Frozen Four

Frozen Four, A day after Minnesota Duluth and Michigan struck their tickets to the Frozen Four, Notre Dame and North Dakota has won the right to join them on Sunday, which means that the CCHA and WCHA – the two most west of conferences in Division I college hockey – will be represented in only two weeks at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota

The WCHA is guaranteed two teams in the Frozen Four games that began on Sunday, either as North Dakota or Denver is joined by Minnesota Duluth, or the Fighting Sioux pushed through to win the Midwest Regional. Meanwhile, Notre Dame eliminated New Hampshire, North Regional, marking the first time since 2005 that East hockey team will not play for the NCAA championship.

With the results of Sunday, Frozen Four this year will be the first time since 2005 to include teams of less than three conferences. That year, all four teams were from the WCHA.

Either conference could have a monopoly on the title game April: Minnesota Duluth will play Notre Dame in a semifinal, while North Dakota and Michigan will meet in the other.

North Dakota, Denver 1 – A week after fighting the Sioux and the Pioneers went to double overtime to decide the WCHA Championship, a rematch of the finals of the Midwest Regional Conference was not even close. A day after scoring the winning goal in double overtime, Denver rookie Jason Zucker scored with one second remaining in the first period to -1 after minutes, but North Dakota got goals in the second from Evan Trupp and Brett Hextalll, then put away the Pioneers with three goals in the last frame.

Notre Dame 2, New Hampshire 1 – The fight against Irish targets received from Stephen Johns and Billy Maday to beat the Wildcats, who hosted the Northeast Regional at Verizon Wireless Arena in Manchester, NH New Hampshire rose in a goal in the third period on Mike Sislo 15th goal of the year, but a late penalty for the Wildcats’ Mike Beck prevented UNH make a strong final charge with the goalie pulled.