Resilient Michigan team peaking at right time as Wolverines return to Frozen Four, playing ‘to get back to where we believe that we should be’

This is the third of four previews for teams playing in the 2023 NCAA Men’s Frozen Four this week in St. Paul, Minn. Click here for all of USCHO’s Frozen Four coverage. Michigan Wolverines How they got to St. Paul: Won the Maryland Heights Regional, beating North Dakota 4-3 and Michigan State 5-2 Top players: … Read more

NCAA Hockey Tournament Providence Regional Preview: Boston College, Wisconsin, Quinnipiac, Michigan Tech

Providence Regional, March 29-31 Amica Mutual Pavilion, Providence, R.I. Friday, March 29, 2:00 p.m., ET, ESPNU No. 1 Boston College (31-5-1) vs. No. 4 Michigan Tech (19-14-6) Friday, March 29, 5:30 p.m. ET, ESPNews No. 2 Wisconsin (26-11-2) vs. No. 3 Quinnipiac (26-9-2) Sunday, March 31, 4:00 p.m. ET, ESPN2 Providence Regional Championship BOSTON COLLEGE … Read more

NCAA Hockey Tournament Maryland Heights Regional Preview: Michigan State, North Dakota, Michigan, Western Michigan

Maryland Heights Regional, March 29-31 Centene Community Ice Center, Maryland Heights, Mo. Friday, March 29, 5:00 p.m. ET, ESPNU No. 1 Michigan St. (24-9-3) vs. No. 4 Western Mich. (21-15-1) Friday, March 29, 8:30 p.m. ET, ESPNU No. 2 North Dakota (26-11-2) vs. No. 3 Michigan (21-14-3) Sunday, March 31, 6:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2 Maryland … Read more

NCAA Hockey Tournament Sioux Falls Regional Preview: Boston University, Minnesota, Omaha, Rochester Institute of Technology

Sioux Falls Regional, March 28-30 Denny Sanford PREMIER Center, Sioux Falls, S.D. Thursday, March 28, 5:00 p.m. Eastern time, ESPNU No. 1 Boston U. (26-9-2) vs. No. 4 Rochester Institute of Technology (27-10-2) Thursday, March 28, 8:30 p.m. Eastern time, ESPNU No. 2 Minnesota (22-10-5) vs. No. 3 Omaha (23-12-4) Saturday, March 30, 6:30 p.m. … Read more

TMQ: Tournament play starting in two days, what are X-factors this time of year? What teams have advantages over others?

Each week during the season, we look at the big events and big games around Division I men’s college hockey in Tuesday Morning Quarterback. Dan: Well, Paula, after six months and countless hours spent covering college hockey’s turbulent regular season, we’ve finally reached our 16-team conclusion after the six Division I conferences crowned their postseason … Read more

This Week in Big Ten Hockey: ‘Everything will be amped up’ this weekend as conference championship down to Michigan, Michigan State

In 2004, Michael Farber wrote about the intensity of the Michigan-Michigan State hockey rivalry for Sports Illustrated when the magazine was celebrating its 50th anniversary by highlighting the fiercest sports rivalries state by state. That piece ended with a quote by NHL veteran and Michigan State alum John-Michael Liles, who said, “This rivalry demanded the … Read more

This Week in Big Ten Hockey: Confidence high across four teams still competing for conference playoff title, NCAA tournament auto-bid

“Now it’s the second season. It’s win or go home. You’ve got to play your best hockey.” That’s how Michigan State coach Adam Nightingale described the Spartans’ task this weekend against Ohio State in Big Ten semifinal action, and it sums up nicely what’s at stake in the coming weeks. Win or go home. Play … Read more

TMQ: College hockey playoffs in full swing, so what can we expect going forward during this fun time of the season?

Each week during the season, we look at the big events and big games around Division I men’s college hockey in Tuesday Morning Quarterback. Paula: Oh, Dan, this is absolutely my favorite time of the hockey season – conference playoffs. When I first started covering college hockey decades ago, Bob Daniels told me that the … Read more

Monday 10: Ohio State eliminates Wisconsin from B1G playoffs, Lake Superior outlasts St. Thomas in CCHA postseason, Omaha sweeps North Dakota to wrap regular season

Each week, USCHO.com will pick the top 10 moments from the past weekend in our Monday 10 feature. 1. Ohio State knocks out Wisconsin In a stunning upset, last-place Ohio State took down Wisconsin on the road in a best-of-three Big Ten quarterfinal series, beating the Badgers 3-1 to advance to single-elimination semifinal play. It’s … Read more

This Week in Big Ten Hockey: Conference playoffs arriving this weekend as teams begin battle for 2024 NCAA tournament berth

After a hotly contested regular season, the first round of the Big Ten playoffs begins this week and it’s nearly impossible to predict who will advance to the semifinals. Guess what? That’s exactly how I started this column heading into the Big Ten quarterfinals a year ago. While it’s easy to reclaim that intro, the … Read more

This Week in Big Ten Hockey: Regular-season conference championship up for grabs this weekend as Michigan State heads to Wisconsin

This weekend, history will be made when Michigan State travels to Wisconsin to decide the regular-season Big Ten championship. If the Spartans win, the title will be their first since the Big Ten formed. If the Badgers prevail it will be their second B1G regular-season title, marking the first time that any team other than … Read more

TMQ: Discussing fighting in college hockey, where certain teams stand in conference standings with regular season wrapping soon

Each week during the season, we look at the big events and big games around Division I men’s college hockey in Tuesday Morning Quarterback. Dan: Good morning and happy Tuesday, where temperatures are looking a lot like springtime in the great Commonwealth of Massachusetts. I had sunny skies and a 50-degree day on Monday, and … Read more

This Week in Big Ten Hockey: With Michigan State, Wisconsin vying for regular-season title, rest of teams still have much to play for

There are two weeks left before the Big Ten playoffs and there are only two teams contending for the regular-season title: Michigan State and Wisconsin. Last weekend, the Spartans were idle. Last weekend, the Badgers did themselves no favors. Second-place Wisconsin entered the weekend four points behind Michigan State with two games in hand. They … Read more

This Week in Big Ten Hockey: Regular-season championship coming down to Michigan State, Wisconsin as both teams know ‘you have to earn it’

The Big Ten regular-season title is Michigan State’s to lose. What’s also true is that the Big Ten is Wisconsin’s to win. With three weeks remaining until conference playoffs, the Spartans remain at the top of the standings with 46 points after sweeping Michigan last weekend. The Badgers paced Michigan State with a sweep of … Read more

TMQ: Delving into discussion over PairWise Rankings, predicting how college hockey conference playoffs may play out this season

Each week during the season, we look at the big events and big games around Division I men’s college hockey in Tuesday Morning Quarterback. Dan: A good Tuesday to all of you out there, and an especially Happy Tuesday to those of us on the East Coast preparing for a battering ram nor’easter. We’re getting … Read more

This Week in Big Ten Hockey: Minnesota ‘just in a great spot,’ focusing on creating, maintaining momentum moving forward

A marathon with potential for a photo finish, run on a treadmill. That’s what this Big Ten season feels like. With a month to go before conference playoffs begin, the standings seem to be nearly standing still. Michigan State remains at the top, Ohio State at the bottom, and any movement in between seems nearly … Read more

This Week in Big Ten Hockey: Upcoming Minnesota-Wisconsin series figuring to be ‘a tight weekend, a very tight weekend’

“We need Badger hockey to be good. You do in college hockey, but more importantly, we need Gopher hockey to be better.” That sums up Bob Motzko’s mindset as Minnesota travels to Wisconsin to face the Badgers, a team that swept the Golden Gophers in Minnesota at the end of October. Sharing his take on … Read more

This Week in Big Ten Hockey: Upcoming Minnesota-Michigan State series in East Lansing ‘a big weekend’ for Gophers, Spartans alike

With six weekends remaining in the Big Ten regular season, it would be foolish to say that the conference title is anyone’s to win. Michigan State tops the league standings with 34 points, Wisconsin is in second place with 30, and no one else is capable of catching the Spartans with a single-series sweep at … Read more

This Week in Big Ten Hockey: ‘Exciting week’ to culminate with ‘such a great rivalry’ as Michigan, Michigan State play home-and-home series

A year can make a big difference in college hockey. Some things change. Some things change a lot more. In the Big Ten, the perception that things have changed dramatically is both accurate and deceiving. A year ago this week – more or less – Minnesota was in the process of running away with the … Read more