Michigan hockey heads to Madison for first two-game series against Badgers since 1981

Fouad Egbaria

The No. 8 Michigan Wolverines (10-4-2) head to Madison tonight to take on the No. 14 Wisconsin Badgers (11-6-1) for the first game of a weekend double-header. This weekend marks the beginning of the Big Ten schedule for the Wolverines; if you're still holding onto any CCHA nostalgia, this weekend might be a good time to let it go.

The puck drops at 9 p.m. ET, and the game will be televised on the Big Ten Network.

After spending time in the top 5, the Wolverines dropped down to No. 8 after losing both games at the Great Lakes Invitational against Western Michigan and Michigan State, two unranked teams. It's a long season and letdowns are bound to happen, but this weekend's series at the Kohl Center will go a long way toward restoring the good feelings Michigan had before the GLI.

On the bright side, Michigan does get Andrew Copp back; he missed the GLI while he represented the United States at the World Junior Championship in Sweden. Copp leads the Wolverines with nine goals this season.

Meanwhile, the Badgers started the season being predicted by most to finish second in the new Big Ten hockey league, ahead of Michigan but behind Minnesota. Unfortunately for Mike Eaves and Co., the season to date hasn't gone as smoothly as expected.

The Badgers kicked off the season with a pair of wins against Northern Michigan but then took a pair of brutal losses in Massachusetts on consecutive nights, losing to BC 9-2 and to BU 7-3.

They then lost three of four games at Miami and Minnesota. However, things have turned up for the Badgers since then. Since the 4-3 loss at Minnesota on Nov. 30, the Badgers have won seven of eight, facing Penn State, Colorado College, Alabama-Huntsville and Alaska-Anchorage. In that span, the Badgers did drop their first home game of the season, a 3-2 loss against Alaska-Anchorage.

Just like on the hardwood, the Badgers are a tough out on the Kohl Center ice, and Michigan will certainly have its hands full. On the injury front, Wisconsin will be without sophomore Nic Kerdiles, who is third on the squad in goals with eight (17 points). Senior F Sean Little is also out. Kerdiles' absence is an unfortunate one, as you'd always like to face a quality opponent when they're at their best.

Senior F Mark Zengerle leads the the team in points (20), but has just two goals to his name. Senior F Michael Mersch leads the squad with 11 goals; senior F Tyler Barnes is second on the team with eight goals.

According to Bucky's 5th Quarter, Joel Rumpel is likely to get the nod in net. Rumpel has started nine games (appeared in 10) and boasts a GAA of 1.93 and a save percentage of .928.

Michigan boasts a 4-1-1 record on the road this season, but this weekend's trip to Wisconsin's capital city will present their toughest test yet.
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For more, check out Bucky's 5th Quarter's excellent preview. Also check out this MGoBlue piece on the renewal of the rivalry. 

Miscellaneous Minutiae, 10/22/13

Hey, would you look at that, we're just one week away from the start of Michigan basketball. Ah, I remember that Final Four run as if it were yesterday.

• Speaking of basketball, Alex Cook has a breakdown of Michigan's nonconference schedule that's worth a read to get you up to speed. 

• Spencer Hall went to Ole Miss this past weekend. "Ole Miss is never more afraid than when Ole Miss is winning." This sounds oddly familiar. 

• Things are not looking so good for my other school; disillusionment is the word of the day in Evanston. 

• Bucky's 5th Quarter talks about Adam Miller, one of the few positives for the Badgers hockey team this past weekend out east. 

• Aided by teams ahead of them in the rankings losing, Minnesota hockey moves to the top spot in the polls. The Gophers have a big test against Boston College coming up this weekend. BC pasted the Badgers last Friday, 9-2, at Conte Forum. 

• Joel Stave's accuracy continues to be an issue; he badly underthrew a wide open Jared Abbrederis deep on Saturday for what would have been a touchdown. To be fair, it sounded like there was a pretty stiff wind in Memorial Stadium. Also at that link, Chris Borland should be ready to go for UW's next game against Iowa (the Badgers are off this week). 

• In unfortunate injury news, Alabama safety Vinnie Sunseri is out for the season with a torn ACL. 

• The NCAA will announce its ruling on the Miami investigation this morning. 

Miscellaneous Minutiae, 10/15/13

Somehow we're already halfway through October...time flies when you're having fun!:

• Indiana continues to work on the two-QB dynamic with Tre Roberson and Nate Sudfeld. 

• On the heels of a crushing loss at Camp Randall, Sippin' On Purple asks where the 4-2 (0-2) Wildcats stand. 

• The Illini look to bounce back after their loss in Lincoln; unfortunately for them, they'll have to do it against Wisconsin. 

• Kyle Bosch is the newest name to enter the 2013 line blender. 

• Like Michigan, Wisconsin hockey is off to a 2-0 start. Also like Michigan, the Badgers have some difficult upcoming tests on the road. 

• Speaking of hockey, this is yesterday's news but tickets for this year's Big Ten hockey tournament in Minneapolis this March are on sale. 

• Christian Hackenberg won CBSSports.com's "Rookie of the Week" distinction. 

• BHGP with a mid-season assessment of the Hawkeyes, who travel to Columbus this weekend. 

Michigan hockey jumps to No. 5, joins Minnesota, Wisconsin in top 5

Given the nature of college hockey, the rankings are fairly fluid and don't seem to mean a whole lot on a game by game basis. With that said, after an impressive 2-0 start for the Wolverines, Michigan jumped up to No. 5 in the polls.

Forward Alex Guptill returned from a suspension that saw him miss the opener against Boston College, notching two first period helpers against RIT in the 7-4 victory.

Joining Michigan in the top 5 are Notre Dame (No. 4), Minnesota (No. 3), Wisconsin (No. 2) and Miami (No. 1). So far so good for the Big Ten hockey conference. Ohio State and Michigan State are in the receiving votes category, with three and one, respectively.

Michigan returns to the ice this Friday, once again on the road, when the Wolverines will take on the 1-1-0 New Hampshire Wildcats. New Hampshire was up on Minnesota, 2-1, about halfway through the game on Saturday, but two Gopher goals later in the second period saddled the Wildcats with the 3-2 loss. That's not much to go off of, but it does prove that they are dangerous (they're currently No. 13 in the country). A split on the road this coming weekend would be a solid accomplishment.

Miscellaneous Minutiae, 10/10/2013

One of these days it's going to start feeling like fall. For now, links will have to do:

• I know people in the blogosphere like to make fun of the journalism one-sentence paragraph, but "Then they will try to destroy each other" sounds like a line, if slightly altered, meant for Ivan Drago. On a side note, it's too bad Michigan never showed interest in Allen Robinson during his recruitment; hindsight is 20/20, obviously, but it would be nice to have a guy like that in your receiving corps (and that is quite an understatement). 

• Bucky's 5th Quarter previews the Big Ten hockey season. Michigan opens against Boston College tonight at Yost; Michigan is without forward Alex Guptill, and the blue line will be full of youngsters. In that vein, Michigan and BC are the youngest teams in the country, so I'd expect some generally skittish, sloppy play tonight. Elsewhere at the top of the new-look B1G hockey conference, Minnesota opens against Mercyhurst on Friday. The Badgers open against Northern Michigan. 

• Also from Bucky's 5th quarter, a mid-season diagnosis hopes for improvement in the pass rush and wide receiving departments. 

• Urban Meyer says the "pass defense is very alarming right now." The Buckeyes are off this weekend before heading back to the Horseshoe to take on Iowa on Oct. 19. 

• "Population to the ball" might be Pat Fitzgerald's version of "hearing football." 

• Like Michigan, the Nittany Lions are hoping for improvement from the offensive line as they look to attack Michigan's "stout" run defense. 

• The youth movement is alive and well at the quarterback position in the Big Ten. 

• Wisconsin defensive coordinator Dave Aranda is counting on outside linebackers Brendan Kelly and Vince Biegel to bring the pass rush against Northwestern. 

• Sippin' On Purple's Rodger Sherman on why to hate Wisconsin. Although Michigan has not fared well against the Badgers post-2005, I can't find it within myself to hate or even dislike them; actually, I'm somewhat of a fan. Criticize their offensive style on the gridiron on the hardwood all you want, but I enjoy watching them play, and Madison is one of the best college towns around. 

• Michigan prepares for the Beaver Stadium crowd noise by whispering (insert "but they're not playing in the Big House!" jokes here). 

Penn State's Shiny, New Pegula Arena

I don't write much about hockey here, but I'm thinking that might have to change with the Big Ten hockey conference's inaugural season. I wrote a bit about the BTN schedule and my excitement for B1G hockey not too long ago. Another update on the hockey front: Penn State's new hockey arena--named after Buffalo Sabres owner and Penn State alumnus Terry Pegula, whose $102 million donation helped make the arena possible--was showed off to the media on Wednesday, 15 days before the first game in the new arena.

Based on this Centre Daily Times article's accompanying picture, I have to say, that looks [Larry David voice] pretty, pretty, pretty good. Then again, for over $100 million, I would certainly hope so.

Excitement seems to be high for PSU hockey in University Park:

The main arena will have an official capacity of 6,014, including 233 standing-room-only tickets. 

The most impressive number Battista gave Wednesday, with a lot of eye-popping numbers mentioned, was that a mere 22 men’s hockey season tickets remain unsold — and they are single seats scattered around the arena. In addition to seats in the main bowl, all 14 suites have been spoken for, all 98 loge seats are gone and all 525 club seats are sold. 

All that remains, in addition to the 22 open seats and 233 standing-room spots, are 200 seats which will be held for single-game sale and visiting team needs. 

The opening game is an even hotter ticket — seats are up for sale on StubHub for as much as $325, and Penn State is already turning down seat requests.

Whether the Nittany Lions can avoid the basement of the Big Ten this season is another issue entirely; either way, if you're a dedicated college hockey fan, a trip to Pegula Arena this season is probably in order.

Read more here: http://www.centredaily.com/2013/09/26/3807653/penn-state-ice-hockey-new-pegula.html#storylink=cpy

Big Ten Network to air 27 hockey games in 2013-14

SOURCE: Jeff Wilcox

Everyone's mind is still focused on the gridiron, but Big Ten hockey isn't too far away, and the the Big Ten Network released its 2013-14 slate of games yesterday: 

BTN will provide unprecedented coverage of men’s ice hockey in 2013-14, the inaugural Big Ten Hockey season, including eight straight weeks of “Frozen Friday” doubleheaders in January and February and the 2014 Hockey City Classic at TCF Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.

BTN also will televise the entire Big Ten Hockey Tournament, set for March 20-22, 2014, at Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, Minn. Men’s Ice Hockey on BTN is presented by Buffalo Wild Wings.

Of the 27 games, Michigan is featured in eight; only Minnesota gets more TV time (nine pre-tournament BTN games). Wisconsin has six, including a Jan. 10 meeting against Michigan in Madison and the same matchup Jan. 31 in Ann Arbor. The Big Ten basketball season will be underway by then, but if you're looking for something to whet your appetite in the week or so after the bowl game, this is a great way to do it. 

In case you missed it, College Hockey News's preseason rankings includes three Big Ten squads: Wisconsin (No. 3), Minnesota (No. 6) and Michigan (No. 8). 

As an admittedly casual college hockey fan, I'm excited to see what this "new" conference arrangement holds. Michigan being in the same conference as Minnesota and Wisconsin is without a doubt a great thing. Of course, Michigan State and Ohio State remain on the schedule, and you can add a fledgling Penn State to the mix this season. Whether Michigan can bounce back and start another tournament streak remains to be seen, but, either way, I think Big Ten hockey will be a little more accessible to the casual fan (such as myself) than the CCHA sometimes felt. Losing Notre Dame and Miami as regular opponents is unfortunate, but I'd personally rather play Minnesota and Wisconsin, anyway. 

For takes elsewhere (especially ones more informed than mine), Bucky's 5th Quarter isn't too happy about the schedule.