This is a guide to the history and records of the “Frozen Four” men’s college hockey championships.
What is the Frozen Four?
The Frozen Four is the semifinals and finals of the DI men’s college hockey tournament. The last two rounds of the tournament will be played on the weekend of April after the 16th to four.
Although the Frozen Four only applies to the semifinals, the tournament consists of four stages. The selection committee assigns the four No. 1 seeds in order, but does not officially release the seed lines for the other 12 teams. The format of this tournament requires the national champion to win four matches in a row to claim the national championship crown.
The story of the Frozen Four
The Frozen Four began in 1948, with Michigan beating Dartmouth. It was known as the NCAA Men’s Ice Hockey Championship until 1999, when it was renamed the Frozen Four.
The first 10 Frozen Fours were held in Colorado Springs, Colorado, moving to a new location each season. Of course, some locations have been held multiple times. Minneapolis, Denver, Utica, New York, Chestnut Hill, Ma; Providence, Syracuse, and Duluth, Minn., are among the locations that have hosted the Frozen Four.
Boston University hosted it six times in three consecutive years from 1972 to 1974.
Coach Vic Heiliger’s Michigan teams won six of his first nine national championships and finished runner-up in three of them. The Wolverines added another title in 1964 and then had to wait 30 years.
Denver leads all schools with five championships since 2000. Boston College has four. Minnesota Duluth has three. Minnesota has two.
After each frozen four, the NCAA names the MVP and all-tournament teams.
| Year | Champion | Coach | Score | Won second place | Host or Site |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The year 2025 | Western Michigan (34-7-1) | Pat Ferschweiler | 6-2 | Boston University | Saint Louis |
| The year 2024 | Denver (32-9-3) | David Carl | 2-0 | Boston College | St. Paul, Minn. |
| The year 2023 | Quinnipiac (34-4-3) | Rand Pecknold | 3-2 (OT) | Minnesota | Tampa, Fla. |
| The year 2022 | Denver (31-9-1) | David Carl | 5-1 | State of Minnesota | Boston |
| 2021 | Massachusetts (20-5-4) | Greg Carvel | 5-0 | Saint Cloud State | Pittsburgh |
| 2020 | Canceled due to Covid-19 | — | — | — | — |
| 2019 | Minnesota Duluth (29-11-2) | Scott Sandelin | 3-0 | Massachusetts | Buffalo, New York |
| 2018 | Minnesota Duluth (25-16-3) | Scott Sandelin | 2-1 | Notre Dame | St. Paul, Minn. |
| 2017 | Denver (33-7-4) | Jim Montgomery | 3-2 | Duluth, Minnesota | Chicago |
| 2016 | North Dakota (34-6-4) | Brad Berry | 5-1 | Quinnipiac | Tampa |
| 2015 | Providence (26-13-2) | Nate Lyman | 4-3 | Boston University | Boston |
| 2014 | Union (NY) (32-6-4) | Rick Bennett | 7-4 | Minnesota | Philadelphia |
| 2013 | Yale (22-12-3) | Keith Allaine | 4-0 | Quinnipiac | Pittsburgh |
| 2012 | Boston College (33-10-1) | Jerry York | 4-1 | Ferris County | Tampa, Fla. |
| 2011 | Minnesota Duluth (26-10-6) | Scott Sandelin | 3-2 (lot) | Michigan | St. Paul, Minn. |
| 2010 | Boston College (29-10-3) | Jerry York | 5-0 | Wisconsin | Detroit |
| 2009 | Boston University (35-6-4) | Jack Parker | 4-3 (lot) | Miami (Ohio) | Washington DC |
| 2008 | Boston College (25-11-8) | Jerry York | 4-1 | Notre Dame | Denver |
| 2007 | Michigan State (26-13-3) | Rick Comley | 3-1 | Boston College | Saint Louis |
| 2006 | Wisconsin (30-10-3) | Mike Eaves | 2-1 | Boston College | Milwaukee |
| 2005 | Denver (32-9-2) | George Gwozdecky | 4-1 | North Dakota | Columbus, Ohio |
| 2004 | Denver (12-27-5) | George Gwozdecky | 1-0 | Maine | Boston |
| 2003 | Minnesota (30-8-9) | Don Lucia | 5-1 | New Hampshire | Buffalo, New York |
| 2002 | Minnesota (32-8-4) | Don Lucia | 4-3 (lot) | Maine | St. Paul, Minn. |
| 2001 | Boston College (33-8-2) | Jerry York | 3-2 (lot) | North Dakota | Albany, New York |
| 2000 | North Dakota (31-8-5) | Dean Blais | 4-2 | Boston College | Providence, RI |
| 1999 | Maine (31-6-4) | Sean Walsh | 3-2 (lot) | New Hampshire | Anaheim, California. |
| 1998 | Michigan (32-11-1) | Gordon “Red” Berenson | 3-2 (lot) | Boston College | Boston |
| 1997 | North Dakota (31-10-2) | Dean Blais | 6-4 | Boston University | Milwaukee |
| 1996 | Michigan (33-7-2) | Gordon “Red” Berenson | 3-2 (lot) | Colorado College | Cincinnati |
| 1995 | Boston University (31-6-3) | Jack Parker | 6-2 | Maine | Providence, RI |
| 1994 | Lake Superior County (10-31-4) | Jeff Jackson | 9-1 | Boston University | St. Paul, Minn. |
| 1993 | Maine (42-1-2) | Sean Walsh | 5-4 | Lake Superior County | Milwaukee |
| 1992 | Lake Superior County (30-9-4) | Jeff Jackson | 5-3 | #Wisconsin | Albany, New York |
| 1991 | Northern Michigan (38-5-4) | Rick Comley | 8-7 (3 outs) | Boston University | St. Paul, Minn. |
| 1990 | Wisconsin (36-9-1) | Jeff Sauer | 7-3 | Colgate | Detroit |
| 1989 | Harvard (31-3) | Bill Cleary | 4-3 (lot) | Minnesota | St. Paul, Minn. |
| 1988 | Lake Superior County (33-7-6) | Frank Anzalone | 4-3 (lot) | St. Lawrence | Lake Placid, NY |
| 1987 | North Dakota (40-8) | John “Gino” Gasparini | 5-3 | State of Michigan | Detroit |
| 1986 | Michigan State (34-9-2) | Ron Mason | 6-5 | Harvard | Providence, RI |
| 1985 | Rensselaer (35-2-1) | Mike Addesa | 2-1 | Providence | Detroit |
| 1984 | Bowling Green (34-8-2) | Jerry York | 5-4 (4 points) | Duluth, Minnesota | Lake Placid, NY |
| 1983 | Wisconsin (33-10-4) | Jeff Sauer | 6-2 | Harvard | Grand Forks, ND |
| 1982 | North Dakota (35-12) | John “Gino” Gasparini | 5-2 | Wisconsin | Providence, RI |
| 1981 | Wisconsin (27-14-1) | Bob Johnson | 6-3 | Minnesota | Duluth, Minnesota |
| 1980 | North Dakota (31-8-1) | John “Gino” Gasparini | 5-2 | Northern Michigan | Providence, RI |
| 1979 | Minnesota (32-11-1) | Herb Brooks | 4-3 | North Dakota | Detroit |
| 1978 | Boston University (30-2) | Jack Parker | 5-3 | Boston College | Providence, RI |
| 1977 | Wisconsin (37-7-1) | Bob Johnson | 6-5 (lot) | Michigan | Detroit |
| 1976 | Minnesota (28-14-2) | Herb Brooks | 6-4 | Michigan Tech | Denver |
| 1975 | Michigan Tech (32-10) | John McInnes | 6-1 | Minnesota | Saint Louis |
| 1974 | Minnesota (12-22-6) | Herb Brooks | 4-2 | Michigan Tech | Boston |
| 1973 | Wisconsin (29-9-2) | Bob Johnson | 4-2 | #Denver | Boston |
| 1972 | Boston University (26-4-1) | Jack Kelly | 4-0 | Cornell | Boston |
| 1971 | Boston University (28-2-1) | Jack Kelly | 4-2 | Minnesota | Syracuse, New York |
| 1970 | Cornell (29-0) | Ned Harkness | 6-4 | Clarkson | Lake Placid, NY |
| 1969 | Denver (26-6) | Murray Armstrong | 4-3 | Cornell | Colorado Springs, Colo. |
| 1968 | Denver (28-5-1) | Murray Armstrong | 4-0 | North Dakota | Duluth, Minnesota |
| 1967 | Cornell (27-1-1) | Ned Harkness | 4-1 | Boston University | Syracuse, New York |
| 1966 | Michigan State (16-13) | Amo Besson | 6-1 | Clarkson | Minneapolis |
| 1965 | Michigan Tech (24-5-2) | John McInnes | 8-2 | Boston College | Providence, RI |
| 1964 | Michigan (24-4-1) | Allan Renfrew | 6-3 | Denver | Denver |
| 1963 | North Dakota (22-7-3) | Barry Thorndycraft | 6-5 | Denver | Boston |
| 1962 | Michigan Tech (29-3) | John McInnes | 7-1 | Clarkson | Utica, NY |
| 1961 | Denver (30-1-1) | Murray Armstrong | 12-2 | St. Lawrence | Denver |
| 1960 | Denver (27-4-3) | Murray Armstrong | 5-3 | Michigan Tech | Boston |
| 1959 | North Dakota (20-10-1) | Bob May | 4-3 (lot) | State of Michigan | Troy, New York |
| 1958 | Denver (24-10-2) | Murray Armstrong | 6-2 | North Dakota | Minneapolis |
| 1957 | Colorado College (25-5) | Thomas Bedecki | 13-6 | Michigan | Colorado Springs, Colo. |
| 1956 | Michigan (20-2-1) | Vic Heyliger | 7-5 | Michigan Tech | Colorado Springs, Colo. |
| 1955 | Michigan (18-5-1) | Vic Heyliger | 5-3 | Colorado College | Colorado Springs, Colo. |
| 1954 | Rensselaer (18-5) | Ned Harkness | 5-4 (lot) | Minnesota | Colorado Springs, Colo. |
| 1953 | Michigan (17-7) | Vic Heyliger | 7-3 | Minnesota | Colorado Springs, Colo. |
| 1952 | Michigan (22-4) | Vic Heyliger | 4-1 | Colorado College | Colorado Springs, Colo. |
| 1951 | Michigan (22-4-1) | Vic Heyliger | 7-1 | Brown | Colorado Springs, Colo. |
| 1950 | Colorado College (18-5-1) | Chedi Thompson | 13-4 | Boston University | Colorado Springs, Colo. |
| 1949 | Boston College (21-1) | John “Snooks” Kelly | 4-3 | Dartmouth | Colorado Springs, Colo. |
| 1948 | Michigan (20-2-1) | Vic Heyliger | 8-4 | Dartmouth | Colorado Springs, Colo. |
#Competition exempt from NCAA Committee on Infractions.
The 2025 Frozen Four was the 77th tournament in NCAA history. Michigan has a 28 game lead.
Here is the leaderboard:
| Team | Appearance |
|---|---|
| Michigan | 28 |
| Boston College | 26 |
| Boston University | 25 |
| Minnesota | 23 |
| North Dakota | 22 |
| Denver | 19 |
| Harvard | 13 |
| State of Michigan | 11 |
| Maine | 11 |
| Michigan Tech | 10 |
| Colorado College | 10 |
| St. Lawrence | 9 |
15 programs have won multiple Frozen Fours.
| Team | Championship |
|---|---|
| Denver | 10 |
| Michigan | 9 |
| North Dakota | 8 |
| Wisconsin | 6 |
| Boston College | 5 |
| Boston University | 5 |
| Minnesota | 5 |
| Lake Superior County | 3 |
| State of Michigan | 3 |
| Michigan Tech | 3 |
| Duluth, Minnesota | 3 |
| Colorado College | 2 |
| Cornell | 2 |
| Maine | 2 |
| RPI | 2 |
| Bowling green | 1 |
| Harvard | 1 |
| Northern Michigan | 1 |
| Providence | 1 |
| Quinnipiac | 1 |
| UMass | 1 |
| Union | 1 |
| West Michigan | 1 |
| Yale | 1 |
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