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Right now, every team in college hockey wants to be where Bemidji State is.

OK, maybe they don't want to join the Beavers in the shadows of the city's Paul Bunyan statue, ice fishing for walleye. It's not the perfect spring break destination. But they certainly do want to know, as Bemidji does, that they can sit down to watch the NCAA Tournament Selection Show Sunday morning on ESPN2 (11 a.m. ET) and be assured of hearing their name called.

Bemidji earned College Hockey America's automatic bid with a 3-0 win over Alabama-Huntsville Sunday night. The other five conferences will crown their playoff champions Saturday.

A number of teams are assured of getting a spot in the 16-team tournament regardless of this weekend's results. But for others, it could be a sleepless Saturday night if they can't produce some victories on their conference's biggest stage.

Here's a look at what to expect and who to watch in this weekend's tournaments:

Atlantic Hockey
The Favorite: Quinnipiac
The Bobcats have a unique advantage among all teams playing this weekend — they are at home (opponents who have to face Minnesota at St. Paul's Xcel Energy Center may argue that it's not that unique, but Quinnipiac is in its home rink). The Bobcats also have the most talent in the conference, led by Player of the Year favorite Reid Cashman, who won the scoring title from defense. Quinnipiac leaves for the ECACHL next year, and odds are it will join the new league as the defending Atlantic Hockey tournament champ.

Bracket Buster: Holy Cross
There's more parity in Atlantic Hockey than seemingly anywhere else in college hockey. Teams shuttled in and out of first place faster than subway riders, and seventh-seeded Bentley's upset of second-seeded Canisius in Atlantic Hockey's quarterfinal round was the biggest surprise last weekend. But outside of favored Quinnipiac, the most dangerous team is probably Holy Cross, simply because the Crusaders can draw from the experience of winning it last year. Paul Pearl's veteran group has a dangerous attack led by Pierre Napert-Frenette, James Sixsmith and Tyler McGregor, a reliable defensive corps and a solid goaltending tandem in Tony Quesada and Ben Conway.

Player to Watch: Jamie Holden, Quinnipiac We told you about Reid Cashman and Ben Nelson last week, but the most familiar name on the Quinnipiac roster is probably senior goaltender Jamie Holden. He has an NCAA Tournament appearance under his belt as a freshman, but was pulled in that game after a few early goals. Two wins this weekend on home ice would send him back to the tourney with another shot at a big upset.

CCHA
The Favorite: Michigan
The Wolverines are arguably the most talented team in the nation — their roster features 14 NHL draft picks — but only recently have they played to their potential. Michigan enters the CCHA Super Six in the midst of an eight-game winning streak during which it has scored 45 goals, an average of 5.6 per game. Until they eked out a 1-0 OT win against Notre Dame in the first round of the playoffs last weekend, the Wolverines hadn't scored fewer than four goals in their seven previous wins. The onus falls on goaltender Al Montoya who, despite leading the nation with 27 wins, owns a pedestrian .894 save percentage — in the team's last eight games, that number drops to .884.

Bracket Buster: Michigan State
The Spartans a dark horse in the CCHA playoffs? A few weeks ago, they were long shots to finish in the top half of the league standings. MSU has won five straight, but it'll likely need three wins at Joe Louis Arena to guarantee a visit to the NCAA Tournament. Four players have shouldered the offensive load for the Spartans — since the beginning of February, the quartet of Jim Slater, Colton Fretter, Drew Miller and Jim McKenzie has scored 24 of the team's 33 goals. MSU swept Miami in a first-round playoff series in East Lansing last weekend without All-American defenseman A.J. Thelen, who was dismissed from the team the day after the regular season ended.

Player to Watch: Dave Caruso, Ohio State
Other CCHA goaltenders — guys like league player of the year Tuomas Tarkki of Northern Michigan, Bowling Green's acrobatic Jordan Sigalet and New York Rangers first-round draft pick Al Montoya — get more ink. Caruso measures up favorably with that trio, or any goalie in the nation, for that matter. The junior from Roswell, Ga., has 24 wins, second-most in the nation behind Montoya's 27, he's second in the conference to Tarkki with a 2.12 goals-against average, and only Tarkki and Michigan State's Dominic Vicari have better save percentages than Caruso's .918 mark.

ECACHL
The Favorite: Cornell
Cornell seems to draw more complaints than any team in college hockey: It plays a weak schedule. It plays a boring style. We don't like the fish its fans throw at us. OK, that last one might be reserved for Harvard players subjected to the fish tossing that takes place when the two teams meet at Lynah Rink. But like the Yankees, the collective distaste for Cornell stems in large part from its continued success. All this team does is win, to the extent that it hasn't lost in 16 games. It's not expected to lose this weekend, either.

Bracket Buster: Vermont
Cornell and Harvard are safely in the field of 16, and Colgate should be. The big question mark in Albany is Vermont, as the Catamounts seek their first tourney appearance since Martin St. Louis was enrolled in classes there. The reigning Hart Trophy winner was in attendance for Sunday's dramatic win over Dartmouth in Burlington, but UVM needs at least one more win to climb into the tournament pairings.

Player to Watch: Matt Moulson, Cornell
On a team that has posted 10 shutouts and allows just over two goals per game, it's not surprising that Cornell's offensive stars get overlooked. But as some wise coaches have said, a goalie has never won a game — the best he can do is tie. If you buy that, Matt Moulson is a big reason Ivy League Player of the Year David McKee is 24-4-3 instead of 0-4-27. Moulson is a dangerous shooter who works well with linemates Byron Bitz and Shane Hynes. On a more offensive-minded team he might be in line for more individual honors; with the Big Red, the Pittsburgh Penguins pick still led the ECACHL in goals.

Hockey East
The Favorite: Boston College
If you have to pick somebody, it's probably the Eagles, but like the Hockey East regular season, this is anybody's tournament to win. BC may be without Patrick Eaves, its best player, who was injured in a freak incident, either being hit by the puck or on a hit into the boards, late in last Saturday's win over UMass. His status was doubtful as of mid-week. Still, the Eagles have defense — which, the cliché tells us, is what you need this time of year. Beyond All-American Andrew Alberts, the Eagles boast a talented group of blueliners that includes underrated players such as Peter Harrold, John Adams and Greg Lauze. They are a big reason BC keeps opposing shots to a minimum and makes life relatively easy for goaltenders Matti Kaltiainen and Cory Schneider.

Bracket Buster: Maine
The "bracket buster" moniker doesn't quite fit, since all four of these teams are likely assured of an NCAA Tournament bid. But Maine is a mild surprise, as the Black Bears' run of six straight NCAA appearances seemed in jeopardy all year. They've turned it on in the second half, however, posting a 10-3-4 record in the New Year. Goaltender Jimmy Howard has been at his best during that time, and he was the story of last year's Hockey East championship weekend. Don't be shocked if he steals the spotlight again.

Player to Watch: John Curry, Boston University
It had been more than 10 years since Boston University had posted back-to-back shutouts before Curry backstopped a pair of 2-0 wins last weekend to erase Providence's one-game lead in the best-of-three series. Curry has been the talk of Hockey East since the former third-stringer grabbed the starting job in the second week of the season, and he will continue to generate buzz this weekend. For the Terriers to win in Boston, he'll have to slow down New Hampshire, which enters with the nation's third-best offense (4.08 goals per game).

WCHA
The Favorite: Denver
Denver and Colorado College shared the regular season title in the WCHA, so it's only fitting they share a charter flight to and from the Twin Cities for the Final Five. One only wonders if they've saved a seat for the WCHA playoff trophy — and if so, which coach will it be next to? We give the slightest of edges to Denver, thanks to its playoff experience (the Pioneers are the defending NCAA champs), its offensive balance (seven players have 12 or more goals) and the emergence of freshman goaltender Peter Mannino (14-4-1, 2.39, .917).

Bracket Buster: North Dakota
With two Hobey Baker finalists and a head coach departing in the offseason, plus a number of injuries during the year, North Dakota was a shell of its former self for much of the season. Forget about that now, as the Sioux have hit full stride entering the Final Five. They scored 14 goals in two games last weekend against Minnesota Duluth, and sophomore goaltender Jordan Parise stretched his personal unbeaten streak to seven games. North Dakota has the distinct disadvantage of having to play the 4 vs. 5 game Thursday night — against Wisconsin, while a rested Minnesota awaits in the semifinals — but if they can overcome fatigue, the Sioux could make noise this weekend.

Player to Watch: Brett Sterling, Colorado College
His linemate Marty Sertich has a few more points and the consensus support as the nation's best player, but Sterling is just as important to the Tigers. He's only 5-foot-8, 170 pounds, but he plays with a linebacker's abandon, giving and receiving hits to make plays and heading willingly into high-traffic areas. He's been rewarded with an NCAA-best 30 goals, including three in last weekend's two-game sweep of St. Cloud State.

ESPN.com's college hockey notebook is compiled by the staff of insidecollegehockey.com, an ESPN.com associate.