WAKEFIELD, Mass. - The Hockey East Association announced today the seeding and tournament field for the 2021 Hockey East Men’s Tournament, a single-elimination format with each game hosted at the home arena of the higher seed. A full schedule for the 37th annual postseason can be found below.

The men’s playoff will be a 10-team affair, with two Opening Round games on Wednesday, March 10 Vermont and UMass Lowell and New Hampshire and Maine. The winners of those contests will move on to the quarterfinals on Sunday, March 14. Semifinals are slated to take place on Wednesday, March 17 with the championship game held on Saturday, March 20 to determine the winner of the 2021 Lamoriello Trophy and an automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament.

Boston College earned the top seed and right to host each game in the Hockey East Tournament after skating to a 16-4-1 record in regular season play. The Eagles earned the #1 seed for the 16th time in program history and are seeking the Lamoriello Trophy for the first time since 2012. Their 11 tournament titles are the most in the 35-year history of the tournament. In 2019, head coach Jerry York won his 63rd game in the Hockey East Tournament, the most of any coach, and currently has a record of 63-23-1 in the league postseason. Boston College will host either Vermont, New Hampshire, or Maine in the quarterfinals on Sunday, March 14 at 4:30 p.m.

Boston University clinched the #2 seed on Saturday, finishing the regular season with a 10-3-1 mark in 14 contests to secure hosting rights through at least the semifinals. The Terriers have won two of the last five Lamoriello Trophies and are looking to become just the second program to win at last 10 Hockey East Tournament crowns. BU will welcome either UMass Lowell, Maine, or New Hampshire in the quarterfinals on Sunday, March 14 at 1:00 p.m.

Massachusetts earns a top-three seed in the Hockey East Tournament for the second consecutive field after winning the program’s first regular season title in 2018-19. The Minutemen carried a 13-5-4 record during the regular season and ended the year on a seven-game unbeaten streak (4-0-3) despite dropping two of the shootouts. Northeastern will travel to Amherst for a 4:30 p.m. puck drop in the quarterfinals on Sunday, March 14. The Huskies finished the regular season with a 9-8-3 mark and enter the tournament as the reigning champions from the 2019 playoff. UMass won both of the two regular season meetings between the squads, 4-3 and 5-3, on January 1-2. All time, Northeastern owns a 4-1 record over Massachusetts in the Hockey East Tournament. The teams most recent playoff clash was in a 2018 quarterfinal series, a Northeastern sweep.

UConn finished the regular season with a 10-10-2 record to claim the #4 seed in the Hockey East Tournament, the Huskies’ best finish since joining the league in 2014-15. UConn currently has an 0-8 record in four trips to the league postseason. The Huskies welcome Providence to Storrs on Sunday, March 14 at 3:30 p.m. for their first home Hockey East playoff game. The teams met three times during the regular season as UConn earned a 2-1-0 record, including a 5-3 victory on March 5 at home. The Friars earned a 10-8-5 record in 23 regular season games, the most in the league in 2020-21. Seeking its first tournament title since 1996, Providence is 16-12 in the postseason with Nate Leaman behind the bench.

UMass Lowell (7-8-1) draws Vermont (1-9-2) for the fourth all-time postseason meeting between the two programs. The River Hawks are 46-50-3 all time in the Hockey East Tournament, including winning three of the last seven titles and appearing in the championship game five years in a row from 2013-17. Norm Bazin has a 20-11 record in tournament games, the second-highest total among active head coaches behind Jerry York’s record 63. Vermont returns to the tournament for the first time since 2018 and have one at least game in 11 of 12 of their postseason appearances. The teams will play their opening round contest on Wednesday at 3:00 p.m. The game will air live on NESN and stream on SportsLive.

Maine (3-10-2) will host their first game of the 2020-21 season when they welcome archrival New Hampshire (5-13-3) to Alfond Arena on Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. In eight prior postseason meetings, the Black Bears own a 7-1 record over the Wildcats, most recently sweeping an opening round series in 2018. Maine has not advanced out of the quarterfinals since 2012, while New Hampshire last moved on to the penultimate round in 2015.

Merrimack’s men’s program will not compete in the 2021 Hockey East Tournament due to COVID-19 protocols. They finish the year with a 5-11-2 mark that placed them ninth in the final Army ROTC Hockey East Standings.

ABOUT HOCKEY EAST: The Hockey East Association is an 11-team Division I college men’s hockey conference founded in 1984 and a 10-team Division I women’s league which began play in 2002-03. The men’s league has won nine NCAA championships in the past 26 years including Providence College in 2015 at TD Garden in Boston. Since 1999, Hockey East has won seven men’s NCAA Championships with 16 NCAA Championship Game appearances, while placing 27 teams in the Frozen Four and 71 teams in the NCAA Tournament during that time. Overall, Hockey East has sent 115 teams to the men’s NCAA Tournament since its inaugural season, more than any other conference in that span. Hockey East is home to 11 Hobey Baker winners and three Patty Kazmaier honorees.