The puck drops on the NCAA women’s ice hockey national tournament tomorrow

The GIST: The puck drops on the first round of the national tournament tomorrow — aka perfect timing since women’s hockey is the moment. With a sustainable pro league that just can’t stop breaking barriers awaiting top NCAAers, expect this to be one of the most exciting and inspiring tourneys yet. Yo VIP, let’s kick it.

How it works: The NCAA Tournament has two stages: regionals and the Frozen Four. In tomorrow’s regional semifinals, the six lowest seeds battle for a (slap)shot at skating in Saturday’s regional final, where the top five squads lie in wait, well-rested from their first-round bye.

• The weekend’s survivors advance to the pinnacle of college hockey: the Frozen Four. On March 22nd, the last gals standing will take the semifinal ice with hopes of lighting lamps during the March 24th national championship game.

The favorites: The Ohio State Buckeyes snagged the No. 1 seed, despite falling 6–3 to reigning national champ and No. 2–seed Wisconsin in Saturday’s WCHA final. The Buckeyes and Badgers have met five times this season: Ohio State won the first three, but Wisconsin took the last two. A sixth showdown would mean a repeat of last year’s Frozen Four final.

• But don’t count out No. 3 Colgate. The Raiders sailed through last week’s talent-packed ECAC tournament, crushing all opponents — including two national Top-10 teams, Cornell and Clarkson — by outscoring ’em 18–3 across the tourney’s four games. Sheesh.

The dark horses: Unseeded Minnesota Duluth doesn’t have a bye like the top four seeds — but hey, Wisconsin won last year’s natty from a similar starting spot. The Bulldogs’ path goes through the formidable Ohio State, but if they can pull off their own miracle on ice, who’s to say they can’t win the whole damn thing?

• Unseeded Cornell will also face a first-round challenger — they open the tourney against Stonehill tomorrow at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN+ — but after sharpening their skills and skates in the brutal ECAC all season, they could have the stamina to cause chaos.