• All seven Big Ten teams will engage in final tune-up games this weekend before conference play begins next week. No. 1/1 Michigan will host No. 5/5 Western Michigan on Friday with the series resuming in late January outdoors. No. 6/6 Wisconsin, coming off a bye week, also meets Western Michigan in exhibition action Saturday. No. 2/2 Michigan State heads east for the second straight week, traveling to New Hampshire. In another Hockey East-Big Ten showdown, rv/– Notre Dame encounters No. 20/18 Merrimack. Rv/rv Minnesota will take on a ranked opponent for the third-straight week by hosting No. 3/3 North Dakota. Rv/rv Ohio State opens its home campaign against No. 13/15 Augustana. Penn State, which played Tuesday night, is home versus Canisius. 

• Michigan is the new consensus No. 1 team in the national polls after sweeping defending NCAA Champion Denver on the road last week. Michigan State is right behind at No. 2/2. The poll positions are familiar territory for those programs as Michigan spent 15 weeks at No. 1/1 last season and Michigan State occupied No. 2/2 for five weeks. Not far behind is Wisconsin at No. 6/6, giving the Big Ten a strong presence in the top half of the polls.

• The Big Ten added three players to the U.S. Collegiate Selects (USCS) squad that will compete at the 2026 Spengler Cup in December. Michigan forwards Michael Hage and Jayden Perron along with Minnesota forward Brodie Ziemer will compete against professional players at the holiday tournament in Davos, Switzerland. The trio join Minnesota defenseman Evan Murr, who was named to the team on Oct. 1. The 14 remaining roster spots for the U.S. Collegiate Selects will be announced in the coming weeks.  

• TJ Hughes (Michigan, 2022-26), the 2026 Big Ten Player of the Year, scored his first National Hockey League goal for Colorado on Oct. 16 and Cole Knumble (Notre Dame, 2023-26) made his NHL debut with Philadelphia on Oct. 20. Eighty-six former Big Ten players were listed on opening night rosters as conference alumni continue to make an impact in the NHL. Winnipeg’s Kyle Connor (Michigan, 2015-16) ranks second in NHL goals (8) while New Jersey’s Quinn Hughes (Michigan, 2017-19) stands second in defenseman scoring (13 points) and third overall in assists (11). Toronto’s Gavin McKenna (Penn State, 2025-26) is tied for second among rookie goal scorers (3) and tied for fourth in rookie scoring (6 points).  

• A recent NCAA.com story listed five Big Ten players on its Freshmen to Watch list. On the national radar are Michigan defenseman Landon DuPont, Michigan State forward Jack Hextall, Michigan State defensemen Tommy Bleyl and Chase Reid, and Minnesota forward Wyatt Cullen.