THIS WEEK
Western Michigan welcomes the defending National Champions to Lawson Ice Arena on Friday and Saturday night. Friday night's game is being broadcast on CBS Sports Network. Saturday's game can be streamed on NCHC.tv and both games will be covered by the Bronco Radio Network.
 
LAST WEEK
The Broncos went on the road to National Collegiate Hockey Conference rival Miami, taking four out of six points from the RedHawks after a 2-2 tie and a 4-1 win.
 
WMU jumped out to a very early 1-0 lead on Friday, with Hugh McGing scoring a goal just 1:21 into the first period. Midway through the second period Mattias Samuelsson scored from just beyond the crease to make it 2-0. MU responded with two straight power play goals to tie it at 2-2 to send it to overtime. The first came at 19:00 of the second period by Matt Barry off a rebound from a shot by Derek Daschke. Daschke then scored the game-tying goal just 1:24 into the third period. Brandon Bussi made a game-high 28 saves, with 10 coming in the third period to keep the game deadlocked. Neither team took advantage of the regulation overtime before Gordie Green scored just 19 seconds into the three-on-three overtime period to give Miami the extra point.
 
The RedHawks jumped out to a very early lead on Saturday, with Monte Graham scoring just 39 seconds into the game. Cole Gallant answered just nine seconds later to tie it up at 1-1. Cam Lee netted the eventual game-winner at 9:52 in the second period to give the Broncos a 2-1 lead. Minutes later Dawson DiPietro stole the puck and scored on a breakaway to push the lead to 3-1. Paul Washe scored at 7:30 in the third period to seal the win for Western Michigan. Bussi made 19 saves on the night and the penalty kill went 2-for-2.
 
THE MINNESOTA-DULUTH BULLDOGS | 17-9-2, 12-4-2-0
• THE SERIES: After a loss and a tie up in Duluth, Western Michigan trails the all-time series at 9-19-3 against UMD. WMU is 2-3-1 in its last six at home against the Bulldogs. Hugh McGing leads all Broncos in scoring against Minnesota-Duluth with eight points on three goals and five assists in 15 career games. Junior forward Josh Passolt has five points on three goals and two assists in 10 career games. Passolt scored two goals in WMU's 3-3 tie at UMD back in January.
 
• SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS, AGAIN: Since getting swept by St. Cloud State on Jan. 17-18, Minnesota Duluth has won five of its last six games, including four straight. During the win streak the Bulldog defense has allowed just 1.5 goals per game.
 
Junior defenseman and Hobey Baker hopeful Scott Perunovich leads the team in scoring with 33 points on four goals and a team-best 29 assists. Sophomore forward Noah Cates has 26 points on a team-high 13 goals and 13 assists. His brother Jackson has 23 points on eight goals and 15 assists. Sophomore forward Cole Koepke has 25 points on 12 goals and 13 assists, while junior forward Kobe Roth is also one of four Bulldogs with double-digit goals with 12. UMD ranks 19th in the nation in goals per game at 3.18.
 
Senior goalie Hunter Shepard is the lone netminder to play for UMD this season. Shepard recently broke the NCAA consecutive starts record by a goalie, which now sits at 109. Shepard has a 2.25 goals against average with two shutouts and a .915 save percentage. The Bulldogs rank 15th in the nation in scoring defense, allowing 2.36 goals per game.
 
Minnesota-Duluth's power play has been lethal this season, sitting fifth in the nation at 26.7 percent (31-for-116). Jackson Cates lead the team in power play goals with five, while Nick Swaney and Noah Cates each have four. Three of Perunovich's four goals have come with the man advantage and 17 of his 29 assists have come on the power play. UMD's penalty kill ranks 30th in the nation at 81.2 percent (91-for-112). Perunovich leads all Bulldogs in penalty minutes at 62.
 
WHEN THE DEFENDING CHAMPS COME TO TOWN
Thanks to the dominance of the National Collegiate Hockey Conference in the NCAA Tournament, this weekends' series will be the fourth-straight year that Western Michigan has hosted the reigning National Champions and the fifth time under head coach Andy Murray. In those previous four series, WMU has a record of 5-2-1. The only two losses came at the hands of Minnesota-Duluth back on Jan. 6-7, 2012.
 
KEEP ON ROLLING
Western Michigan has won its last six games at Lawson Ice Arena and the Broncos have been rolling over opponents. During the streak WMU has outscored opponents 37-14, averaging 6.2 goals per game and allowing just 2.3. The team has also been outshooting opponents by nearly 10 per game at 37.3 to 28.8. The Bronco power play has posted a percentage of 44.8, going 8-for-18.
 
Senior captain Hugh McGing has done the most damage during the streak with 11 points on five goals and six assists. Wade Allison has nine points on five goals and four assists, while Dawson DiPietro has five goals and three assists in the six games. Freshman goalie Brandon Bussi has played every minute in the six games with a 2.33 goals against average and a .919 save percentage.
 
HE'S GOT CLASS
Senior forward Hugh McGing has been named one of 10 finalists for the Senior CLASS Award.
 
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School ®, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as a NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition
 
Fans can vote for McGing at www.seniorclassaward.com
 
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.