The 2021 NCAA Men's Hockey Championship bracket was selected Sunday.
North Dakota was selected as the top overall seed. Boston College, Minnesota, and Wisconsin were named the other three No. 1 seeds, in order.
The winner from each of the four regional sites will advance to the Frozen Four at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh on April 8 and 10. The entire 16-team tournament uses a single-elimination format.
The 2020 tournament was not played due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Minnesota Duluth won the last two championships in 2018 and 2019.
All times ET:
Fargo Regional
Scheels Arena, Fargo, N.D.
1. North Dakota (21-5-1) 4. American International (15-3-0)
Every week, theScore offers a fantasy hockey column detailing a handful of moves you should make. This edition focuses on Week 10. Roster percentages and position eligibility are courtesy of Yahoo.
Add Jack Campbell
Team: Maple Leafs Position: G Rostered: 33%
Last week, I recommended stashing Campbell while he was injured; those who listened would've reaped the rewards after he recorded a 31-save shutout in his first game back Saturday against the Calgary Flames.
Campbell has only played four games this season due to injury but has been lights out over the small sample size, sporting a .965 save percentage and 1.00 goals-against average.
The 29-year-old is going to come down to earth at some point, but with Frederik Andersen struggling (.897 save percentage in 23 games) and playing through an injury, Campbell will likely get a run of starts moving forward and could easily claim the No. 1 job. He needs to be rostered in all leagues.
Drop Carter Hart
Icon Sportswire / Icon Sportswire / Getty
Team: Flyers Position: G Rostered: 84%
Hart's season has been a nightmare. The 22-year-old owns an .875 save percentage and 3.83 goals-against average in 20 appearances. He's been especially bad lately, recording an .821 save percentage over his last eight games.
The young netminder has clearly lost his confidence and seems unlikely to get it back anytime soon. You're better off adding someone like Campbell or streaming goalies rather than hoping Hart turns it around.
Trade Chris Kreider
Team: Rangers Position: LW Rostered: 73%
Kreider is scoring at the best pace of his career, averaging 0.47 goals per contest. He's managing this despite taking just 2.07 shots per game, his lowest mark since 2015-16.
The 29-year-old's goal-scoring success stems from his unsustainable 22.6 shooting percentage. That's over 9% higher than his 13.4% career mark entering the season. He's bound to hit a slump soon, so trade him now while he still has value.
Add Jonathan Drouin
Icon Sportswire / Icon Sportswire / Getty
Team: Canadiens Position: C/LW Rostered: 21%
There are a whopping 20 teams with four games this week. The Canadiens are one of them, but they play Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday, avoiding the busiest game nights of the week. This allows for maximum lineup optimization, as you should have room for Drouin all four nights.
Drouin has been a great playmaker this season but is snakebit with just two goals (3.8 shooting percentage). His career shooting percentage entering the campaign was 9.7%, so he's bound to see some pucks go in eventually.
The Ducks also play four times this week, but like Montreal, none fall on Tuesday, Thursday, or Saturday, creating ideal lineup optimization.
Rakell has been streaky this season. He managed only seven points over his first 20 games but got hot with 12 points in the following six contests. He's gone cold again with just two points in his last six.
The Swede is more than capable of going on another hot streak. Not only is he a highly skilled player who plays top-line minutes, but he also ranks eighth in the NHL in individual scoring chances, meaning he's due to heat up again at some point.
The Los Angeles Kings inked defenseman Matt Roy to a three-year extension with an average annual value of $3.15-million, the team announced Sunday.
Roy, 26, was set to become a restricted free agent at the end of this season.
The 6-foot-1 defenseman has contributed seven assists while averaging a career-high 19:16 of ice time over 24 games this season.
Roy isn't the flashiest blue-liner, but he makes a strong impact at both ends. He's improved at limiting his opponents defensively since his rookie season, and Roy also helps the Kings drive offense at five-on-five, according to HockeyViz's isolated impact tool.
Red (positive) is good in the offensive zone while blue (negative) is good in the defensive zone.
Los Angeles selected Roy during the seventh round in 2015. The Detroit native has amassed six goals and 31 points over 119 career contests.
Toronto's decision to waive Boyd is primarily focused on preserving cap space ahead of the April 12 trade deadline, according to Sportsnet's Chris Johnston.
Boyd can be shifted to the Maple Leafs' taxi squad if he goes unclaimed, which would allow the team to accrue daily cap space while carrying a 20-man roster, notes Johnson.
Boyd, 27, signed a one-year deal with Toronto this past offseason. He's been a quality depth piece on the Maple Leafs' fourth line, chipping in eight points in 20 games.
Van Riemsdyk, 29, inked a one-year deal worth $800,000 with the Capitals in October, and he was set to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of this season.
The 6-foot-2 blue-liner has appeared in just nine games this season, contributing one goal while averaging 15:07 of ice time.
Van Riemsdyk has recorded 16 goals and 70 points over 373 career contests. He was on the Chicago Blackhawks team that captured the Stanley Cup during his rookie campaign in 2015.
The Blues buried their goal 12 seconds into the ensuing man advantage and didn't relinquish the lead.
"There's really no explanation for it there," head coach Bob Boughner said, according to Alex Espinoza of NBCSN. "Just a horrible call. I guess he spun too early or something? I don't know. I've watched it three times. It's completely fine. It's Patty Marleau by the way. The guy's going to set Gordie Howe's (games played) record and you threw him in the box and it affected the whole game. Just use your head.
"It's frustrating for me and I don't want to say the wrong thing. But what went on there was a travesty."
Sharks netminder Devan Dubnyk didn't hold back either.
"It's embarrassing," he said. "It's Mickey Mouse. I don't care if you want to say 'follow the rule book.' It's completely ridiculous to make a call like that in a 2-2 hockey game in the third period in the middle of the season. I don't know what to say. It's incredible."
The Blues added two more goals in the third period to claim a 5-2 victory. San Jose sits 11 points back of St. Louis for the final playoff spot in the West Division after the loss.
Thomas Hickey opened up about his difficult journey after playing his first NHL game in almost two years Saturday night.
The New York Islanders defenseman collected a pair of assists in a 6-1 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers. He suited up for the first time since May 3, 2019.
Injuries, including a concussion, had derailed his career. In addition, his brother Dan died of cancer at the age of 33 last March.
"It meant everything, really," Hickey said when asked about being a key part of Saturday's win. "Just to be with the guys was big, and then to chip in was huge. (It was) a very emotional night. (I'm) really happy with the effort of the guys and it's nice to come back and get a win. That's the biggest thing, and (I) just (have) a lot of good feelings right now."
Hickey added he dealt with doubt about whether he would ever get an opportunity to play in the NHL again.
"You just don't know," he said. "There are so many factors that go into it, so you just don't know when your time's going to come, and every day that goes by you feel like maybe it's a bit further away. But that's not always reality, it's just how you feel, so that was the doubt, but I believe in myself and I've reinforced that, so I was prepared for that."
The 32-year-old said he felt great about being back on the ice and having another chance to make his family proud.
"It's the best feeling I've had in a long time. Obviously, personally and professionally, it's been tough and there are people that you want to do things for to make them happy because we've had a really rough go.
"I've been thinking about my brother and I've always wanted to just do good things while he was battling and fighting and to show him that (I) can play for him. And I think that just carries over even though he's not with us. That's in the back of your mind, so those are the things you're thinking about, and it's been a tough road, but I feel like it's worth that wait."
Hickey was the Islanders' nominee for the Masterton Trophy - awarded to the player who "best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to ice hockey" - last June.
He's spent his entire seven-year career with the Islanders, who claimed him off waivers from the Los Angeles Kings in 2013.
It was Campbell's first appearance since Feb. 27, when he blanked the Edmonton Oilers with a 30-save effort. The 29-year-old had been limited to three games in 2021 due to injuries, but he's excelled when healthy since Toronto acquired him in a trade with the Los Angeles Kings in February 2020.
Jack Campbell now has a .934 save percentage and 7-2-1 record since joining the Leafs.
Campbell last allowed a goal in the third period of the Maple Leafs' 3-2 win over the Flames on Jan. 24, though he's suited up for only three games in that span.
Saturday's game was the second of a back-to-back against Calgary. Frederik Andersen allowed four goals on 18 shots in a 4-3 Toronto loss Friday, and the Danish puck-stopper didn't dress for the rematch.
Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe said postgame Andersen didn't back Campbell up due to injury, according to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman. Andersen admitted earlier in the week he hasn't been 100% healthy since he returned from a four-game absence earlier this month.
