3 Minnesota teams heading to Men's NCAA Frozen Four

(FOX 9) - Three of the final four NCAA Men’s Ice Hockey Tournament teams will be from the state of Minnesota, and the state was one win away from having all four.

Minnesota-Duluth, St. Cloud State University and Minnesota State-Mankato will all head to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania for the NCAA Frozen Four the second weekend in April. Minnesota and Bemidji State were each one win away from reaching the semifinal weekend as well. 

Minnesota State and St. Cloud State will play each other in one semifinal, guaranteeing that a Minnesota team will play in the title game. Duluth will play UMass in the other matchup. 

It’s the first time three of the Frozen Four all have hailed from the same state since 1992 when three Michigan teams (Michigan, Michigan State and Lake Superior State) accomplished the rare feat.

This year was also the first time in history that all five Minnesota division 1 men’s hockey programs made the NCAA tournament.

Bemidji State, had it won its regional final game versus UMass, would have also advanced to the Frozen Four. Bemidji State knocked off one of the number 1 seeds in Wisconsin to open the tournament Friday.

Minnesota Duluth are the defending national champions, having won the 2019 title. There was no Frozen Four in 2020. 

Saturday night, Duluth beat North Dakota in a record 5-overtime game to keep their title defense alive.