What A Big Ten Hockey Schedule Looks Like
It is this:
2013-14 MICHIGAN BIG TEN ICE HOCKEY SCHEDULE | |
Date | Opponent |
Friday, Nov. 29 | Ohio State at Michigan |
Monday Dec. 2 | Michigan at Ohio State |
Friday, Jan. 10 | Michigan at Wisconsin |
Saturday, Jan. 11 | Michigan at Wisconsin |
Friday, Jan. 24 | Michigan at Michigan State |
Saturday, Jan. 25 | Michigan vs. Michigan State (Joe Louis Arena) |
Friday, Jan. 31 | Wisconsin at Michigan |
Saturday, Feb. 1 | Wisconsin at Michigan |
Friday, Feb. 7 | Michigan at Penn State |
Saturday, Feb. 8 | Michigan at Penn State |
Thursday or Saturday, Feb. 13 or 15 | Michigan at Minnesota* |
Friday, Feb. 14 | Michigan at Minnesota |
Friday, Feb. 21 | Penn State at Michigan |
Saturday, Feb. 22 | Penn State at Michigan |
Friday, Feb. 28 | Ohio State at Michigan |
Sunday or Monday, March 2 or 3 | Michigan at Ohio State |
Friday, March 7 | Michigan State at Michigan |
Saturday, March 8 | Michigan at Michigan State |
Friday, March 14 | Minnesota at Michigan |
Saturday, March 15 | Minnesota at Michigan |
Big Ten Men's Ice Hockey Tournament (Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, Minn.) | |
Thursday, March 20 | Quarterfinals |
Friday, March 21 | Semifinals |
Saturday, March 22 | Championship Game |
Now, a couple things probably leap out at you: "Thursday or Saturday" and "Sunday or Monday" plus a definite Monday game against Ohio State that's part of a series about a month before conference play starts in earnest.
The latter is because that hockey series bookends The Game, which is pretty cool. Note that that conference series is at the end of November/beginning of December and then there's almost a month before Michigan plays another Big Ten game. Wisconsin and Minnesota will also drop the puck that night for a "doubleheader," sayeth MGoBlue.com, so expect both those games to be televised.
I haven't been able to dig up anyone else's schedule yet so I can't tell if they're going to be moving some of these games around to get more of them on BTN. If doubleheaders are a common occurrence then clearly they will at least be moving times. Michigan would be the early game when there is a Central time zone game on the docket.
I was hoping the Big Ten folks would try to line up more things like that OSU megaweekend, but they did not have many opportunities. At least not for Michigan, anyway. M doesn't play Wisconsin, it's beside the point for Michigan State, the Minnesota game is probably before hockey season is allowed to start, and Penn State is the week after. They may or may not be able to put together a joint PSU/M weekend there, but no one wants to kick the season off with conference games.
Because the stupid format of the conference tournament squeezes what what a three-week process down to one weekend, Michigan will have two extra weekends to futz with. They will likely 1) not fill that January 3 slot in anticipation of not having some kids back from the World Juniors and 2) not have a series like those odd BGSU Tuesdays.
What about the nonconference schedule?
We know a few things. Michigan travels to UNO November 15th and 16th. They also go to UNH the 18th and 19th. For some reason I believe they're headed out to Boston to play the BC/BU twin bill they usually do when they go out there but I can't dig that up except this random blog that BC Interruption trusts implicitly about BC hockey scheduling. He was right about the setup of the latest Frozen Fenway double-header, FWIW. I assume he's right and Michigan will play BC plus some other Boston-area team, whether it's BU, Harvard, or Northeastern. Northeastern did come in a couple years back, Michigan may owe them a return.
They will play in the GLI, as always, and four of their nonconference games will be against the Bentleys of the world because that's just how college sports roll, and Michigan's already going on the road for six quality games. It would be nice to get a couple quality nonconference home series in the mix.
I'm a bit dubious that'll happen. They're not playing Miami, UMD, North Dakota, Michigan Tech (a possibility because of Mel Pearson), or WMU (though they are in the GLI). I'd be shocked if things are cordial enough to schedule Notre Dame after the Irish canceled the Michigan series with maximum asshat engaged. So who's left? ECAC teams, mostly. Which would be okay, but I was hoping Michigan could get some sex appeal on the schedule with their 14 nonconference games. They have, but not at Yost.
Seems weird that we have all of these great non-con opponents but somehow managed to get zero of them to come to Ann Arbor. Whats up with that?
2 games at UNH
2 games at UNO
1 game at BC
Other games at Boston school(s)?
Michigan's home non-conference schedule has been fairly awful since I started attending in 07-08. I don't understand why we can't get anyone decent (or more than 1 decent team) to come to Ann Arbor
Now if we can just convince Michigan to come to UMD. Pleeeeeeeaaaaaase!
Non-conf schedule confirmed:
Oct 12 - at RIT
Oct 18/19 - at New Hampshire
Nov 1/2 - vs Michigan Tech
Nov 15/16 - at Nebraska-Omaha
Dec 27/28 - GLI (vs Western Michigan and Tech/State) - Comerica Park
Per USCHO, we have games at Yost vs BU, BC, Niagara, and UMass-Lowell (no dates yet)
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AjrUzfoOPCB5dFpad2hLYkFoMW…
I will have to rescind my above comments above no good teams coming to A2. How'd we manage to get all of Massachusetts to come play in Ann Arbor? Those are actually 4 pretty quality non-con home games.
I believe Niagara nearly got AHA's auto-bid, obviously BC & BU are elite programs, and Lowell was just in their first frozen four last year. Plus, Michigan Tech at home is pretty cool. Glad to get to play one of the other in state schools
If true, that actually makes this upcoming season's schedule pretty amazing. The only crummy opponent in name is RIT, who has actually been pretty good lately and I get to go see the game in Rochester so I don't mind.
are tix to teh RIT game available yet?
but I haven't checked yet.
This just seems... Wrong. But if this is how it's going to be, well, whatever.
All I know is college hockey is a Friday/Saturday game. Not Thursday/Sunday/Monday.
That fall on Thursday-Sunday-Monday. The rest are all on Friday-Saturday.
And the former all time longest thread multiple overtime hockey tournament game was a Sunday night, so it hasn't been unheard of.
weekend Michigan plays football at PSU, PSU hockey team plays first ever game in new arena on Friday. On Saturday the football game is at 5:00 pm so doubt PSU would want any game scheduled which I don't believe they do.
Any chance some of the club teams at the other Big Ten schools go official and join in the coming years?
Hockey is a really expensive sport to maintain. You may know that it took a $88MM donation to PSU to get there's off the ground
but in the big scheme of things I don't think it would be that much more per season than a lot of sports. The equiptment has to be a lot more, but travel isn't bad and there would be at least some ticket/TV revenue.
If Allstate Arena or the Sears Centre were reasonably close to Evanston, Northwestern could probably start up programs without much difficulty (moot point, since they're not playing home games in Rosemont/Schaumburg and those big buildings aren't moving).
I'll be at both games in Madison.
Needs to make their hockey team a Division I team, yo!
Do any other B1G schools have hockey clubs or DIII teams?
Can't wait to start waching the Maize and Blue icers on TV more though.
has possibly the best ACHA D1 club in the country, but they're in Chambana without a suitable arena within a couple hours. They would need an entirely new stadium, which is ridiculously expensive.
I am a deker and we know that BU and BC are coming to A2 this next season.
Is it possible that the B1G basketball schedule is worked into a combined weekend like the Thanksgiving/OSU hockey/The Game? I think many more people would be inclined to travel if they could attend a hockey and basketball game on Friday/Saturday or Saturday/Sunday.
Who makes the B1G basketball schedule and does anyone think they are taking this into account?
Comments