2024 NCHC Tournament

The 2024 NCHC Tournament was the 10th tournament in league history. It was played between March 15 and 23, 2024. Quarterfinal games were played at home team campus sites, while the final four matches were held at the Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, Minnesota. As the tournament winner, Denver earned the NCHC's automatic bid to the 2024 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey tournament.

2024 NCHC Men's ice hockey tournament
Dates	March 15–23, 2024
Teams	8
Finals site	Xcel Energy Center Saint Paul, Minnesota
Champions	Denver (3rd title)
Winning coach	David Carle (1st title)
MVP	McKade Webster (Denver)
NCHC Men's Ice Hockey Tournaments ← 2023 2025 →

Format

The first round of the postseason tournament featured a best-of-three games format. All eight conference teams participated in the tournament. Teams were seeded No. 1 through No. 8 according to their final conference standing, with a tiebreaker system used to seed teams with an identical number of points accumulated. The top four seeded teams each earn home ice and host one of the lower seeded teams.

The winners of the first round series advanced to the Xcel Energy Center for the NCHC Frozen Faceoff. The Frozen Faceoff used a single-elimination format. Teams were re-seeded No. 1 through No. 4 according to the final regular season conference standings.^[1]

Standings

2023–24 National Collegiate Hockey Conference Standings v t e
	Conference record											Overall record
	GP	W	L	T	OTW	OTL	SW	PTS	GF	GA		GP	W	L	T	GF	GA
#8 North Dakota †	24	15	8	1	1	4	0	49	87	67		40	26	12	2	151	105
#1 Denver *	24	15	7	2	3	0	1	45	110	80		42	30	9	3	198	119
#18 St. Cloud State	24	11	9	4	1	3	2	41	77	74		38	17	16	5	121	114
#15 Colorado College	24	14	8	2	5	2	0	41	66	56		37	21	13	3	111	93
#12 Omaha	24	13	8	3	5	0	3	40	68	74		40	23	13	4	117	112
#14 Western Michigan	24	11	13	0	1	5	0	35	78	64		38	21	16	1	136	97
Minnesota Duluth	24	8	14	2	3	3	2	28	65	80		37	12	20	5	103	125
Miami	24	1	21	2	0	2	0	7	44	100		36	7	26	3	78	135
Championship: March 23, 2024 † indicates conference regular season champion (Penrose Cup) * indicates conference tournament champion (Frozen Faceoff Championship Trophy) Rankings: USCHO.com Top 20 Poll Updated: April 1, 2024

Bracket

Teams are reseeded for the semifinals.

	Quarterfinals March 15–17							Semifinals March 22					Championship March 23
	1	North Dakota	5	7	-
	8	Miami	1	1	-
								1	North Dakota	3
								5	Omaha	6
	2	Denver	4	5	-
	7	Minnesota Duluth	0	2	-
													5	Omaha	1
													2	Denver	4
	3	St. Cloud State	5	1	5
	6	Western Michigan	2	6	1
								2	Denver	5*
								3	St. Cloud State	4
	4	Colorado College	4*	1	1
	5	Omaha	3	3	2

Note: * denotes overtime period(s)

Results

Note: All game times are local.

Quarterfinals

(1) North Dakota vs. (8) Miami

March 15, 2024 7:07 pm

North Dakota

5–1 (1–0, 2–1, 2–0)

Miami

Ralph Engelstad Arena Attendance: 11,320

Game reference
	Hobie Hedquist	Goalies	Logan Neaton	Referees: Bobby Lukkason Sterling Egan Linesmen: Tyler Liffrig Kyle Stephens
	(James, Zmolek) Jake Schmaltz (1) – 19:59 1–0 (Pyke, Gaber) Owen McLaughlin (13) – GW – 29:23 2–0 2–1 30:20 – Ryan Sullivan (5) (Dukovac, Daskas) (Livanavage, Berg) Riese Gaber (17) – 32:13 3–1 (Kunz) Jackson Blake (20) – 41:48 4–1 (McLaughlin, Blake) Jake Livanavage (4) – 45:13 5–1
	21 min	Penalties	9 min
	27	Shots	24

March 16, 2024 6:07 pm

North Dakota

7–1 (1–0, 1–0, 5–1)

Miami

Ralph Engelstad Arena Attendance: 11,569

Game reference
	Hobie Hedquist	Goalies	Logan Neaton	Referees: Bobby Lukkason Sterling Egan Linesmen: Tyler Liffrig Kyle Stephens
	(unassisted) Riese Gaber (18) – 13:17 1–0 (Blake, Perron) Jackson Kunz (7) – GW PP – 20:37 2–0 (McLaughlin, Kunz) Jackson Blake (21) – 41:38 3–0 (Kunz, Blake) Logan Britt (7) – 44:09 4–0 (Schmaltz, Zmolek) Dylan James (9) – 49:32 5–0 5–1 51:22 – Artur Turansky (5) (Kumlin, Simanovičs) (Wiebe, Schmaltz) Ben Strinden (6) – 58:24 6–1 (Perron, Livanavage) Hunter Johannes (10) – 58:52 7–1
	8 min	Penalties	12 min
	35	Shots	29

North Dakota wins series 2–0

(2) Denver vs. (7) Minnesota Duluth

March 15, 2024 7:07 pm

Denver

4–0 (1–0, 2–0, 1–0)

Minnesota Duluth

Magness Arena Attendance: 5,461

Game reference
	Matt Davis	Goalies	Matthew Thiessen	Referees: Ryan Hersey Nathan Wieler Linesmen: Lucas Bisbee Chase McGee
	(Olvestad, Thompson) McKade Webster (11) – GW – 12:58 1–0 (Harris, Broz) Jack Devine (26) – 33:56 2–0 (Broz, Harris) Jack Devine (27) – 39:38 3–0 (Thompson, Z. Buium) Connor Caponi (11) – EN – 59:43 4–0
	8 min	Penalties	8 min
	24	Shots	17

March 16, 2024 6:07 pm

Denver

5–2 (0–0, 3–0, 2–2)

Minnesota Duluth

Magness Arena Attendance: 6,005

Game reference
	Matt Davis	Goalies	Matthew Thiessen	Referees: Ryan Hersey Nathan Wieler Linesmen: Lucas Bisbee Chase McGee
	(Harris, Behrens) Aidan Thompson (11) – PP – 23:53 1–0 (Wright, Cebrian) Rieger Lorenz (13) – 24:20 2–0 (Broz, Davis) Sean Behrens (4) – GW – 34:02 3–0 3–1 47:00 – PP – Luke Loheit (10) (Gallatin, Bettens) 3–2 57:56 – EA – Kyle Bettens (6) (Biondi, Gallatin) (Devine) Tristan Broz (14) – EN – 58:47 4–2 (Wright) Rieger Lorenz (14) – EN – 59:38 5–2
	8 min	Penalties	22 min
	30	Shots	30

Denver wins series 2–0

(3) St. Cloud State vs. (6) Western Michigan

March 15, 2024 7:37 pm

St. Cloud State

5–2 (1–0, 1–0, 3–2)

Western Michigan

Herb Brooks National Hockey Center Attendance: 3,026

Game reference
	Isak Posch	Goalies	Cameron Rowe	Referees: Brian Hawkes Stephen Reneau Linesmen: Dana Penkivech Jeff Schultz
	(Luedtke, Hall) Jack Rogers (3) – 11:22 1–0 (Anhorn, Ingram) Tyson Gross (6) – 29:33 2–0 (Peart, Gross) Veeti Miettinen (17) – GW SH – 47:14 3–0 3–1 48:45 – Alex Bump (12) (Grainger, Colangelo) 3–2 50:44 – Alex Bump (13) (Sjolund, Berger) (Ver. Miettinen, Peart) Mason Salquist (7) – PP – 58:24 4–2 (Ver. Miettinen, Salquist) Josh Luedtke (3) – PP – 57:15 5–2
	8 min	Penalties	19 min
	30	Shots	28

March 16, 2024 6:07 pm

St. Cloud State

1–6 (0–0, 1–1, 0–5)

Western Michigan

Herb Brooks National Hockey Center Attendance: 2,495

Game reference
	Isak Posch	Goalies	Cameron Rowe	Referees: Brian Hawkes Stephen Reneau Linesmen: Dana Penkivech Jeff Schultz
	(Kupka, Anhorn) Tyson Gross (7) – 27:12 1–0 1–1 37:02 – Sam Colangelo (21) (Bump, Fiedler) 1–2 41:56 – GW PP – Dylan Wendt (22) (Bump, Grainger) 1–3 52:04 – PP – Luke Grainger (14) (Wendt, Sjolund) 1–4 57:24 – Sam Colangelo (22) (Bump, Grainger) 1–5 58:16 – EN – Sam Colangelo (23) (Galambos, Washe) 1–6 59:44 – Dylan Wendt (23) (Crusberg-Roseen, Costantini)
	24 min	Penalties	20 min
	16	Shots	40

March 17, 2024 6:07 pm

St. Cloud State

5–1 (3–1, 2–0, 0–0)

Western Michigan

Herb Brooks National Hockey Center Attendance: —

Game reference
	Isak Posch	Goalies	Cameron Rowe	Referees: Brian Hawkes Stephen Reneau Linesmen: Dana Penkivech Jeff Schultz
	(Gross, Kupka) Veeti Miettinen (19) – 3:27 1–0 (Hall, Luedtke) Jack Rogers (4) – GW – 9:10 2–0 (Salquist) Barrett Hall (7) – 11:17 3–0 3–1 11:36 – Matteo Costantini (12) (Wendt, Hillebrand) (Gross, Kupka) Veeti Miettinen (20) – PP – 22:41 4–1 (AuCoin, Rosborough) Josh Luedtke (4) – 36:49 5–1
	14 min	Penalties	21 min
	25	Shots	33

St. Cloud State wins series 2–1

(4) Colorado College vs. (5) Omaha

March 15, 2024 7:07 pm

Colorado College

4–3 (OT) (0–0, 1–3, 2–0, 1–0)

Omaha

Ed Robson Arena Attendance: 3,410

Game reference
	Kaidan Mbereko	Goalies	Simon Latkoczy	Referees: Nick Krebsbach Brandon Schmitt Linesmen: Erik Contino Dylan Peper
	0–1 25:30 – Ty Mueller (4) (G. Ludtke) 0–2 25:51 – Jack Randl (13) (Lemay, T. Ludtke) 0–3 33:24 – Jacob Slipec (2) (Guévin) (Werner, Veremyev) Chase Foley (1) – PP – 34:13 1–3 (Wisdom, Andrews) Klavs Veinbergs (3) – PP – 49:15 2–3 (Veremyev, Link) Noah Laba (20) – EA – 59:10 3–3 (Wisdom, Foley) Gleb Veremyev (15) – GW – 71:53 4–3
	2 min	Penalties	17 min
	50	Shots	15

March 16, 2024 6:07 pm

Colorado College

1–3 (1–2, 0–0, 0–1)

Omaha

Ed Robson Arena Attendance: 3,425

Game reference
	Kaidan Mbereko	Goalies	Simon Latkoczy	Referees: Nick Krebsbach Brandon Schmitt Linesmen: Erik Contino Dylan Peper
	0–1 3:13 – Tanner Ludtke (11) (G. Ludtke, Miller) (Werner) Chase Foley (2) – 7:17 1–1 1–2 16:46 – GW – Jimmy Glynn (7) (Proctor, Bremer) 1–3 47:37 – Brock Bremer (5) (T. Ludtke, Sullivan)
	4 min	Penalties	6 min
	40	Shots	21

March 17, 2024 6:07 pm

Colorado College

1–2 (1–0, 0–1, 0–1)

Omaha

Ed Robson Arena Attendance: 3,416

Game reference
	Kaidan Mbereko	Goalies	Simon Latkoczy	Referees: Nick Krebsbach Brandon Schmitt Linesmen: Erik Contino Dylan Peper
	(Laba, Werner) Klavs Veinbergs (4) – PP – 15:34 1–0 1–1 37:20 – Jimmy Glynn (11) (Lansdell, Bremer) 1–2 46:39 – GW – Brock Bremer (6) (G. Ludtke)
	2 min	Penalties	4 min
	32	Shots	22

Omaha wins series 2–1

Semifinals

(1) North Dakota vs. (5) Omaha

March 22, 2024 4:07 pm

North Dakota

3–6 (1–1, 1–2, 1–3)

Omaha

Xcel Energy Center Attendance: 8,977

Game reference
	Hobie Hedquist	Goalies	Simon Latkoczy	Referees: Sterling Egan Brian Hankes Linesmen: Jeff Schultz Dana Penkivech
	(Blake, McLaughlin) Jackson Kunz (8) – 1:18 1–0 1–1 18:30 – PP – Zach Urdahl (11) (Lansdell, Guévin) 1–2 26:17 – Matt Miller (7) (Urdahl, Sullivan) 1–3 37:06 – Jimmy Glynn (9) (G. Ludtke, Lansdell) (Strinden, Britt) Hunter Johannes (11) – 39:36 2–3 2–4 41:18 – GW – Brock Bremer (7) (Lansdell, Krenzen) (Berg, Blake) Jake Livanavage (5) – PP – 49:50 3–4 3–5 50:58 – Zach Urdahl (12) (G. Ludtke, Miller) 3–6 55:16 – EN – Zach Urdahl (13) (Sullivan, G. Ludtke)
	6 min	Penalties	12 min
	39	Shots	35

(2) Denver vs. (3) St. Cloud State

March 22, 2024 7:37 pm

Denver

5–4 (OT) (2–2, 2–2, 0–0, 1–0)

St. Cloud State

Xcel Energy Center Attendance: 8,977

Game reference
	Matt Davis	Goalies	Isak Posch	Referees: Brandon Schmitt Nick Krebsbach Linesmen: Eric Frank Sam Rankin
	0–1 1:40 – Cooper Wylie (3) (unassisted) (Lorenz, Cebrian) Zeev Buium (10) – 8:38 1–1 1–2 9:55 – Nick Portz (2) (Rosborough) (Thompson) McKade Webster (12) – 17:16 2–2 2–3 21:00 – Adam Ingram (10) (Ver. Miettinen, Okabe) (S. Buium, Z. Buium) Miko Matikka (17) – PP – 25:30 3–3 3–4 28:06 – PP – Barrett Hall (7) (Kupka, Anhorn) (S. Buium, Thompson) Miko Matikka (18) – 38:17 4–4 (Harris) Zeev Buium (11) – GW – 66:21 5–4
	2 min	Penalties	7 min
	41	Shots	25

Championship

(2) Denver vs. (5) Omaha

March 23, 2024 7:30 pm

Denver

4–1 (0–1, 2–0, 2–0)

Omaha

Xcel Energy Center Attendance: 6,929

Game reference
	Matt Davis	Goalies	Simon Latkoczy	Referees: Ryan Hersey Nathan Wieler Linesmen: Tyler Liffrig Erik Contino
	0–1 13:56 – Brock Bremer (8) (Proctor) (Matikka) McKade Webster (13) – 21:33 1–1 (Buckberger, S. Buium) McKade Webster (14) – GW – 24:54 2–1 (Devine, Z. Buium) Miko Matikka (19) – EA – 55:50 3–1 (Wright) Rieger Lorenz (15) – 58:00 4–1
	6 min	Penalties	10 min
	35	Shots	16

Tournament awards

Frozen Faceoff All-Tournament Team

• G: Šimon Latkoczy (Omaha)
• D: Zeev Buium (Denver)
• D: Griffin Ludtke (Omaha)
• F: McKade Webster * (Denver)
• F: Zach Urdahl (Omaha)
• F: Miko Matikka (Denver)

* Most Valuable Player(s)^[2]