The Crab Pot Tournament (also stylized as CrabPot Tournament or Navy Crab Pot) is a men's college ice hockey tournament hosted annually by the United States Naval Academy. The Midshipmen have competed in every edition of the tournament, with local schools such as the University of Maryland and Towson University being regular participants.
It is the oldest college hockey tournament operating at the non-varsity level and one of the oldest extant tournaments for any level of play.
History Navy Hockey began as an informal student group in the early 1960s and was officially formed as a club (non-varsity) sports team in 1971. In 1975, Steven Gordon became the head coach of the hockey program. Gordon, a former goalie at Northeastern University in the 1970s, had played in the Beanpot tournament in Boston. He and the team created their own version of the competition for the 1977–78 season. The original tournament was slatted to include Ramapo College, the University of Delaware, and Penn State University. Penn State was eventually replaced with Rutgers University.
Crowds of hundreds to thousands regularly attend the two-day tournament at the Naval Academy. In its early years the Crab Pot regularly overlapped with Super Bowl weekend, with the championship game coinciding with the NFL game. This tradition was abandoned in the 1980s and now the tournament regularly takes place in mid-February. Initially the Crab Pot sometimes included varsity NCAA teams. However the majority of the tournament field, and in later years the entirety, has been made up of other non-varsity programs.
The winning team receives the Crab Pot Trophy and has its name hung on a large banner above the ice rink.
Format The tournament is two rounds over two days, with the first day having all four participants play in semifinal games. The second day features the consolation game and the championship game.
Year-by-year results Note: If a final standing is not listed in the third column that either means the consolation game did not take place that year or that the information is unavailable. YearWinnerScoreRunner-upOther Participants (Final standing)References1978Navy Midshipmen6–4Ramapo CollegeUniversity of Delaware (3rd)Rutgers University (4th)1979Ramapo College7–6 (OT)Navy MidshipmenUniversity of Delaware (3rd)St. John's University (4th)1980Navy Midshipmen8–3Ramapo CollegeWest Chester State College (3rd)St. Bonaventure University (4th)1981Navy Midshipmen5–4Penn State UniversityRamapo College (3rd)West Chester State College (4th)1982Penn State University11–2Navy MidshipmenUpsala College (3rd)Suffolk University (4th)1983Navy Midshipmen6–2Penn State UniversityCanisius College (3rd)University of Delaware (4th)1984Iona College3–0Penn State UniversityNavy MidshipmenWestern New England College1985Penn State University3–1Iona CollegeNavy MidshipmenCurry College1986Penn State University6–5Navy MidshipmenUniversity of DelawareWest Chester University1987Penn State University7–4Navy MidshipmenUniversity of DelawareWest Chester University1988Community College of Rhode IslandNavy MidshipmenUniversity of Delaware (3rd) (wd)1989Community College of Rhode IslandNavy MidshipmenUniversity of DelawareWorcester Polytechnic Institute1990Villanova University10–2Navy MidshipmenUniversity of PennsylvaniaWest Chester University1991Navy Midshipmen5–3West Chester UniversityUniversity of Rhode Island (3rd)Fordham University (4th)1992University of Maryland6–5 (OT)Navy MidshipmenUniversity of West VirginiaUnknown1993Eastern Michigan University5–4Navy MidshipmenWorcester Polytechnic Institute (3rd)University of Maryland (4th)1994Eastern Michigan University8–4Towson State UniversityRoyal Military College Saint-Jean (3rd)Navy Midshipmen (4th)1995Navy Midshipmen7–3Worcester Polytechnic InstituteLehigh University (3rd)Massachusetts Institute of Technology (4th)1996Navy Midshipmen5–2University of Rhode IslandUnknownUnknown1997University at Buffalo2–1Navy MidshipmenMarquette University (3rd)Drexel University (4th)1998University at Buffalo5–1Navy MidshipmenUnited States Coast Guard Academy (3rd)University of Maryland (4th)1999Towson University5–3Navy MidshipmenUniversity at Buffalo (3rd)United States Coast Guard Academy (4th)2000Towson University3–2Navy MidshipmenUniversity of MarylandHofstra University2001Eastern Michigan University8–2Saint Louis UniversityVillanova University (3rd)Navy Midshipmen (4th)2002Navy Midshipmen5–1Lehigh UniversityUniversity of West Virginia (3rd)Mercyhurst College (4th)2003Navy Midshipmen9–3Mercyhurst CollegeVillanova University (3rd)Lehigh University (4th)2004Mercyhurst College5–2Navy MidshipmenTowson University (3rd)Villanova University (4th)2005Mercyhurst College7–2Navy MidshipmenRobert Morris University (3rd)Villanova University (4th)2006Navy Midshipmen4–3Robert Morris UniversityVillanova University (3rd)University of Maryland (4th)2007Liberty University11–7Navy MidshipmenUniversity of MarylandVillanova University2008Towson University4–1Navy MidshipmenUniversity of Maryland, Baltimore County (3rd)University of Maryland (4th)2009University of Maryland, Baltimore County7–4Navy MidshipmenTowson University (3rd)University of Maryland (4th)2010Towson University4–1Navy MidshipmenUniversity of Maryland (3rd)Salisbury University (4th)2011Navy Midshipmen6–2Towson UniversityPenn State Berks (3rd)Lehigh University (4th)2012Navy Midshipmen8–4University of Maryland, Baltimore CountyTowson University (3rd)University of Maryland (4th)2013Navy Midshipmen4–0Towson UniversityUniversity of Maryland, Baltimore County (3rd)University of Maryland (4th)2014Navy Midshipmen4–2Penn State UniversityUniversity of Maryland (3rd)Towson University (4th)2015University of Central Oklahoma6–1Navy MidshipmenPenn State University (3rd)University of Maryland (4th)2016Navy Midshipmen6–2University of Maryland, Baltimore CountyUniversity of Maryland (3rd)Georgetown University (4th)2017Towson University5–4Navy MidshipmenUniversity of Maryland, Baltimore County (3rd)University of Maryland (4th)2018Towson University7–2Wagner CollegeNavy Midshipmen (3rd)University of Maryland (4th)2019Navy Midshipmen4–3 (SO)University of Rhode IslandUniversity of West Virginia (3rd)Towson University (4th) Final2020Navy Midshipmen9–2Towson UniversityStevenson University (3rd)University of Maryland (4th)2021Cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic2022Navy Midshipmen3–1Stevenson UniversityUniversity of Maryland (3rd)Towson University (4th)2023Navy Midshipmen6–3University of MarylandStevenson University (3rd)Towson University (4th)2024Navy Midshipmen4–3 (SO)Towson UniversityThe College of New Jersey (3rd)Stevenson University (4th)2025Navy Midshipmen4–1University of MarylandThe College of New Jersey (3rd)Towson University (4th)2026The College of New Jersey4–3 (OT)University of MarylandNavy Midshipmen (3rd)Towson University (4th)
Statistics +ChampionshipsRunner-upSemifinalistNo.Year(s)No.Year(s)No.Year(s)United States Naval Academy211978, 1980, 1981, 1983, 1991, 1995, 1996, 2002, 2003, 2006,2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023, 2024,2025201979, 1982, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1993, 1997, 1998,1999, 2000, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2015, 201761984, 1985, 1994, 2001, 2018, 2026
Non-Navy participants +SchoolChampionshipsRunner-upNo.Year(s)No.Year(s)Towson University61999, 2000, 2008, 2010, 2017, 201851994, 2011, 2013, 2020, 2024Penn State University41982, 1985, 1986, 198741981, 1983, 1984, 2014Eastern Michigan University31993, 1994, 20010Community College of Rhode Island21988, 19890University at Buffalo21997, 19980Mercyhurst College22004, 200512003Ramapo College1197921978, 1980Iona University1198411985Villanova University119900University of Maryland1199232023, 2025, 2026Liberty University120070University of Maryland, Baltimore County1200922012, 2016University of Central Oklahoma120150The College of New Jersey120260University of Rhode Island021996, 2019West Chester University011991Worcester Polytechnic Institute011995Saint Louis University012001Robert Morris University012006Wagner College012018Stevenson University012022
Winning Streaks
This is a list of all occasions where a Crab Pot team has won at least two consecutive championships between years. The current winning streak, if any, is highlighted in chartreuse . Winning streaks with equal numbers of wins are sorted chronologically, with earlier streaks appearing first.
The longest championship win streak belongs to the U.S. Naval Academy, who won six straight tournaments between 2019 and 2025.
Titles Team First Title Last Title6 Naval Academy 2019 20254 Naval Academy 2011 20143 Penn State University 1985 19872 Naval Academy 1980 19812 C.C.R.I. 1988 19892 Eastern Michigan University 1993 19942 Naval Academy 1995 19962 University at Buffalo 1997 19982 Towson University 1999 20002 Naval Academy 2002 20032 Mercyhurst College 2004 20052 Towson University 2017 2018
Notes
References
External links Navy Ice Hockey