2010 NCAA Hockey Brackets Are Released

While in the midst of that massive college basketball tournament that occupies the nation for three weekends a year, the college hockey community is gearing up for their own 16 team tournament to determine a national champion. The NCAA hockey brackets are officially released and here are the teams that are going to play their way to Detroit for the Frozen Four: 

Midwest Regional - Fort Wayne, IN (March 27th - 28th)

1 Miami (OH) vs. 4 Alabama Huntsville (March 27th at 4:00 pm EST)

Miami of Ohio is coming into the NCAA Tournament as the overall number one seed and get the luxury of facing the CHA automatic bid Alabama Huntsville. Miami comes into the tournament with a 27-7-7 record while Alabama Huntsville went 12-17-3. The Redhawks have dealt with adversity all season and have been led through their goaltender play in Cody Reichard and Connor Knapp. 

2 Bemidji St. vs. 3 Michigan (March 27th at 7:30 pm EST)

Bemidji St. came into this season trying to build off the momentum they had during last season's Frozen Four. Their season ended abruptly when they lost to the Niagara Purple Eagles in the CHA semifinals but still earn an at-large bid due to their 23-9-4 record. Michigan makes it to the tournament through their win in the CCHA finals Saturday night over Northern Michigan.

Northeast Regional - Worcester, MA (March 27th - 28th)

1 Boston College vs. 4 Alaska Fairbanks (March 27th at 1:30 pm EST)

Boston College, winners of the Hockey East, gains the number one seed in the Northeast regional after their 25-10-3 record. Alaska Fairbanks was one of those bubble teams that squeaked in based on their Pairwise Ranking.

2 North Dakota vs. 3 Yale (March 27th at 5:00 pm EST)

North Dakota heads into the tournament with a 25-12-5 record and earned the two seed with .654 winning percentage against the other teams in consideration for the tournament. They defeated St. Cloud State in the WCHA final on Saturday night. Yale comes into the tournament as the regular season winner in the Hockey East and has 20-9-3 overall record this season. 

East Regional - Albany, NY (March 26th - 27th)

1 Denver vs. 4 Rochester Institute of Technology (March 26th at 3:00 pm EST)

The Denver Pioneers come into the NCAA tournament led by Hobey Baker finalist Marc Cheverie. Cheverie went 24-5-3 for the Pioneers with a .932 save percentage and 2.08 goals against average. RIT earned their way into the tournament after they defeated Sacred Heart in the Atlantic Hockey tournament. This will is their first ever berth in the NCAA tournament

2 Cornell vs. 3 New Hampshire (March 26th at 6:30 pm EST)

The Big Red are coming into the tournament on a roll after winning the ECAC tournament against Union College on Saturday night. They are led by Hobey Baker finalist Ben Scrivens who leads the nation in save percentage and goals against average. New Hampshire comes into the tournament with a 17-13-7 record. 

West Regional - Saint Paul, MN (March 26th - 27th)

1 Wisconsin vs. 4 Vermont (March 26th at 9:00 pm EST)

Wisconsin finished third in the WCHA but comes into the tournament with a 25-10-4 record and led by two Hobey Baker finalists in Blake Geofferion and Brendan Smith. Vermont has a 17-14-7 record heading into the tournament and earns the at large bid with their 11 comparison wins. 

2. St. Cloud State vs. 3 Northern Michigan (March 26th at 5:30 pm EST)

St. Cloud State heads into the tournament sixth in the pairwise ranking and coming off a 5-3 loss to North Dakota in the WCHA Final Five. Northern Michigan earns their bid with a ranking of 10 in the Pairwise Ranking and they are coming off a loss to Michigan in the CCHA tournament. 

The winner of the Midwest will face the winner of the Northeast while the winner of the East will face the winner of the West in Detroit for the Frozen Four.