Frozen Four expert predictions, picks for NCAA hockey bracket and national championship
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he PC men's hockey team learns its NCAA tourney seed, and opponent
The Providence College Friars will head to Manchester to face defending champion Denver in the NCAA men's hockey tournament.
As the NCAA men's and women's basketball tournaments move on to their Sweet 16 and Elite Eight rounds this weekend, men's college hockey will begin its process of crowning a national champion.
The road to the Frozen Four officially gets started this week, with 16 teams in the 2025 NCAA Hockey Tournament vying for the opportunity to be immortalized in their sport's long and storied history.
Many of college hockey's most historically decorated programs qualified for the field this year, either through an automatic berth or an at-large bid. Each of the past four programs to win a national championship is represented, including reigning national champion Denver, which has captured two of the past three national titles under wunderkind coach David Carle.
REQUIRED READING: Men's NCAA hockey selection show recap: Bracket, schedule, 2025 Frozen Four predictions
It's Boston College, though, that enters the event as the No. 1 overall seed, with Michigan State, Maine and Western Michigan, in order, rounding out the top four. Some of the sport's other established powers, such as Minnesota and Boston University, will look to add to their immense trophy cases while upstarts like UConn and Bentley will aim to make a run in their first-ever appearances in the tournament.
Who from that crowded and competitive group of teams will end up hoisting the national championship trophy in St. Louis on April 12?
Here's a look at Frozen Four and national championship predictions from writers from the USA TODAY Network:
NCAA hockey bracket predictions for Frozen Four, national championship
Mike Brehm, USA TODAY Sports
Regions listed in parentheses
Frozen Four picks
Michigan State (Toldeo)
Maine (Allentown)
Boston College (Manchester)
Minnesota (Fargo)
NCAA hockey championship: Boston College over Michigan State
After falling short in the 2024 title game, Boston College gets it done this year. Jacob Fowler is one of college hockey's top goalies, and the line of Ryan Leonard, Gabriel Perreault and James Hagens showed in the USA's gold-medal run at the world junior hockey championship that it thrives in big games.
Helene St. James, Detroit Free Press
Regions listed in parentheses
Michigan State (Toledo)
Maine (Allentown)
Boston College (Manchester)
Western Michigan (Fargo)
NCAA hockey championship: Michigan State over Boston College
Spartans should swagger into the tournament after their double-overtime victory over Ohio State to claim the Big Ten trophy. Between Isaac Howard's dominance with the puck and Trey Augustine (a Red Wings draft pick) delivering outstanding performances in net, the Spartans looked poised to celebrate college hockey's top prize. — Helene St. James
Nathaniel Bott, Lansing State Journal
Frozen Four picks
Regions listed in parentheses
Boston College (Manchester)
Michigan State (Toledo)
UMass (Fargo)
Maine (Allentown)
NCAA hockey championship: Michigan State over Boston College
Michigan State has a favorable regional in nearby Toledo to get to St. Louis. And with goaltender Trey Augustine and Hobey Baker finalist Isaac Howard carrying the load, the Spartans will win their fourth title in program history. — Nathaniel Bott.
Craig Meyer, USA TODAY Network
Frozen Four
Regions listed in parentheses
Boston College (Manchester)
Michigan State (Toledo)
UConn (Allentown)
Minnesota (Fargo)
NCAA hockey championship: Boston College over UConn
Making it to the Frozen Four championship game would be a hard-earned road for the Eagles, who will have to get out of a region including a Denver team that beat it in the national title last season and which has two Hobey Baker finalists on its roster this year. They're the No. 1 overall seed for a reason, though, and will follow up a stellar regular season with their first national championship under coach Greg Brown, doing so three years after he took over for the legendary Jerry York.
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