| 1986 CIAU University Cup | |
| Venues: | Varsity Arena, Edmonton, Alberta |
| Winners: | Alberta Golden Bears |
| Count: | 7 |
| Dates: | March 14–23 |
| Games: | 10 |
| Num Teams: | 7 |
| Award Title: | MVP |
| Award: | Dennis Cranston (Alberta) |
| Prev Season: | 1985 |
| Next Season: | 1987 |
The 1986 CIAU Men's University Cup Hockey Tournament (24th annual) was held at the Varsity Arena in Edmonton, Alberta. The Alberta Golden Bears served as tournament host.
Note: * denotes overtime period(s)
Note: * denotes overtime period(s)
Note: * denotes overtime period(s)
Note: * denotes overtime period(s)
Due to the collapse of the GPAC's ice hockey division, there were now only four conferences playing senior collegiate hockey. Despite this, the selection committee decided to increase the number of bids into the tournament by adding two wild-card spots. The teams were ranked according to the following criteria; the host team (Alberta) received a bye into the semifinals. The four league champions were then ranked 1–4 and placed in the regional brackets accordingly. The two wild-card teams were then seeded so that there would not be any intra-conference games in the regional finals. The teams were re-ranked for the semifinals and arranged so that the top-ranked team played the lowest-ranked team.
The regional rounds were played as best of three series while the remainder of the tournament were single elimination matches.
The East regionals were held at the Jean-Louis Lévesque Arena in Moncton, New Brunswick. The Central regionals were held at the York University Ice Palace in Toronto, Ontario. The West regionals were held at the Colisée de Trois-Rivières in Trois-Rivières, Quebec. Because UQTR was seeded higher than Calgary, the Patriotes hosted the West regional.
| Seed | Team | Qualification | Record | Appearance | Last | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| H | Host | 21–10–0 | 16th | 1985 | ||
| 1 | Atlantic: AUAA Champion | 24–5–0 | 7th | 1983 | ||
| 2 | Ontario: OUAA Champion | 23–6–1 | 3rd | 1985 | ||
| 3 | Quebec: QUAA Champion | 20–7–0 | 2nd | 1984 | ||
| 4 | West: Canada West Champion | 23–11–0 | 5th | 1981 | ||
| WC1 | Wild-card: AUAA Runner-up | 21–10–0 | 2nd | 1979 | ||
| WC2 | Wild-card: OUAA Runner-up | 22–5–1 | 2nd | 1983 |
Note: * denotes overtime period(s)[1]