MSU sophomore forward Shane Vansaghi (23) at the Michigan State vs. Ohio State hockey matchup at Munn Ice Arena in East Lansing, MI, on Feb. 27, 2026.
Michigan State hockey is headed to the NCAA Tournament for the third straight season.
MSU earned the No. 3 overall seed and a No. 1 regional seed following its regular-season performance. The Spartans won their third consecutive Big Ten regular-season title and finished third in the NPI Rankings with a 25-8-2 overall record.
MSU is the No. 1 seed in the Worcester, Massachusetts, region, held at DCU Center.
The Spartans are set to compete against No. 4 seed UConn on Thursday, March 26, at 1:30 p.m. ET. UConn lost 2-1 to Merrimack in the Hockey East Tournament final but also secured its NCAA spot based on the NPI.
No. 2 seed Dartmouth and No. 3 seed Wisconsin will also compete in the Worcester regional. The winners of the first regional contest will face each other on Saturday, March 28.
MSU is one of 16 teams competing in the single-elimination tournament, consisting of four regions and two regional rounds before the semifinals — better known as the Frozen Four.
The matchup marks MSU’s third straight tournament appearance. Head coach Adam Nightingale led the team to its first one in 12 years during the 2023-24 season.
The Spartans won the Big Ten Tournament in 2024 and 2025, securing automatic bids to the NCAA Tournament. Their path to the NCAAs differed this year, as the team was eliminated by Ohio State in the Big Ten Tournament semifinals.
Despite the loss, MSU was guaranteed a spot in the NCAA Tournament this season due to its presence in the NPI Rankings.
This will be the first time under Nightingale that MSU enters the NCAA Tournament following a loss.
MSU’s recent appearances
The Spartans' most recent NCAA Tournament was a heartbreaker.
MSU was upset by Cornell in the first round of regionals after taking a late penalty. Cornell scored a goal with 10 seconds left in the game, sending the Spartans home with a 4-3 loss.
The Spartans advanced a little further in the 2024 tournament, defeating Western Michigan 5-4 in overtime, but fell short of the Frozen Four with a 5-2 loss to Michigan in the next round.
Other contenders
Michigan, North Dakota and Western Michigan are the No. 1, 2 and 4 overall seeds in sequential order.
Six teams won their conference tournaments and earned automatic bids to the NCAAs. The other 10 teams were selected based on NPI Rankings, like MSU and UConn.
Michigan, Denver, Dartmouth, Minnesota State, Merrimack and Bentley earned automatic bids, although many of them would have made the NCAA Tournament regardless due to the NPI.
The Big Ten represents a fourth of the NCAA Tournament with MSU, Michigan, Penn State and Wisconsin competing. MSU leads the tournament in first-round draft picks (4) and overall draft picks (15).
Frozen Four facts
Support student media! Please consider donating to The State News and help fund the future of journalism.
With regional matchups set, MSU is now on the first step to the Frozen Four.
The Frozen Four will take place from April 9-11 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The semifinals will be held on Thursday, April 9, with game times TBA.
The championship game is on Saturday, April 11, at 7:30 p.m. ET. All Frozen Four games will be broadcast on ESPN2.
