The 2001 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey tournament involved 12 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college ice hockey.
Boston College, coached by Jerry York, won its first national title since 1949 by defeating North Dakota, 3-2, in overtime on April 7 on a goal scored by sophomore forward Krys Kolanos just 4:43 into the extra session.
BC, which finished the season with a record of 33-8-2, earned its first NCAA hockey crown in 52 years by besting the three schools that had eliminated it in the three previous Frozen Fours: Maine (1999); Michigan (1998) and; North Dakota (2000).
2001 was the first year in which the MAAC received an automatic bid into the NCAA tournament,[1] with their representative being the Mercyhurst Lakers.
The Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) had five teams receive a berth in the tournament, Hockey East had three teams receive a berth in the tournament, Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA) had two berths, while the ECAC and the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) each received one entry into the tournament, with the latter making its first appearance in the NCAA championship.