Holy Cross, a Division I school, is not allowed to participate in the NEHC playoffs, nor is the team eligible for the Division III national tournament.
The same is true for Franklin Pierce, Saint Anselm College, and St. Michael's College which are Division II schools. However, their primary conference sponsors a postseason tournament for men and women.
New England Hockey Conference (formerly the ECAC East) is a college athletic conference which operates in the northeastern United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division III as a hockey-only conference
Sixteen schools formerly comprising the ECAC East announced a change in name and administration to the league on October 2015
The league will be named the New England Hockey Conference, effective for the 2015-16 season, and will have both a men's and women's division.
Both the men's and women's teams will remain eligible for automatic bids to the NCAA Division III tournament.
Castleton, New England College, University of New England, Norwich, Massachusetts-Boston, St. Anselm, St. Michael's and Southern Maine field both men's and women's teams.
Babson and Skidmore will have teams on the men's side, while Franklin Pierce, Holy Cross, Manhattanville, Nichols, Plymouth State and Salve Regina are women's-only members.