| 1979 WCHA Men's ice hockey tournament | |
|---|---|
| Dates | March 6–11, 1979 |
| Teams | 8 |
| Finals site | Williams Arena Minneapolis, Minnesota Winter Sports Center Grand Forks, North Dakota |
| Champions | Minnesota† [1] (6th title) North Dakota‡ [2] (3rd title) |
| Winning coach | Herb Brooks [3] (4th title) John Gasparini [4] (1st title) |
WCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournaments | |
The 1979 WCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was the 20th conference playoff in league history. The tournament was played between March 6 and March 11, 1979. All games were played at home team campus sites, including each of the two regional final series. By winning the regional tournaments, both Minnesota and North Dakota were invited to participate in the 1979 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.
Though not official designations, Minnesota is considered as the East Regional Champion† and North Dakota as the West Regional Champion‡.
The top eight teams in the WCHA, according to their final conference standings, were eligible for the tournament and were seeded No. 1 through No. 8. In the first round the first and eighth seeds, the second and seventh seeds, the third and sixth seeds and the fourth and fifth seeds were matched in two-game series where the school that scored the higher number of goals was declared the winner. After the first round the remaining teams were reseeded No. 1 through No. 4 according to their final conference standings and advanced to the second round. In the second round the first and fourth seeds and the second and third seeds competed in an additional two-game, total goal series with the winners of each being declared as co-conference champions.
Note: GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; PTS = Points; GF = Goals For; GA = Goals Against
| Conference | Overall | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | W | L | T | PTS | GF | GA | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | ||
| North Dakota†* | 32 | 22 | 10 | 0 | 44 | 168 | 110 | 42 | 30 | 11 | 1 | 245 | 144 | |
| Minnesota* | 32 | 20 | 11 | 1 | 41 | 177 | 116 | 44 | 32 | 11 | 1 | 239 | 147 | |
| Minnesota-Duluth | 32 | 18 | 10 | 4 | 40 | 176 | 141 | 40 | 22 | 14 | 4 | 213 | 170 | |
| Wisconsin | 32 | 19 | 11 | 2 | 40 | 164 | 138 | 41 | 25 | 13 | 3 | 215 | 172 | |
| Notre Dame | 32 | 17 | 14 | 1 | 35 | 161 | 153 | 38 | 18 | 19 | 1 | 184 | 196 | |
| Denver | 32 | 14 | 16 | 2 | 30 | 147 | 174 | 43 | 20 | 20 | 3 | 188 | 217 | |
| Michigan Tech | 32 | 13 | 16 | 3 | 29 | 152 | 141 | 38 | 17 | 18 | 3 | 182 | 165 | |
| Colorado College | 32 | 11 | 19 | 2 | 24 | 144 | 185 | 38 | 12 | 24 | 2 | 165 | 218 | |
| Michigan State | 32 | 12 | 20 | 0 | 24 | 122 | 180 | 36 | 15 | 21 | 0 | 140 | 192 | |
| Michigan | 32 | 6 | 25 | 1 | 13 | 117 | 190 | 36 | 8 | 27 | 1 | 132 | 210 | |
| Championship: Minnesota, North Dakota † indicates conference regular season champion * indicates conference tournament champion | ||||||||||||||
[6] Teams are reseeded after the first round
| First Round March 6–7 | Second Round March 10–11 | ||||||||||
| 1 | North Dakota | 6 | 7 | ||||||||
| 8 | Colorado College | 3 | 3 | ||||||||
| 1 | North Dakota | 4 | 7 | ||||||||
| 4 | Wisconsin | 2 | 7 | ||||||||
| 2 | Minnesota | 5 | 6 | ||||||||
| 7 | Michigan Tech | 3 | 1 | ||||||||
| 3 | Minnesota-Duluth | 5 | 2* | ||||||||
| 6 | Denver | 2 | 4 | ||||||||
| 2 | Minnesota | 2 | 6 | ||||||||
| 3 | Minnesota-Duluth | 1 | 3 | ||||||||
| 4 | Wisconsin | 11 | 5 | ||||||||
| 5 | Notre Dame | 5 | 5 | ||||||||
Note: * denotes overtime period(s)
| March 6 | North Dakota | 6 – 3 | Colorado College | Winter Sports Center | ||||
| March 7 | North Dakota | 7 – 3 | Colorado College | Winter Sports Center | ||||
| North Dakota won series 13–6 | |
| March 6 | Minnesota | 5 – 3 | Michigan Tech | Williams Arena | ||||
| March 7 | Minnesota | 6 – 1 | Michigan Tech | Williams Arena | ||||
| Minnesota won series 11–4 | |
| March 6 | Minnesota-Duluth | 5 – 2 | Denver | Duluth Arena Auditorium | ||||
| March 7 | Minnesota-Duluth | 2 – 4 | OT | Denver | Duluth Arena Auditorium | |||
| Minnesota-Duluth won series 7–6 | |
| March 6 | Wisconsin | 11 – 5 | Notre Dame | Dane County Coliseum | ||||
| March 7 | Wisconsin | 5 – 5 | Notre Dame | Dane County Coliseum | ||||
| Wisconsin won series 16–10 | |
| March 10 | North Dakota | 4 – 2 | Wisconsin | Winter Sports Center | ||||
| March 11 | North Dakota | 7 – 7 | Wisconsin | Winter Sports Center | ||||
| North Dakota won series 11–9 | |
| March 10 | Minnesota | 2 – 1 | Minnesota-Duluth | Williams Arena | ||||
| March 11 | Minnesota | 6 – 3 | Minnesota-Duluth | Williams Arena | ||||
| Minnesota won series 8–4 | |
None
The 1990 WCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was the 31st conference playoff in league history and 38th season where a WCHA champion was crowned. The tournament was played between March 1 and March 12, 1990. First round games were played at home team campus sites while all 'Final Four' matches were held at the Civic Center in St. Paul, Minnesota. By winning the tournament, Wisconsin was awarded the Broadmoor Trophy and received the WCHA's automatic bid to the 1990 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.
The 1987 WCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was the 28th conference playoff in league history and 35th season where a WCHA champion was crowned. The tournament was played between February 27 and March 14, 1987. First round and semifinal games were played at home team campus sites while the championship match was held, for the final time, at the Winter Sports Center in Grand Forks, North Dakota. By winning the tournament, North Dakota was awarded the Broadmoor Trophy and received the WCHA's automatic bid to the 1987 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.
The 1986 WCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was the 27th conference playoff in league history and 34th season where a WCHA champion was crowned. The tournament was played between February 28 and March 15, 1986. First round and semifinal games were played at home team campus sites while the championship match was held at the DU Arena in Denver, Colorado. By winning the tournament, Denver was awarded the Broadmoor Trophy and received the WCHA's automatic bid to the 1986 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.
The 1985 WCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was the 26th conference playoff in league history and 33rd season where a WCHA champion was crowned. The tournament was played between March 1 and March 16, 1985. First round and semifinal games were played at home team campus sites while the championship match was held at the Duluth Arena Auditorium in Duluth, Minnesota. By winning the tournament, Minnesota-Duluth was awarded the Broadmoor Trophy and received the WCHA's automatic bid to the 1985 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.
The 1984 WCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was the 25th conference playoff in league history and 32nd season where a WCHA champion was crowned. The tournament was played between February 25 and March 11, 1984. First round and semifinal games were played at home team campus sites while the championship match was held at the Williams Arena in Minneapolis, Minnesota. By winning the tournament, Minnesota-Duluth received the WCHA's automatic bid to the 1984 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.
The 1983 WCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was the 24th conference playoff in league history and 31st season where a WCHA champion was crowned. The tournament was played between February 25 and March 13, 1983. First round and semifinal games were played at home team campus sites while the championship match was held at the Williams Arena in Minneapolis, Minnesota. By winning the tournament, Wisconsin received the WCHA's automatic bid to the 1983 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.
The 1982 WCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was the 23rd conference playoff in league history and 30th season where a WCHA champion was crowned. The tournament was played between March 4 and March 14, 1982. First round and semifinal games were played at home team campus sites while the championship match was held at the Winter Sports Center in Grand Forks, North Dakota. By winning the tournament, Wisconsin received the WCHA's automatic bid to the 1982 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.
The 1981 WCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was the 22nd conference playoff in league history. The tournament was played between March 6 and March 15, 1981. All games were played at home team campus sites, including each of the two regional final series. By winning the regional tournaments, both Michigan Tech and Minnesota received automatic bids to the 1981 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.
The 1980 WCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was the 21st conference playoff in league history. The tournament was played between March 7 and March 15, 1980. All games were played at home team campus sites, including each of the two regional final series. By winning the regional tournaments, both Minnesota and North Dakota were invited to participate in the 1980 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.
The 1978 WCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was the 19th conference playoff in league history. The tournament was played between March 10 and March 15, 1978. All games were played at home team campus sites, including each of the two regional final series. By winning the regional tournaments, both Wisconsin and Colorado College were invited to participate in the 1978 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.
The 1977 WCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was the 18th conference playoff in league history. The tournament was played between March 9 and March 17, 1977. All games were played at home team campus sites including the championship series. By reaching the finals both Wisconsin and Michigan were invited to participate in the 1977 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.
The 1976 WCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was the 17th conference playoff in league history. The tournament was played between March 10 and March 15, 1976. All games were played at home team campus sites, including each of the two regional final series. By winning the regional tournaments, both Minnesota and Michigan Tech were invited to participate in the 1976 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.
The 1975 WCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was the 16th conference playoff in league history. The tournament was played between March 3 and March 9, 1975. All games were played at home team campus sites, including each of the two regional final series. By winning the regional tournaments, both Michigan Tech and Minnesota were invited to participate in the 1975 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.
The 1974 WCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was the 15th conference playoff in league history. The tournament was played between March 5 and March 10, 1974. All games were played at home team campus sites, including each of the two regional final series. By winning the regional tournaments, both Michigan Tech and Minnesota were invited to participate in the 1974 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.
The 1973 WCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was the 14th conference playoff in league history. The tournament was played between March 5 and March 11, 1973. All games were played at home team campus sites, including each of the two regional final series. By winning the regional tournaments, both Wisconsin and Denver were invited to participate in the 1973 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.
The 1972 WCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was the 13th conference playoff in league history. The tournament was played between March 7 and March 11, 1972. All games were played at home team campus sites, including each of the two regional final series. By winning the regional tournaments, both Wisconsin and Denver were invited to participate in the 1972 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.
The 1971 WCHA men's ice hockey tournament was the 12th conference playoff in league history. The tournament was played between March 12 and March 20, 1971. All East Regional games were played at the Dane County Coliseum in Madison, Wisconsin while West Regional games were held at the DU Arena in Denver, Colorado. By winning the regional tournaments, both the East Regional Champion†, Minnesota, and West Regional Champion‡, Denver, were invited to participate in the 1971 NCAA University Division men's ice hockey tournament.
The 1970 WCHA men's ice hockey tournament was the 11th conference playoff in league history. The tournament was played between March 12 and March 14, 1970. All East Regional games were played at the Duluth Arena Auditorium in Duluth, Minnesota, while West Regional games were held at the DU Arena in Denver, Colorado. By winning the regional tournaments, both the East Regional Champion†, Michigan Tech, and West Regional Champion‡, Wisconsin, were invited to participate in the 1970 NCAA University Division men's ice hockey tournament.
The 1969 WCHA men's ice hockey tournament was the 10th conference playoff in league history. The tournament was played between March 6 and March 8, 1969. All East Regional games were played at the Weinberg Coliseum in Ann Arbor, Michigan while West Regional games were held at the DU Arena in Denver, Colorado. By winning the regional tournaments, both the East Regional Champion†, Michigan Tech, and West Regional Champion‡, Denver, were invited to participate in the 1969 NCAA University Division men's ice hockey tournament.
The 1968 WCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was the 9th conference playoff in league history. The tournament was played between March 5 and March 9, 1968. All games were played at home team campus sites. By being declared as co-champions, both North Dakota and Denver were invited to participate in the 1968 NCAA University Division Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.