The four teams — the Quinnipiac Bobcats, Cornell Big Red, Dartmouth Big Green and the St. Lawrence Saints — will face off in the ECAC tournament at the Olympic Center’s 1980 Herb Brooks Arena for a single-elimination tournament that will determine the conference champion. The winner will take home the Whitelaw Cup and an automatic berth to the NCAA Division I tournament. Quinnipiac won the NCAA National Championship last season.

The ECAC tournament begins on Friday with two semifinal matchups. St. Lawrence and Quinnipiac will face off in the first game of a doubleheader starting at 4 p.m., and Cornell and Dartmouth will then take the ice for the second matchup slated to start at 7:30 p.m. The winners advance to the championship final on Saturday at 5 p.m.

The Bobcats return to the ECAC tournament as the No. 1 seed and are looking for their first conference title since 2016. The team is ranked No. 7 nationally in the latest USCHO.com poll and is currently 26-8-2 this season.

Offensively, the Bobcats are led by Colin Graf. The junior amassed 14 goals and 19 assists, leading the nationally-ranked team in goals and total points.

Quinnipiac and St. Lawrence split their two meetings this season, with the each squad winning their contest at home. The Saints, the tournament’s No. 7 seed — the lowest remaining seed — advanced to the semifinals in Lake Placid with two victories on the road over No. 3 seeded Colgate, which won the ECAC tournament last year.

St. Lawrence (13-18-6 overall record) last won the Whitelaw Cup in 2001. The Saints will be led by Felikss Gavars, who leads the team with 13 goals and 23 points.

The second-seeded Cornell and Dartmouth, the No. 4 seed will face off in the tournament’s other semifinal. Both squads split their two match-ups, with both wins coming in a shootout.

Goaltender Ian Shane has been the backbone of the nationally ranked Big Red, which hold a 19-6-6 record, this season. He appeared in 20 games this season, compiling a record of 13-2-4 and a 1.69 goals-against average with two shutouts.

Dartmouth, which is 13-9-9, is paced by sophomore Luke Haymes, who tallied 31 points this season. His 16 goals and 15 assists lead the Big Green offense. Of his 16 goals, he recorded six on the man-advantage and three game winners.

The Big Green have never won the Whitelaw Cup, while Cornell, which last won in 2010, has the most ECAC titles with 12.

The ECAC tournament began in 1962 with the championships held at Boston Garden each year until 1993 when it moved to Lake Placid. This year’s tournament marks the 20th time the championship has been hosted at the Olympic Center.

On Monday, ECAC Hockey and the state Olympic Regional Development Authority announced a two-year extension for the ECAC Hockey Men’s Championship, which will take place at the 1980 Herb Brooks Arena in the Olympic Center.

“Since it first came to Lake Placid in 1993 the ECAC Men’s Hockey Championship has been a flagship event for our community and region,” Olympic Center General Manager Chadd Cassidy said in a statement. “We are excited to be extending our contract through the 2026 Championship and continue to be the home of ECAC Hockey for many years to come. Hockey fans from all over will continue to see why Lake Placid is such a special place.”

Tickets for this weekend’s ECAC Tournament will be $70 for two-day pass, and $50 for a single day. Those interested can purchase their tickets at, https://tinyurl.com/bdwabmuj.