Since 2013, the Big Ten Conference has constantly lived in the shadow of the broken-up Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) when it comes to men’s hockey. However, the Big Ten has steadily gained steam. Four teams, including the Minnesota Gophers, are ranked in this week’s USCHO top 10 poll.
Alongside the No. 2 ranked Gophers, Penn State, Ohio State and Michigan round out 6th through 8th place. Michigan State stands at No. 15 and Notre Dame, the newest Big Ten member, sits just outside the rankings and has been a member of the top 20 for most of the year.
Unlike other hockey programs mentioned that have been long-standing NCAA regulars, Penn State joined Division I play in 2012. In the PairWise ranking, which simulates how the NCAA tournament selects teams, the Nittany Lions sit third in the nation due to a strong strength of schedule.
With the birth of the Big Ten, one of the most historic hockey conferences slowly broke down and eventually became no more. Critics called the Gophers’ move out of the WCHA motivated by money.
The Big Ten is a favorable option to nationally televise games through their TV network. Yet, Gophers Head Coach Bob Motzko still takes every opportunity to schedule old conference rivals. For example, this season Minnesota State-Mankato, North Dakota and St. Cloud State have all visited Mariucci Arena.
In the bigger picture, there was a noticeable talent gap. Penn State and Ohio State have not experienced much postseason success compared to the goliaths of Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin, who all have six or more NCAA titles to their names.
Minnesota would conquer regular season play during the first four seasons, coming out as champs every year. The Gophers have only won the regular season crown once since their win in 2017, with four different opposing squads taking the title. Minnesota reclaimed their supremacy last year.
Upstart Penn State and Ohio State have surprisingly been the Gophers’ most challenging conference opponents this year. Those schools, which have been below-average programs that have had their moments, have made the conference more competitive as a whole this year. This will hopefully yield more positive NCAA tournament results from the Big Ten.
The Frozen Four has recently been dominated by teams from the NCHC and Hockey East conferences. The two teams from the NCHC that have had the most success have been former WCHA members and common Golden Gophers opponents Denver and Minnesota-Duluth. With 6 out of 7 Big Ten teams being active members in this season’s USCHO top 20 rankings, this is the prime year for the conference to make a successful splash in the NCAA Tournament.
Minnesota will try to continue its path to win back-to-back regular season titles entering a massive two-game tilt versus Michigan at Mariucci Arena.
“This is two powerhouses going at it,” Gophers freshman defenseman Ryan Chesley said. “Kind of a rivalry that’s been created throughout the years so it’ll be a fun one.”
The Gophers tallied eleven goals in their first series with the Wolverines in November. Both games will begin at 7 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.
“They got Hughes on the backend and those younger guys too up front so we’re going to have to be ready,” junior defenseman Ryan Johnson said. “It’ll be a challenge for sure, [Michigan] sure love[s] to play their best games against us.”
