ESPN to Cover Entire 2014 NCAA Men's Division I Ice Hockey Championship

John Buccigross Unveils the Numerical Order of No. 1 Seeds on Twitter, Hosts Selection Show, and Calls Regional and Frozen Four Action

ESPN will cover the entire 2014 NCAA Men's Division I Ice Hockey Championship which includes 12 regional games from four sites between March 28-30 and the Frozen Four semifinals and finals in Philadelphia on April 10 and 12. In regional action, ESPNU will televise eight games, including the Midwest, Northeast and West regional finals. ESPN2 will televise the East regional final and West regional semifinal. ESPN3 will exclusively carry a Northeast and Midwest regional semifinal. On Thursday, April 10, ESPN2 will televise the Frozen Four semifinals and on Saturday, April 12, ESPN will televise the Frozen Four Championship Game. Every game of the tournament will be available on WatchESPN.

ESPN NCAA Men's Hockey Tournament Commentators

ESPN's lead hockey play-by-play commentator John Buccigross teams up with lead hockey analyst Barry Melrose to call the action in the East regional (Bridgeport, Conn.) and the Frozen Four. This is the second year the tandem has worked the tournament together, including their second Frozen Four. Quint Kessenich will be the reporter with Buccigross and Melrose at both the regional and Frozen Four.

Buccigross was an integral part of ESPN's regular-season hockey coverage this season, calling a majority of ESPN's BIG TEN telecasts. Additionally, the SportsCenter anchor has developed a passionate hockey following on Twitter (@Buccigross) through his consistent college hockey dialogue with fans (#cawlidgehawkey) and by showcasing pond hockey throughout the country.

Melrose, who has been with ESPN 17 of the last 18 years and has been an analyst for several Frozen Fours, played 11 seasons in the NHL before leading the Los Angeles Kings to the 1993 Stanley Cup Finals as head coach.

Other ESPN broadcast tandems: Joe Beninati and Darren Eliot in the Midwest regional (Cincinnati, Ohio), Joe Davis and Billy Jaffe in the Northeast regional (Worcester, Mass.), and Clay Matvick and Sean Ritchlin in the West regional (St. Paul, Minn.).

ESPN and NCAA Collaborate to Reveal No. 1 Seeds on Twitter Prior to NCAA Hockey Championship Selection Show

On Sunday, March 23 at noon ET, ESPNU will televise the NCAA Hockey Championship Selection Show. In a unique, online collaboration, ESPN and the NCAA will announce the four No. 1 seeds and which region they will play in one-hour prior to the show.

At 11 a.m., @NCAAIceHockey will tweet out - in alphabetical order - the four No.1 seeds. Moments later, after receiving the official bracket from the NCAA, Buccigross will take to his twitter account to announce the numerical order of the No.1 seeds and the region in which they will be located in.

Buccigross and Dave Starman anchor the 30-minute Selection Show to announce the other 12 teams which make up the field with all the matchups. Select head coaches will join the show after their team has been named to the field. Fans are encouraged to participate by tweeting questions and comments to the @ESPNU handle, with a portion of them being answered on air.

Buccigross Takes over @NCAAIceHockey Handle During Conference Championship Games

On Saturday, March 22 -- the night before the Selection Show -- Buccigross will take over the @NCAAIceHockey handle to conduct a live twitter chat starting at 8 p.m. As six conferences are in the midst of their championship game, with an automatic bid to the tournament on the line, Buccigross will interact with fans, answer their questions and react to the live game action.

2014 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Programming Schedule

NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Selection Show

Date Time (ET) Commentators Network

Sun, March 23 Noon John Buccigross and Dave Starman ESPNU

NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Regional Coverage

Date Time (ET) Game/Commentators Location Network

Fri, March 28 2 p.m. East Regional - Semifinal No. 1 John Buccigross, Barry Melrose & Quint Kessenich Webster Bank Arena in Bridgeport, Conn. ESPNU 4:30 p.m. Midwest Regional - Semifinal No. 1 Joe Beninati & Darren Eliot US Bank Arena in Cincinnati, Ohio ESPN3 5:30 p.m. East Regional - Semifinal No. 2 John Buccigross, Barry Melrose & Quint Kessenich Webster Bank Arena in Bridgeport, Conn. ESPNU 8 p.m. Midwest Regional - Semifinal No. 2 Joe Beninati & Darren Eliot US Bank Arena in Cincinnati, Ohio ESPNU

Sat, March 29 3 p.m. East Regional - Final John Buccigross, Barry Melrose & Quint Kessenich Webster Bank Arena in Bridgeport, Conn. ESPN2 4 p.m. Northeast Regional - Semifinal No. 1 Joe Davis and Billy Jaffe DCU Center in Worcester, Mass. ESPNU 5:30 p.m. West Regional No. 1 - Semifinal No. 1 Clay Matvick and Sean Ritchlin XCEL Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn. ESPN2 6:30 p.m. Midwest Regional - Final Joe Beninati & Darren Eliot US Bank Arena in Cincinnati, Ohio ESPNU 7:30 p.m. Northeast Regional - Semifinal No. 2 Joe Davis and Billy Jaffe DCU Center in Worcester, Mass. ESPN3 9 p.m. West Regional No. 1 - Semifinal No. 2 Clay Matvick and Sean Ritchlin XCEL Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn. ESPNU

Sun, March 30 5 p.m. Northeast Regional - Final Joe Davis and Billy Jaffe DCU Center in Worcester, Mass. ESPNU 7:30 p.m. West Regional - Final Clay Matvick and Sean Ritchlin XCEL Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn. ESPNU

NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Frozen Four Coverage

Date Time (ET) Game/Commentators Location Network

Thurs, April 10 5 p.m. Frozen Four - Semifinal No. 1 John Buccigross, Barry Melrose & Quint Kessenich Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia ESPN2

Thurs, April 10 8:30 p.m. Frozen Four - Semifinal No. 2 John Buccigross, Barry Melrose & Quint Kessenich Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia ESPN2

Sat, April 12 7:30 p.m. Frozen Four - Championship Game John Buccigross, Barry Melrose & Quint Kessenich Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia ESPN

ESPN has televised every Frozen Four Championship Game since 1980 and televised the entire Frozen Four, live, since 1995. The 2014 NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Championship will be the 10th year ESPN has covered the entire tournament live.