INDIANAPOLIS, IN – The NCAA Division III Men’s Ice Hockey Committee has announced the field of 12 teams selected for the 2022 NCAA Division III Men’s Ice Hockey Championship. The 10th-ranked Elmira College men’s ice hockey program will face seventh-ranked Hobart on the road in a first-round matchup on Saturday, March 12 at 7:00 p.m.
Eight conferences have been awarded an automatic qualification. The remaining four teams were selected at large by the committee. The championship playoff format involves four first-round games and four quarterfinal games that are played on the campuses of the participating institutions.
Elmira went 1-1 in a pair of meetings with the Statesmen this season as the Purple & Gold recorded a 5-4 victory in overtime on the road in the final matchup during the regular season. Shawn Kennedy ’24 netted the game-winner with 14 seconds remaining in the extra session for EC, while Chris Janzen ’21 made 36 saves in net for the Soaring Eagles.
This will be the first meeting between Elmira and Hobart in the NCAA Tournament while the Soaring Eagles are 60-31-3 all-time against the Statesmen in 94 prior matchups. The two sides met in the 2015 ECAC West semifinals with Hobart capturing a 5-1 victory. The Soaring Eagles eliminated the Statesmen in the semifinals of the ECAC Tournament before capturing the championship in 2014.
Elmira received an at-large bid after dropping a 3-2 decision in overtime against No. 8 Babson in the New England Hockey Conference (NEHC) semifinal round. The Soaring Eagles went 11-4-2 during the regular season against NEHC opponents while compiling an overall record of 18-6-2 entering the tournament. Hobart also received an at-large bid after falling 3-2 against Skidmore in the NEHC semifinals. The Statesmen went 13-2-2 during the regular season against NEHC opponents while compiling an overall record of 19-5-2 entering the tournament.
Saturday’s contest between Elmira and Hobart will be played at The Cooler on the campus of Hobart College. Tickets will be $6 for adults, $4 for students with ID, and $3 for children ages 3-11, Children 2 and under get in free. Tickets will go on sale at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday and will be available on a first-come, first-served basis. Advance sale tickets will not be offered for the contest.
All games in the championship are single elimination. The four quarterfinal winners will advance to Lake Placid, New York for the semifinal and championship games, which will be conducted March 25 -26 at the Herb Brooks Arena.
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