THIS WEEK
The 11th-ranked Western Michigan hockey team takes its first true road trip of the season, traveling to Hamilton, N.Y., to take on Colgate this Friday and Saturday. Friday's game is set for 7 p.m. and Saturday's at 5 p.m. Both games can be streamed live on ESPN+ or heard live on the Bronco Radio Network.

LAST WEEK
Western Michigan split with No. 1 Michigan in a home-and-home series with the road team claiming each victory.
 
On Friday the Broncos earned the win, 5-2, at Yost Arena with five different players scoring. Sophomore defenseman Aidan Fulp netted his first collegiate goal to give WMU a 1-0 lead with under a minute to go in the first period. Rhett Kingston scored on a rebound to push the lead to 2-0 at 2:09 in the second period. Ethen Frank followed it up with a power play goal at 7:07 to go up 3-0. Michigan's Luke Hughes scored shortly after a power play ended to cut the lead to 3-1 but Dylan Wendt responded 2:05 later with his first collegiate goal to push the lead back to three, 4-1. Kent Johnson redirected a shot by Hughes into the net to bring the Wolverines within two. Cole Gallant added a late goal with 2:37 left to play to set the final at 5-2. Drew Worrad and Michael Joyaux each had two assists on the night, while Brandon Bussi made 23 saves.
 
On Saturday the Broncos rallied from a 2-0 deficit on second period goals by Frank and Worrad to tie it up. Frank tallied another goal on the power play and Worrad netted his second year also with the man advantage.  WMU scored late in the third period after Frank deflected a shot by Joyaux into the net but it was ruled that he touched it with a high stick and the goal was taken off the board. Midway through overtime Nick Blankenburg scored to hand the Broncos a 3-2 overtime loss, their first of the season.
 
STRONG STARTS
Three Broncos rank at or near the top of the national stats through the first few weeks of the season. Senior forward Drew Worrad is currently tied for first in points per game with 2.00 and tied for the national lead in assists per game with 1.50. Senior defenseman Michael Joyaux is tied with Worrad in the stat and both have eight assists in four games. Senior forward Ethen Frank is ranked second in the nation in goals per game with 1.25. He is also fifth in the nation in power play goals with three. Frank has had a goal in every game so far this season and leads the team with five.

IT'S BEEN A MINUTE
Western Michigan came in at No. 11 in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Poll after its split with No. 1 Michigan. It's the first time since Jan. 14, 2019 that the Broncos have been ranked that high in the poll, coming in at 11 that week.
 
OUT EAST
This weekend is WMU's first trip to play a hockey game east of Ohio since the NCAA Regional Semifinal game against Air Force on Mach 24, 2017 in Providence, R.I. The Broncos have not played a regular season game out East since a trip to Clarkson on Oct. 23-24, 2015.
 
COLGATE RAIDERS (5-2-0)
- THE SERIES: Western Michigan has a slight lead in the all-time series at 8-6-1. The two teams last met during the 2017-18 season with the Broncos winning the first game of the series, 5-3, and dropping the second 5-1 at Lawson Ice Arena. Only two current Broncos played in that series, with Josh Passolt scoring a goal and Ethen Frank tallying an assist.
 
- SCOUTING THE RAIDERS: Colgate won its first four games of the season, with three of the four coming on the road, and now are at the end of a six-game homestand. CU's two losses have come against Merrimack and Arizona State. Last week against the Sun Devils they won the opening game of the series 8-3 and lost the finale 4-3 in overtime. The Raiders have shown the ability to score as well as win tight games this season, with two wins coming by one goal and two wins coming by three or more.
 
Colgate averages 4.00 goals per game so far this season, ranking fifth in the nation. Junior Colton Young leads the team in points with 10 and goals scored with six, including three game-winners. Fifth-year senior forward Josh McKechney is second on the team with nine points, second on the team with four goals, and one of three Raiders tied for the team lead with five assists. Sophomore defenseman Nick Anderson and sophomore forward Alex Young also each have five assists. Freshman defenseman Tommy Bergsland is the top scorer from the blue line with six points on two goals and four assists, while leading the team in plus/minus at +8.
 
Defensively the Raiders have given up 2.71 goals per game, ranking 24th in the nation. Sophomore goalie and Detroit Red Wings' draft pick Carter Gyland has started five of the seven games in net, posting a 4-1-0 record with a 2.57 goals against average and a .926 save percentage. Senior Andrew Farrier has made two starts, going 1-1-0 with a 2.54 goals against average and a .938 save percentage.
 
Colgate has been converting power plays at a 20.0 percent clip (6-for-30), ranking 22nd in the nation. McKechney has three of the team's power play goals.  The penalty kill is ranked 33rd in the nation at 80.0 percent (28-for-35). The team averages 15 penalty minutes per game, ninth-most in the nation.
 
ON THE HORIZON
Western Michigan opens National Collegiate Hockey Conference play, hosting No. 4 Minnesota-Duluth next Friday and Saturday at 7:05 p.m. Tickets are available by calling 1-888-4-WMUTIX and by visiting www.wmubroncos.com/tickets.