SAINT PAUL, Minn. – While the action on the ice at Xcel Energy Center will certainly keep fans entertained, there will be plenty of other events for those attending the 2024 National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) Frozen Faceoff in Saint Paul to enjoy, as well, during the weekend of Thursday, March 21 through Saturday, March 23.

The Frozen Faceoff semifinals will take place on Friday, March 22 at 4:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. CT, with the Championship game on Saturday, March 23 at 7:30 p.m. CT. In addition to the NCHC hockey, the Minnesota Wild will host the St. Louis Blues on Championship Saturday at 1:00 p.m. CT, giving fans the opportunity to take in NHL action on Frozen Faceoff weekend. All-session and single-day tickets to the 2024 Frozen Faceoff are on sale and can be purchased HERE, while ticket information can be found here. A separate ticket is required for the Wild game and can be purchased here.

Prior to the games on Friday, fans can attend team practices at Xcel Energy Center on Thursday, March 21, which are open to the public. Practice times on Thursday are 10:15 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 12:45 p.m. and 2:00 p.m. CT with each team allotted one hour for practice. Fans attending practices should enter Xcel Energy Center through Gate 1, which will open at 10 a.m. CT, while the venue will close at 3:15 p.m. CT. Once practice times are finalized, they will be shared on NCHChockey.com and social media.

Following each practice on Thursday, a press conference will be held with the head coach and select student-athletes. Fans can watch all of Thursday’s press conferences live (or archived) for free on NCHC.tv.

Later on Thursday night, the Conference will host its annual NCHC Awards Celebration at the St. Paul Event Center (400 Wabasha St. N Suite 320), when the Conference will announce its individual award winners. Parents and guests of participating teams and individual award winners are welcome and may purchase tickets to the NCHC Awards Celebration by RSVPing to Heather Weems (hweems@nchchockey.com) by Monday, March 18 at 5 p.m. CT. Tickets are $30 per person and payment can be made at the event by cash or check. Fans and family members not in attendance can watch the event live for free on NCHC.tv. The Awards Celebration begins at 5:15 p.m. CT with doors opening at 4:45 p.m. CT.
 
Also on Thursday night, March 21 is the annual NCHC Fan Skate, when fans have the opportunity to skate on Xcel Energy Center ice, sharing the same surface that is used by the Wild and for the Frozen Faceoff. The Fan Skate runs from 7:00 p.m. until 8:30 p.m. CT and is free to the public. Fans will need to bring their own skates, as rentals are not available, and should enter through Gate 1, which opens at 6:30 p.m. No hockey sticks, pucks, etc. are allowed on the ice and participants must sign a waiver.

Fan Fest once again returns to the Frozen Faceoff on Friday and Saturday, March 22-23, before the hockey games each day. Featuring music, tasty food and drinks, interactive games like bubble hockey, air hockey and more, Fan Fest will take place on Friday from 2 p.m. until 6 p.m. CT and Saturday from 4 p.m. until 7 p.m. CT at a new location, Smorgie’s Bar & Restaurant (127 7th St. W), across from Xcel Energy Center. Fan Fest is free and open to the public.
 
Fans traveling to Saint Paul for the Frozen Faceoff can book hotel rooms through a special link from Visit Saint Paul here.

For more information on Xcel Energy Center and its fan policies, including bag policy, click here. For the latest Frozen Faceoff news, schedule, videos and more, visit NCHChockey.com and NCHC.tv, and follow the NCHC on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

The NCHC Tournament gets underway this weekend with four best-of-three quarterfinal series, Friday through Sunday, with the top four seeds hosting the bottom four seeds. All quarterfinal games can be seen live on NCHC.tv. The four series winners advance to the 2024 Frozen Faceoff at Xcel Energy Center. Teams are then reseeded for the semifinal round with semifinal times to be announced on Monday. All Frozen Faceoff games are televised nationally on CBS Sports Network.