| AHA men's ice hockey tournament | |
| Optional Subheader: | Conference hockey championship |
| Sport: | Ice hockey |
| Conference: | Atlantic Hockey Association |
| Format: | Single-elimination / best two-of-three tournament |
| Current Stadium: | LECOM Harborcenter |
| Current Location: | Buffalo, New York |
| Years: | 2004-present |
| Most Recent: | 2024 Atlantic Hockey Tournament |
| Current Champion: | American International |
| Most Championships: | Air Force (7) |
| Trophy: | Riley Trophy |
| Website: | Atlantic Hockey Online |
The AHA tournament is the conference tournament for the Atlantic Hockey Association. The winner of the tournament receives an automatic berth into the NCAA Division I men's ice hockey tournament.
The tournament was first held in 2004 after the cessation of the MAAC men's ice hockey tournament, the first year of conference play. The final four games were held at Tate Rink in West Point, New York in 2004. The tournament championship moved to the Northford Ice Pavilion in Northford, Connecticut for 2005, then to the Hart Center in Worcester, Massachusetts for 2006. Starting with the 2007 tournament, the final four was moved to a neutral site, the Blue Cross Arena in Rochester, New York, the home of the AHL's Rochester Americans.[1] Starting in 2023, all tournament games were moved to campus sites, hosted by the higher seeds of each matchup.
See main article: List of AHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament champions. [2]
| Year | Regular Season Champion | Tournament Champion | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Holy Cross | Holy Cross | Atlantic Hockey Association founded by American International, Army, Bentley, Canisius, Connecticut, Holy Cross, Mercyhurst, Quinnipiac and Sacred Heart | |
| 2005 | Quinnipiac | Mercyhurst | Final AHA season for Quinnipiac, (leaving for the ECAC) | |
| 2006 | Holy Cross | Holy Cross | ||
| 2007 | RIT | Air Force | Air Force and RIT join the AHA | |
| 2008 | Army | Air Force | ||
| 2009 | RIT Air Force | Air Force | ||
| 2010 | RIT | RIT | ||
| 2011 | RIT | Air Force | Niagara and Robert Morris join the AHA | |
| 2012 | Air Force | Air Force | ||
| 2013 | Niagara | Canisius | ||
| 2014 | Mercyhurst | Robert Morris | Final AHA season for Connecticut, (leaving for Hockey East) | |
| 2015 | Robert Morris | RIT | ||
| 2016 | Robert Morris | RIT | ||
| 2017 | Canisius | Air Force | ||
| 2018 | Mercyhurst | Air Force | ||
| 2019 | American International | American International | ||
| 2020 | American International | None | Tournament cancelled after quarterfinals due to COVID-19 pandemic | |
| 2021 | American International | American International | ||
| 2022 | American International | American International | ||
| 2023 | RIT | Canisius | ||
| 2024 | RIT | RIT |
| No. | School | Record | Pct | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | Air Force | 7–1 | ||
| 6 | RIT | 4–2 | ||
| 5 | Mercyhurst | 1–4 | ||
| 4 | American International | 3–1 | ||
| 4 | Canisius | 2–2 | ||
| 4 | Robert Morris | 1–3 | ||
| 2 | Holy Cross | 2–1 | ||
| 2 | Sacred Heart | 0–2 | ||
| 1 | Army | 0–1 | ||
| 1 | Bentley | 0–1 | ||
| 1 | Niagara | 0–1 | ||
| 1 | Quinnipiac | 0–1 |
| No. | Coach | Record | Pct | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | 7–1 | |||
| 6 | 4–2 | |||
| 5 | 1–4 | |||
| 4 | 3–1 | |||
| 4 | 1–3 | |||
| 2 | 2–0 | |||
| 2 | 1–1 | |||
| 2 | 1–1 | |||
| 1 | 0–1 | |||
| 1 | 0–1 | |||
| 1 | 0–1 | |||
| 1 | 0–1 | |||
| 1 | 0–1 | |||
| 1 | 0–1 |
See main article: article and Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Men's Ice Hockey Tournament. The MAAC founded its hockey sponsorship starting in 1997 due to NCAA regulations that required all Division I conferences to participate in all Division sports. At the founding of the MAAC hockey conference, only three of the eight founding teams were full members of the conference (Canisius, Fairfield, Iona). The MAAC began play starting with the 1998-99 season and quickly added two additional teams (Mercyhurst and Bentley) the following year. Army joined the conference for the 2000-01 season, bringing the conference up to eleven member teams. At the conclusion of the 2002-03 season Fairfield and Iona both discontinued their men's ice hockey programs, and while the conference's remaining nine teams could continue without them, having only one full member necessitated the folding of the MAAC hockey conference as the eight associate members had no vote for the legislation the conference passed. The following year all of the teams continued their programs in the newly formed Atlantic Hockey conference.[4]