Ice Breaker Tournament
The Ice Breaker Tournament is a college Division I men's ice hockey tournament played annually at the start of each season.
The tournament began play in 1997 as an exhibition and was created as an early-season showcase for top-ranked teams from four separate conferences. After the first year the games became an official part of the NCAA season and counted towards the standings. The participants are selected partially based upon their pre-season rankings with one of the four usually serving as the host. Twice, in 2010 and 2012, local sports commissions served as hosts when there was no local university available. Only Minnesota has played in consecutive Ice Breaker Tournaments. The tournament is typically held during the opening weekend of college hockey season.† Michigan and North Dakota declined to participate in a shootout to determine a winner
