds were intended to contest a play-in game at the site of the first seed in 2025,[1] but this format was later changed to include only the top eight teams and eliminate the play-in game. The tournament will move entirely to campus sites in 2026 and adopt a three-week format, once again including only the conference's top eight teams. Beginning in 2027 with the addition of St. Thomas to the NCHC, all ten teams will once again participate in the tournament.[2]
NCHC Hockey Men's Ice Hockey Tournament champions
Championship appearances
By school
|
By coach
|
Performance by team
The code in each cell represents the furthest the team made it in the respective tournament:
- – Team not in NCHC
- QF Quarterfinals
- SF Semifinals
- F Finals
- CH Champion
Note: the 2020 tournament was cancelled prior to the start of the quarterfinal round.
| School | # | QF | SF | F | CH | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Denver | 12 | 12 | 11 | 4 | 3 | CH | SF | SF | SF | CH | SF | QF | SF | SF | SF | CH | F |
| Minnesota Duluth | 12 | 12 | 6 | 4 | 3 | QF | QF | F | CH | SF | CH | QF | SF | CH | QF | QF | QF |
| St. Cloud State | 12 | 12 | 7 | 6 | 2 | QF | F | CH | QF | F | F | QF | F | QF | CH | SF | QF |
| North Dakota | 12 | 12 | 10 | 2 | 1 | SF | SF | SF | F | SF | QF | QF | CH | SF | SF | SF | SF |
| Western Michigan | 12 | 12 | 4 | 2 | 1 | SF | QF | QF | SF | QF | QF | QF | QF | F | QF | QF | CH |
| Miami | 11 | 11 | 2 | 2 | 1 | F | CH | QF | QF | QF | QF | QF | QF | QF | QF | QF | |
| Colorado College | 12 | 12 | 2 | 1 | 0 | QF | QF | QF | QF | QF | SF | QF | QF | QF | F | QF | QF |
| Omaha | 12 | 12 | 1 | 1 | 0 | QF | QF | QF | QF | QF | QF | QF | QF | QF | QF | F | QF |
| Arizona State | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | SF |
References
- ^ "NCHC Announces 2025 Postseason Format". nchchockey.com. 2023-08-23. Retrieved 2025-02-24.
- ^ "Format". nchchockey.com. Retrieved 2025-02-24.
- ^ "Denver Men's Team History". Retrieved 2014-05-18.
- ^ "Miami Men's Team History". USCHO.com. Retrieved 2014-05-18.