Hockey Season-In-Review

Photo courtesy of Michigan State Athletics

OFFICIAL RELEASE

• The 13th season of Big Ten Hockey concluded April 11 at the NCAA Frozen Four as No. 12/4 Wisconsin fell to No. 4/3 Denver, 2-1, in the championship game held at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

• The Big Ten sent four teams to the 2026 NCAA Tournament. Michigan earned the conference’s automatic berth while Michigan State, Penn State and Wisconsin received at-large entries to the 16-team field. For the fifth-straight year, Big Ten teams advanced to the Frozen Four. During the regular season, the Big Ten compiled a mark of 50-24-7 (.660) against the other five conferences and independent teams.

• Several Big Ten players were honored at the Friday Night at the Frozen Four awards ceremony held April 10 at the Park MGM Presidio Ballroom. Michigan State junior Trey Augustine was presented the Mike Richter Award, given to the top goaltender in college hockey. Augustine finished his career with a 66-25-7 record, 2.40 goals-against average, .922 save percentage and nine shutouts in 99 games. He was one of five student-athletes to achieved All-America status: 

AHCA/CCM West First Team
TJ Hughes, F, Michigan
Trey Augustine, G, Michigan State
Porter Martone, F, Michigan State

AHCA/CCM West Second Team
Charlie Stramel, F, Michigan State
Gavin McKenna, F, Penn State

• Michigan State became just the second program to win three consecutive Big Ten regular season titles, joining Minnesota, which won four in a row from 2014-17. Michigan captured the Big Ten Tournament, claiming it’s fourth title overall, the most among conference schools. In the classroom, Big Ten Hockey teams earned 98 Academic All-Big Ten selections with Notre Dame leading the way with 16 recipients.

• The Big Ten had four teams finish in the Top 20 in the final USCHO.com and USA Today polls. Earning spots were No. 2/2 Wisconsin, No. 3/3 Michigan, No. 5/5 Michigan State and No. 11/11 Penn State. The Big Ten occupied the consensus No. 1 ranking from Oct. 20 through March 30. The 23-week stretch atop the polls alternated between Michigan (15 weeks) and Michigan State (eight weeks).

• A total of 86 former Big Ten players made regular season appearances in the National Hockey League in 2025-26. Included among that group was 2026 All-Big Ten First Team selection Porter Martone of Michigan State, who signed with the Philadelphia Flyers on March 29 and recorded four goals and 10 points in nine games. The Big Ten was home to 68 NHL Draft picks and on the international stage, 16 players and two coaches took part in the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship. In addition, nine skaters and PSU Head Coach Guy Gadowsky led the inaugural U.S. Collegiate Selects to a runner-up finish at the 97th Spengler Cup in Davos, Switzerland.

• In the final NCAA rankings, Michigan placed first in six statistical categories: winning percentage (78.8), scoring offense (4.53 goals per game), scoring margin (2.13), power play goals (44), power play percentage (31.9) and short-handed goals (11). Individually, Penn State’s Gavin McKenna paced the nation in assists per game (1.03), Michigan’s Will Horcoff and Michigan State’s Charlie Stramel were co-leaders in game-winning goals (7), Penn State’s Dane Dowiak led the country in short-handed tallies (4) and teammate Matt DiMarsico recorded the most hat tricks (3). A top NHL prospect, McKenna won the Big Ten scoring title with 38 points, matching the third-highest point total in 13 seasons, and was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year. His eight points (1-7) against Ohio State Feb. 20 were the most in a game by a college player in 39 seasons.

• Big Ten teams played before large crowds with four schools ranked among the Top 10 in NCAA attendance. The Big Ten also produced the two highest attended games in the NCAA. The Jan. 31 outdoor contest at Beaver Stadium between host Penn State and Michigan State drew 74,575 fans, the second-largest crowd in college hockey history, and the Michigan-Michigan State “Duel in the D” matchup Feb. 7 attracted a solid-out audience of 19,515 to Little Caesars Arena.

• Regular season television viewership on the Big Ten Network was up three percent year-over-year. The Wisconsin-Michigan game Nov. 8 delivered 175,000 viewers, becoming the second most-watched regular season hockey game in BTN history. It was the most-watched regular season game on BTN since March 2015.