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October 24th, 2022 | Friendship Four

Meet the Teams - Friendship Four 2022

As the countdown for the Harness 2022 Friendship Four Ice hockey tournament gets under way, we take a look at the four top U.S. college hockey teams that will compete for the coveted Belpot trophy at The SSE Arena, Belfast over Thanksgiving weekend this November.

The NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) tournament will bring four Division One hockey teams head-to-head in the heart of Belfast. The UMass Lowell River Hawks, winners of the first ever Friendship Four tournament return for 2022, alongside the Quinnipiac Bobcats and Massachusetts Hockey (UMass) who played here in 2016, with Dartmouth Big Green making their debut on Belfast ice.

Which team will you be cheering for? Read on to find out more.

UMass Lowell River Hawks

Coming off a 2022 NCAA Tournament run, the UMass Lowell River Hawks are returning to Belfast for the second time after winning the inaugural Belpot in 2015. The three-time Hockey East Tournament Champions are led by Head Coach Norm Bazin, who enters his 12th season at the helm. Under his tutelage, the River Hawks have been crowned regular season champions twice and have seen six NCAA tournament appearances, including one Frozen Four appearance in 2013.
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Quinnipiac Bobcats

Quinnipiac Men’s Ice Hockey enters the 2022-23 season as the defending ECAC Hockey regular season champions. Led by ECAC Coach of the Year Rand Pecknold, The Bobcats return sophomore goaltender Yaniv Perets who was the ECAC Player and Goaltender of the Year in 2022 and was a finalist for the Mike Richter Award. Perets is joined by a group of five graduate students who will return to play a fifth year with the Bobcats as they aim for an 8th NCAA Tournament appearance since 2013. This will be the second Friendship Four outing for Quinnipiac, having last played in the tournament in 2016.
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UMass Minutemen

The Minutemen are entering the 2022-23 season as the two-time defending Hockey East Champions and will be making their second trip to the Friendship Four, last playing in Belfast in 2016. The 2021 National Champions are led by head coach Greg Carvel who in six years has put Massachusetts Hockey on the national landscape with the development of Hobey Baker winner Cale Makar, Hockey East player of the year Bobby Trivigno, and numerous players moving onto the NHL.
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Dartmouth Big Green

One of the oldest programs in NCAA Ice Hockey, Dartmouth is entering its 115th season of play in 2022-23. Reid Cashman starts his third year at the helm of the Big Green after taking over the program in June 2020. Competing in the Friendship Four for the first time, the Big Green return 13 forwards, six defensemen and one goaltender, captained by senior defenseman Tanner Palocsik.
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Harness Friendship Four

The first and only NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) Division One tournament to take place outside the United States, the Harness Friendship Four 2002 promises two packed days of high energy, fast-paced hockey in the heart of Belfast, 25-26 November 2022. The 2022 tournament is supported by partners, Harness, Department for Communities, Belfast City Council, Northern Irish Connections, Cara Travel and The Odyssey Trust.
Get Your Tickets HERE