A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | CH | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
| 1972–73 NCAA University Division men's ice hockey season | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 The Boston Garden served as the host for the 1973 Tournament | |||||
| Duration | November 1972– March 17, 1973 | ||||
| NCAA tournament | 1973 | ||||
| National championship | Boston Garden Boston, Massachusetts | ||||
| NCAA champion | Wisconsin | ||||
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The 1972–73 NCAA University Division men's ice hockey season began in November 1972 and concluded with the 1973 NCAA University Division Men's Ice Hockey Tournament's championship game on March 17, 1973 at the Boston Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. This was the 26th season in which an NCAA ice hockey championship was held and is the 79th year overall where an NCAA school fielded a team.
After the season Denver's participation in the NCAA tournament was vacated due to violations of NCAA regulations.[1]
After the season Army was classified as a Division II squad as part of the NCAA's numerical classification system.[2]
Lake Superior State began to sponsor their ice hockey program and the team was promptly admitted into the CCHA.
Season Outlook
Pre-season poll
The top teams in the nation voted on by coaches before the start of the season.
Bob Olson, owner of radio station WMPL, started compiling a national poll in 1972.
| WMPL Poll | |
|---|---|
| Rank | Team |
| 1 | Wisconsin (5) |
| 2 | North Dakota (1) |
| 3 | Harvard |
| 4 | Denver |
| 5 | Michigan Tech (1) |
| 6 | Cornell |
| 7 | Boston College (1) |
| 8 | Notre Dame |
| 9 | Boston University |
| 10 | Clarkson |
Pre-season conference polls
Conference pre-season polls as voted on by coaches.
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Regular season
Season tournaments
| Tournament | Dates | Teams | Champion |
|---|---|---|---|
| Christmas City of the North Tournament | November 23–25 | 4 | Minnesota–Duluth† |
| North Country Thanksgiving Festival | November 23–25 | 4 | Clarkson |
| Cleveland Cup Invitational | November 29–30 | 4 | Michigan State |
| Yale Invitational | December 18–19 | 4 | Northeastern |
| ECAC Christmas Tournament | December 19–20 | 4 | Dartmouth |
| ECAC Holiday Hockey Festival | December 19–20 | 4 | Saint Louis |
| Great Lakes Invitational | December 27–28 | 4 | Harvard |
| Williams Invitational | December 27–29 | 4 | Bowdoin |
| Rensselaer Holiday Tournament | December 28–30 | 4 | Minnesota–Duluth |
| St. Louis Fireman's Invitational | December 28–30 | 4 | Wisconsin |
| Nichols School Invitational | December 29–30 | 4 | St. Lawrence |
| Syracuse Invitational | December 29–30 | 4 | Clarkson |
| Beanpot | February 5, 12 | 4 | Boston University |
†Boston University won the tournament but was forced to forfeit each of the three games played after the conclusion of the season.
Standings
| Conference | Overall | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | W | L | T | PTS | GF | GA | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | ||
| Wisconsin† | 12 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 17 | 60 | 40 | 40 | 29 | 9 | 2 | 217 | 139 | |
| Michigan State† | 12 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 17 | 60 | 44 | 36 | 23 | 12 | 1 | 194 | 149 | |
| Minnesota | 12 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 13 | 50 | 47 | 34 | 15 | 16 | 3 | 124 | 129 | |
| Michigan | 12 | 1 | 11 | 0 | 2 | 40 | 75 | 34 | 6 | 27 | 1 | 136 | 206 | |
| † indicates conference regular season champion | ||||||||||||||