The wait is over – it’s time for another season of college hockey! The Big Ten has four teams in action this weekend: Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Penn State. The fresh season also means a fresh slate for me. As always, let me know what picks you like and don’t like and be sure to… Read more: Puck Picks: Opening Weekend

We’ve made it – the last weekend of the regular season – and this year’s schedule-makers deserve a huge raise. This week’s matchups feature a battle for the top spot between Michigan State and Wisconsin and a fight for third place between Michigan and Minnesota. I’ll include a seeding scenario before the prediction so you’ll… Read more: Puck Picks: The Regular Season Finale

We’re back after a brief hiatus and just in time for the final stretch of the regular season. With just two weeks left in the season, each game becomes critical for tournament seeding and that all-important first-round bye. Currently Michigan State holds the top spot, but it’s not buttoned up for them yet. A strong… Read more: Puck Picks: The Home Stretch

We’re deep into conference play at this point and the teams are starting to separate themselves. This week features the new powers (Michigan State and Wisconsin) against the old guard (Minnesota and Michigan) and then an intriguing matchup for all the wrong reasons between Penn State and Ohio State.  Conference play continues to trip me up… Read more: Puck Picks: Old vs. New

The conference is back to its traditional schedule of three conference matchups and a team on a bye – this time its Wisconsin. Some interesting matchups are on tap as Michigan State looks to pull away from the resting Badgers against their in-state rival, Michigan. Penn State also goes on the road to Notre Dame for what… Read more: Puck Picks: Big Ten Play Rekindles

This weekend sees all of the Big Ten teams back in action with two conference matchups and three non-conference series. The Wolverines finally join the fun again after being off for more than a month as they host Stonehill and it’ll be interesting to see if there’s any rust on their blades.  Another perfect week for… Read more: Puck Picks: Everyone’s Back In

1. Wisconsin New year – same team at the top. The Badgers are now winners of nine-straight after a sweep of Notre Dame to open 2024, ranked #3 nationally, and don’t look to be slowing down any time soon. 2. Michigan State Michigan State was idle this past weekend. But before the new year, they finished… Read more: B1G Power Rankings – January 8, 2024

Game 1 – January 5, 2024 Game 2 – January 6, 2024

Unlike Friday’s game, this game started with Wisconsin in full control and forcing Notre Dame to commit costly turnovers. The first of these came just 5:35 into the game when freshman William Whitelaw stole the puck as Notre Dame was exiting their D-zone. He skated toward Irish netminder Ryan Bischel and deposited it into the top-left corner… Read more: Badgers Overpower Irish to Claim Ninth in a Row

In front of a sold-out crowd of 5,069, Notre Dame came out swinging against Wisconsin. Their aggressive forecheck prevented the Badgers from gaining possession in the Wisconsin offensive zone for the first 2:30 of the game. The visitors, though, weathered the storm and used a whistle for a frozen puck to regroup and push back. Whereas the Irish… Read more: Badgers Capitalize on Irish’s Mental Mistakes

Five teams get the 2024 portion of their season started this weekend and will look to make good on their New Year’s resolutions. With only one Big Ten matchup, all eyes will be on Wisconsin at Notre Dame, including ours. We’ll be at the game providing live updates as well as analysis after the game. But for now,… Read more: Puck Picks: Welcome to 2024

This past year has been a wild one in Big Ten hockey. Michigan and Minnesota flexed their muscles by winning the Big Ten tournament and playing for a national championship, respectively, last season and, more recently, we have been able to witness Michigan State and Wisconsin’s return to national prominence. As the clock runs out in 2023,… Read more: Big Ten Hockey Year in Review

Four teams are back on the ice this weekend with games spanning from Thursday through Sunday so there’s plenty of action to enjoy. The conference’s two dominant teams, Michigan State and Wisconsin, are playing in tournaments this weekend and will look to capitalize on the opportunity to show the rest of the country that they are… Read more: Puck Picks: Holiday Tournaments

1. Wisconsin The rich get richer. Wisconsin handled business against Penn State this weekend, outscoring the Nittany Lions 10-4. They’re ranked #6 in the country at the start of the holiday break and don’t look like they’ll be leaving anytime soon. 2. Michigan State The Spartans dispatched Notre Dame in both games this weekend with a combined… Read more: B1G Power Rankings – Dec. 11, 2023

This weekend marks the last conference series of the year for the Big Ten. After Saturday, the teams will take a much deserved break before resuming after Christmas or, in Michigan’s case, on January 12. So let’s enjoy one last action-packed weekend before winding down for the holidays. A perfect game. A hat trick. A… Read more: Puck Picks: Closing out 2023

1. Wisconsin The Badgers reclaim this week’s top spot after a dominant performance against Ohio State in Madison. Wisconsin finally looked like the team that started the season 9-1 with gutsy team play in the first game and an avalanche of goals in the second game. 2. Michigan State Splitting the series with Minnesota two… Read more: B1G Power Rankings – Dec. 4, 2023

Big Ten play resumes this week after the Thanksgiving hiatus with the typical three-matchups and bye format. Michigan State is the odd team out and will get a week of rest before closing out the pre-holiday schedule next weekend. This week I’m in Madison to see the Badgers battle the Buckeyes in person and take… Read more: Puck Picks: Taking in Madison

1. Michigan State Despite only mustering a shoot-out win against Minnesota, the Spartans retain this week’s top spot. Their series sweep against Wisconsin last week is boosting them, but that is looking less impressive after Wisconsin’s sleepy performance in Friday’s game against Alaska-Anchorage. If Michigan State’s offense stays hot, it’ll take a lot to remove… Read more: B1G Power Rankings – Nov. 27, 2023

There’s only one conference matchup this weekend, but all of the teams are in action so there’s plenty of hockey to be watched. The headliner is Michigan State traveling to Minnesota, but some of the non-conference games are very intriguing, especially Michigan going on the road to St. Cloud State. Last weekend was another pedestrian… Read more: Puck Picks: Thanksgiving Weekend

1. Michigan State The Spartans welcomed the red-hot Badgers into East Lansing this past weekend and sent them home with two losses to take over the top spot in this week’s Power Rankings. Michigan State continues to play their up-tempo games and other teams just can’t keep up. 2. Wisconsin Despite getting swept this weekend,… Read more: B1G Power Rankings – Nov. 20, 2023

We are on location for this weekend’s showdown between Minnesota and Notre Dame in Minneapolis. It’s this season’s first stop on our Big Ten Hockey Tour and one of our favorite spots. In addition to that matchup, this week’s schedule has two others that should provide plenty of fireworks. Ohio State, mercifully, is off this… Read more: Puck Picks: On Location in Minneapolis

1. Wisconsin The Badgers were idle this past weekend, but their start to the season is still enough to keep them in top spot. The pollsters seem to agree as Wisconsin is now the unanimous #1 in the current rankings. 2. Michigan State The Green and White were essentially tied for the second spot last… Read more: B1G Power Rankings – Nov. 13, 2023

Red-hot Wisconsin is off this weekend which means a slate of just three Big Ten contests. The marquee of the weekend will be the battle between Minnesota and Michigan in Ann Arbor, but the other two series have compelling storylines of their own. As expected, a weekend full of Big Ten matchups was about as… Read more: Puck Picks: Hockey Royalty Takes Center Stage (Ice?)

1. Wisconsin Thanks to a six-game win streak that includes sweeps of Michigan Tech and Minnesota on the road and Michigan at home, Wisconsin is now 9-1 on the season and has earned the #3 ranking as of publication. The Badgers have a good, not great, offense (3.5 goals per game), but their defense (1.8… Read more: B1G Power Rankings – Nov. 6, 2023

This is the first full week of Big Ten play – three conference matchups and the odd-man out (Minnesota) has an intriguing matchup with in-state rival Minnesota-Duluth. Notre Dame and Penn State get started a day late this week so that means another three-day weekend of Big Ten hockey! I cooled off a bit this… Read more: Puck Picks: Big Ten Play in Full Swing

Five Big Ten teams start their weekend on Thursday this week so Saturday’s slate will be pretty light. The lone Big Ten matchup this week features Wisconsin traveling to Minnesota. I caught a break with Ohio State picking up a shootout win to keep my prediction spot-on, even though they were thoroughly dominated all weekend.… Read more: Puck Picks: More Big Ten Play on Tap

Michigan State plays another Thursday night game this week so that means we all get to enjoy a long weekend of hockey. And with the matchups this week, “enjoy” might be an understatement. Big Ten play starts tomorrow with a rivalry matchup as Ohio State travels north to take on Michigan in Ann Arbor. I… Read more: Puck Picks: Big Ten Play is Finally Here

We are just hours away from the first weekend where all the Big Ten teams are in action. I did fairly well last week and look to continue my picking power with some interesting matchups this week. As always, let me know which picks you like and which ones you don’t in the comments. Last… Read more: Puck Picks: Gophers Join the Fun in Week 2

As of publication, we are just two days away from Big Ten hockey action, with six of the seven teams playing this weekend. While there are no conference matchups on tap, there is still a lot of intrigue within the first slate of games. Let me know what picks you agree with (and don’t) in… Read more: Puck Picks: Opening Weekend

As of last week, USCHO released their preseason rankings and it’s good news for the Big Ten. Six of the seven teams in the conference are ranked in the national top-20; three of them in the top-9. The usual suspects, Minnesota and Michigan, are the near the top, but a surprise team slots in at… Read more: Preseason Rankings Released

On a cold, snow-covered weekend in March 2014, six teams met in St. Paul, MN to participate in the inaugural Big Ten Hockey Tournament. The event was equal parts competition and celebration – the Big Ten had survived its first year. The games played on the ice that weekend were full of intrigue and upsets,… Read more: Celebrating Ten Years of Big Ten Hockey