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2026 Hockey East men's tournament

The 2025 Hockey East men's ice hockey tournament is the ongoing 41st tournament in the history of the conference. It was played between March 11 and March 21, 2026. The Merrimack Warriors won their first ever Hockey East championship after beating UMass Lowell, Providence College and UMass. The championship game was played between Merrimack and Connecticut, with Merrimack winning 2-1 and becoming the first 8 seed to ever win the Hockey East tournament.

Merrimack goalie Max Ludgren was named tournament MVP after having a shutout in the semifinals vs. UMass and making 49 saves on 50 shots in the championship game.

Format

The tournament includes all eleven teams in the conference, with teams ranked according to their finish in the conference standings. Seeds 1–5 earn a bye into the quarterfinal round, while seeds 6–11 play to determine the remaining quarterfinalists. Winners in the opening round are reseeded and advanced to play top three seeds in reverse order. Winners of the quarterfinal matches are again reseeded for the semifinal, and the winners of those two games face off in the championship.

All series are single-elimination with opening round and quarterfinal matches occurring at home team sites. The two semifinal games and championship match are held at the TD Garden. The tournament champion receives an automatic bid into the NCAA Division I men's ice hockey tournament.

Standings

Bracket

<small>Note: Teams are reseeded after the Opening Round and Quarterfinals</small>

<small>Note: * denotes overtime period(s)</small>

Results

<small>Note: All game times are local.</small>

Opening Round: March 11, 2026

(11) Vermont vs. (6) Boston University

Boston, MA - Agganis Arena - 6:30 PM - Attendance: 1,931

(10) New Hampshire vs. (7) Northeastern

Chestnut Hill, MA - Conte Forum - 7:00 PM - Attendance: 452

(9) Massachusetts Lowell vs. (8) Merrimack

North Andover, MA - Lawler Rink - 7:00 PM - Attendance: 1,992

Quarterfinals: March 13–14, 2026

(5) Maine vs (4) Boston College

Chestnut Hill, MA - Conte Forum - 7:00 PM - Attendance: 5,695

(6) Boston University vs (3) Connecticut

Storrs, CT - Toscano Family Ice Forum - 1:00 PM - Attendance: 2,513

(7) Northeastern University vs (2) Massachusetts

Amherst, MA - Mullins Center - 4:00 PM - Attendance: 4,537

(8) Merrimack vs. (1) Providence

Providence, RI - Schneider Arena - 7:00 PM - Attendance: 2,798

Semifinals: March 20, 2026

(3) Connecticut vs (4) Boston College

Boston, MA - TD Garden - 7:00 PM - Attendance: 15,573

(2) Massachusetts vs (8) Merrimack

Boston, MA - TD Garden - 4:00 PM - Attendance:

Championship: March 21, 2026

(3) Connecticut vs (8) Merrimack

Boston, MA - TD Garden - 7:00 PM - Attendance: 15,759

Tournament Awards

All-Tournament Team

<small>* Tournament MVP</small>

References

External links