Big Ten Compresses Men’s Hockey Tournament to Two Weeks Starting 2026

Beginning with the 2025-26 season, the Big Ten men's ice hockey tournament will shift from a three-week format to a condensed two-week, single-elimination format with all games played on campus. The top seed will receive a bye into the semifinals, while the quarterfinals, featuring seeds No. 2 through No. 7, will be single games hosted by the higher seeds. Semifinals will be held on the Saturday following the quarterfinals, hosted by the No. 1 seed and the highest remaining seed, with the championship game played the following weekend at the highest remaining seed's venue. This change returns the tournament to a single-elimination first round for the first time since the 2016-17 season, replacing the best-of-three series that had been in place since Notre Dame joined the conference in 2018. The new format increases the importance of securing the No. 1 seed and introduces more unpredictability in the quarterfinals, potentially affecting NCAA Tournament qualification dynamics. All seven teams in the conference will automatically qualify for the tournament under the new structure.