It’s a full slate of conference play this weekend, with a couple rivalries resuming. The Buckeyes visit the Wolverines, while Minnesota hosts Wisconsin. Penn State and Michigan State will play two in Pennsylvania.

Michigan and Penn State are tied for first in the conference, while Minnesota and Wisconsin are in the bottom two slots. Yes, Minnesota is just slightly above Wisconsin, which is in the Big Ten basement,

The Wolverines have been rising in the PairWise, while Minnesota has been dropping – and now is No. 16. This is a big weekend for the Gophers, and it should be a pair of easy victories for a team struggling to win.

The Penn State and Michigan State series should be interesting. The Nittany Lions seem to have shaken off their winter break sleepiness, while the Spartans have played well in their past few contests.

As for Michigan-Ohio State, well, the Wolverines are just too good right now. And Ohio State isn’t really healthy.  (more…)

Big Ten play resumed last weekend, as Penn State, Ohio State, Minnesota and Michigan combined for a couple overtime games. Michigan finished with the sweep, relegating the Gophers to fifth in the conference.

The Wolverines are now tied with Penn State for the Big Ten lead, and have one conference game on hand. After scoring 11 goals on the weekend, Michigan’s offense is ranked second in the country. Zach Hyman now has 26 points, and is eight away from doubling his total from last season.

Ohio State held a 4-1 lead over Penn State before the Nittany Lions scored four goals in the third period to tie the game. Ohio State salvaged the game but winning in overtime, and is now 2-3-0 against Big Ten opponents.

There’s not much to say about Wisconsin except the Badgers are still bad. They tied BU, but that happened partly because the Terriers scored in their own net.

(After the jump: Minnesota is in trouble, from goalkeeping to offense, why Michigan will win the Big Ten) (more…)

Big Ten conference play created some interesting games, with overtime contests between Ohio State and Penn State as well as Minnesota and Michigan.

Penn State, known for good puck possession, continued that trend as it possessed the Buckeyes in a weekend split. Meanwhile, Wisconsin’s poor Corsi numbers continued as the Badgers tied and lost to Boston University.

The Corsi stats are listed below:
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All Big Ten teams take the ice this week, highlighted by a couple conference series. Michigan State hosts the NTDP, while the Badgers welcome Boston University to Wisconsin.

Michigan and Minnesota face each other in the Big Ten series to watch this weekend, as the teams were expected to compete for the first and second spots in the Big Ten. Minnesota struggled at its holiday tournament, while Michigan powered past Michigan Tech and Michigan State to win the Great Lakes Invitational.  but Minnesota

Penn State and Ohio State face off, as the Buckeyes continue their Pennsylvania road trip. While the Nittany Lions came back from the holidays healthy, the Buckeyes will be undermanned this weekend.

The Hobey Baker fan ballot was released, and the Big Ten had seven members nominated – Penn State’s Casey Bailey and Taylor Holstrom, Michigan’s Andrew Copp and Zach Hyman and Minnesota’s Mike Reilly, Kyle Rau and Adam Wilcox.

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The Big Ten turned in one if its better non-conference weekends, finishing with a 3-2-1 record. The Gophers fell to Merrimack but defeated RIT, Ohio State beat and tied Mercyhurst, and the Badgers split their weekend against Michigan Tech.

The Buckeyes put up eight goals in the Snowtown Throwdown, with Matt Johnson’s hat trick leading Ohio State’s six-goal effort on Friday. Ohio State is one of six programs that have had two different players record a hat trick this season.

With a 2-0 win over Michigan Tech on Saturday, the Badgers became the last team to reach the two-win mark this season. Joel Rumpel made a career-high 47 saves in the shutout, one night after the Badgers lost 8-1 to the Huskies. I use “upset” minimally, but Wisconsin’s win was an upset and an anomaly. The Badgers are still in a bad state, but the rest of the conference – especially Michigan – should thank Wisconsin for getting a huge out-of-conference win.

Speaking of Michigan, the Wolverines are now 21st in the PairWise, and Penn State has dropped to 22. After falling to Merrimack, the Gophers dropped to 10. There are still some non-conference games left, but it might be too late for the Wolverines or Nittany Lions to earn an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. (more…)

This week, Wisconsin, Ohio State and Minnesota combined for a 3-2-1 record. The Gophers and Badgers split their weekend, while Ohio State defeated and tied Mercyhurst.

Despite missing Hudson Fasching and Ryan Collins on Friday, Minnesota still recorded its highest 5-on-5 Corsi for the season. This marked the fourth and fifth time so far the Gophers passed the 60 percent mark for 5-on-5 Corsi.

The Badgers earned their second win of the season, snapping a four game losing streak. But Wisconsin’s Corsi numbers hovered around the 35 percent mark for both games, and the Badgers won Saturday largely because of Joel Rumpel’s play.

Ohio State scored six goals on Friday, while controlling 5-on-5 play. The second game between Mercyhurst and Ohio State was more even, and the Buckeyes recorded a 50 percent Corsi for 5-on-5 play.

The Corsi stats are listed below: (more…)

Wisconsin, Minnesota and Ohio State make their return from break this season. The Gophers will host the 24th annual Mariucci Classic, while Ohio State finishes its non-conference slate. The Badgers will being a difficult stretch, as it hosts Michigan Tech this weekend before facing Boston University and Minnesota.

Penn State, Michigan and Michigan State are idle this week.

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This is the New Year’s Eve edition of Three Things I Think, which means it’s been a year since I started covering Big Ten hockey.

A full year, an inaugural tournament and a bunch of stories later, I can say I’ve really enjoyed covering this conference.

But back to hockey. A very depleted Michigan team missing Dylan Larkin, Tyler Motte, Zach Werenski and J.T. Compher stunned Michigan Tech and took down Michigan State to win the 50th Great Lakes Invitational. Wolverine coach Red Berenson told me before the tournament that all they needed was a No. 1 goalkeeper – and Steve Racine was exactly that.

Penn State saw Zach Saar and Taylor Holstrom return to the lineup, but might have some holiday sleepiness to shake off. The Nittany Lions fell to Robert Morris and Western Michigan at the Three Rivers Classic, as Colgate took the tournament.

The New Year will most likely bring us just one Big Ten team in the NCAA tournament, and a much less exciting Big Ten tournament.

Yes, just one Big Ten team. The conference has failed in out-of-conference play, and playing well in the second half might not be enough to earn Michigan an at-large bid. It might not even be enough for Penn State. Unless one of those two teams wins the Big Ten tournament (my money’s on Penn State).

Now that it’s been a year of coverage and stories like Hudson Fasching’s, I wanted to thank you all for following along. It’s hard to believe 2014 is already over.

(After the jump: Big Ten New Year’s Resolutions, Zach Hyman is good, and it’s the best time of the year.)  (more…)

College hockey eased back into the season with holiday tournaments. Penn State struggled at the Three Rivers Classic, losing both games, while Michigan translated a depleted roster into a Great Lakes Invitational championship.

Here are this week’s Corsi stats: (more…)

We ease back from the holiday break with a few tournaments, as Michigan and Michigan State will play in the 50th Great Lakes Invitational. Penn State kicks off the second half of its season against Robert Morris in the Three Rivers Classic.

Minnesota, Ohio State and Wisconsin are idle this week. That’s good news for Minnesota, as the Gophers are missing Ryan Collins, Leon Bristedt and Hudson Fasching. The trio made the cut for their respect World Junior Championship rosters, while Ohio State’s Janik Moser will skate for Germany.

Also on the U.S. roster are Michigan’s Dylan Larkin, Tyler Motte, J.T. Compher and Zach Werenski, making this weekend even more difficult for Michigan.

Michigan Tech and Ferris State will join Michigan and Michigan State in the GLI. Michigan Tech will probably win the tournament.

At the Three Rivers Classic, Colgate and Western Michigan will join the two Pennsylvania teams.

The WJC kicked off on Friday, and the U.S. defeated Finland in the shootout.

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