It was held between March 25 and 27, 1976, and concluded with Minnesota defeating Michigan Tech 6–4.
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.
[1] The ECAC champion was seeded as the top eastern team while the WCHA co-champion with the better regular season record was given the top western seed.
Minnesota and Michigan Tech squared off in the championship game for the third straight year, with Michigan Tech having won in '75 and Minnesota in '74.