Women's Frozen Four: Keys for Ohio State, Wisconsin in title game rematch

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(0:46)ESPNMultiple AuthorsMar 22, 2026, 09:00 AM ETEmailPrintThe 2026 NCAA women's national championship game is set, with the sport's two most dominant teams meeting for the title yet again.No
2 Wisconsin will face off for the national title for the fourth straight season, advancing to Sunday's Frozen Four final with two very different victories in the semifinals
The Buckeyes blew out Northeastern, scoring four first-period goals en route to a 5-0 win, while the Badgers were extended to overtime but prevailed 4-3 over Penn State.The national championship game will be played Sunday at 4 p.m
ET and air on ESPNU and will be streamed live on the ESPN App.There has been no shortage of high-stakes games between Ohio State and Wisconsin in recent years
Wisconsin beat Ohio State 4-3 in overtime to win the 2025 national championship
The teams have alternated as national champs over the past five seasons, with Wisconsin winning in 2023 and Ohio State taking the crown in 2024 in head-to-head matchups
Ohio State beat Minnesota Duluth for the title in 2022 and Wisconsin defeated Northeastern in the 2021 title game.Ohio State earned the top overall seed in this year's 11-team field after beating Wisconsin 2-1 for the WCHA tournament championship.Below is the schedule for the tournament and keys for Wisconsin and Ohio State in the title game from ESPN hockey analyst Paige Capistran, along with highlights and a look at the entire field
This page will be updated with results as the tournament progresses.ScheduleAll times Eastern
All games streamed on ESPN App.REGIONALSFirst roundYale 1, Minnesota Duluth 0UConn 4, Princeton 1Quinnipiac 4, Franklin Pierce 0FinalsNo
1 Ohio State 6, Yale 1FROZEN FOUR
at University Park, PennsylvaniaSemifinals, FridayOhio State 5, Northeastern 0Wisconsin 4, Penn State 3 (OT)Final, SundayOhio State vs
(ESPNU)Keys to national championship gameOHIO STATEGet off to a fast start: The Buckeyes had a near-perfect semifinal game against Northeastern but could have had a better start to the first period
It will be crucial for Ohio State to play a full 60-minute game against the Badgers as Wisconsin has the skill to capitalize if the Buckeyes take any shifts off.Build off Friday's win: Ohio State played to their identity in the semifinal game as they were relentless
The Buckeyes will want to continue their physical play and keep taking away the time and space of their opponent
Attention to small details separates Ohio State from other teams.WISCONSINPlay disciplined: After taking five penalties in their semifinal win over Penn State, the Badgers will want to stay out of the box and not be too aggressive in the offensive zone
Wisconsin defenders will need to be disciplined and make sure someone is covering back.Keep the power play humming: The Badgers' power play was outstanding Friday night and will want to have the same puck movement in the championship game
Knowing how solid Ohio State is defensively, if the Badgers have a power-play opportunity, they will need to capitalize
-- Paige CapistranHighlightsplay1:18Northeastern Huskies vs
Buckeyes Game HighlightsNortheastern Huskies vs
Buckeyes Game Highlightsplay1:17Yale Bulldogs vs
Buckeyes Game HighlightsYale Bulldogs vs
Buckeyes Game Highlightsplay1:14Quinnipiac Bobcats vs
Wisconsin Badgers Game HighlightsQuinnipiac Bobcats vs
Wisconsin Badgers Game Highlightsplay1:19Uconn Huskies vs
Nittany Lions Game HighlightsUconn Huskies vs
Nittany Lions Game Highlightsplay1:19Northeastern Huskies vs
Minnesota Golden Gophers Game HighlightsNortheastern Huskies vs
Minnesota Golden Gophers Game HighlightsField at a glanceRecords, statistics entering NCAA tournamentOhio State (33-4-0)NPI ranking: 1How the Buckeyes got in: WCHA tournament championNCAA history: Eighth appearance, seeking third national titleNumbers to know: The Buckeyes are 19-1 since the calendar flipped to 2026, with the one loss to Wisconsin on Feb
They have allowed less than two goals in 15 of their last 20 games
Ohio State can put the puck in the net, too, ranking third in the country with 4.42 goals per game
Joy Dunne of the US Olympic team leads the Buckeyes with 26 goals in 28 games
Hilda Svensson, who played for Sweden in the Milan Olympics, is the top scoring freshman in the country with 1.67 points per game
She had a goal and a team-high eight shots on goal in the WCHA title win over the Badgers.Paige Capistran's take: The top seeded Buckeyes are peaking and coming together as a team at the right time
Coming into the tournament as the favorite, they won't take their foot off the gas and will continue the blue-collar play that defines them.Wisconsin (32-4-2)NPI ranking: 2How the Badgers got in: At-large berth (WCHA)NCAA history: 20th appearance, seeking ninth titleNumbers to know: The Badgers split four games with Minnesota and were 3-2 against Ohio State, accounting for their four losses on the season
Wisconsin leads the country in scoring (5.26 goals per game), is second in goals allowed per game (1.45) and is tops in power-play percentage (.357)
Seniors Caroline Harvey (2.03 points per game) and Lacey Eden (1.92) lead the high-powered attack
Six Badgers have more than 40 points on the season
Wisconsin coach Mark Johnson is one win away from becoming the first NCAA women's hockey coach to reach 700 career victories.Capistran's take: The Badgers' stacked roster includes four Olympians who won gold for Team USA: Kirsten Simms, Laila Edwards, McNaughton and Olympic MVP Harvey
Plus, Eden is a top-10 Patty Kazmaier finalist along with Edwards, Harvey and Simms
Johnson's team certainly has the skill to go all the way.Penn State (32-5-0)NPI ranking: 3How the Nittany Lions got in: Atlantic Hockey tournament championNCAA history: Fourth appearance, seeking first titleNumbers to know: Penn State claimed its fourth straight AHA title with a 3-2 win over Mercyhurst on Saturday
Senior Katie DeSa is one of the best goaltenders in the country, allowing just 37 goals in 29 games this season
The Nittany Lions lead the country in scoring defense (1.35 goals per game) and are fourth in scoring offense (4.3 goals per game)
US Olympian Tessa Janecke leads a balanced offense with 45 points (23 goals, 22 assists) in 29 games
Grace Outwater leads Penn State with 24 goals and 10 skaters have at least 20 points on the season.Capistran's take: Janecke is tough as nails and leads the Nittany Lions on and off the ice
Penn State wants to win its first national title in its own building.Minnesota (26-11-1)NPI ranking: 4How the Golden Gophers got in: At-large berth (WCHA)NCAA history: 23rd appearance, seeking seventh titleNumbers to know: Minnesota closed January with a 23-4 record, but struggled down the stretch with Abbey Murphy (Team USA) and Josefin Bouveng (Sweden) away for the Olympics, going 1-6-1 before winning two straight over St
Cloud State in the first round of the WCHA playoffs
The Gophers then lost 4-0 to Ohio State in the WCHA semifinals
Murphy leads the country with 2.13 points per game (38 goals and 26 assists for 64 points in 30 games) and Bouveng is 10th at 1.40 (15 goals, 27 assists in 30 games)
Minnesota is second in the country with 171 goals and fourth in goal margin (plus-2.34).Capistran's take: Minnesota was playing its best hockey before the Olympics and wants to revive its offensive identity, playing with speed and pushing the pace
With a deep lineup, Brad Frost has the flexibility to roll three lines evenly
But Murphy, one of the most lethal players in the NCAA, will lead the way.Northeastern (28-8-1)NPI ranking: 5How the Huskies got in: At-large berth (Hockey East)NCAA history: Eighth appearance, seeking first titleNumbers to know: Northeastern won all three regular-season meetings with UConn, but lost a 2-1 double-overtime heartbreaker in the Hockey East final
Before that loss, the Huskies had been 12-1-1 in their previous 14 games
Northeastern trails only Wisconsin in penalty-kill percentage (.895)
Stryker Zablocki (18 goals, 25 assists) became the first player to win Hockey East player of the year and freshman of the year since 2017-18
The Huskies are back in the NCAA tournament after a two-year absence
They had been in the field six straight years before that.Capistran's take: The Huskies play shutdown defense in front of Jönsson, who has been outstanding in her sophomore campaign
Captain Lily Shannon has had a breakout senior season, playing a 200-foot game; she will be a key
UConn blocked 39 shots against Northeastern
The Huskies, who led Hockey East in both scoring (3.05) and defense (1.62), have won eight of their last nine games.Capistran's take: The Hockey East champions took their offense up a notch this season and continued to play the top-notch defense they have displayed in years past
While Chan is a force at the back end, forwards Julia Pellerin, Claire Murdoch and Kyla Josifovic have been key to the Huskies' success this year.Quinnipiac (28-8-3)NPI ranking: 7How the Bobcats got in: ECAC tournament championNCAA history: Fifth appearance, seeking first titleNumbers to know: Quinnipiac won its first ECAC title since 2016 with a 5-1 win over top seed Yale
The sophomore is first nationally with 28 wins, third in shutouts (nine) and fourth in goals against average (1.51)
Kahlen Lamarche keys the Bobcats offense, scoring better than a goal per game (42 goals in 39 games)
She had seven goals in a three-game ECAC quarterfinal win over Brown.Capistran's take: Frank backboned the Bobcats this season and Lamarche, a top-10 Patty Kaz finalist, is an offensive threat whenever she hits the ice
Quinnipiac will want to build off its momentum from the ECAC tournament and will be a tough out.Yale (25-9-0)NPI ranking: 8How the Bulldogs got in: At-large berth (ECAC)NCAA history: Third appearance, seeking first titleNumbers to know: The Bulldogs' loss to Quinnipiac in the ECAC final was just their second defeat in 2026 (16-2)
Senior Carina DiAntonio is fifth in the country with 26 goals, doubling her team-high total from last season
Freshman defender Molly Boyle led the ECAC with 21 assists, while fellow first-year player Samson Frey has a 1.47 GAA in 17 games
Yale is fifth in the country with 3.65 goals per game
The Bulldogs have seven wins over teams ranked in the top 15 in NPI.Capistran's take: ECAC coach of the year Mark Bolding led his team to the conference title game in his seventh season behind the bench
The Bulldogs have a great shot-blocking mentality, and Boyle, who was named ECAC defender of the year, sets the tone.Princeton (23-10-0)NPI ranking: 9How the Tigers got in: At-large berth (ECAC)NCAA history: Fifth appearance, seeking first titleNumbers to know: Princeton fell to Quinnipiac 2-1 in overtime in the ECAC semifinals
The Tigers are fourth in the country in scoring defense, allowing 1.41 goals per game
Princeton was 3-3 against NCAA qualifiers Yale and Quinnipiac this season, with four of the six games going to overtime
Issy Wunder has 27 goals, with eight of them game-winners, tied for most in the country.Capistran's take: Despite having a short bench this season, Princeton found success with the help of team captain Wunder
The Bulldogs have shown they can win in hostile environments, posting a 13-4-1 record on the road
After closing the regular season with six straight wins, UMD lost a tight best-of-three series with Minnesota State in the WCHA playoffs.Capistran's take: Gascon had another phenomenal season being a brick wall for the Bulldogs
She won WCHA goalie of the year for the second year in a row and will have to bring her A game for Minnesota Duluth to find success in this year's tournament
Franklin Pierce is third nationally with an .890 penalty-kill percentage
Caleigh Murphy is the Ravens' leading scorer (17 goals, 16 assists)
David Stockdale, the only coach in program history, is in his 14th season at the helm for Franklin Pierce
The team moved to Division I in 2019-20.Capistran's take: Franklin Pierce had its most exciting season yet and will look to build off its the NEWHA championship, but just taking this step is huge
The Ravens will depend on Hertl and will want to use physicality to slow down their opponent.