THIS WEEK
Western Michigan heads back out on the road to take on National Collegiate Hockey Conference Rival on Friday and Saturday at 7:05 p.m. Both games are available on NCHC.tv and the Bronco Radio Network.

LAST WEEK
The Broncos wrapped up non-conference action winning their fifth and sixth straight games at Lawson Ice Arena after a sweep of Rensselaer, 8-4 and 6-2.

In the series opener, Western Michigan jumped out to an early 2-0 lead on goals by Hugh McGing and Wade Allison in the first period. Tristan Ashbrock scored the first of his two goals at 8:29 in the second period to cut the lead in half but Dawson DiPietro scored just 37 seconds later to push the lead to 3-1. Ashbrook scored again at 12:09, this time on the power play, to bring RPI within one but McGing tallied his second of the night at 13:43 to make it 42. Just 36 seconds later Josh Passolt scored the Broncos' fifth goal of the night and the eventual game-winner, making it 5-2. Mason Klee scored at 15:38 of the second period to bring the Engineers within two, before Austin Rueschhoff and Rhett Kingston scored to wrap up an eight-goal second period. Todd Burgess cut the lead to 7-4 to open the third period but a goal at 12:24 by Drew Worrad finished the game off for WMU.

On Saturday the Broncos went down, 1-0, early on a goal by RPI's Ottoville Leppanen at 4:04 in the first period. Ethen Frank tallied a highlight-reel goal at 14:08 to tie it up at 1-1 to head into the second period deadlocked. Cam Lee scored his first of two goals on the night just 48 seconds into the second to give WMU a 2-1 lead. Lawton Courtnall pushed the lead to 3-1 on a goal during an odd-man rush at 2:26 before Rueschhoff scored on the power play at 3:44 to make it 4-1. Burgess scored his second goal of the weekend, reducing the lead to 4-2. Lee put the game away with a power play goal at 16:28 of the third period to push the lead to 5-2 before Jason Polin scored just 11 seconds later, making it 6-2.

THE MIAMI REDHAWKS | 6-16-4, 3-11-2-1 NCHC
• THE SERIES: Western Michigan swept the series last season against Miami, going 4-0-0 and reducing the RedHawks' all-time series lead to just one game at 68-67-11. Senior forward Wade Allison leads all Broncs with 13 points on eight goals and five assists in just eight games. Dawson DiPietro has nine points on two goals and seven assists in six games and is a career +7. 

• SCOUTING THE REDHAWKS: Miami heads into the weekend tied with Colorado College for last place in the NCHC. The team is on a seven-game winless streak, 0-6-1, and have lost its last five. The last win for the RedHawks came back on Jan. 10 at the Tigers, 6-1. 

Miami averages 2.81 goals per game, 29th in the nation. Senior forward Gordie Green leads the team in scoring with 27 on a team-high 10 goals and 17 assists. Fellow senior forward Karch Bachman sits right behind him with 25 points on eight goals and shares the team lead in assists with Green with 17. Sophomore defenseman Derek Daschke is the top-scorer from the blue line with 19 points on eight goals and 11 assists. Junior forward Casey Gilling has seven goals and 15 assists for 22 points. 

The RedHawks have struggled defensively this season, ranking 55th in the nation in scoring defense at 3.62 goals allowed per game. Senior Ryan Larkin has seen the bulk of the action, starting in 16 of the 16 games this season. Lark holds a 5-10-1 record with a 3.64 goals against average and a .897 save percentage with one shutout on the season. Freshman Ben Kraws has started in seven games with a 1-4-2 record, a 3.36 goals against average and a .888 save percentage. 
Thanks to the works of Daschk, Gilling, and Green, MU's power play sits at 21.8 percent (19-for-87) and ranks 18th in the nation. Green has 12 of his 27 points on the power play, including four goals. Gilling has 10 of his 22 and Daschke has eight of his 19 on the power play. Miami's penalty kill ranks tied for 56th in the nation at 75 percent (78-for-104).

ANOTHER ONE
Senior defenseman Cam Lee is the third Bronco this season to earn a spot on the NCAA's Three Stars of the Week. Lee came in as the No. 3 star after a five-point weekend in Western Michigan's sweep of RPI. Lee had two assists in the series-opening win over the Engineers and then had two goals and an assist as WMU completed the sweep on Saturday. Lee joins Wade Allison and Paul Washe as NCAA Stars of the Week recipients and was also named the Bauer NCHC Defenseman of the Week. 

ON FIRE
WMU's offense has been rolling in the last eight games, with a big help from the team's power play unit. Prior to the previous eight the Bronco power play was at 15 percent (12-for-80). Western Michigan nearly equaled its power play goal total in the past eight games, going 10-for-24 for 41.7 percent, and raising the total percentage six points to 21.2. Seven different Broncos scored with the man advantage in the last eight games, led by Wade Allison and his three. Austin Rueschhoff has tallied twice, while Hugh McGing, Cam Lee, Michael Joyaux, Ronnie Attard and Ethen Frank have each scored once. 

A BRIEF EXPLANATION
Head Coach Andy Murray refers to his forward lines by colors with a Black, Gold, Brown and Grey line. 

"We've been clicking on all cylinders for the last few weeks and have been having fun with it, calling ourselves the Black Parade. " – Dawson DiPietro on his line with Austin Rueschhoff and Wade Allison.

WELCOME TO THE BLACK PARADE
Dawson DiPietro, Austin Rueschhoff and Wade Allison were first teamed up on Jan. 11 for the 3-3 tie at No. 9 Minnesota-Duluth. The line didn't tally a point that night but had a combined 12 shots on goal, including a career-high eight by Allison. 
 
• PAINT IT BLACK AND TAKE IT BACK: Prior to being grouped together the trio had just 21 total points on 10 goals and 11 assists in 19 games. During the nine games the Black Parade has been together they have combined for 34 points on 15 goals and 19 assists. No NCHC player other than teammate Hugh McGing has matched Allison's production during the stretch, both with 13 points.

• SAVIOR OF THE BROKEN: Due to injury, Wade Allison has missed seven of WMU's 16 NCHC games this season, but it hasn't stopped him from being one of the league's most prolific scorers. Despite missing the time the Philadelphia Flyers' draft pick ranks third in the league in points per game in NCHC action at 1.33, trailing only Hobey Baker hopefuls Jordan Kawaguchi of North Dakota and Scott Perunovich of Minnesota-Duluth. In his nine games he has 12 points on six goals and six assists. WMU is 6-1-0 when he registers a point in NCHC action this season. 

• JUST SOME MEN, NOT HEROES: The trio aren't the only reason why the Broncos have gone 7-1-1 in the last nine games since the Black Parade was grouped together. During the same stretch senior captain Hugh McGing has tallied 13 points on five goals and eight assists, Cole Gallant has 10 points on one goal and nine assists and Cam Lee has nine points on two goals and seven assists. Freshman goalie Brandon Bussi has played eight of the nine games in net, posting a 7-1-0 record, a 2.38 goals against average and a .916 save percentage.

• WE'LL CARRY ON: Western Michigan returns home to take on No. 4 Minnesota-Duluth next Friday and Saturday, battling the team that the Black Parade was first grouped together against. 

VOTE HUGH AND PAUL FOR HOBEY
Western Michigan senior captain Hugh McGing and Paul Washe have been nominated for the Hobey Baker Award. Fans can head to www.HobeyBaker.com/vote to vote for WMU's pair. McGing leads the Broncos with 23 points on five goals and 18 assists, while Washe has a career-high 18 points on a team-best nine goals and nine assists, 

When voting for the Hobey Baker Award, fans are asked to make sure to keep in mind the qualities that a nominee must display: Exhibit strength and character, both on and off the ice; Contribute to the integrity of the team; Display outstanding skills in all phases of the game; Show scholastic achievement and sportsmanship.

SEASON NOTES
• LEAGUE LEADERS
Western Michigan returns the most goals and total points in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference. The Broncos return 112 goals, 22 more than Minnesota-Duluth's 90. Combined, WMU also returns 271 total points, once again just head of the Bulldogs, who return 265. 

Western Michigan did lose its leading point scorer in Colt Conrad, who wrapped up his career with a 38 points season on 11 goals and 27 assists. From there, WMU returns its next six top scorers, including senior captain Hugh McGing and junior forward Josh Passolt, who tied for the team lead with 16 goals each. The Broncos also return double-digit goal scorers in junior forward Austin Rueschhoff (13) and junior forward Ethen Frank (15). Senior defenseman Cam Lee is the top returning assist man after dishing out a career-high 19 last season. 

• SUPER SENIORS
WMU has nine seniors this season, the most ever by an Andy Murray coached team and the most in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference. The class is tied for fifth nationally with Michigan, Michigan State, Dartmouth and Yale. Boston College leads the nation with 11 seniors, followed by Penn State, American International and Alaska Fairbanks each with 10. 

• 47 & 46
Western Michigan begins its 47th season of college hockey, with senior forward Hugh McGing being named the 46th captain in program history. McGing will be assisted by senior defenseman Luke Bafia, senior forward Wade Allison, junior forward Josh Passolt and sophomore defenseman Mattias Samuelsson.