Location: Chestnut Hill, Mass.
Record: 30-7-1 overall (20-6-1 Hockey East, first)
Qualified: Hockey East tournament champions
NCAA Championships: Four (1949, 2001, 2008, 2010)
NCAA Appearance: 30th (most recent, 2010)
Head Coach: Jerry York
Key Players: Cam Atkinson, Jr., F (38 GP, 30-21—51); Brian Gibbons, Sr., F (38 GP, 18-32—50); Brian Dumolin, So., D (36 GP, 3-30—33); John Muse, Sr., G (27-5-1, 2.13, .926)
What You Need to Know: Here they go again. Boston College is playing some of its best hockey of the year as the season winds down, with a 15-1-1 record in the last 17 games. The defending national champions generally peak at the right time, and it appears they've followed the script again this year.
How They'll Advance: Special teams and goaltending are big at this time of the year, and the Eagles got some of both in the Hockey East tournament. They scored three PPGs in a semifinal win over Northeastern and the game-winning goal late in the championship against Merrimack came on the power play. John Muse stopped 69 shots in those two games, but seven goals still got by the veteran goalie.
What Might Trip Them Up: There's always a target on the defending champs, and there's some unfamiliar opposition here. This Eagle senior class has played exactly one game against any of these other three teams, the first game of their careers was an IceBreaker game against the Wolverines. Making adjustments and adapting to styles (or imposing yours) will be a big key for BC especially.

Location: Ann Arbor, Mich.
Record: 26-10-4 overall (20-7-1-0 CCHA, first)
Qualified: At-large berth
NCAA Championships: Nine (1948, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1955, 1956, 1964, 1996, 1998)
NCAA Appearance: 34th (most recent, 2010)
Head Coach: Gordon “Red” Berenson
Key Players: Carl Hagelin, F, Sr. (18-30—48); Louie Caporusso, F, Sr. (37 GP, 10-18—28); Jon Merrill, D, Fr. (38 GP, 7-16—23); Shawn Hunwick, G, Sr. (19-8-4, 2.31, .921)
What You Need to Know: The Wolverines won the CCHA regular-season title on the last day of the regular season. While Michigan lost to Western Michigan in the CCHA semifinals, a trip to the national dance was never in doubt, as coach Red Berenson’s squad finds itself in the NCAA Tournament for a record-setting 21st time in a row.
How They'll Advance: It would be a huge boost if Brandon Burlon returns to the blue line, where Michigan’s game will need to start if the Wolverines hope to make it to St. Paul. Michigan can score with the best of them, but it will be the defensive unit locking down the opponent’s top forwards and setting the tone in the transition game that will allow the Wolverines to take control of games and advance.
What Might Trip Them Up: The Wolverines have sometimes looked psychologically unprepared for big games, losing twice at Miami last month and being outmatched by Western Michigan on Friday. If they don’t come into the NCAA Tournament with the right mindset, it’ll be tough for them to keep pace with the other teams in this region.

NO. 3 SEED NEBRASKA-OMAHA MAVERICKS

Location: Colorado Springs, Colo.
Record: 22-18-3 overall (13-13-2 WCHA, sixth)
Qualified: At-large berth
NCAA Championships: Two (1950, 1957)
NCAA Appearance: 20th (most recent, 2008)
Head Coach: Scott Owens
Key Players: Stephen Schultz, F, Sr. (41 GP, 16-27—43); Jaden Schwartz, F, Fr. (28 GP, 15-27—42); Gabe Guentzel, D, Jr. (6-21—27); Joe Howe, G, So. (17-14-2, 2.94, .901)
What You Need to Know: The Tigers posted 22 wins on the year, and seven of those came against teams in this NCAA Tournament field. Most of the team's scoring comes on the power play, as the Tigers have tallied 52 times with a man-advantage among their season total of 134 goals. That's nearly 40 percent of the team's lamp-lighters.
How They'll Advance: BC has a lot of guys that can hurt you, but even the likes of Atkinson and Whitney might not be as dynamic as freshman Jaden Schwartz. His line with Rylan Schwartz and Stephen Schultz is a tough matchup for anyone, and good enough to carry a team to a pair of wins on any weekend.
What Might Trip Them Up: If this team can't play well enough at even-strength it might be trouble for the Tigers. Also, while CC's power play (ranked 10th nationally) lifts its scoring, they've also been victimized by 11 short-handed goals against, tied for most in the nation with Michigan Tech.