AMESBURY, Mass. - The Hockey East Association today announced the field for the 2023 Hockey East Men’s Tournament. The tournament will feature all 11 programs competing in a single-elimination format. A full schedule can be found in the attached release.

The Opening Round begins Wednesday, March 8 as No. 8 seed Boston College (13-15-6/8-11-5 HE) hosts No. 9 Massachusetts (13-16-5/7-14-3 HE) at Conte Forum on NESN+ at 7:00 p.m. It marks the 11th postseason meeting of the two programs and just the second time the Eagles and Minutemen meet in the Opening Round, the first resulting in a 5-4 UMass win in Chestnut Hill in 1995. That victory stands as the only UMass tournament win over BC. Boston College won all three regular season tilts against UMass in 2022-23, including a 4-2 win at Frozen Fenway on Jan. 6. Massachusetts is the two-time defending Tournament champion, while Boston College last lifted the Lamoriello Trophy in 2012.

No. 7 Providence (14-13-7/9-9-6 HE) will welcome No. 10 New Hampshire (11-20-3/6-15-3 HE) on Wednesday night. UNH holds a 14-7-0 mark over the Friars in Hockey East Tournament play, although the two have not met since 2015. During the 2022-23 season, they skated to a 1-1-1 mark, with Providence holding an edge with a shootout victory on Oct. 28. The Wildcats boast a record of 7-3-2 since the calendar flipped to 2023, including a six-game unbeaten streak in February. The Friars have never lost an Opening Round game in tournament history (3-0).

No. 6 Maine (15-15-5/9-11-4) is set to entertain No. 11 Vermont (10-19-5/5-16-3 HE), the first time the Catamounts have traveled to Orono in the Hockey East Tournament. Maine finished the year 13-7-4, including a two-game sweep at Vermont on Dec. 2-3, after a 2-8-1 start to the year. The Black Bears and Catamounts have met five times previously in the postseason, all coming in Opening Round games and most recently in 2017, with Vermont owning a 4-1 mark.

One quarterfinal is already set, as No. 4 UConn (20-11-3/13-9-2 HE) will face off with UMass Lowell (17-14-3/11-10-3 HE) on Saturday, March 11. The programs split a weekend series on Nov. 18-19, the home team winning each outing. It is UConn’s fourth quarterfinal appearance after the Huskies advanced to TD Garden or the first time in program history in 2022, falling in the championship game in overtime to UMass. The River Hawks are looking to return to the semifinals for the third consecutive season and 21st time overall. UConn and UMass Lowell have never met in the postseason.

Top-seeded Boston University (24-10-0/18-6-0 HE) claims the Hockey East Regular Season crown for the 11th time in program history under first-year head coach Jay Pandolfo. The Terriers await the lowest advancing seed from the Opening Round. BU last won the Lamoriello Trophy as Hockey East Tournament champions in 2018.

No. 2 Merrimack (21-12-1/16-8-0 HE) enters the Hockey East Tournament as the second seed for the first time ever. It is just the highest finish in program history after finishing fourth in 2010-11. The Warriors advanced to the Hockey East title game that season, their only appearance in the championship contest.

No. 3 Northeastern (17-12-5/14-7-3 HE) earned the third seed for the fourth time. The Huskies have won three championship games in program history, including 2016 and 2019. The 2021-22 Hockey East regular season champions have moved onto the semifinals in three of the last five years.

The Hockey East semifinals are set tentatively set for 4:00pm and 7:30pm on Friday, March 17 at TD Garden in Boston, while the 38th championship game will be played Saturday, March 18 at 7:00pm. All three games will air live on NESN. Tickets are available via the host institution for each on-campus game while championship tickets can be purchased at TDGarden.com/HockeyEast.