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Unlikely College Hockey Stars Enter Mix in Week 6 Games to Watch: Puck Drop

Does the East have a team that can challenge for the national title? What's the team to beat in the CCHA? We might get answers to both this weekend.

Defenseman Luca Fasciano celebrates the last time Michigan Tech hosted Augustana, a sweep for the Huskies on Feb. 6-7, 2026. | Michigan Tech Athletics

It's a crazy weekend in college hockey, so good that two big rivalry matchups can't really be considered for the marquee of must-see games. New No. 1 Wisconsin is heading to No. 18 Minnesota, which is always a high-spirited matchup regardless of the rankings, and No. 9 Providence and No. 20 Connecticut are playing a home-and-home series that will go a long way in establishing the initial bragging rights in that state — although Quinnipiac, Yale and Sacred Heart aren't close to conceding anything.

Stragely, both of those series begin Thursday night.

There's also No. 5 Western Michigan at No. 10 North Dakota, which have become ridiculously familiar with each other due to repeated high-stakes matchups, and a year ago this site referred to as a "Conference Powerhouse Clash." Both have title aspirations, and rosters loaded full of talent, but the Broncos are still trying to bounce back from the .1-second loss to Michigan, and the Fighting Hawks have lost three straight, two at Minnesota and one to Michigan State in the U,.S. Hall of Fame Game in Austin, Texas.

But none of those are on our list of top-three to watch. Yes, it's that crazy of a weekend in the ice.

3) No. 13 Boston University vs. No. 3 Michigan State

Friday, Nov. 6 at 7:00 p.m. EST, Saturday, Nov. 7 at 4:30 p.m. EST

BU enters the weekend on a three-game win streak, all against ranked teams, and at the top of Hockey East. That includes a 6-3 win over No. 16 UConn (splitting the series on the other half of a 5-4 overtime loss) and a sweep of No.19 Maine, although one of those was also in overtime. Hockey East currently has four teams in the national polls, but has had as many as six this year, with the conference owning a .562 inter-conference record so far this season. A big win for BU could be huge for Hockey East making a strong showing in the national tournament. However, Michigan State is a scoring machine, averaging 3.83 goals per game, led by sophomore Anthony Romani, who earned the Big Ten’s second star this week for his two goals to help take down No. 8 North Dakota. 

2) Miami vs. No. 6 Minnesota Duluth

Friday, Nov. 6 at 8:07 p.m. EST, Saturday, Nov. 6 at 7:07 p.m. EST

Miami has been floating outside of the top 20 all season long, and is a stone’s throw from breaking in. The RedHawks were riding a six-game win streak until they lost on Halloween day as part of a split with St. Thomas. They'll be looking to bounce back, but Minnesota Duluth will be their biggest challenge yet. Miami was ranked fifth in the NCHC preseason poll and Minnesota Duluth was third. UMD freshman Carl Axelsson has had a striking collegiate debut, with a 1.11 goals against average and a .947 save percentage across eight games. This comes after he finished second in save percentage in the entire USHL last season with a .916 and was picked up by the Utah Mammoth in the fourth round of the 2026 NHL Draft. The best bets for Miami to get through him will be Ilia Morozov and David Deputy, who lead the RedHawks in goals and points, respectively. Morozov was also a 2026 draft pick, going in the first round, 20th overall to the Buffalo Sabres as Miami’s highest-ever NHL selection, and his .63 goals per game ranks fourth in the NCHC. 

1) No. 8 Augustana vs. No. 14 Michigan Tech

Friday, Nov. 6 at 7:07 p.m. EST, Saturday, Nov. 7 at 6:07 p.m. EST

It’s been a meteoric rise for Augustana, which joined D-I hockey in 2023 and only played its first full CCHA schedule last year. The Vikings are unbeaten so far with a 7-0-1 record and have quickly risen to No. 8 on the national polls after starting the season just outside the top 20. They were ranked fourth in the CCHA preseason poll, and Michigan Tech was tabbed first, so this weekend is a big chance for the Vikings to make a statement. Augustana currently leads the CCHA in goals per contest by far with 4.13, with sophomore Leonid Bulgakov topping the conference at a goal-per-game pace. However, the goaltending battle should be interesting for this team, and it’s likely to be a low-scoring matchup. Augustana may have lost reigning CCHA Goalie of the Year and Player of the Year in Josh Kotai during the offseason, but they quickly found a new backstopping star in Mathis Langevin, who holds a .940 save percentage, 1.59 GAA through the team’s full eight-game slate. However, Michigan Tech’s Owen Bartoszkiewicz is equally as impressive with a .942 save percentage and a 1.76 GAA. The senior was named to the CCHA Preseason Coaches’ All-CCHA Team along with teammates Max Koskipiritti (0g, 2a) and Isaac Gordon (2g, 2a), who had 35- and 29-point seasons last year, respectively. 

TV: Midco Sports Plus

Radio: 93.5 WKMJ

Puck Drop: Thursday, November 5, 2026

  • Arizona State announced that F Nic Chin-DeGraves has left the hockey team. The sophomore had transferred from Penn State for this season and played in just two games for the Sun Devils. Head coach Dave Hakstol said that he had been given a leave of absence and returned for one day before making his decision.
  • Meanwhile, defenseman Peter Green (Brampton, OHL) committed to Arizona State. His older brother David plays for Merrimack.
  • A fun stat for everyone not named Jacob Fowler (Boston College) from the NHL about Winnipeg’s amazing comeback over Montreal earlier this week: NHL teams are now 1-10,300 when losing by four-plus goals entering the final three minutes of regulation (regular season and playoffs combined). BTW, Fowler was reportedly the first player on the ice for the next morning's practice.
  • He didn’t play for an American college, but Dillon Boucher is still a great story. Originally from Nova Scotia, the winger played in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League and then spent four years at Dalhousie University. Undrafted, he signed with Wichita in the ECHL, and then last year joined Rockford (AHL) and had just eight points in 53 games. He hadn’t registered a point in seven games this season, but Wednesday night, at age 29, he made his NHL debut with the Chicago Blackhawks.
  • Connor Hellebuyck (Lowell) posted a “Letter to Jets Fans” on his Instagram account Wednesday to explain his decision to request a trade and express his gratitude Winnipeg fans and players. The Devils visit the Jets on Tuesday.

College Hockey Scores

No games scheduled

Today’s College Hockey Schedule

Thursday, November 5, 2026
Big Ten
No,. 1 Wisconsin at No. 18 Minnesota, 7 p.m. CT 

Hockey East
No. 20 UConn at No. 9 Providence, 7 p.m. ET 
Vermont at Boston College, 7 p.m. ET 

Exhibition
Maryville at Lake Superior, 7 p.m. ET 

WOMEN
Hockey East
No. 13 UConn at No. 15 Boston College, 2 p.m. ET 

This Date in Hockey History

November 5, 1904: Harvard coach Cooney Weiland was born in Seaforth, Ontario.

November 5, 1938: It took 13 years of the series, but American Mike Karakas, one of the charter members of the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame, notched the first shutout by the Chicago Blackhawks against the Toronto Maple Leafs, 2-0.

November 5, 1946: Michigan Tech center Al Karlander was born in Lac La H’ache, British Columbia.

November 5, 1959: Gordie Howe had a goal and an assist in an 8-3 loss to Boston, giving him 1,000 career points in the regular season and playoffs combined. He did it in 947 total games.

November 5, 1966: Wisconsin left wing/defenseman Victor Posa was born in Bari, Italy.

November 5, 1967: Minnesota defenseman Lance Pitlick was born in Minneapolis.

November 5, 1974: The Bruins signed free-agent defenseman Mike Milbury out of Colgate. He ended up playing in 754 games for Boston.

November 5, 1983: The Chicago Blackhawks scored the fastest two goals from the start of a period in NHL history — Ken Yaremchuk at :12 and Darryl Sutter at :21 of the second period — but still got drilled by the Minnesota North Stars10-5. Meanwhile, one the same night the New York Rangers and Quebec Nordiques set the NHL record for the fastest two goals scored from the start of a period by two different teams, 14 seconds. They played to a 4-4 tie.

November 5, 1987: Boston College defenseman Carl Sneep was born in St. Louis Park, Minn.

November 5, 1991: Northern Michigan goaltender Jared Coreau was born in Perth, Ontario.

November 5, 1992: Americans Larry DePalma and Dave Snuggerud (Minnesota) combined to set a Sharks team record by scoring two goals in a span of seven seconds in a 7-5 victory over Buffalo.

November 5, 1992: Boston University left wing Matthrew Nieto was born in Long Beach, Calif.

November 5, 2000: Former Denver left wing Antti Laaksonen scored in overtime as the Minnesota Wild got its first road win, 3-2 at Calgary. Wes Walz had the other two goals in regulation.

November 5, 2000: Former Lake Superior State center tied his career high with four assists to lead Eddmonton to a 4-2 victory over Columbus. 

November 5, 2002: Former Wisconsin goaltender Mike Richter played his final NHL game and made 39 saves to lead the New York Rangers to a 5-2 victory over the Edmonton. During the game, he was accidentally kneed in the head by former teammate Todd Marchant, with post-concussion symptoms forcing him to retire in 2003.

November 5, 2018: Former Boston College center Brian Boyle’s first NHL hat trick came at an ideal time as the New Jersey Devils defeated Pittsburgh 5-1. It came on Hockey Fights Cancer night just over a year after being diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukemia.

November 5, 2002: Michigan center Matty Beniers was born in Hiingham, Mass.

November 5, 2002: Former Vermont left wing John LeClair’s game-winning goal in overtime of a 2-1 win at Carolina was this 300th with the Philadelphia Flyers. 

November 5, 2014: Wally Grant, who was on Michigan’s first national championship team in 1948, died.

November 5, 2017: Former Wisconsin center Kyle Turris was part of a big three-way trade between the Colorado Avalanche, Ottawa Senators and Nashville Predators. Turris went to the Predators, Matt Duchene ended up with the Senators, while the Avalanche landed defenseman Samuel Girard, Vladislav Kamenev, and three draft picks, one of which turned into Bowen Byram. 

November 5, 2022: Alex Ovechkin passed Gordie Howe for the most goals with one team in NHL history, No. 787. However, the Washington Capitals lost to the Arizona Coyotes 3-2.

Hockey Quote of the Day

"Let me start with issuing you a challenge: Be better than you are."

Herb Brooks

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