It was held between March 18 and 20, 1971, and concluded with Boston University defeating Minnesota 4–2.
All games were played at the Onondaga War Memorial in Syracuse, New York.
This was the first time that a team with a losing record participated in an NCAA tournament.
Four teams qualified for the tournament, two each from the eastern and western regions.
An at-large bid was offered to a second eastern team based upon both their ECAC tournament finish as well as their regular season record.