College Hockey Back With a Full Weekend Schedule; Ain't It Cool? Puck Drop

College hockey returns to a full schedule this weekend, with only a couple of non-conference games on the schedule as the sport hits the heart of league play.

It's sort of cliche to say that this is when we really start separating the contenders from the pretenders, but it's also true. This begins a two-month dash to the end of the regular season, followed by conference tournaments in March.

With that in mind, consider the following:

• The key series this weekend looks to be No. 6 Western Michigan at No. 7 Denver. The reigning nation champions are riding a five-game winning streak, which includes a win against then-No. 2 Wisconsin and a sweep of Notre Dame. A month ago it also split against then-No. 4 UMD in a home-and-home. Denver is coming off a weekend in which it didn't get a win while hosting Maine, but this is the series that could set the tone for the stretch run.

• Two upcoming series in Hockey East really have our attention, Boston University vs. Massachusetts in a home-and-home, and No. 12 Maine at No. 18 Providence. As we noted yesterday, the Terriers look like a team that could have a big second half to the season, while the Minutemen are shockingly in the Hockey East cellar. Meanwhile, both the Black Bears and Friars have seven losses already. They're both too good for that.

• There's a four-way tie for first in the ECAC with Princeton, Dartmouth, Cornell and Quinnipiac at 6-2 in league play, and Harvard 5-3. Only one other team in the conference is above .500 overall, Union. Can you say Ivy League demolition derby? Union has a huge game at Quinnipiac on Friday, and won the last meeting between them on Dec. 6, 4-0, and then plays No. 20 Princeton on Saturday.

• On the women's side it's obvious the national championship will again go through the WCHA, but this is an interesting weekend in that the big three of Wisconsin, Ohio State and Minnesota are all visiting ranked teams in the conference.

Games between ranked opponents are bolded. All times are local to where the game is being played.

This Week's Men's College Hockey Schedule

Friday, January 9
AHA
Sacred Heart at Niagara, 6 p.m. ET
Army at Mercyhurst, 7 p.m. ET
Bentley at Air Force, 7 p.m. MT
Robert Morris at RIT, 7 p.m. ET

Big Ten
Minnesota at No. 9 Penn State, BTen 6 p.m. ET
No. 2 Michigan State at Ohio State, 6:30 p.m. ET
Notre Dame at No. 1 Michigan, 7 p.m. ET

CCHA
Bowling Green at Ferris State, 7 p.m. ET
No. 17 Augustana at Northern Michigan, 7 ET
Michigan Tech at Bemidji State, 7 CT

ECAC
Clarkson at Brown, 7 p.m. ET
Harvard at No. 11 Dartmouth, 7 p.m. ET
RPI at No. 20 Princeton, 7 p.m. ET
Union at No. 8 Quinnipiac, 7 p.m. ET
St. Lawrence at Yale, 7 p.m. ET

Hockey East
UMass Lowell at No. 10 UConn, 7 p.m. ET
No. 19 Boston University at Massachusetts, 7 p.m. ET
No. 12 Maine at No. 18 Providence, NESN 7 p.m. ET
No. 16 Northeastern at Vermont, 7 p.m. ET

NCHC
No. 4 North Dakota at Colorado College, 7 p.m. MT
No. 6 Western Michigan at No. 7 Denver, 7 p.m. MT
St. Cloud State at Omaha, 7 p.m. CT
Miami at Arizona State, 7 p.m. MT

Non-Conference
Alaska at No. 14 Cornell, 7 p.m. ET
Lindenwood at No. 5 Minnesota Duluth, 7 p.m. CT
Alaska-Anchorage at No. 3 Wisconsin, 7 p.m. CT

Exhibition
Stonehill at No. 13 Boston College, 7 p.m. ET

Saturday, January 10
AHA
Army at Mercyhurst, 5 p.m. ET
Sacred Heart at Niagara, 5 p.m. ET
Bentley at Air Force, 5 p.m. MT
Robert Morris at RIT, 5 p.m.ET

Big Ten
No. 2 Michigan State at Ohio State, 5 p.m. ET
Minnesota at No. 9 Penn State, BTen 6 p.m. ET
Notre Dame at No. 1 Michigan, 7 p.m. ET

CCHA
St. Thomas at No. 15 Minnesota State, 6 p.m. CT
No. 17 Augustana at Northern Michigan, 6 p.m. ET
Michigan Tech at Bemidji State, 6 p.m. CT
Bowling Green at Ferris State, 7 p.m. ET

ECAC
St. Lawrence at Brown, 7 p.m. ET
Union at No. 20 Princeton, 7 p.m. ET
RPI at No. 8 Quinnipiac, 7 p.m. ET
Clarkson at Yale, 7 p.m. ET

Hockey East
Massachusetts at No. 19 Boston University, 6 p.m. ET
No. 12 Maine at No. 18 Providence, 6 p.m. ET
No. 10 UConn at UMass Lowell, NESN 6 p.m. ET
No. 16 Northeastern at Vermont, 7 p.m. ET

NCHC
Miami at Arizona State, 5 p.m. MT
No. 4 North Dakota at Colorado College, 6 p.m. MT
No. 6 Western Michigan at No. 7 Denver, 6 p.m. MT
St. Cloud State at Omaha, 7 p.m. CT

Non-Conference
Alaska-Anchorage at No. 3 Wisconsin, 5 p.m. CT
Lindenwood at No. 5 Minnesota Duluth, 6 p.m. CT
Alaska at No. 14 Cornell, 7 p.m. ET
Merrimack at Holy Cross, NESN+, 7 p.m. ET

Sunday, January 11
Non-Conference
Long Island at Stonehill, 3 p.m. ET

This Week's Women's College Hockey Schedule

Thursday, January 8
AHA
RIT at Delaware, 6 p.m. ET

Friday, January 9
AHA
RIT at Delaware, 2 p.m. ET
No. 4 Penn State at Mercyhurst, 3 p.m. ET
Syracuse at Robert Morris, 7 p.m. ET

ECAC
No. 11 Clarkson at No. 10 Cornell, 3 p.m. ET
No. 14 Yale at Dartmouth, 3 p.m. ET
St. Lawrence at No. 13 Colgate, 6 p.m. ET
Brown at Harvard, 6 p.m. ET
No. 7 Quinnipiac at Rensselaer, 6 p.m. ET
No. 9 Princeton at Union, 6 p.m. ET

Hockey East
No. 6 Northeastern at Providence, 2 p.m. ET
Boston College at Holy Cross, 6 p.m. ET
No. 5 UConn at Maine, 6 p.m. ET
Vermont at Merrimack, 6 p.m. ET

NEWHA
Assumption at Post, 1 p.m. ET
Saint Michael's at Long Island, 3 p.m. ET
Stonehill at Saint Anselm, 6 p.m. ET
Sacred Heart at Franklin Pierce, 7 p.m. ET

WCHA
No. 1 Wisconsin at No. 8 Minnesota Duluth, 3 p.m. CT
Bemidji State at St. Thomas, 5:02 CT
No. 2 Ohio State at No. 15 St. Cloud State, 6 p.m. CT
No. 3 Minnesota at No. 12 Minnesota State, 6 p.m. CT

Saturday, January 10
AHA
No. 4 Penn State at Mercyhurst, 1 p.m. ET
Syracuse at Robert Morris, 3 p.m. ET

ECAC
No. 11 Clarkson at No. 13 Colgate, 3 p.m. ET
St. Lawrence at No. 10 Cornell, 3 p.m. ET
Brown at Dartmouth, 3 p.m. ET
No. 14 Yale at Harvard, 3 p.m. ET
No. 9 Princeton at Rensselaer, 3 p.m. ET
No. 7 Quinnipiac at Union, 3 p.m. ET

Hockey East
Vermont at Merrimack, 2 p.m. ET
No. 5 UConn at Maine, 4 p.m. ET
Boston University at New Hampshire, 6 p.m. ET

NEWHA
Saint Michael's at Long Island, 2 p.m. ET
Saint Anselm at Stonehill, 2 p.m. ET
Post at Assumption, 7 p.m. ET
Sacred Heart at Franklin Pierce, 7 p.m. ET

WCHA
No. 1 Wisconsin at No. 8 Minnesota Duluth, 2 p.m. CT
No. 2 Ohio State at No. 15 St. Cloud State, 2 p.m. CT
Bemidji State at St. Thomas, 2 p.m. CT
No. 12 Minnesota State at No. 3 Minnesota, 7:30 p.m. CT

Puck Drop: Tuesday, January 6-7, 2025

Do to a technical issue, Puck Drop did not post on Tuesday. We apologize for the inconvenience.

• Michael Hage (Michigan) and Gavin McKenna (Penn State) both tallied four points as Canada ended its medal "drought" by defeating Finland 6-3 for the bronze medal at the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship in St, Paul, Minn. Hage finished first in tournament scoring with 15 points, based on two goals and 13 assists, and McKenna was second at 14. "I think our special teams have been great all tournament," said McKenna, who was named Canada's player of the game. "Power play stepped up today. Our kill was great. We wanted the hardware to go home with, and fourth obviously wouldn't feel good." Meanwhile, Sweden avenged a shootout loss to the Czechs in last year’s bronze-medal game by holding on for a 3-2 victory in the championship game. Sascha Boumedienne (Boston University), scored the gold medal-winning goal for Sweden. The Czechs scored twice in the last 2:24 to draw close. Ivar Stenberg had a goal and two assists, while Viktor Eklund had a goal and an assist for Sweden. Captain Jack Berglund and Viggo Bjorck both had a pair of assists. Boston University’s Sascha Boumedienne, scored the gold medal-winning goal for Sweden,

2026 IIHF World Junior Championship Awards

Best Goalkeeper: Love Harenstam, Sweden
Best Defender: Adam Jiricek, Czechia
Best Forward: Anton Frondell, Sweden

Media All-Star Team & MVP
Goalkeeper: Love Harenstam, Sweden
Defender: Zayne Parekh, Canada
Defender: Tomas Galvas, Czechia
Forward: Michael Hage, Canada
Forward: Anton Frondell, Sweden
Forward: Vojtech Cihar, Czechia
Most Valuable Player: Vojtech Cihar, Czechia

🚨 Sweden 🇸🇪 wins the Gold Medal at the #WorldJuniors for the first time since 2012 after a wild 4-2 win over Czechia 🇨🇿. Top 2026 draft prospect Ivar Stenberg ended the wild Czech comeback with an empty-netter. pic.twitter.com/Aaru9r2lm6
— NHL News (@PuckReportNHL) January 6, 2026

• Boston University announced that 17-year-old center Tynan Lawrence has enrolled and joined the Terriers for the rest of the season. A potential top-five selection in the 2026 NHL Draft, he was the captain of the Muskegon Lumberjacks in the USHL, and in 13 games had 10 goals and seven assists. Last season he had 25 goals and 54 points in 56 games, and then 18 points in 14 playoff games. The Lumberjacks won the Clark Cup championship, with Lawrence named MVP.

• College Hockey Insider’s Mike McMahon calls attendance an ”unavoidable subplot” in the build-up to this year NCAA Men’s Ice Hockey Tournament, particularly in Albany where McMahon notes “the [selection] committee may be forced to think beyond ‘bracket integrity’ and how Cornell could suddenly become one of the most important teams in the entire tournament picture.” Cornell is currently ranked No. 11 in the National Collegiate Percentage (NPI) Index. Host school Union College is No. 27.

• Sophomores Emma McGowan, Naomi Boucher and Jordan Ray scored, while freshman Samson Frey made 22 saves as No. 14 Yale upset No. 6 Northeastern 3-0. The Bulldogs were first team this season to shut out the Huskies, who have averaged nearly 3.5 goals per game. Yale snapped a six-game losing streak to Northeastern, dating back to 2010. At 15-5, three of the Huskies' losses this season have been to ECAC teams.

• Remember that whole thing about the Hughes brothers trying to play together someday in New Jersey? From Break Away On SI: Booing Luke Hughes Is Bad Look For Devils Fans. Luke and Quinn Hughes and played for Michigan. Jack was a a product of the U.S. National Development Team.

Men's College Hockey Scores

Tuesday's Scores
No Games Scheduled

Monday's Women's College Hockey Scores

Tuesday's Scores
Non-Conference
No. 14 Yale, 3, No. 6 Northeastern 0

🚨UPSET ALERT🚨

Bulldogs shutout No. 6 Northeastern ❌#ThisIsYale pic.twitter.com/npfgWLDO6q
— Yale Women’s Hockey (@YaleWHockey) January 7, 2026

On This Date in Hockey History:

January 6

January 6, 1948: Max Oshie, the great-uncle to former North Dakota forward T.J. Oshie, notched a Minnesota High School hockey record 12 goals for Warroad against visiting Thief River Falls. The game was played in temperatures around 15-below zero.

January 6, 1907: Hall of Fame official Carl Voss was born in Chelsea, Mass.

January 6, 1931: Hall of Fame left wing Dickie Moore was born in Montreal.

January 6, 1957: Minnesota and Tean USA goaltender Steve Janaszak was born in St. Paul, Minn.

January 6, 1964: Minnesota Duluth defenseman Guy Gosselin was born in Rochester, Minn.

January 6, 1971: Lake Superior State right wing Rob Valicevic was born in Detroit.

January 6, 1980: The Philadelphia Flyers’ NHL-record 35-game unbeaten streak (25-0-10) was finally snapped at Minnesota, where the North Stars won 7-1.

January 6, 1983: Wisconsin right wing Adam Burish was born in Madison, Wisc.

January 6, 1985: Former Minnesota center Aaron Broten extended his team-record point scoring streak to 12 games, but New Jersey lost at the New York Rangers, 5-4.

January 6, 1994: Former Wisconsin goaltender Curtis Joseph, who signed with St. Louis as a free agent after not being drafted, became the second player in Blues history to win 100 games. He led a 2-1 neutral-site victory against the Hartford Whalers in Cleveland, Ohio.

January 6, 1995: Denver defenseman Will Butcher was born in Sun Prairie, Wisc.

January 6, 1998: Michigan and Minnesota goaltender jack LaFontaine was born in Mississauga, Ontario.

January 6, 2000: Boston College center Jack McBain was born in Toronto.

January 6, 2004: Bowling Green defenseman Rob Blake scored his 100th career power-play goal during Colorado’s 6-0 victory over visiting Columbus.

January 6, 2013: The NHL lockout ended. It had started Sept. 15, 2012.

January 6, 2015: Former Minnesota State forward David Backes scored four goals, including a natural hat trick, as St. Louis defeated Arizona 6-0. Former North Dakota forward T.J. Oshie had three assists.

January 6, 2024: Former Michigan defenseman Quinn Hughes had three assists during a 6-4 victory over the Devils. In the process he notched his 69th multipoint game of his career, the most by a defenseman in Vancouver history, and his 18th career three-assist game moved him into third in NHL history for most by a defenseman prior to his 25th birthday, behind Bobby Orr (36) and Paul Coffey (30).

January 7

January 7, 1903: Hall of Fame forward Hooley Smith was born in Toronto.

January 7, 1916: Hall of Fame defenseman Babe Pratt was born in Stony Mountain, Manitoba.

January 7, 1944: U.S Hall of Fame goaltender Mike Karakas was acquired by the Chicago Blackhawks from Providence (AHL) for Heck Highton, Gord Buttrey and $10,000.

January 7, 1945: U.S Hall of Fame goaltender Mike Karakas notched his 24th career shutout when the Blackhawks and Rangers played to a scoreless tie. It was the only career shutout of New York goaltender Ken McAuley.

January 7, 1956: Bowling Green goaltender Mike Liut was born in Weston, Ontario.

January 7, 1957: Minnesota and Miracle on Ice goaltender Steve Janaszak was born in St. Paul, Minn.

January 7, 1966: Clarkson center Luciano Borsato was born in Richmond Hill, Ontario.

January 7, 1967: Hamilton College goaltender Guy Hebert, who went to play 10 seasons in the NHL, was born in Troy, N.Y.

January 7, 1972: Left wing Donald Brashear, who twice played on Team USA at the World Championships, was born in Bedford, Ind.

January 7, 1973: The first WHA "Game of the Week" broadcast by CBS featured the Winnipeg Jets at the Minnesota Fighting Saints in just the second game played at the St. Paul Civic Center. Ron Oakes, Gerry Cheevers and Dick Stockton called the 6-2 win by the Jets.

January 7, 1980: The Philadelphia Flyers’ 35-game unbeaten streak, the longest of any North American pro team, ended with a thud as the Minnesota North Stars scored seven unanswered goals en route to a 9-2 victory.

January 7, 1989: After being the first-overall draft pick in the 1988 draft, and a lengthy contract negotiation, Mike Modano played his first game while wearing an NHL jersey, No. 39, but it wasn’t against an NHL team. The Soviet Union Dynamo Riga defeated the Minnesota North Stars, 2-1.

January 7, 1990: Miami defenseman Chris Wideman was born in St. Louis.

January 7, 1993: Former Denver right wing Kevin Dineen notches his sixth NHL hat trick, and first with the Flyers, to give him career goal No. 250. Philadelphia top visiting Washington 8-2.

January 7, 1998: Former Michigan Tech goaltender Ramian Rhodes stopped all 34 shots to notch his third shutout of the season as Ottawa snapped the Stars’ 10-game unbeaten streak with a 2-0 victory at Dallas.

January 7, 2004: American Brian Boucher became the first NHL goaltender to notch a shutout in four consecutive games since Bill Durnan in 1949, as Phoenix defeated Washington 3-0.

January 7, 2011: New Jersey Devils team captain Jamie Langenbrunner, who represented Team USA numerous times, was traded back to the Dallas Stars for a conditional draft pick in 2011 or 2012. He had been part of the Joe Nieuwendyk trade in 2002.

January 7, 2015: Minnesota North Stars legend J.P. Parise, father of North Dakota standout Zach Parise, died from lung cancer in Prior Lake, Minn. He was 73. When he retired in 1979, the left wing was the North Stars' all-time leader in assists, second in points, third in goals and fifth in games played.

Hockey Quote of the Day

“To win the game is great. To play the game is greater. To love the game is greatest of all.”
Bob O’Connor

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We'll Leave You With This ...

THE SWEDISH SHIMMY 😂#WorldJuniors pic.twitter.com/GZ3zDmEY4e
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) January 6, 2026