The Hockey East Association, also known as Hockey East, is a college ice hockey conference operating entirely in New England. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as a hockey-only conference.
Hockey East came into existence in 1984 for men's hockey when most of its current members split from what is today known as ECAC Hockey, after disagreements with the Ivy League members. The women's league began play in 2002.Hockey East News, Schedule, Scores, Statistics, Video – NESN.com
On October 5, 2011, the University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish (an ACC member outside football) announced they would join Hockey East as the conference's first non-New England school in 2013 after the CCHA folded.The Associated Press On March 22, 2016, Notre Dame subsequently announced their men's hockey team would leave Hockey East for the Big Ten Conference at the start of the 2017–2018 season. The University of Connecticut (UConn) and Hockey East jointly announced on June 21, 2012, that UConn's men's team, then in Atlantic Hockey, would join the school's women's team in Hockey East in 2014. On October 24, 2013, Merrimack College, already a member of the Hockey East men's league, announced that it would upgrade its women's team from club level to full varsity status effective in 2015 and join the Hockey East women's league.
On May 2, 2017, the College of the Holy Cross announced that it would join Hockey East for women's hockey only starting in 2018–19.
Members There are currently 12 member schools, with 11 participating in the men's division and 10 in the women's division.Standings :: USCHO.com :: U.S. College Hockey Online Standings :: USCHO.com :: U.S. College Hockey Online
Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts1863Private/Catholic (Jesuit)14,640$4,236,200,000ACCEaglesEaglesBoston, Massachusetts1839Private/Non-sectarian (formerly Methodist)31,766$4,016,142,000Patriot LeagueTerriersTerriersStorrs, Connecticut1881Public 32,669$ 668,561,000Big East HuskiesHuskies Worcester, Massachusetts 1843 Private/Catholic (Jesuit) 2,787$1,207,691,000 Patriot League CrusadersOrono, Maine1865 Public11,222$442,200,000America EastBlack BearsBlack BearsAmherst, Massachusetts 186327,269$672,000,000MACMinutemenLowell, Massachusetts189418,369$200,000,000America EastRiver HawksNorth Andover, Massachusetts1947Private/Catholic (Augustinian)5,418$97,400,667MetroWarriorsWarriorsDurham, New Hampshire1866Public14,761$576,700,000America EastWildcatsWildcatsBoston, Massachusetts1898Private/Non-sectarian22,456$2,102,000,000CAAHuskiesHuskiesProvidence, Rhode Island1917Private/Catholic (Dominican)4,816$352,820,557Big EastFriarsFriarsBurlington, Vermont1791Public11,999$972,000,000America EastCatamountsCatamounts
Former member University of Notre Dame Notre Dame, Indiana Fighting Irish (Men) 2013 2017 Big Ten (affiliate)
Membership timeline
Conference records Men's Teams' records against current conference opponents. SchoolTotal1311392115727255107423470471176277806816174591812154175018886349711413612820106268551465147783411922281135221167641111159195324108934581233132610286415404112738275111615120413324819517225517195568146845725108146572221070561258531967587292985464369817744147084318428581036509514582993123757103552832441032256183456910347811271134681549327814112456518635110496211351784745079523757229282785227210434684181122880124363123591121819830262794667716521132116111567012912712654518802812987117916516822710696534135551711664167111250535819563410516310634312719817569020303485117631235312114591111913435867748318624911913512659116905620282811567593121164972453108241292984430817358191882782103430828281124637879
Men's Championships
The Hockey East Championship Game has been held in Boston since 1987. Originally held at the Boston Garden, it moved to TD GardenNew England Hockey Journal: Hockey East playoff bracket set in 1996.Eagles bear down in OT, win Hockey East title – The Boston Globe Prior to moving to Boston, the first two men's Hockey East championships were held in Providence, Rhode Island at the Providence Civic Center.
The semifinal and final games are held on consecutive nights in mid-March at TD Garden. The quarterfinal round takes place the previous weekend, and the opening round is the midweek prior to the quarterfinals. Eight teams in the league advance to the quarterfinal round. In the opening round, seeds six, seven, and eight host seeds 11, 10, and nine, respectively. After a reseeding, the top three seeds host the winners of the Opening Round while the four seed hosts the five seed in the Quarterfinals.
Championships, Frozen Fours, and NCAA Tournament Appearances School Boston College 5 7 26 38 22 14 Boston University 5 7 25 40 22 17 Connecticut 2 Maine 2 3 11 19 3 6 Massachusetts 1 1 2 6 1 2 Massachusetts Lowell 1 9 2 3 Merrimack 41 (2026) New Hampshire 2 7 22 8 3 Northeastern 1 8 1 4 Providence 1 1 5 16 4 4 Vermont 2 6 1
Women's Championships
The Hockey East Championship was held in Boston from its inception in 2003 until 2007. The event was held at Northeastern's Matthews Arena in 2003 and 2004 before moving to BU's Walter Brown Arena in 2005. The tournament returned to Matthews Arena in 2006, was held at UNH's Whittemore Center in 2007, and at UConn's Mark Edward Freitas Ice Forum in 2008. The tournament went back to UNH in 2009, Providence in 2010, and the last campus to host was Boston University in 2011. The tournament moved to Hyannis, Massachusetts in 2012, and Lawler Arena on the Merrimack College campus in North Andover, Massachusetts in 2016.
Championships, Frozen Fours, and NCAA Tournament Appearances School Boston College 1 7 11 5 3 Boston University 2 2 7 2 6 Connecticut 2 2 2 Holy Cross Maine Merrimack New Hampshire 2 5 4 5 Northeastern 1 3 6 7 9 Providence 2 1 5 Vermont
Rivalries Boston College, Boston University, and Northeastern all take part in the annual Beanpot tournament with Harvard of ECAC Hockey.
The previously existing rivalry between Boston College and Notre Dame, the Holy War on Ice, became a conference matchup with Notre Dame's arrival in Hockey East. The two are rivals in other sports as well, as both are members of the Atlantic Coast Conference for most sports (though Notre Dame's football team remains independent, they play BC in that sport on a regular basis). Maine also has a rivalry with New Hampshire, often called "The Border War". Providence and UConn also have a rivalry which spills over from the basketball court.
Boston University-Maine men's ice hockey rivalry 13519792025Green Line Rivalry 282 1918 2025 Holy War on Ice Lefty Smith - John "Snooks" Kelley Memorial Trophy 46 1969 2024 Maine-New Hampshire men's ice hockey rivalry 135 1979 2025 UConn-UMass rivalry 71 1929 2025
Conference arenas
Boston CollegeSilvio O. Conte Forum7,8841988 Boston UniversityAgganis Arena (men)Walter Brown Arena (women)6,2243,80620051971 ConnecticutToscano Family Ice Forum2,6002023 Holy CrossHart Center at the Luth Athletic Complex1,6001975 MaineHarold Alfond Sports Arena5,6411977 MassachusettsWilliam D. Mullins Memorial Center8,3291993 Massachusetts LowellTsongas Center at UMass Lowell6,4961998 MerrimackLawler Arena at Merrimack Athletics Complex2,5491972 New HampshireWhittemore Center Arena6,5011995 NortheasternVarious ProvidenceSchneider Arena3,0301973 VermontAlbert L. Gutterson Fieldhouse4,0031963
Awards Men's At the conclusion of each regular season schedule, the coaches of each Hockey East team vote which players they choose to be on the three All-Conference Teams: first team, second team and rookie team (except for 1985–86 when no rookie team was selected). They also vote to award up to 6 individual trophies to an eligible player at the same time. Hockey East also awards a Conference Tournament Most Valuable Player and names a tournament all-star team, which are voted on at the conclusion of the conference tournament. Four of these awards have been bestowed every year that Hockey East has been in operation. In addition, the Scoring Champion and Goaltending Champions are named based solely on statistics the players made during the season.
All-Conference Teams First Team1984–85Second Team1984–85Third Team2016–17Rookie Team1984–85All-Tournament Team1985
Individual awards Player of the Year1984–85Rookie of the Year1984–85Bob Kullen Coach of the Year Award1984–85Len Ceglarski Sportsmanship Award1991–92Best Defensive Forward1996–97Best Defensive Defenseman1998–99Three-Stars Award2000–01Goaltending Champion1984–85Scoring Champion1984–85William Flynn Tournament Most Valuable Player1985
Team Awards Lamoriello Trophy1988Charlie Holt Team Sportsmanship Award1991-92
Women's The award for the top HEA player each year is the Cammi Granato Award, awarded since 2009. The NCAA Division I Women's Ice Hockey Player of the year, the Patty Kazmaier Award, has been won by HEA players Brooke Whitney (Northeastern) in 2002, Alex Carpenter (Boston College) in 2015, Kendall Coyne (Northeastern) in 2016, Daryl Watts (Boston College) in 2018, and Aerin Frankel (Northeastern) in 2021.
Television rights Since the 2019–2020 season, Hockey East games have aired regionally on NESN and are available in the rest of the United States and in Canada on Paramount+ and SportsLive.
Games previously aired nationally on NBCSN through the 2016 Hockey East Championship game, and on American Sports Network before the service's closure.
On April 6, 2022, Hockey East reached a six-year media rights agreement with ESPN and ESPN+ that will bring games to ESPN's television and streaming platforms;
300 games per season with all contests available on ESPN+. 3 games per season that will air on ESPNU.
References
External links Hockey East home page