The History Of The NCAA Frozen Four Ice Hockey Championship

Forbes

08-04-2025

The Denver Pioneers are defending their title at the 2025 NCAA Frozen Four. (Photo by Andy ... More Cross/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images)
This weekend, Enterprise Center in St. Louis will play host to the 2o25 edition of the NCAA Frozen Four. The annual Div. I tournament crowns the best men's team in college hockey.
This year, the winners of the NCAA's four regional Div. I hockey tournaments will square off in two semi-finals on Thursday, Apr. 10. Those winners will play for the national championship on Saturday, Apr. 12.
The first NCAA men's ice hockey championship took place in 1948, with Michigan defeating Dartmouth 8-2 in Colorado Springs. The Frozen Four moniker was adopted in 1999, when Maine beat New Hampshire 3-2 in overtime in Anaheim, California.
No school has more Frozen Four appearances than Michigan, at 28. This season, however, the Wolverines failed to qualify for the 16-team tournament, snapping a streak of three consecutive appearances.
With their win in 2024, the University of Denver became the most successful program in Frozen Four history, with a 10th championship. The Pioneers will look to make it 11 this weekend.
On Thursday, Denver will face Western Michigan in the first semi-final of the Frozen Four (5 p.m. ET). That game will be followed by Penn State vs. Boston University (8:30 p.m. ET).
The championship game will take place on Saturday, Apr. 12 (7:30 p.m. ET).
Denver defenseman Zeev Buium is the only 20225 Hobey Baker finalist still in contention for the NCAA ... More championship. (Photo by Steven Garcia/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Denver is the defending champion and will be seeking its third win in four years. The team is coached by David Carle, who also guided Team USA to its first-ever back-to-back wins at the World Junior Championship in January. Averaging four goals per game, the Pioneers were the highest-scoring team in college hockey this year. They've been led up front by senior Jack Devine, a seventh-round pick by the Florida Panthers, and defenseman Zeev Buium, chosen 12th overall by the Minnesota Wild in 2024.
Denver finished the season ranked sixth in the USCHO.com poll at season's end, with a recod of 29-11-1. In their 2025 NCHC conference tournament, they fell 4-3 to Western Michigan in double overtime in the final of the Frozen Faceoff.
In the national championship tournament, Denver reached the Frozen Four with a 5-1 win over Providence and a 3-1 win over Boston College.
After four-straight appearances in the NCAA tournament, Western Michigan has reached the Frozen Four for the first time in program history. The Broncos ranked second in offense, putting up 3.95 goals per game. They were led by sophomore Alex Bump, a fifth-round pick of the Philadephia Flyers, along with standout goaltending from freshman Los Angeles Kings prospect Hampton Slukynsky.
Coached by alumnus Pat Ferschweiler, Western Michigan earned third spot in the USCHO.com with a record of 30-7-1. Bump was named most outstanding player in the Broncos' Frozen Faceoff win over Denver — its first NCHC title in program history.
In the national championship tournament, Western Michigan reached the Frozen Four with a 2-1 double-overtime win over Minnesota State, then a 2-1 win over UMass.
Penn State Nittany forward Aiden Fink tries to score against UConn in an NCAA tournament game. ... More (Photo by Gregory Fisher/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Penn State is also making its first Frozen Four appearance, after upgrading from a club team to Div. I in 2012. Coached by Guy Gadowsky since moving into the top division, the Nittany Lions played as an independent in their first year, before moving to the Big Ten.
Penn State won its first conference championship in 2017, and has previously reached the NCAA tournament three times. This season, the club has been led by sophomore Aiden Fink, a seventh-round pick of the Nashville Predators.
With a record of 20-13-4, Penn State was ranked 12th in the USCHO.com poll. The Nittany Lions reached the semi-final of the 2025 Big Ten Tournament. Then, in the national championship tournament, they beat Maine 5-1 and took out UConn 3-2 in overtime in order to advance.
Finally, Boston University is a regular participant in the Frozen Four, with 25 appearances all time including three straight dating back to 2023. The Terriers have five wins to their name: the most recent was in 2009 — a team coached by David Quinn that included future NHLers Kevin Shattenkirk, Nick Bonino and Colin Wilson.
B.U. is now coached by Jay Pandolfo, and its roster includes Montreal Canadiens defenseman Lane Hutson's two brothers, Quinn and Cole, New York Islanders first-round pick Cole Eiserman and Vancouver Canucks first-round defense prospect Tom Willander.
With a record of 21-13-2, the Terriers ranked eighth in the USCHO.com poll. In February, they won Boston's annual Beanpot tournament. Then, they fell to Connecticut in the Hockey East Tournament.
In the national championship tournament, Boston University took out Ohio State by an 8-3 score, then beat Cornell 3-2 in overtime.
The 2025 NCAA Frozen Four is carried by ESPN in the United States and TSN in Canada. All games will be broadcast on ESPN2 and streamed on ESPN+ in the U.S. Canadian fans can find the broadcasts on TSN2 and the streams on TSN+.