TOLEDO, OHIO | HUNTINGTON CENTER
SATURDAY-SUNDAY, MARCH 30-31

Saturday: Notre Dame vs. St. Cloud State, 1:30 p.m. ET (TV: FSN North, ESPN3)
Saturday: Miami vs. Minnesota State, 5 p.m. ET (TV: FSN North, ESPN3)
Sunday: Regional Final, 4 p.m. ET (TV: ESPNU)

NO. 1 SEED NOTRE DAME FIGHTING IRISH
Location: Notre Dame, Ind.
Record: 25-12-3 overall (17-8-3 CCHA, second)
Qualified: CCHA tournament champions
NCAA Championships: None
NCAA Appearance: Sixth (most recent, 2011)
Head Coach: Jeff Jackson
Key Players: Anders Lee, F, Jr. (40 GP, 20-18—38); Bryan Rust, Jr., F (40 GP, 15-18—33); Robbie Russo, D, So. (40 GP, 5-18—23); Steven Summerhays, G, Jr. (21-11-2, 1.94 GAA, .922 save pct.)
What You Need To Know: The Fighting Irish enter the weekend with a six-game winning streak and a nine-game (7-0-2) unbeaten streak, the longest in the country. The only team with a better win streak? Canisius—the Golden Griffins have wins in their last eight games.

Burning Question: Will Notre Dame’s formula for success—the Fighting Irish are proficient in every facet of the game but don’t excel in one particular area—work in the NCAA Tournament? They’re an interesting team to watch; they seem to be in fairly closely matched games every night, but look up at the scoreboard in the third period and they’ve got the lead.

NO. 2 SEED MIAMI REDHAWKS
Location: Oxford, Ohio
Record: 24-11-5 overall (17-7-4 CCHA, first)
Qualified: At-large bid
NCAA Championships: None
NCAA Appearance: 11th (most recent, 2012)
Head Coach: Enrico Blasi
Key Players: Riley Barber, F, Fr. (38 GP, 15-23—38); Austin Czarnik, F, So. (40 GP 14-24—36); Matthew Caito, D, Fr. (40 GP, 5-16—21); Ryan McKay, G, Fr. (12-6-2, 1.37 GAA, .948 save pct.)

What You Need To Know: Not only does Miami have one of the best penalty-killing units in the nation—the RedHawks rank sixth in the country with an 88.1 percent success rate—but they’ve also scored eight shorthanded goals, second only to Robert Morris in that department.

Burning Question: It sounds simple, but it’s true: when the RedHawks don’t score, they don’t win. Miami has potted just six goals in its 11 losses. So obviously, the RedHawks are far better when playing with the lead. Can they get an early score and take the pressure off freshman goalie Ryan McKay, who struggled mightily in the RedHawks’ 6-2 loss to Michigan in last weekend’s CCHA tournament semifinals?

NO. 3 SEED MINNESOTA STATE MAVERICKS
Location: Mankato, Minn.
Record: 24-13-3 overall (16-11-5 WCHA, tied for fourth)
Qualified: At-large bid
NCAA Championships: None
NCAA Appearance: Second (most recent, 2003)
Head Coach: Mike Hastings
Key Players: Matt Leitner, F, So. (40 GP, 17-30—47); Eriah Hayes, F, Sr. (40 GP, 20-16—36); Zach Palmquist, D, So. (40 GP, 7-18—25); Stephon Williams, G, Fr. (21-11-2, 1.96 GAA, .925 save pct.)

What You Need To Know: Minnesota State ranks 10th nationally in scoring offense at 3.17 goals per game, and increase of more than half a goal from 2011-12 when the Mavericks ranked tied for 38th in the country at 2.66 goals per game.

Burning Question: See above. Like Miami, the Mavericks are far better team when playing with a lead. Unlike the RedHawks, however, Minnesota State has a penchant for getting locked into tight games through two periods—its goal differential through two periods is +13 compared to +17 in the third period. Can the Mavs emerge from with a lead after 40 minutes? If so, their chances of winning increase greatly.

NO. 4 SEED ST. CLOUD STATE HUSKIES
Location: St. Cloud, Minn.
Record: 23-15-1 overall (18-9-1 WCHA, tied for first)
Qualified: At-large bid
NCAA Championships: None
NCAA Appearance: Ninth (most recent, 2010)
Head Coach: Bob Motzko
Key Players: Drew LeBlanc, F, Sr. (39 GP, 13-37—50); Nic Dowd, F, Jr. (39 GP, 14-25—39); Nick Jensen, D, Jr. (39 GP, 4-26—30); Ryan Faragher, G, So. (22-13-1, 2.29 GAA, .914 save pct.)

What You Need To Know: The Huskies rely on their depth—they have eight players with more than 20 points and seven skaters with 10 or more goals. In many respects, they’re not unlike Notre Dame; they don’t have a real weakness but aren’t outstanding in any one facet of the game.

Burning Question: Can St. Cloud State shake off last weekend’s disappointing showing at the WCHA Final Five where the top-seeded Huskies were bounced by Wisconsin in Friday’s semifinal? SCSU flew under the radar for the majority of the season only to emerge as the WCHA regular-season co-champs. With the target on its back in the postseason, the Huskies didn’t play well. As the underdog in Toledo, will they recover?