2013–14 WCHA Schedule Released

Yesterday, the WCHA released the complete composite schedule for all conference games for the 2013–14 season. All ten teams including recently-added Alabama–Huntsville will have a full 28-game conference schedule. With the conference’s return to ten teams, it’s no surprised that those in charge returned the WCHA to the schedule format used from 1999 to 2010. Each team has a designated rival (Minnesota State-Bemidji State, Michigan Tech-Northern Michigan, Ferris State-Lake Superior State, Bowling Green-Alabama–Huntsville, Alaska-Alaska Anchorage) which they will play four times each year, every year. The rest will be rotated – each team will play four of the remaining teams four times, two teams twice at home and two teams twice on the road. This will rotate over the course of four years so every team will travel to and host every other team three out of four years.

Potential Four Year Rotation:*

*Year 1 and Year 3 should be completely correct unless there is more conference reshuffling. Year 2 and Year 4 are one option for where the two-game series will be played, but there are quite a few possibilities.

Every team from the lower 48 states will travel to at least one of the Alaska schools every season and will travel to both twice in four years, meaning four teams will be allowed to play 36 games while 4 other teams will be able to play 38 games total. Alaska and Alaska Anchorage will be capped at 34 games. Once over the course of four years, the six teams in Michigan and Minnesota will have to do what some have called the “triple,” which includes road trips to Anchorage, Fairbanks and Huntsville. Some have called this brutal but for Michigan Tech fans, this is basically trading Fairbanks and Huntsville for Denver and Colorado Springs so its a wash. One interesting twist to traveling to both Alaska schools is that two of the four teams scheduled to do that will be making one trip, playing at both Alaska schools on consecutive weekends. Michigan Tech, for example, will be spending Thanksgiving week in “the Last Frontier.” They will play in Anchorage first before making the trek up to Fairbanks. Typically this isn’t allowed but because Michigan Tech has no classes, there is no issue. Minnesota State will do the same thing early in 2014 while their school is still on winter break, starting in Fairbanks and finishing in Anchorage.

It was also announced that the WCHA will retain the McNaughton Cup and Broadmoor Trophy as their conference tournament trophies. Michigan Tech fans are well aware of the history and tradition of the McNaughton Cup and probably already knew it was going with Michigan Tech, much like it did during the Huskies’ three-year stint with the CCHA in the early 1980s. The Broadmoor Trophy is more surprising with its history associated with the great Colorado Springs hotel and its relationship with Colorado College. As for the location of the WCHA conference tournament going forward, an official announcement will happen during a press conference at Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul on Saturday, March 23. It is expected that Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Michigan, will be the site of the 2014 edition of the “WCHA Final Five,” alternating with Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul for four years.

Non-conference information for the Huskies has been trickling in from various sources. It’s been published by a few outlets in Duluth that Michigan Tech will start the regular season on the road against the Bulldogs on October 11 and 12. Michigan Tech is also penciled in to head to South Bend, Indiana, the weekend after but exact dates are still to be determined because of issues surrounding Notre Dame’s football game that weekend against USC. Beyond the Great Lakes Invitational, the other non-conference games are expected to include a series with Michigan and Michigan State. Locations and dates for those series are yet to be determined. All in all, Michigan Tech has a very strong non-conference schedule this season and has some exciting rivalries to build on in the new-look WCHA. For a complete 2013–14 composite schedule including known non-conference games for all teams, check out this google document compiled by Tech Hockey Guide. We will continue updating this page as more information becomes available.

Michigan Tech Tentative 2013-2014 Hockey Schedule

Tim Braun

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Tim is a 2004 graduate of Michigan Tech. He is a co-founder of both Mitch’s Misfits and Tech Hockey Guide. With recent additions to the staff, Tim is again able to focus on his passion, recruiting. He currently works as an environmental engineer and resides in the Minneapolis/St. Paul Area.

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