Hockey East Explained

Hockey East Association
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Font Color:
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Founded:1984
Association:NCAA
Division:Division I
Teams:12
Sports:Ice hockey
Mens:11 teams
Womens:10 teams
Region:New England
Headquarters:Amesbury, Massachusetts, U.S.
Commissioner:Steve Metcalf
Website:http://www.hockeyeastonline.com
Map:Map - College Hockey - Hockey East states.svg
Map Size:250

The Hockey East Association, also known as Hockey East, is a college ice hockey conference which operates entirely in New England. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as a hockey-only conference.[1]

Hockey East came into existence in 1984 for men's hockey when most of its current members split from what is today known as ECAC Hockey, after disagreements with the Ivy League members. The women's league began play in 2002.[2] [3]

On October 5, 2011, the University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish (an ACC member outside football) announced they would be joining Hockey East as the conference's first non-New England school in 2013 after the CCHA folded.[4] On March 22, 2016, Notre Dame subsequently announced their men's hockey team would leave Hockey East for the Big Ten Conference at the start of the 2017–2018 season.[5] The University of Connecticut (UConn) and Hockey East jointly announced on June 21, 2012, that UConn's men's team, then in Atlantic Hockey, would join the school's women's team in Hockey East in 2014.[6] On October 24, 2013, Merrimack College, already a member of the Hockey East men's league, announced that it would upgrade its women's team from club level to full varsity status effective in 2015 and join the Hockey East women's league.[7]

On May 2, 2017, the College of the Holy Cross announced that it would join Hockey East for women's hockey only starting in 2018–19.[8]

Members

There are currently 12 member schools, with 11 participating in the men's division and 10 in the women's division.[9] [10]

Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts1863Private/Catholic (Jesuit)14,640$3,827,000,000ACCEaglesEagles
Boston, Massachusetts1839Private/Non-sectarian (formerly Methodist)31,766$3,401,000,000Patriot LeagueTerriersTerriers
Storrs, Connecticut1881Public32,669$799,000,000HuskiesHuskies
Worcester, Massachusetts1843Private/Catholic (Jesuit)2,787$1,043,000,000Patriot LeagueCrusaders
Orono, Maine1865Public11,222$444,900,000America EastBlack BearsBlack Bears
186327,269$507,000,000Atlantic 10
Minutemen
Lowell, Massachusetts189418,369$149,000,000America EastRiver Hawks
North Andover, Massachusetts1947Private/Catholic (Augustinian)5,418$53,601,816MAACWarriorsWarriors
Durham, New Hampshire1866Public14,761$475,000,000America EastWildcatsWildcats
Boston, Massachusetts1898Private/Non-sectarian20,749$1,446,000,000CAAHuskiesHuskies
Providence, Rhode Island1917Private/Catholic (Dominican)4,816$234,200,000Big EastFriarsFriars
Burlington, Vermont1791Public11,999$835,000,000America EastCatamountsCatamounts

Former member

University of Notre DameNotre Dame, IndianaFighting Irish (Men)20132017Big Ten (affiliate)

Membership timeline

DateFormat = mm/dd/yyyyImageSize = width:800 height:auto barincrement:20Period = from:01/01/1984 till:07/01/2023TimeAxis = orientation:horizontalPlotArea = right:30 left:0 bottom:50 top:5

Colors = id:men value:rgb(0.6,0.6,1) legend:men id:women value:rgb(0.5,0.8,0.5) legend:women id:both value:rgb(0.5,0.8,0.8) legend:both id:line value:black id:bg value:white

PlotData= width:15 textcolor:black shift:(5,-5) anchor:from fontsize:s

bar:BC color:men from:06/01/1984 till:06/01/2002 text:Boston College (men, 1984–present) bar:BC color:both from:06/01/2002 till:end text:(women, 2002–present) bar:BU color:men from:06/01/1984 till:06/01/2005 text:Boston University (men, 1984–present) bar:BU color:both from:06/01/2005 till:end text:(women, 2005–present) bar:Low color:men from:06/01/1984 till:end text:UMass Lowell (men, 1984–present) bar:Mne color:men from:06/01/1984 till:06/01/2002 text:Maine (men, 1984–present) bar:Mne color:both from:06/01/2002 till:end text:(women, 2002–present) bar:NH color:men from:06/01/1984 till:06/01/2002 text:New Hampshire (men, 1984–present) bar:NH color:both from:06/01/2002 till:end text:(women, 2002–present) bar:Nes color:men from:06/01/1984 till:06/01/2002 text:Northeastern (men, 1984–present) bar:Nes color:both from:06/01/2002 till:end text:(women, 2002–present) bar:Pro color:men from:06/01/1984 till:06/01/2002 text:Providence (men, 1984–present) bar:Pro color:both from:06/01/2002 till:end text:(women, 2002–present) bar:Mer color:men from:06/01/1989 till:06/01/2015 text:Merrimack (men, 1989–present) bar:Mer color:both from:06/01/2015 till:end shift:(-20) text:(women, 2015–present) bar:Mas color:men from:06/01/1994 till:end text:Massachusetts (men, 1994–present) bar:Con color:women from:06/01/2002 till:06/01/2014 text:UConn (women, 2002–present) bar:Con color:both from:06/01/2014 till:end text:(men, 2014–present) bar:Ver color:both from:06/01/2005 till:end text:Vermont (both, 2005–present) bar:ND color:men from:06/01/2013 till:06/01/2017 text:Notre Dame (men, 2013–2017) bar:HC color:women from:06/01/2018 till:end shift:(-130) text:Holy Cross (women, 2018–present)

ScaleMajor = gridcolor:line unit:year increment:2 start:01/01/1984

Conference records

Men's

Teams' records against current conference opponents.

SchoolTotal
align=left style=";" 13113921157272551074234704711762778068161745918121541750188863497114
align=left style=";" 1361282010626855146514778341192228113522116764111115919532410893458123
align=left style=";" 3132610286415404112738275111615120413324819517225
align=left style=";" 5171955681468457251081465722210705612585319675872929854643698
align=left style=";" 17744147084318428581036509514582993123757103552832441032256183
align=left style=";" 4569103478112711346815493278141124565186351104962113517847450795
align=left style=";" 23757229282785227210434684181122880124363123591121819830262794
align=left style=";" 667716521132116111567012912712654518802812987117916516822710696534135
align=left style=";" 55171166416711125053581956341051631063431271981756902030348511763123
align=left style=";" 5312114591111913435867748318624911913512659116905620282811567593121
align=left style=";" 164972453108241292984430817358191882782103430828281124637879

Champions

Men's

See main article: List of Hockey East Men's Ice Hockey Tournament champions.

The Hockey East Championship Game has been held in Boston since 1987, first at the Boston Garden and now the TD Garden,[11] since 1996.[12] The first two were held in Providence, Rhode Island at the Providence Civic Center (now the Dunkin' Donuts Center).

The final game and the semifinal games are held on consecutive nights in mid-March at the Garden. The quarterfinal round takes place the previous weekend. The top eight teams in the league advance to the quarterfinal round: the quarterfinal round series are 2-out-of-3 series with all games played at the higher seed's rink. There have been two cases where the #8 seed won on the #1 team's ice.[13]

Women's

See main article: List of Hockey East Women's Ice Hockey Tournament champions. The Hockey East Championship was held in Boston from its inception in 2003 until 2007. The event was held at Northeastern's Matthews Arena in 2003 and 2004 before moving to BU's Walter Brown Arena in 2005. The tournament returned to Matthews Arena in 2006, was held at UNH's Whittemore Center in 2007, and at UConn's Mark Edward Freitas Ice Forum in 2008. The tournament went back to UNH in 2009, Providence in 2010, and the last campus to host was Boston University in 2011. The tournament moved to Hyannis, Massachusetts in 2012, and Lawler Arena on the Merrimack College campus in North Andover, Massachusetts in 2016.

Rivalries

Boston College, Boston University, and Northeastern all take part in the annual Beanpot tournament with Harvard of ECAC Hockey.

The previously existing rivalry between Boston College and Notre Dame, the Holy War on Ice, became a conference matchup with Notre Dame's arrival in Hockey East. The two are rivals in other sports as well, as both are members of the Atlantic Coast Conference for most sports (though Notre Dame's football team remains independent, they play BC in that sport on a regular basis). Maine also has a rivalry with New Hampshire, often called "The Border War". Providence and UConn also have a rivalry which spills over from the basketball court.

13519792024
282 1918 2024
Lefty Smith – John "Snooks" Kelley Memorial Trophy 46 1969 2024
135 1979 2024
67 1929 2024

Conference arenas

Boston CollegeConte Forum7,8841988
Boston UniversityAgganis Arena (men)
Walter Brown Arena (women)
6,224
3,806
2005
1971
ConnecticutToscano Family Ice Forum2,6002023
Holy CrossHart Center1,6001975
MaineAlfond Sports Arena5,6411977
MassachusettsMullins Center8,3291993
Massachusetts LowellTsongas Center6,4961998
MerrimackMerrimack Athletics Complex2,5491972
New HampshireWhittemore Center6,5011995
NortheasternMatthews Arena4,6661910
ProvidenceSchneider Arena3,0301973
VermontGutterson Fieldhouse4,0031963

Awards

Men's

At the conclusion of each regular season schedule the coaches of each Hockey East team vote which players they choose to be on the three All-Conference Teams:[14] first team, second team and rookie team (except for 1985–86 when no rookie team was selected). Additionally they vote to award up to 6 individual trophies to an eligible player at the same time. Hockey East also awards a Conference Tournament Most Valuable Player and names a tournament all-star team, which are voted on at the conclusion of the conference tournament. Four of these awards have been bestowed every year that Hockey East has been in operation.[15] In addition, the Scoring Champion and Goaltending Champions are named based solely on statistics the players made during the season.

All-Conference Teams

First Team1984–85
Second Team1984–85
Third Team2016–17
Rookie Team1984–85
All-Tournament Team1985

Individual awards

Player of the Year1984–85
Rookie of the Year1984–85
Bob Kullen Coach of the Year Award1984–85
Len Ceglarski Sportsmanship Award1991–92
Best Defensive Forward1996–97
Best Defensive Defenseman1998–99
Three-Stars Award2000–01
Goaltending Champion1984–85
Scoring Champion1984–85
William Flynn Tournament Most Valuable Player1985

Team Awards

Lamoriello Trophy1988
Charlie Holt Team Sportsmanship Award1991–92

Women's

The award for the top HEA player each year is the Cammi Granato Award, awarded since 2009. The NCAA Division I Women's Ice Hockey Player of the year, the Patty Kazmaier Award, has been won by HEA players Brooke Whitney (Northeastern) in 2002, Alex Carpenter (Boston College) in 2015, Kendall Coyne (Northeastern) in 2016, Daryl Watts (Boston College) in 2018, and Aerin Frankel (Northeastern) in 2021.

Television rights

Since the 2019–2020 season, Hockey East games have aired regionally on NESN and are available in the rest of the United States and in Canada on Paramount+ and SportsLive.[16] [17] [18]

Games previously aired nationally on NBCSN through the 2016 Hockey East Championship game,[19] [20] and on American Sports Network prior to the service's closure.[21]

On April 6, 2022, Hockey East reached a six-year media rights agreement with ESPN and ESPN+ that will bring games to ESPN's television and streaming platforms;[22]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: BU nabs spot in Hockey East semis; Maine next – ESPN Boston . ESPN . March 15, 2010 . June 27, 2014.
  2. Web site: Maine news, sports, politics and obituaries — Bangor Daily News . 2010-09-14 . https://archive.today/20120715000838/http://sports.bangordailynews.com/2010/04/21/sports/hockey-east-thrives-in-amplsquodownamprsquo-year/ . 2012-07-15 . dead .
  3. http://www.nesn.com/hockey-east/ Hockey East News, Schedule, Scores, Statistics, Video – NESN.com
  4. https://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iG2Uq-OdQTzn1RyTOuhyPsXQeOHw?docId=1934628c359246ef97a656c0fb8df98c The Associated Press
  5. Web site: Sources: Notre Dame leaving Hockey East for Big Ten in 2017. Jim. Connelly. March 22, 2016. USCHO.com. 2016-03-23.
  6. UConn Men's Hockey to Join Hockey East in 2014–2015 . Hockey East . June 21, 2012 . June 22, 2012 . May 10, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130510190245/http://hockeyeastonline.com/men/pres1112/201206/jun21hea.php . dead .
  7. Merrimack College Women’s Ice Hockey to Join Division I, Hockey East Ranks in 2015–16 . Merrimack College Athletics . October 24, 2013 . December 1, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20131202234509/http://www.merrimackathletics.com/sports/wice/2013-14/releases/20131009na529b . December 2, 2013 . dead .
  8. Web site: Holy Cross to join Women’s Hockey East for 2018-19. Horgan. Candace. 2017-05-02. USCHO.com. https://web.archive.org/web/20170610094726/http://www.uscho.com/2017/05/02/holy-cross-to-join-womens-hockey-east-for-2018-19/. 2017-06-10. dead. 2017-05-04.
  9. http://www.uscho.com/standings/index.php?season=20102011&conf=he&gender=m Standings :: USCHO.com :: U.S. College Hockey Online
  10. http://www.uscho.com/standings/index.php?season=20102011&conf=he&gender=w Standings :: USCHO.com :: U.S. College Hockey Online
  11. http://www.hockeyjournal.com/news/2010/03/06_hockey.php New England Hockey Journal: Hockey East playoff bracket set
  12. http://www.boston.com/sports/colleges/mens_hockey/articles/2010/03/21/eagles_bear_down_in_ot_win_hockey_east_title/ Eagles bear down in OT, win Hockey East title – The Boston Globe
  13. http://www.uscho.com/m/he/?data=tournament He Could Go All the Way :: USCHO.com :: U.S. College Hockey Online
  14. News: UMaine’s Abbott named Hockey East Player of the Year, Hobey Baker finalist. The Maine Campus. 2012-03-15. 2013-08-15. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20131102232834/http://mainecampus.com/2012/03/15/umaines-abbott-named-hockey-east-player-of-the-year-hobey-baker-finalist/. 2013-11-02.
  15. News: Hockey East Awards. College hockey Historical Archive. 2013-08-15.
  16. Web site: Hockey East and CBS Interactive Announce Multi-Year Partnership . Hockey East . May 2, 2020.
  17. Web site: Hockey East and NESN Announce Multi-Year Partnership . Hockey East. November 25, 2019.
  18. Web site: 2019-2020 Hockey East Association Men's And Women's Game Schedule: Watch Live On CBS All Access . CBS Interactive. November 25, 2019.
  19. Web site: NBCSN and Hockey East Sign Multi-Year Extension . Hockey East. November 25, 2019.
  20. Web site: NBCSN to Televise Hockey East Championship Weekend . Hockey East. November 25, 2019.
  21. Web site: Hockey East League Television Package Announced . Hockey East. November 25, 2019.
  22. Web site: HOCKEY EAST ANNOUNCES SIX-YEAR MEDIA RIGHTS AGREEMENT WITH ESPN AND ESPN+ . Hockey East. April 6, 2022.