2012 NCAA Men's Division I Ice Hockey Tournament
Encyclopedia
The 2012 NCAA Men's Division I Ice Hockey Tournament will involve 16 schools in single-elimination
play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA
Division I college ice hockey
. The tournament will begin on March 23, 2012, and end with the championship game on April 7.
March 23 and 24
March 24 and 25
Each regional winner will advance to the Frozen Four:
April 5 and 7
Single-elimination tournament
A single-elimination tournament, also called a knockout, cup or sudden death tournament, is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match or bracket is immediately eliminated from winning the championship or first prize in the event...
play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...
Division I college ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
. The tournament will begin on March 23, 2012, and end with the championship game on April 7.
Tournament procedure
The four regionals are officially named after their geographic areas. The following are the sites for the 2012 regionals:March 23 and 24
- East Regional, Webster Bank Arena - Bridgeport, ConnecticutBridgeport, ConnecticutBridgeport is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. Located in Fairfield County, the city had an estimated population of 144,229 at the 2010 United States Census and is the core of the Greater Bridgeport area...
(Hosts: Yale UniversityYale UniversityYale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
and Fairfield UniversityFairfield UniversityFairfield University is a private, co-educational undergraduate and master's level teaching-oriented university located in Fairfield, Connecticut, in the New England region of the United States. It was founded by the Society of Jesus in 1942, and today is one of 28 member institutions of the...
) - West Regional, Xcel Energy CenterXcel Energy CenterThe Xcel Energy Center is a multi-purpose arena located in Saint Paul, Minnesota. It is named for its locally-based corporate sponsor Xcel Energy. With an official capacity of 18,064, the arena has four spectator levels: one suite level and three general seating levels. The arena is owned by the...
- St. Paul, Minnesota (Host: University of MinnesotaUniversity of MinnesotaThe University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system and has the fourth-largest main campus student body in the United States, with 52,557...
)
March 24 and 25
- Midwest Regional, Resch CenterResch CenterThe Resch Center is a 10,200 seat multi-purpose arena, in Ashwaubenon, Wisconsin.Built in 2002, it is the home of the University of Wisconsin–Green Bay Phoenix men's basketball team, the Green Bay Gamblers ice hockey team, Green Bay Chill and the Green Bay Blizzard arena football teams.The arena...
- Green Bay, WisconsinGreen Bay, WisconsinGreen Bay is a city in and the county seat of Brown County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, located at the head of Green Bay, a sub-basin of Lake Michigan, at the mouth of the Fox River. It has an elevation of above sea level and is located north of Milwaukee. As of the 2010 United States Census,...
(Host: Michigan Technological UniversityMichigan Technological UniversityMichigan Technological University is a public research university located in Houghton, Michigan, United States. Its main campus sits on on a bluff overlooking Portage Lake...
) - Northeast Regional, DCU CenterDCU CenterThe DCU Center is an indoor arena and convention center complex, located in downtown Worcester, Massachusetts....
- Worcester, MassachusettsWorcester, MassachusettsWorcester is a city and the county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, as of the 2010 Census the city's population is 181,045, making it the second largest city in New England after Boston....
(Host: College of the Holy CrossCollege of the Holy CrossThe College of the Holy Cross is an undergraduate Roman Catholic liberal arts college located in Worcester, Massachusetts, USA...
)
Each regional winner will advance to the Frozen Four:
April 5 and 7
- St. Pete Times ForumSt. Pete Times ForumThe St. Pete Times Forum is an arena in Tampa, Florida, that has been used for ice hockey, basketball, and arena football games, as well as concerts....
- Tampa, FloridaTampa, FloridaTampa is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the county seat for Hillsborough County. Tampa is located on the west coast of Florida. The population of Tampa in 2010 was 335,709....
(Hosts: University of Alabama, Huntsville and the Tampa Bay Sports Commission)