Hockey East is an NCAA Division I ice hockey-only conference based in Wakefield, Massachusetts that was formed in 1984 after five Eastern College Athletic Conference teams decided to create their own league over scheduling concerns. At the completion of each regular season, it holds the Hockey East Men's Ice Hockey Tournament to determine its conference champion. Beginning in 1988, the winner of the conference tournament has been awarded the Lamoriello Trophy, named after the first commissioner of Hockey East, Lou Lamoriello.
The tournament was first hosted at the Providence Civic Center (now called the Dunkin' Donuts Center) in Providence, Rhode Island with Providence winning the inaugural tournament. Boston College has won the most Hockey East Men's Ice Hockey Tournaments with eleven and has the most championship game appearances with sixteen. Jerry York has coached nine championship teams and has the most championship game appearances with eleven. Shawn Walsh has made the most consecutive championship appearances with seven (1987–1993).
The TD Garden (formerly the FleetCenter) has hosted the tournament since 1996. The Boston Garden hosted the tournament seven times, while the Providence Civic Center and Kelley Rink each hosted the tournament twice. In 2021, the Mullins Center served as host for the championship game, as all tournament games were held on campus locations due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Massachusetts earned the right to host the title game as the higher seed of the two semifinal winners.
2016 was the first Championship in which at least one of the "Big 4" schools (Boston College, Boston University, Maine, New Hampshire) did not play in the title game.
School | Championships | Appearances | Winning Percentage |
---|---|---|---|
Boston College | 11 | 18 | 61% |
Boston University | 9 | 12 | 75% |
Maine | 5 | 14 | 36% |
UMass Lowell | 3 | 8 | 38% |
Northeastern | 3 | 3 | 100% |
New Hampshire | 2 | 8 | 25% |
Providence | 2 | 5 | 40% |
Massachusetts | 2 | 3 | 66% |
Merrimack | 0 | 1 | 0% |
Vermont | 0 | 1 | 0% |
Connecticut | 0 | 1 | 0% |
The Hockey East Association, also known as Hockey East, is a college ice hockey conference which operates entirely in New England. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as a hockey-only conference.
The annual NCAA Women's Ice Hockey Tournament—officially known as the National Collegiate Women's Ice Hockey Championship—is a college ice hockey tournament held in the United States by the National Collegiate Athletic Association to determine the top women's team in the NCAA. The 2020 championship was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
ECAC Hockey is one of the six conferences that compete in NCAA Division I ice hockey. The conference used to be affiliated with the Eastern College Athletic Conference, a consortium of over 300 colleges in the eastern United States. This relationship ended in 2004; however, the ECAC abbreviation was retained in the name of the hockey conference. ECAC Hockey is the only ice hockey conference with identical memberships in both its women's and men's divisions. Cornell has won the most ECAC men's hockey championships with 12, followed by Harvard at 11.
The Boston College Eagles are a Division I college hockey program that represent Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. The team has competed in Hockey East since 1984, having previously played in the ECAC. The Eagles have won five national championships, the most recent coming in 2012. Home games have been played at Kelley Rink at Conte Forum, named after coach John "Snooks" Kelley, since 1988, having previously played at McHugh Forum. The Eagles are coached by former Eagles and NHL defenseman Greg Brown, who recently took over the reins after the retirement of Jerry York.
The 2009 Hockey East Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was played between March 13 and March 21, 2009 at campus locations and at the TD Banknorth Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Boston University won their seventh Hockey East Men's Ice Hockey Tournament and the Lamoriello Trophy and received Hockey East's automatic bid to the 2009 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.
The 2008 Hockey East Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was played between March 14 and March 22, 2008 at campus locations and at the TD Banknorth Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. By winning the tournament, Boston College was awarded the Lamoriello Trophy and an automatic bid to the 2008 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.
The 1995 NCAA Men's Division I Ice Hockey Tournament involved 12 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college ice hockey. It began on March 24, 1995, and ended with the championship game on April 1. A total of 11 games were played. The top 2 seeds in each region received a bye into the tournament quarterfinals.
The 2010 Hockey East Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was played between March 12 and March 20, 2010 at campus locations and at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. Boston College was awarded the Lamoriello Trophy and an automatic bid to the 2010 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.
Mike McShane is a college men's ice hockey coach. He ranks ninth all-time among NCAA men's ice hockey coaches with 653 wins in 30 years as a head coach. As the head coach at Norwich University since 1996, he has led his teams to the Frozen Four nine times and NCAA Division III national championships in 2000, 2003, 2010 and 2017.
The Providence Friars men's ice hockey team is a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I college ice hockey program that represents Providence College. The Friars are a member of Hockey East. The skating Friars are currently coached by Nate Leaman has been the head coach of the skating Friars since 2011, leading them to a national championship in 2015. They play at the 3,030-seat Schneider Arena in Providence, Rhode Island.
The 2015 NCAA Men's Division I Ice Hockey Tournament was the national championship tournament for men's college ice hockey in the United States in 2015. The tournament involved 16 teams in single-elimination play to determine the national champion at the Division I level of the NCAA, the highest level of competition in college hockey. The tournament's Frozen Four – the semifinals and final – were hosted by Hockey East at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts.
The 2014 Hockey East Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was played between March 7 and March 22, 2014 at campus locations and at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. The Massachusetts–Lowell River Hawks, the defending champions from the 2012–13 season, defeated New Hampshire 4-0 to repeat as champions and became the 7th team in league history to successfully defend their title. Sophomore goalie Connor Hellebuyck was named tournament MVP for his 30-save shutout in the championship match that gave the River Hawks Hockey East's automatic bid into the 2014 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.
The 1981 ECAC Hockey Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was the 20th tournament in league history. It was played between March 10 and March 14, 1981. Quarterfinal games were played at home team campus sites, while the 'final four' games were played at the Boston Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. By winning the tournament, Providence received the ECAC's automatic bid to the 1981 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.
The 1995 Hockey East Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was the 11th Tournament in the history of the conference. It was played between March 7 and March 18, 1995. Play-in and quarterfinal games were played at home team campus sites, while the final four games were, for the final time, played at the Boston Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, the home venue of the NHL's Boston Bruins. By winning the tournament, Boston University received the Hockey East's automatic bid to the 1995 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.
The 1986 Hockey East Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was the 2nd Tournament in the history of the conference. It was played between March 7 and March 15, 1986. Quarterfinal games were played at home team campus sites, while the final four games were, for the first time, played at the Providence Civic Center in Providence, Rhode Island. This was the final year the Hockey East championship was decided at a venue outside of the state of Massachusetts (as of 2014). By winning the tournament, Boston University received the Hockey East's automatic bid to the 1986 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.
The 1985 Hockey East Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was the 1st Tournament in the history of the conference. It was played between March 8 and March 16, 1985. Quarterfinal games were played at home team campus sites, while the final four games were, for the first time, played at the Providence Civic Center in Providence, Rhode Island. By winning the tournament, Providence received the Hockey East's automatic bid to the 1985 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.
The 2016 Hockey East Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was played between March 3 and March 19, 2016 at campus locations and at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. The Northeastern Huskies defeated the UMass Lowell River Hawks by a score of 3–2 to earn their 2nd Hockey East championship in school history and earn Hockey East's automatic bid into the 2016 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament. Kevin Boyle was named tournament MVP.
The 2017 Hockey East Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was played between March 3 and March 18, 2017 at campus locations and at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. The Massachusetts–Lowell River Hawks defeated the Boston College Eagles by a score of 4–3 to earn their 3rd Hockey East championship in school history, the third in five years, and earn Hockey East's automatic bid into the 2017 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament. C. J. Smith was named tournament MVP.
The 2018 Hockey East Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was played between March 2 and March 17, 2018 at campus locations and at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. Boston University won their 9th tournament and earned Hockey East's automatic bid into the 2018 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament.