Minnesota was idle last weekend, but the Gophers earned 38 first-place votes in this week’s USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll to stay atop the rankings. Quinnipiac, also off last weekend, stays No. 2 with the other 12 first-place votes. Denver stays third, Michigan remains fourth, and Boston University moves up two spots to No. 5 … Read more
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. First-place Minnesota gets a first-round bye. The quarterfinal best-of-three series has No. 7 Wisconsin at No. 2 Michigan, No. 6 Penn State at No. 3 Ohio … Read more
Minnesota is again the No. 1 team in the USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll as the Gophers pinned down 37 first-place votes this week. Quinnipiac stays No. 2 and collects the other 13 first-place votes in this week’s rankings. Denver is still No. 3 and Michigan fourth, and Harvard is up two to sit fifth … Read more
Heading into the final weekend of regular-season Big Ten play, we know two things for sure about conference playoff seedings: Minnesota has the first-round bye and Wisconsin travels for that first week of playoff action. Where the Badgers are going, though, remains a mystery for a few days more. First things first. Congratulations to the … Read more
In advance of Minnesota’s series in Wisconsin last weekend and two wins away from securing the Big Ten regular-season title, Golden Gophers coach Bob Motzko was asked about how his team had handled a break in the schedule the week before. “The best answer would be Saturday night late,” he said. “We’ll tell you.” The … Read more
With three weeks remaining in the regular season, everything in the Big Ten is a numbers game. Last weekend’s results created the kind of scenario that many sports fans love and coaches hate, the possibility that nothing concrete will be resolved until the last game of the season. Well, maybe not nothing. While results aren’t … Read more
Minnesota did not play last weekend, but the Gophers picked up 36 first-place votes to remain No. 1 in the USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll. Quinnipiac stays No. 2 with six first-place votes, while Boston University is again No. 3, getting eight first-place votes in this week’s rankings. Denver retains the No. 4 spot, Michigan … Read more
Getting 38 first-place votes this week, Minnesota moves up one spot to become the new top-ranked team in the USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll. Quinnipiac earned four first-place votes and moves up one spot to No. 2, while Boston University jumps up one spot to No. 3, picking up seven first-place votes, and Denver is … Read more
Adam Augustine is a pragmatic man. A son of the great state of Wisconsin, the senior director of sports administration for the Big Ten is of course pleased with what he’s seeing from B1G hockey this season, but his Midwestern sensibilities add a dose of slow-your-roll when discussing any bigger picture. “While it’s nice that … Read more
How strange is this season of Big Ten hockey? If the season were to end today, five of the conference’s seven teams would play in the NCAA tournament. Minnesota would be the overall No. 1 seed and Penn State would likely be the top seed in its regional. How strange? Of the five Big Ten … Read more
As Jimmy Connelly and I lamented in the last TMQ of the first half of the season, once upon a time in the college hockey world, there were many significant and highly anticipated holiday tournaments. While the number of these tourneys has dwindled, the impact that any interleague play has on those who participate remains … Read more
With the first half of the season behind us, it’s a good time to reflect on how things have gone so far in the Big Ten. The B1G picture For the Big Ten, the first half was productive in several ways. With a record of 44-13-3, B1G Hockey has the best inter-conference win percentage (.758) … Read more
Raise your hand if you knew at the start of the season that Minnesota and Michigan State would be battling early for the top spot in Big Ten conference hockey. Come on, now. Don’t lie. This weekend, the “original six” of the Big Ten take the ice – everyone but Notre Dame – in three … Read more
By every possible measure, the past seven days have been extraordinary for Big Ten hockey. Minnesota swept Michigan at Yost Ice Arena. Michigan State – the team picked by coaches’ preseason to finish last – split a pair of road games against Penn State, and the Spartans sit in second place, one point behind the … Read more
Minnesota’s Bob Motzko has an idea about the 2022-23 Big Ten hockey season: “We’re just going to beat the snot out of each other this year.” Motzko’s Golden Gophers are in third place in B1G conference standings after splitting a home series against Penn State last weekend, losing 4-2 and winning 3-2. The three road … Read more
With 32 first-place votes, Minnesota rises two spots to sit No. 1 in this week’s DCU/USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll. Denver stays No. 2 and picked up five first-place votes this week. Michigan drops two spots to No. 3, getting three first-place votes, while St. Cloud State remains No. 4 with five first-place votes. Quinnipiac … Read more
With 21 first-place votes this week, Minnesota is again the top-ranked team in the DCU/USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll. St. Cloud State received 14 first-place votes and moved up from No. 8 to No. 2 in this week’s poll. Denver took home seven first-place votes and jumped one spot to No. 3, while Michigan bagged … Read more
Minnesota is the new No. 1 team in the DCU/USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll, picking up 31 first-place votes. The Gophers move up one spot from their No. 2 ranking of a week ago. Minnesota State is up three spots to No. 2, getting 14 first-place votes, while Quinnipiac is up five places to No. … Read more
Is this B1G Hockey’s big season? Finally? While Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota and Wisconsin have 23 national championships among them, not one of those titles was captured as a member of the Big Ten. Since its inaugural season in 2013-14, B1G Hockey has sent teams to the Frozen Four seven times, and two B1G teams … Read more
The Big Ten on Wednesday announced its preseason coaches poll as well as two preseason all-Big Ten teams. Coaches also picked the preseason teams. 2022-23 Big Ten Preseason Coaches Poll 1. Minnesota 2. Notre Dame 3. Michigan 4. Wisconsin 5. Ohio State 6. Penn State 7. Michigan State 2022-23 Preseason All-Big Ten Hockey Teams FIRST … Read more