Sunday, March 22, 2026

Field Announced for 2026 NCAA DI Men’s Hockey Tournament

Tourney Begins Thursday, Four Winners Advance to Frozen Four

Field Announced for 2026 NCAA DI Men’s Hockey Tournament
Michael Hage and the Michigan Wolverines are the No. 1 overall seed (Photo: Michigan Photography).

The 16-team field was announced Sunday afternoon for the 2026 NCAA Division I Men’s Hockey Tournament, beginning the road to the NCAA Frozen Four in Las Vegas.

Michigan, North Dakota, Michigan State and Western Michigan earned the top four seeds in the tournament, which begins Thursday and Friday at four pre-determined regional sites. The winners from each region will advance to the NCAA Frozen Four from April 9-11 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

No. 1 overall seed and Big Ten tournament champion Michigan will face Atlantic Hockey regular-season and playoff champion Bentley at the Albany (N.Y.) Regional:

  • No. 1 Michigan vs. No. 4 Bentley (Friday, March 27 @ 530 p.m. ET, ESNPU)
  • No. 2 Minnesota Duluth vs. No. 3 Penn State (Friday, March 27 @ 9 p.m. ET, ESPN2)

NCHC regular-season champion North Dakota is the No. 2 overall seed and faces Hockey East tournament champion Merrimack in the Sioux Falls (S.D.) Regional:

  • No. 2 Providence vs. No. 3 Quinnipiac (Thursday, March 26 @ 5 p.m. ET, ESPN+)
  • No. 1 North Dakota vs. No. 4 Merrimack (Thursday, March 26 @ 8:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2)

Big Ten regular season champion Michigan State is the No. 3 overall seed and was placed in the Worcester (Mass.) Regional against UConn:

  • No. 1 Michigan State vs. No. 4 UConn (Thursday, March 26 @ 1:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2)
  • No. 2 Dartmouth vs. No. 3 Wisconsin (Thursday, March 26 @ 5 p.m. ET, ESPNU)

Defending NCAA champion Western Michigan secured the No. 4 overall seed and draws CCHA regular-season and playoff champion Minnesota State in the Loveland (Col.) Regional:

  • No. 1 Western Michigan vs. No. 4 Minnesota State (Friday, March 27 @ 2:30 p.m. ET, ESPNU)
  • No. 2 Denver vs. No. 3 Cornell (Friday, March 27 @ 6 p.m. ET, ESPN+)

Visit NCAA.com for more information.