2024 NCAA men's hockey bracket announced. Here's who's coming to Providence.
PROVIDENCE — The 2024 NCAA men’s hockey tournament is set, with the 16-team bracket having been unveiled on Sunday night.
The Amica Mutual Pavilion will serve as one of the tournament's four regional sites, and will feature the tournament's top seed, Boston College, along with 2023 champion Quinnipiac, Michigan Tech and Wisconsin. The tournament is a single-elimination format, with one team from each site advancing to St. Paul, Minn., for the Frozen Four next month.
Brown University will serve as the host school in Providence but neither the Bears nor the Providence Friars will be part of the tourney this spring. Both Providence and Colorado College (who finished 16th and 15th, respectively) were eliminated due to automatic bids from other leagues. The Friars — the 2015 NCAA champions — ended their season at 18-13-4, 11-9-4 in Hockey East, falling to UMass on March 16 in the Hockey East quarterfinals.
On Saturday, No. 1 Boston College won its 12th Hockey East Tournament Championship, defeating No. 2 Boston University, 6-2, to earn both the Hockey East regular-season and conference tournament titles. BC is the tournament's overall No. 1 seed. The Eagles are led by San Jose Sharks prospect Will Smith, whose 67 points ranks as one the best seasons by an NCAA freshman in 30 years.
Here are the four regional sites, and the teams that will be playing there beginning Thursday:
Springfield, Mass. (MassMutual Center)
THURSDAYNo. 1 Denver (28-9-3) vs. No. 4 Massachusetts (20-13-3), 2 p.m.No. 2 Maine (23-11-2) vs. No. 3 Cornell (21-6-6), 5:30 p.m.SATURDAYSpringfield Regional Championship, 4 p.m.
Sioux Falls S.D. (Denny Sanford PREMIER Center)
THURSDAYNo. 1 Boston University (26-9-2) vs. No. 4 Rochester Institute of Technology (27-10-2), 5 p.m.No. 2 Minnesota (22-10-5) vs. No. 3 Omaha (23-12-4), 8:30 p.m.SATURDAYSioux Falls Regional Championship, 6:30 p.m.
Providence (Amica Mutual Pavilion)
FRIDAYNo. 1 Boston College (31-5-1) vs. No. 4 Michigan Tech (19-14-6), 2 p.m.No. 2 Wisconsin (26-11-2) vs. No. 3 Quinnipiac (26-9-2), 5:30 p.m.SUNDAYProvidence Regional Championship, 4 p.m.
Maryland Heights, Mo. (Centene Community Ice Center)
FRIDAYNo. 1 Michigan State (24-9-3) vs. No. 4 Western Michigan (21-15-1), 5 p.m.No. 2 North Dakota (26-11-2) vs. No. 3 Michigan (21-14-3), 8:30 p.m.SUNDAYMaryland Heights Regional Championship, 6:30 p.m.
The 2024 NCAA Men's Frozen Four is set to be played in St. Paul, Minn., (Xcel Energy Center) from April 11-13.
How to get tickets
For ticket information about the NCAA men's hockey tournament, click here.
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Providence will feature nation's top team in NCAA hockey championships
