Frozen Four Future Locations: Where Will the Event Be Held in 2026, 2027 & Beyond?

Here's what the future of men's college hockey's flagship event looks like.

Boston College's Jacob Fowler makes a save against Denver's Jared Wright in the 2024 men's national championship. / Matt Krohn-Imagn Images

The NCAA men's hockey tournament is an underrated jewel in the college sports crown—a chance for schools that might otherwise be overlooked to shine on a national stage, and a frequent showcase for American hockey talent of tomorrow.

Once a heavily territorial affair—the first 10 men's Frozen Fours were all in Colorado Springs—college hockey's flagship event has fanned out across the United States. Indeed, the last time the men's Frozen Four was held in a non-NHL arena was in 2010; the last time it was held in a non-NHL city was in 2006. Though nowhere near as lucrative as football or basketball, college hockey is big business.

With that in mind, here's a look at the men's Frozen Four locations of tomorrow.

Confirmed Future Locations for the Frozen Four

The locations of the next three Frozen Fours have already been chosen.

YEAR	DATES	CITY	ARENA	PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE HOSTING
2026	April 9 and 11	Paradise, Nev.	T-Mobile Arena	N/A
2027	April 8 and 10	Washington, D.C.	Capital One Arena	2009
2028	April 6 and 8	Chicago	United Center	2017

Capital One Arena and United Center are returning hosts, while T-Mobile Arena's selection follows a wave of sports interest in Las Vegas—as well as the phenomenal success of its NHL expansion team, the Vegas Golden Knights.

2026 Frozen Four Host City

The 2026 men's Frozen Four will be held at the T-Mobile Arena in Paradise, Nev. Only 13 college games have ever been played at the arena—most recently in 2023. It will be a hike for most college hockey fanbases, but convincing fans to travel to Sin City is rarely difficult.

2027 Frozen Four Host City

The 2027 edition of the event will be held at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. It's the building's second men's Frozen Four, following the 2009 edition—that was the one won in epic fashion by Boston University over Miami-Ohio in overtime. Remarkably, only one men's college game has been held there since—a 4–1 Penn State win over Army this past Dec. 12.

2028 Frozen Four Host City

The 2028 men's Frozen Four will be held at Chicago's United Center for the second time. The event previously visited the shores of Lake Michigan in 2017; Denver took the title that year 3–2 over Minnesota-Duluth. Five men's college games have been held there all-time; the last took place in 2019.

Beyond 2028: Potential Future Host Cities

Detroit feels like an obvious candidate; the city was slated to host the 2020 event before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and hasn't hosted since 2010. Denver is also sitting on a lengthy hosting drought, having last staged the event in 2008—and staying in the Rocky Mountain region, could Salt Lake City get some run with the 2034 Winter Olympics coming down the pipe?

What Factors Go into Choosing a Frozen Four Location?

A 54-page PDF outlining the NCAA's general championship selection criteria can be viewed here, but here are common themes between recent sites. The arena has to be larger than your usual college arena, the city has to be big enough to accommodate players and fans, and hockey has to have some presence there. That doesn't necessarily mean college hockey—Tampa has hosted the men's Frozen Four three times, for instance.

As previously noted, you have to go back 19 years to find the last non-NHL city to host the men's Frozen Four—the Bradley Center in Milwaukee, then the home of the Milwaukee Bucks. You have to go back 15 to find the last non-NHL arena to host—Ford Field in Detroit, home of the Detroit Lions.

Cities That Have Hosted the Most Frozen Fours

Here are the five cities that have hosted the men's Frozen Four the most frequently.

RANK	CITY	TIMES HOSTED	YEARS
1	Colorado Springs	11	1948-57, 1969
2	Boston	8	1960, 1972-74, 1998, 2004, 2015, 2022
T-3	Providence	7	1965, 1978, 1980, 1982, 1986, 1995, 2000
T-3	St. Paul, Minn.	7	1989, 1991, 1994, 2002, 2011, 2018, 2024
5	Detroit	6	1977, 1979, 1985, 1987, 1990, 2010

Colorado Springs was the tournament's original home (and is a longstanding hub for American winter sports more broadly), so its presence here isn't a huge surprise. Boston, Saint Paul and Detroit are here to represent the so-called "three M's" of college hockey—Massachusetts, Minnesota and Michigan. Providence, too, is a significant New England regional hub.

It was St. Paul that hosted arguably the greatest men's national championship—Northern Michigan's 8–7 triple-overtime win over Boston University in 1991.

Potential Dark Horse Cities for Future Frozen Fours

Salt Lake City makes perfect sense—not only for the premise of a forthcoming Winter Olympics, but also for the region's booming population. New York never hosting is odd and should be rectified—why not give the New York Islanders' shiny new UBS Arena a try? Seattle, too, could be a decent off-the-beaten-path candidate for the spotlight.

Impact of Host Cities on the Frozen Four Experience

Location plays a huge role on determining the flavor of the men's Frozen Four. Why are Boston, Detroit and Saint Paul chosen to host so frequently? Fans of New England, Michigan and Upper Midwest teams don't have to travel far. Conversely, locations like Las Vegas and Tampa offer something different—the chance for tourism to lure fans to locales they may not otherwise visit. We leave it to the reader to determine which approach is better for the game.

The Future of the Frozen Four: Trends & Predictions

The 2026 foray into Las Vegas will mark a watershed moment for college hockey. as the NCAA appears to be gambling (pun intended) that the Golden Knights have drummed up enough hockey interest to lure casual fans to T-Mobile Arena.

That may be the extent of college hockey's exploratory appetite, however—with Canadian-American relations at a multi-century nadir, an international Frozen Four appears unlikely. Keep an eye, though, on NHL arena development projects that could introduce new sites into the fray (Philadelphia, anyone?).

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