No. 5 Iowa State

Who to watch: Mike Lebler, Pete Majkozak and Erik Hudson

ISU junior goalie is coming into the tournament on a hot streak. Hudson has six shutouts this season, which is tops among all goalies in the tournament. Lebler leads the Cyclones in assists with 33 and Majkozak is tied for the team lead in goals with 26. The Cyclones open up play with Kent State, who the Cyclones last played in the Central States Collegiate Hockey League Tournament and beat 5–0. If the Cyclones hope to have a strong showing, they will need to stay out of the penalty box and continue to get shots on goal.

No. 12 Kent State

Who to watch: Justin Phenney — 32 goals and 24 assists — and goalie Ryan Gregory

Kent State enters this tournament losing two of its last three games; one of those against the Cyclones in the CSCHL Tournament. The Golden Flashes will be out for revenge this time around and hope to upset the Cyclones. The Flashes did accomplish one thing that few teams were able to do this season — beating No. 1 Lindenwood University. In order for the Flashes to move on, they need to play as well as they did in that game.

No. 4 Illinois

Who to watch: Tom Connell — 15 goals and 31 assists

Illinois remained in the top five in the rankings the whole season. Its Achilles’ heal this season has been performing well against ranked teams. The Illini were 1–4 against Lindenwood, lost two game to the Cyclones and two to Central Oklahoma before the CSCHL Tournament. For the Illini to win their second National Championship in three years, getting over that will be huge.

No. 13 Stony Brook

Who to watch: Chris Ryan — 25 goals and 19 assists

Stony Brook brings a 16–11–1 record into the tournament. Getting past Illinois in the opening round may be a daunting task for this team due to its zero wins versus other tournament qualifiers.

No. 2 Penn State

Who to watch: Tim O’Brien — 23 goals and 21 assists

Penn State will enter the tournament on a seven game winning streak. The Nittany Lions (2–-4–1) have only one loss against tournament opponents and are 3–1 on the season against the third-ranked Ohio Bobcats. Being the No. 2 seed, the Nittany Lions have a great chance to go deep in the tournament.

No. 15 Canton

Who to watch: Adam Fedor — 19 goals and 21 assists

Canton (17–8–2) will begin the tournament on a 10-game win streak, although none of those wins were against any ranked opponents. Canton played a relatively soft schedule this season with only two games against ranked opponents; Kent State and Minot State, both of which they lost. Expect Penn State to provide Canton with a first-round loss.

No. 7 Oklahoma

Who to watch: Brad McCabe — 28 goals and 32 assists

Oklahoma began the season losing five of its first seven games, two coming at the hands of Iowa State, but has since then rebounded to a final record of 20–7–5. The Sooners will be facing off with in-state rival Central Oklahoma. The two teams split the season series 2–2. Oklahoma finished its season losing two games to tournament-qualifier Liberty.

No. 10 Central Oklahoma

Who to watch: Jonathon Cannizzo — 22 goals and 20 assists

The possible “dark horse,” Central Oklahoma, comes in with a couple of big wins on its resume. Two weeks ago, the Broncos swept No. 4 Illinois in Champaign and they have split with Iowa State, Ohio and Arizona State. Look for the Broncos to possibly win a couple of games in this tournament.

No. 1 Lindenwood

Who to watch: Adam Krefski — 31 goals and 29 assists

Lindenwood is the obvious tournament favorite this year. Last season, the Lions won the whole thing and this year could end up ending the same way. Four of Lindenwood’s players have more than 50 points this season and the team will be riding high after winning the CSCHL tournament. Its only slip-up this season has been when Ohio swept the team in early December.

No.16 Rutgers

Who to watch: Jason Adams — 12 goals and 38 assists

Rutgers (16–14) barely squeaked into the tournament by earning the 16th rank late in the season. The Scarlet Knights may be begging for mercy by the end of their first round matchup with Lindenwood.

No. 8 Minot State

Who to watch: Isaac Friesen — 24 goals and 24 assists

Minot State brings a solid 23–6 record into this weekend. The Beavers have quality wins over Oklahoma, Central Oklahoma, and Iowa State and being the No. 8 seed, anything can happen. If the Beavers do get past Oakland in the opening round, they will most likely play Lindenwood. The Beavers could have the tools to beat Lindenwood, but it is unlikely.

No. 9 Oakland

Who to watch: Kevin Kranker — 17 goals and 27 assists

Oakland, too, brings a solid record of 25–9–1 into the tournament. They have beaten a few tournament teams this season with one of them being third ranked Ohio on the road. The Grizzlies beat tournament-qualifier Liberty twice this season. Oakland gradually worked its way up throughout the season from being ranked No. 16 at the start and moved to No. 9. Oakland will put up a good fight against Minot State in a hard-fought battle.

No. 3 Ohio

Who to watch: Michael Schultz — 25 goals and 29 assists

Ohio (32–9–3) is entering the tournament the wrong way. After losing to Lindenwood in the CSCHL Championship, the Bobcats were embarrassed at home by the unranked Adrian Bulldogs who swept them Friday and Saturday. If Ohio hopes to win games, they have to start playing consistently; the first round will be a great test of where the Bobcats are at mentally.

No. 14 Robert Morris

Who to watch: Matt Olson — 15 goals and 13 assists

This year’s host school Robert Morris may be the most questionable team in the tournament. They bring in a losing record of 11–21–2, but the Eagles’ tough schedule may be a cause of that. Nearly every week, the Eagles played a ranked opponent. In their three matchups with Ohio this season, Ohio won all three, and this time doesn’t look any better.

No. 6 Liberty

Who to watch: Kyle Dodgson — 28 goals and 46 assists — and Brent Boschman — 36 goals and 31 assists.

Like Lindenwood, Liberty has four players with 50 or more points. Liberty also boasts the leading goal scorer in the tournament in Brent Boschman and the leading scorer Kyle Dodgson, who has 74 total points this season. Liberty (26–2–1) could also be a dark horse in the tournament due to the amount of good players on its team. The only thing bringing Liberty down is its a weak schedule.

No. 11 Arizona State

Who to watch: Joe Schweiger — 29 goals and 36 assists

Arizona State could turn some heads in the tournament. The Sun Devils began the season 13–0 and if they return to that form, they could be dangerous. The Devils did not have an impressive record against tournament qualifiers, winning only three of 12. If they hope to win this weekend, they need Joe Schweiger, one of the best players in the ACHA, to produce goals.