MINNEAPOLIS — A renaissance season for the University of Minnesota hockey team will continue in the NCAA tournament.
The Gophers won the WCHA regular-season title this season for the first time since 2007 and advanced to the WCHA Final Five tournament for the first time since 2009. Now, ranked No. 4 in the country, Minnesota was named the No. 2 seed in the NCAA West Regional to be played at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul next weekend.
The Gophers haven't made the NCAA tournament since 2008 when they lost in the first round to Boston College in a regional in Worcester, Mass. They don't have to travel quite so far this time around.
With the West Regional being played in St. Paul -- the site of this weekend's Final Five -- Minnesota was expected to stay close to home and serve as unofficial tournament hosts. North Dakota, who won the WCHA Final Five on Saturday with a 4-0 win against Denver, is the No. 1 seed in the West Regional. The Sioux won their third straight Final Five title Saturday after their big comeback Friday against the Gophers. Minnesota led 3-0 as the top seed, before surrendering six straight goals in a 6-3 loss to North Dakota.
The Gophers (26-13-1) will get the chance to bounce back from that loss when they face No. 3 seed in the West, Boston, at 4 p.m. on Saturday, March 24. The game will be televised on ESPN3. The Terriers (23-14-1) are ranked No. 5 in the country. North Dakota (25-12-3) will face Western Michigan (21-13-6) on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. on ESPN 3. The winners will meet Sunday for the chance to advance to the Frozen Four in Tampa, Fla.
Boston College, Michigan and Union (NY) earned the top seeds in the other three regions. Defending NCAA champion Minnesota Duluth is the No. 2 seed in the Northeast Regional in Worcester. Boston College is the top seed in the East.
The Frozen Four is scheduled for April 5 and 7 at the Tampa Bay Times Forum.
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