Tampa Will Bid To Host 2020, 2021 or 2022 Frozen Four

When you think of Frozen Four hosts that are constantly in the rotation, you tend to think of Boston and Minneapolis. If the Tampa Bay Sports Commission has its way, you'll also consider Tampa as one of the Frozen Four's permanent homes.

Fans leaving Amalie Arena were greeted with banners reading "WE WANT YOU BACK," in conjunction with the city's announcement that they would bid for the next round of Frozen Four site selection, according to an article in today's Tampa Bay Times.

The next round of Frozen Fours to be awarded will be for 2019-2022, with the announcement likely to come in early 2018 based on the timing of the last release. Per the article, with Tampa hosting the NCAA Women's Basketball Final Four in 2019, that leaves '20, '21 and '22 as potential years or Tampa to host again, and they will lobby aggressively for the honor.

The Frozen Four has two years left on its current cycle of host cities: Boston '15, Tampa '16, Chicago '17 and Minneapolis/St Paul '18. The previous cycle had Minneapolis/St. Paul '11, Tampa '12, Pittsburgh '13, and Philly '14.

Based on the reaction of hockey fans in general, the size of the crowds this weekend (19,000+ for the final) and Tampa's embrace of the event, don't be surprised to see a return to the Sunshine State in the next 6 years.