Coverage begins on Friday, Oct. 12 with the 16^th annual Ice Breaker Tournament, the event that officially launches the 2012-13 NCAA college hockey season, live from the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo. The tournament features some of the nation’s top teams from different conferences beginning with Notre Dame vs. No. 12 Maine at 7 p.m. ET.

The schedule also features two appearances by No. 1 Boston College and several preseason Top 10 schools, including No. 3 Union, No. 6 North Dakota and No. 8 Denver. The season culminates with live coverage of the Hockey East Tournament with a Quarterfinal game on March 15, as well as both Semifinals and the Final on March 22 and 23, 2013, respectively, from TD Garden in Boston, Mass.

“We are very excited to begin our second season of college hockey by offering more coverage than last year,” said Jon Miller, President, Programming NBC Sports and NBC Sports Network. “NBC Sports Network will start the season two months earlier this year, providing sports fans with even more national primetime coverage of the nation’s best college hockey.”

NBC Sports Network’s College Hockey Schedule (all times ET, subject to change):

DATEGAMETIME

Ice Breaker Tournament

Fri., Oct. 12 Notre Dame vs. #12 Maine 7 p.m.

Army vs. Nebraska TBD

Sat., Oct. 13 Final (Teams TBD) 7:30 p.m.

Nov. 16 Harvard at #13 Cornell 7:30 p.m.

Nov. 30 #1 Boston College at #11 Boston University 7:30 p.m.

Wisconsin at #8 Denver 10 p.m.

Dec. 1 #11 Boston University at #1 Boston College 7:30 p.m.

Dec. 7 Michigan State at Notre Dame 7:30 p.m.

Jan. 4 Colorado College at Nebraska-Omaha 7:30 p.m.

Jan. 11 #3 Union at Princeton 7:30 p.m.

Nebraska-Omaha at Denver 10 p.m.

Jan. 18 Harvard at Yale 7:30 p.m.

Jan. 25 Yale at #13 Cornell 7:30 p.m.

Feb. 1 Dartmouth at #3 Union 7:30 p.m.

Feb. 8 #6 North Dakota at Nebraska-Omaha 7:30 p.m.

Feb. 15 #11 Boston University at #12 Maine 7:30 p.m.

Feb. 22 Yale at Quinnipiac 7:30 p.m.

#6 North Dakota at #8 Denver 10 p.m.

March 1 Wisconsin at Nebraska-Omaha 7:30 p.m.

March 8 #12 Maine at New Hampshire 7:30 p.m.

Hockey East Tournament

March 15 Quarterfinals 7 p.m.

March 22 Semifinals 4 p.m. and 7 p.m.

March 23 Final 7 p.m.

All rankings based off USA Today/USA Hockey Men’s College Hockey Poll (April 9, 2012).