5 Teams That Appear Poised for a Big Second Half of Season: Puck Drop
College hockey teams are back on campus, and the last few individuals still playing in international tournaments should trickle in later this week as the run for the postseason is already under way.
Sometimes the Winter Break can do wonders for a team and more than rejuvenate the players. It can be sort of a fresh start, and in some cases nowadays a key addition can be added. Regardless of the how, though, a perfect example of what can happen occured with Penn State last year. When the Nittany Lions wrapped up December by winning the inaugural Capital Hockey Classic in Washington D.C. with a 4-1 victory over Army, they were 7-9, and winless in Big Ten play at 0-8.
They didn't just get hot, but peaked at the right time and played in the program's first Frozen Four.
This past weekend's first results of 2026 were telling with some teams that we either expect to play stronger as the season progresses, or seemed to make a statement about what they might do from here on out.
Many of them are in the East, where we've been waiting for a top contender to emerge, but not all.
1. Quinnipiac
There are statements, and then there's what the Bobcats did against the other top two ranked teams in the ECAC over the weekend. They opened with a dismantling of No. 18 Harvard, 9-1, during which seven different players scored. The next night, Quinnipiac handed Dartmouth its fourth loss in five games, 5-3. With the wins, the Bobcats moved into a four-way tie the ECAC standings, but perhaps more importantly moved into the top 10 of the National Collegiate Percentage (NPI) Index, which has it on target for making the NCAA Tournament.
2. Maine
You don't want to call any college hockey series in January a must-win, but No. 15 Maine needed at least a split at No. 6 Denver to serve as a springboard for the second half of the season, and ended up getting a lot more. Although the Pioneers weren't at full strength, the Black Bears took the first game 5-2, and then came back for a 3-3 tie in the finale. They also won the shootout (that doesn't count in the standings), to get a big lift heading back into Hockey East play. The reigning Hockey East champions jumped up from No. 36 to No. 22 in NPI.
3. Boston University
It was only an exhibition, but college hockey has been sort of waiting for a sign that No. 19 Boston University was turning things up and Saturday's 8-2 win against Simon Fraser may have been it. They outshot the Red Leafs 52-19, and had six different scorers. With the second-most drafted players in college hockey, BU is just way too good to be 9-8-1 (6-5 Hockey East). It moved up to No. 23 in NPI, but will face a team that's even desperate for a big win next weekend, UMass, as the Minutemen are in last place in Hockey East.
4. Penn State
Yeah, we know the Nittany Lions took a 1-0 loss at RIT over the weekend, but with the head coach coming back from the Spengler Cup in Switzerland and some of the players still competing at the World Junior Championship, we're paying more attention to the 7-2 bounce-back win on Sunday durign Penn State's Senior Night. Aiden Fink, a Hobey Baker finalist last year, is back in the fold, and freshman Gavin McKenna has shown flashes of his potential in the World Juniors. Penn State is still at No. 8 in NPI is looks like it could be top-five again in the near future.
5. Augustana
The Vikings opened the second half of the season with a weekend sweep of Colorado College, improving to 12-6-3 overall. They also did it without starting goaltender Josh Kotai, who was on the U.S. Collegiate Selects team playing in Switzerland. Sophomore Christian Manz stepped in and made his first two starts. Augustana is still in fourth in the CCHA, but has the best NPI ranking at No. 13, one spot ahead of Minnesota State.
Five more teams that we could have included: Western Michigan, Princeton, Arizona State, Bowling Green and even though they haven't played yet in 2026, Boston College.
Puck Drop: Monday, January 5, 2025
• It took eight rounds of a shootout but Anton Frondell finally go the game-winner as Sweden edged Finland 4-3 in the semifinals of the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship. Last year, Sweden lost to Finland 4-3 in overtime in the semifinals in Ottawa. "It was more like the hockey gods were on our side this year," Swedish coach Magnus Havelid said. They were also on the side of the Czechs, who advanced to the championship game thanks to a skate goal in a 6-4 win over Canada. Tomas Poletin was credited with the go-ahead goal at 18:46 of the third period, when Maxmilian Curran's shot banked off the skate of Michael Misa and then Poletin before crossing the goal-line. Canada and Finland will play the third-place game at Grand Casino Arena in St. Paul, Minn., on Monday, followed by Sweden vs. Czechia in the championship.
• Did you see that Michigan's Michael Hage got a penalty shot off a penalty shot?
Michael Hage is tripped on the penalty shot and gets a redo 😳
— Leafs Papi (@LeafsPapi_) January 5, 2026
He tries the same move the 2nd time and it gets stopped pic.twitter.com/Cl2leLHrQj
• Former Michigan center John Beecher was suspended for one game, without pay, for roughing Nashville Predators forward Michael McCarron (USA Hockey National Team Development Program) on Saturday.
• Colorado College has received a commitment from forward Joby Baumuller of the Brandon Wheat Kings (WHL).
• Sidney Crosby became the first player in NHL history with 50 career overtime points. His 25 goals, which he added to Sunday during Pittsburgh's 5-4 win at Columbus, are the second most all-time behidn Alex Ovechkin (27).
• Of note from Saturday's games:
Lindenwood outshot Canisius 75-26 tonight and lost 4-3. Canisius goalie Petter Wickström Stumer set an Atlantic Hockey record by making 72 saves. The Lions put 34 shots on goal in the third period alone. They attempted 127.
— Brad Elliott Schlossman (@SchlossmanGF) January 4, 2026
• The Michigan Daily reported that freshman forward Teddy Spitznagel has left the Wolverines hockey team. He hadn't played in a game this season. Michigan defeated the U.S. National Team Development Program with a 7-5 exhibition win on Saturday.
Speaking of former Michigan athletes, this is worth a listen about the state of collegiate athletics:
Would Tom Brady have stayed at Michigan in today’s portal/NIL era? His answer is worth a listen.
— The Winged Helmet (@TWH_Chris) January 4, 2026
📽: @JoelKlattShow #GoBlue pic.twitter.com/i8f25LL3m3
Sunday's Men's College Hockey Scores
Exhibition
Michigan State 4, US Under-18 2
CCHA
Lake Superior 2, Northern Michigan 1
Non-Conference
No. 8 Penn State 7, RIT 3
New Hampshire 3, Colgate 2
Sunday's Women's College Hockey Schedule
Non-Conference
New Hampshire 6, Long Island 1
Bemidji State 2, Merrimack 2 (SO)
Games between ranked opponents are bolded. All times are local to where the game is being played.
Monday's Men's College Hockey Schedule
No Games Scheduled
Monday's Women's College Hockey Schedule
No Games Scheduled
On This Date in Hockey History:
January 5, 1910: The Montreal Canadiens played their first game in team history and defeated the Cobalt Silver Kings 7-6 in overtime. They won only one other game during their inaugural 12-game National Hockey Association season.
January 5, 1946: U.S. Hall of Fame goaltender Mike Karakas notched his 28th, and final, NHL shutout as Chicago won at Toronto 3-0.
January 5, 1965: Michigan State center Brian McReynolds was born in Penetanguishene, Ontario
January 5, 1966: Wisconsin right wing Steve Tuttle was born in Vancouver, British Columbia
January 5, 1968: RPI center Joé Juneau was born in Pont-Rouge, Quebec.
January 5, 1975: Boston University right wing Mike Grier was born in Detroit.
January 5, 1982: Former Boston College right wing Joe Mullen, in just his seventh NHL game, scored two goals eight seconds apart to set a Blues record for fastest two goals by a single player during an 8-1 victory against the North Stars.
January 5, 1984: Michigan State defenseman Corey Potter was born in Lansing, Mich.
January 5, 1985: Former Minnesota center Aaron Broten extended his team-record consecutive game assist streak to eight straight as New Jersey defeated visiting Montreal 5-4.
January 5, 1989: Former Boston College right wing Joe Mullen, had four goals and two assists to lead Calgary to an 8-6 victory over the Kings.
January 5, 1990: New Jersey traded former Minnesota center Aaron Broten to the North Stars for former Yale center Bob Brooke.
January 5, 1993: Former Minnesota Duluth left wing Brett Hull scored two goals to become the third player to score 300 goals with the St. Louis Blues, during a 6-1 win over the visiting Edmonton Oilers.
January 5, 1994: Boston University defenseman Matt Grzelcyk was born in Charlestown, Mass.
January 5, 1994: Denver defenseman Dakota Mermis was born in Alton, Ill.
January 5, 1999: Hall of Fame goaltender Tom Barrasso was credited with two assists, giving him 48 for his career to become the highest-scoring goaltender in NHL history. However, Pittsburgh lost to Calgary 5-1.
January 5, 2001: Michigan defenseman Cameron York was born in Anaheim, Calif.
January 5, 2003: Former UMD left wing Brett Hull scored the 250th power-play goal of his career as Detroit defeated Chicago in overtime, 4-3.
January 5, 2013: Hall of Fame defenseman Phil Housley coached Team USA to the gold medal at the 2013 World Junior Ice Hockey Championship in Ufa Russia.
January 5, 2024: Defenseman John Carlson, who has represented the United States in numerous international tournaments, had an assist to become the third player in Capitals history to notch 500 with the club, joining Nicklas Backstrom and Alex Ovechkin. Washington lost 6-2 to visiting Carolina.
Hockey Quote of the Day
“Again.”Herb Brooks
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We'll Leave You With This ...
LOOK AT ALL THOSE TEDDY BEARS!!! 🧸
— NHL (@NHL) January 4, 2026
The Teddy Bear Toss in Hershey NEVER disappoints!
(🎥: @TheHersheyBears) pic.twitter.com/DG2n7TOkVK
Christopher Walsh is the founder and publisher of Alabama Crimson Tide On SI, which first published as BamaCentral in 2018, and is also the publisher of the Boston College, Missouri and Vanderbilt sites . He's covered the Crimson Tide since 2004 and is the author of 27 books including “100 Things Crimson Tide Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die” and “Nick Saban vs. College Football.” He's an eight-time honoree of Football Writers Association of America awards and three-time winner of the Herby Kirby Memorial Award, the Alabama Sports Writers Association’s highest writing honor for story of the year. In 2022, he was named one of the 50 Legends of the ASWA. Previous beats include the Green Bay Packers, Arizona Cardinals and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, along with Major League Baseball’s Arizona Diamondbacks. Originally from Minnesota and a graduate of the University of New Hampshire, he currently resides in Tuscaloosa.
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