The 1985 NCAA Division III Men's Ice Hockey Tournament was a tournament to determine the Division III national champion in men's ice hockey. This was the second time a national championship tournament at the Division III level had been held, in the 12th overall season of Division III hockey. After the collapse of the entire second-tier division in 1984, most programs downgraded to Division III. As a result, the size of the third division rose dramatically. Despite this, there were still no automatic bids given out to the national tournament until 2000.
Western Intercollegiate Hockey Association (WIHA) Tournament[]
Because neither of the two western conferences held a conference tournament the NCAA had all western schools play collectively in the Western Intercollegiate Hockey Association. At the conclusion of the regular season, the top 8 teams, regardless of their conference, were invited to play in the WIHA tournament. Though the tournament was arranged by the NCAA it is not considered as part of the NCAA tournament and is displayed here for reference. The top 3 finishers in the tournament qualified for the NCAA championship. As a result of both the MIAC and NCHA beginning conference playoffs the following year, the WIHA was dissolved.
- Seeds
- Bemidji State
- St. Thomas
- Mankato State
- Gustavus
- Saint Mary's
- Wisconsin-River Falls
- Lake Forest
- St. Scholastica
- Quarterfinals
- Held at campus sites
- -John S. Glas Field House- Bemidji, MN
| Saturday, March 2, 1985 |
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| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | OT | Final | |
| 8) St. Scholastica | - | - | - | 0 | 5 |
| 1) Bemidji State | - | - | - | 0 | 5 |
| Sunday, March 3, 1985 |
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| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | |
| 8) St. Scholastica | - | - | - | 1 |
| 1) Bemidji State | - | - | - | 5 |
-Lund Arena- St. Peter, MN
| Friday, March 1, 1985 |
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| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | |
| 5) Saint Mary's | - | - | - | 4 |
| 4) Gustavus | - | - | - | 5 |
| Saturday, March 2, 1985 |
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| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | |
| 5) Saint Mary's | - | - | - | 3 |
| 4) Gustavus | - | - | - | 6 |
-All Seasons Arena- Mankato, MN
| Saturday, March 2, 1985 |
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| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | |
| 6) UW-River Falls | - | - | - | 0 |
| 3) Mankato State | - | - | - | 9 |
| Tuesday, March 5, 1985 |
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| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | |
| 6) UW-River Falls | - | - | - | 2 |
| 3) Mankato State | - | - | - | 6 |
-St. Paul, MN
| Friday, March 1, 1985 |
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| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | |
| 7) Lake Forest | - | - | - | 1 |
| 2) St. Thomas | - | - | - | 6 |
| Saturday, March 2, 1985 |
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| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | |
| 7) Lake Forest | - | - | - | 1 |
| 2) St. Thomas | - | - | - | 3 |
- Semifinals
- Hosted by Bemidji State University: -John S. Glas Field House- Bemidji, MN
| Saturday, March 9, 1985 |
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| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | |
| 4) Gustavus | - | - | - | 2 |
| 1) Bemidji State | - | - | - | 4 |
| Saturday, March 9, 1985 |
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| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | |
| 3) Mankato State | - | - | - | 1 |
| 2) St. Thomas | - | - | - | 4 |
- Third Place
- Hosted by Bemidji State University: -John S. Glas Field House- Bemidji, MN
| Sunday, March 10, 1985 |
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| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | |
| 4) Gustavus | - | - | - | 5 |
| 3) Mankato State | - | - | - | 6 |
- Championship
- Hosted by Bemidji State University: -John S. Glas Field House- Bemidji, MN
| Sunday, March 10, 1985 |
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| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | |
| 2) St. Thomas | - | - | - | 1 |
| 1) Bemidji State | - | - | - | 4 |
Format[]
Eight teams qualify for the tournament. In the quarterfinals, teams played two-game aggregate series to determine which school advanced to the semifinals. Beginning with the semifinals, all rounds became single-game eliminations. The teams were seeded according to geographic proximity in the quarterfinals, so the visiting team would have the shortest feasible distance to travel. The quarterfinals were held at campus sites from March 15-17. The semifinal and final rounds were held March 22 and 23 at Achilles Rink of Union College, in Schenectady, New York.
Bids[]
The following teams qualified for the tournament. There were no automatic bids, however, conference tournament champions were given preferential consideration. No formal seeding was used, while quarterfinal matches were arranged so that the road teams would have the shortest possible travel distances. Because the Division III level was skewed towards eastern teams, the East Region initially received 5 bids, while the West Region received 3 bids.
At-Large Bids[]
East[]
- Babson Beavers - ECAC 2 East (2nd appearance)
- (21-8-0)
- Plattsburgh Cardinals - ECAC 2 West (1st appearance)
- (24-9-0)
- RIT Tigers - ECAC 2 West (2nd appearance)
- (22-6-1)
- Salem State Vikings - ECAC 2 East (1st appearance)
- ECAC 2 East Tournament Champions (24-7-0)
- Union Dutchmen - ECAC 2 West (2nd appearance)
- ECAC 2 West Tournament Champions (20-7-0)
West[]
- Bemidji State Beavers - NCHA (1st appearance)
- WIHA Tournament Champions (25-4-2)
- Mankato State Mavericks - NCHA (1st appearance)
- WIHA Tournament Third Place (18-11-4)
- St. Thomas Tommies - MIAC (2nd appearance)
- WIHA Tournament Runner-Up (25-5-0)
Misc.[]
- Four of the eight schools who earned bids appeared in the previous NCAA tournament.
- This is the 2nd of 10 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances for Babson.
- This is the 1st of 5 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances for Bemidji State.
- This is the 1st of 4 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances for Plattsburgh.
- Pairings were determined strictly off of geography for the quarterfinal matches.
Results[]
Quarterfinals[]
Held at campus sites
-Achilles Rink- Schenectady, New York
| Friday, March 15, 1985 |
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| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | |
| Babson | - | - | - | 1 |
| Union | - | - | - | 5 |
| Saturday, March 16, 1985 |
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| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | |
| Babson | - | - | - | 3 |
| Union | - | - | - | 2 |
Union advances, 7 goals to 4
-Frank Ritter Memorial Ice Arena- Henrietta, NY
| Friday, March 15, 1985 |
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| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | |
| St. Thomas | - | - | - | 4 |
| RIT | - | - | - | 5 |
| Saturday, March 16, 1985 |
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| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | |
| St. Thomas | - | - | - | 2 |
| RIT | - | - | - | 5 |
RIT advances, 10 goals to 6
-Rockett Arena- Salem, MA
| Saturday, March 16, 1985 |
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| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | |
| Plattsburgh | - | - | - | 6 |
| Salem State | - | - | - | 1 |
| Sunday, March 17, 1985 |
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| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | |
| Plattsburgh | - | - | - | 4 |
| Salem State | - | - | - | 2 |
Plattsburgh advances, 10 goals to 3
-John S. Glas Field House- Bemidji, MN
| Saturday, March 16, 1985 |
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| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | |
| Mankato State | - | - | - | 4 |
| Bemidji State | - | - | - | 2 |
| Sunday, March 17, 1985 |
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| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | |
| Mankato State | - | - | - | 2 |
| Bemidji State | - | - | - | 9 |
Bemidji State advances, 11 goals to 6
Semifinals[]
Hosted by Union College: Achilles Rink- Schenectady, New York
| Friday, March 22, 1985 |
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| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | |
| RIT | - | - | - | 3 |
| Union | - | - | - | 2 |
| Friday, March 22, 1985 |
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| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | OT | OT2 | OT3 | Final | |
| Plattsburgh | - | - | - | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Bemidji State | - | - | - | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 |
Third Place[]
Hosted by Union College: Achilles Rink- Schenectady, New York
| Saturday, March 23, 1985 |
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| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | |
| Plattsburgh | - | - | - | 6 |
| Union | - | - | - | 9 |
Championship[]
Hosted by Union College: Achilles Rink- Schenectady, New York
| Saturday, March 23, 1985 |
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| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | |
| RIT | - | - | - | 5 |
| Bemidji State | - | - | - | 1 |
1985 NCAA Division III Men's Ice Hockey National Champion RIT Tigers
Bracket[]
Tournament Notes[]
- RIT wins its first (and only) title at the Division III level.
- Bemidji State finishes as Runner-Up in its first season participating at the Division III level.
- After finishing 2nd place the year prior, Union adds a 3rd place finish to the program's trophy case.
- Union's 3rd place finish marks the second straight year the host school finishes 3rd in the country.
- Plattsburgh finishes 4th, marking the storied program's very first Frozen Four.
All-Tournament Team[]
- F: Peter DeArmas- Plattsburgh
- F: Jamie Knight- Union
- F: Bobby Trowell- RIT
- D: Dave Geatz- Babson
- D: John Hawkins- RIT
- G: Chet Hallice- RIT (MVP)