Wednesday, March 18, 2026

Women’s Notes: NCAA Frozen Four Preview

OSU-Northeastern, UW-Penn State Meet Friday in Semifinals

Friday, March 20
4:00 pm ET: #1 Ohio State vs #4 Northeastern (semifinal)
Watch: ESPN+, TSN+
7:30 pm ET: #2 Wisconsin vs #3 Penn State (semifinal)
Watch: ESPN+, TSN+

Sunday, March 22

4:00 pm ET: Championship Game
Watch: ESPNU, TSN+

Frozen Four Media Kit (PDF) | Frozen Four Pronunciation Guide (PDF)

Penn State’s Pegula Ice Arena is the host site for the 2026 NCAA Division I Women’s Hockey Frozen Four this weekend in University Park, Pennsylvania. Penn State can become the fifth team to win a Frozen Four at its home arena.

Both Frozen Four semifinal matchups will be available in the U.S. on ESPN+ and in Canada on TSN+. Sunday’s championship game will be broadcast live in the U.S. on ESPNU and will stream live on ESPN+, with streaming available in Canada on TSN+. To see more about the broadcast team and schedule, visit here.

This year’s Frozen Four field has a combined 10 national championships, including each of the last five:

2025: Wisconsin (38-1-2)
2024: Ohio State (35-4)
2023: Wisconsin (29-10-2)
2022: Ohio State (32-6-0)
2021: Wisconsin (17-3-1)

These four teams also boast five of the nation’s top 10 individual scoring leaders, the nation’s leader in shutouts, six of the 10 finalists for the 2026 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award, and all three finalists.

Daily Scoreboard | National Schedule | Scoring Leaders | Goaltending Leaders

Must Read:

Daily Faceoff: Northeastern, Ohio State, Penn State, Wisconsin advance to NCAA Women’s Frozen Four

FloHockey: Frozen Four Women’s Hockey Bracket: See Who Plays Who This Weekend

Just Women’s Sports: NCAA Women’s Ice Hockey Sets 2026 Frozen Four Field

Middlebury Athletics: Head Women’s Ice Hockey Coach Bill Mandigo Set To Retire in June

NHL: Devils assistant GM Madigan talks raising bar for herself, women in hockey

NHL: Wild celebrate Team USA women’s gold medal with special puck drop

Northeastern Globe: Northeastern women’s hockey advances to Frozen Four in quest for national title

Northeastern: No. 5 Northeastern Downs No. 4 Minnesota, Advances To Frozen Four

Ohio State: Ohio State Advances to Frozen Four With 6-1 Win Over Yale

Penn State: No. 3 Women’s Ice Hockey Advances to Program’s First Frozen Four

PHL17: Penn State women’s hockey looks to make deep Frozen Four run

The Daily Collegian: Penn State women’s hockey discusses Frozen Four, team culture

The Hockey News: Seven Recognized As NCAA Women’s Hockey Coach Of The Year Finalists

The Hockey News: Frozen Four Preview: East Versus West And A Potential Championship Rematch

The Hockey News: Penn State Makes History With First Frozen Four Berth In Program History

The Hockey News: PWHL Returns To Detroit, The Push For Women’s Hockey In Michigan Continues

The Hockey News: NCAA Women’s Frozen Four Set After Exciting Regional Final

The Hockey News: PWHL Playoff Tracker: Bubble Teams Making Things Interesting

The IX Sports: ACHA National Championships kick off this weekend

The IX Sports: 2026 NCAA Regional Final Recap, Part One

The IX Sports: 2026 NCAA Regional Final Recap, Part Two

The PWHL: Weekly Notebook: Mar. 16, 2026

USCHO: Women’s Hockey Weekend Wrap – March 16, 2026

Wisconsin: No. 2 Badgers advance to NCAA Frozen Four

Must Hear & See:

Breaking the Glass: Episode #34: Talking NCAA Tourney

NCAA: Every goal from 2026 NCAA women’s hockey quarterfinals

Our Girls Play Hockey: Inside the Olympic Experience with Hayley Scamurra

Rinkside Rundown: Haley Box on Growing Up in Wyoming, Team USA, and the Road to Wisconsin

2026 NCAA Frozen Four Notes:

The roads traveled – how each of the four semifinalists made their way to University Park:

No. 1 Ohio State (34-4-0): The Buckeyes, the WCHA champions, advanced to this year’s Frozen Four with a 6-1 victory over Yale, marking their sixth consecutive Frozen Four appearance. Tied 1-1 after the first period, Ohio State responded with five unanswered goals. Junior forward Jocelyn Amos (Ailsa Craig, Ontario) led the Buckeyes with two goals and an assist.

No. 2 Wisconsin (33-4-2): The reigning national champion Wisconsin Badgers secured their spot in the Frozen Four with a 6-0 win over Quinnipiac. Junior forward Kelly Gorbatenko (Barrington, Ill.) recorded a hat trick, her second of the season. The Badgers also feature the nation’s scoring leader, graduate forward Lacey Eden (Annapolis, Md.), and four of the top 10 finalists for the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award.

No. 3 Penn State (33-5-0): Host Penn State earned its program’s first trip to the Frozen Four with a win over UConn. Senior goaltender Katie DeSa (Pawcatuck, Conn.) recorded her nation-leading 12th shutout with 36 saves. Senior forward Tessa Janecke (Orangeville, Ill.) scored her 24th goal of the season and is now one point shy of 200 career points.

No. 4 Northeastern (29-8-1): The Huskies went on the road and upset Minnesota to clinch their spot in the Frozen Four. Northeastern built an early lead with three goals in the first period and added another in the second to take control of the quarterfinal matchup. Sophomore goaltender Lisa Jönsson (Stockholm, Sweden) made 45 saves to backstop the win and send the program to its fourth Frozen Four. Forward Stryker Zablocki (Prince Albert, Saskatchewan) leads the Huskies in scoring with 44 points (19G, 25A) in her freshman campaign.

700 Secured:

Wisconsin head coach Mark Johnson (Wisconsin ’79) secured his 700th career win as the Badgers advanced to their fourth straight Frozen Four defeating Quinnipiac on Saturday. Johnson has led the program since 2002 and is just the third head coach in team history.

In addition to 700 wins, Johnson’s resume includes 17 Frozen Four appearances, 12 championship games, eight national championships, six Patty Kazmaier Award winners and multiple WCHA and AHCA coach of the year honors.

Milestone Watch:

Penn State senior forward Tessa Janecke (Orangeville, Ill.), Wisconsin senior defender Caroline Harvey (Salem, N.H.) and Wisconsin senior forward Laila Edwards (Cleveland Heights, Ohio) are all approaching 200 career points. Keep an eye out for major milestones during the 2026 Frozen Four:

200 Career Points:
Tessa Janecke, Penn State – 199
Caroline Harvey, Wisconsin – 199
Laila Edwards, Wisconsin – 196

100 Career Goals:
Kirsten Simms, Wisconsin – 99

50 Career Wins:
Hailey MacLeod, Ohio State – 49

NCAA DIII Postseason:

The 2026 Division III women’s hockey championship continues with the quarterfinal round on Saturday, March 21. Winners will advance to the Frozen Four semifinals on March 27. All games in the 2026 tournament, including the Frozen Four, will be played at campus sites of the higher seed.

Head of the Class:

Six of the 10 finalists for the 2026 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award, including the three recently announced finalists, will compete in the 2026 Frozen Four. The award winner will be announced Saturday during the Frozen Four broadcast on NHL Network.

Joy Dunne, Ohio State (Jr., F, O’Fallon, Mo)
Lacey Eden, Wisconsin (Gr., F, Annapolis, Md.)
Laila Edwards, Wisconsin (Sr., F/D, Cleveland Heights, Ohio)
Caroline Harvey, Wisconsin (Sr., D, Salem, N.H.)
Tessa Janecke, Penn State (Sr., F, Orangeville, Ill.)
Kirsten Simms, Wisconsin (Sr., F, Plymouth, Mich.)

Coaches Corner:

The four head coaches behind the bench at the 2026 Frozen Four have combined for more than 55 years leading their respective programs.

Mark Johnson, Wisconsin – 22 seasons
Dave Flint, Northeastern – 16 seasons
Nadine Muzerall, Ohio State – 10 seasons
Jeff Kampersal, Penn State – 9 seasons

PWHL Note:

The Boston Fleet held onto first place after an exciting week, erasing a 3-0 third-period deficit against the Victoire to earn a 4-3 win on Sunday. On Tuesday, the Fleet ran into a hot goaltender at home, as Toronto netminder Raygan Kirk (Ohio State ’24) posted back-to-back shutouts for the Sceptres.

With just over a month remaining in the regular season for the PWHL’s third season, the current standings are:

Team	GP	GR	PTS	W-OTW-OTL-L	PCT	GF	GA
Boston Fleet	20	10	39	9-5-2-4	0.650	46	34
Minnesota Frost	19	11	36	9-3-3-4	0.632	59	41
Montréal Victoire	19	11	36	9-4-1-5	0.632	48	29
Toronto Sceptres	22	8	31	8-1-5-8	0.470	43	55
Ottawa Charge	20	10	28	5-6-1-8	0.467	51	55
New York Sirens	20	10	27	8-0-3-9	0.45	47	52
Vancouver Goldeneyes	19	11	21	5-1-4-9	0.368	35	46
Seattle Torrent	19	11	19	5-1-2-11	0.333	40	57

Notebook Quotebook:

“Yeah, it’s special. I mean, I just told the group that I’ve been at Northeastern for 18 years now, and we’ve won some really big games and had success, but this ranks right up there with one of the biggest ones. I mean, that’s a really, really good hockey team. And to come into their building in a pressure situation, and the way the team handled it and the composure they had — I’m really proud of the group for how they handled the situation.”

— Dave Flint (North Adams ’93) on his team’s composure upsetting Minnesota on the road to earn a trip to the Frozen Four. (source: gounathletics).

Longest Active Team Winning Streaks:

9 games, Ohio State (began Feb. 13, 2026)
5 games, Penn State (began Feb. 14, 2026)

Longest Active Goalie Winning Streaks:

9 games, Hailey MacLeod, Ohio State (began Feb. 13, 2026)
5 games, Katie Desa, Penn State (began Feb. 14, 2026)

Longest Active Point Streaks:

12 games, Tessa Janecke, Penn State
- 12G, 5A (began Jan. 3, 2026)
10 games, Lacey Eden, Wisconsin
- 9G, 13A (began Feb. 8, 2026)
10 games, Laila Edwards, Wisconsin
- 4G, 12A (began Jan. 10, 2026)
7 games, Emma Peschel, Ohio State
- 2G, 13A (began, Feb. 20, 2026)

Conference Websites

Atlantic Hockey America | ECAC Hockey | Hockey East | NEWHA | WCHA

College Hockey Inc. Resources:

Did you know? 97% of NCAA Division I women’s hockey players earn their degree