COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.-- The National Collegiate Hockey Conference announced the 2021-22 league schedule Wednesday, returning to a 24-game slate with a dozen at each home venue. Each team will play five schools four times and then have a solo series against two different teams, on a rotational basis. 

North Dakota will begin defense of its back-to-back NCHC regular-season championships on Nov. 5 when it welcomes Denver to the Ralph Engelstad Arena for their only meetings of the year. That theme follows the next week when the Fighting Hawks travel to Oxford, Ohio for a series against Miami for their only games this coming season. 

Nov. 19 will be the first rematch against Minnesota Duluth, the team that outlasted UND in five overtimes in the NCAA Midwest regional final this past season. The return trip to Duluth comes Feb. 18-19. 

Trips to St. Cloud State (Dec. 3-4) and Colorado College (Dec. 10-11) are the final games of the calendar year. Omaha is the opponent when the NCHC schedule returns Jan. 14-15 with the return trip to Baxter Arena closing the regular season on March 4-5.

UND plays Western Michigan Jan. 21-22 in Kalamazoo, Mich., before the Broncos come to the REA on Feb. 25-26. SCSU and CC both make the trek to Grand Forks on back-to-back weeks on Jan. 28-29 and Feb. 4-5, respectively.  

The NCHC Frozen Faceoff, after a two-year hiatus from St. Paul due to the Coronavirus pandemic, returns to the Xcel Engery Center Mar. 18-19 with the best of three NCHC quarterfinals the weekend of Mar. 11-13.

2021-22 NCHC Regular Season schedule

Nov. 5-6	DENVER
Nov. 12-13	at Miami
Nov. 19-20	MINNESOTA DULUTH
Dec. 3-4	at St. Cloud State
Dec. 10-11	at Colorado College
Jan. 14-15	OMAHA
Jan. 21-22	at Western Michigan
Jan. 28-29	ST. CLOUD STATE
Feb. 4-5	COLORADO COLLEGE
Feb. 18-19	at Minnesota Duluth
Feb. 25-26	WESTERN MICHIGAN
Mar. 4-5	at Omaha
Mar. 11-13	NCHC Quarterfinals (best of 3)
Mar. 18-19	NCHC Frozen Faceoff (St. Paul, Minn.)