With the release of the 2011-12 WCHA Schedule, I took some time to break down five series or matchups that I’ll be following closely this upcoming season:
- McGill University at Denver (Oct. 1st) and Colorado College (Oct. 2nd)
The Redmen of McGill come from Montreal as the runner ups in the CIS finals last season, losing to fellow Canadian collegiate powerhouse New Brunswick in the championship game 4-0. How the Pioneers and Tigers, two WCHA favorites this season, do against their Canuck opponent will be fun to watch as the Canadian collegiates play a more fundamentally focused game. This is because fighting is barred, unlike the major junior leagues that many Canadian collegiate players come from.
- Michigan Tech/Northern Michigan (at Northern Dec. 16th, at Tech Jan. 21st)
Nothing says “Welcome back to the conference” to Northern Michigan (Albeit in 2013) than the annual meeting of these UP rivals. Hope springs eternal in Houghton as Red Berenson’s right hand man and Tech grad Mel Pearson steps behind the bench to try and turn the sled around for the Huskies. Up the road in Marquette, the Wildcats come off a disappointing season in which they followed up a 2010 NCAA Tournament appearance with a losing campaign, their first since 2006-07.
- Alaska Anchorage/Nebraska Omaha (In Fairbanks October 14th, Omaha October 22nd and 23rd)
The two surprise teams in the WCHA last season meet up three times in just over a week thanks in part to the Alaska Gold Rush tournament in Fairbanks. Because of WCHA policy, as a tournament game, the October 14th contest will not count in the conference standings. That next weekend, the series shifts to Omaha where the points will count, and the intensity increases between these two up and coming programs.
- Minnesota/North Dakota (at Grand Forks Jan 13th and 14th)
One of college hockey’s most notorious rivalries takes the stage at the Ralph to begin the 2012 portion of the conference schedule. Both teams return a good young core, and as some people watch auto racing watch for the crashes, some people will tune in to see if there are fights like last year.
- Norte Dame/Minnesota-Duluth (at Duluth Oct 7th and 8th)
A rematch of a Frozen Four semifinal from this past season happens rather early on in the season. The national champion Bulldogs look to defend their title after losing several key players from their team last season, while the Irish return a strong nucleus from last year’s team. This will be an early test for the Bulldogs to see if despite their losses they can still run with the big dogs.
-Andy Sorensen, CHW Blogger
