A RETURN TO NORMALCY
This week the Western Michigan hockey team opens the 2021-22 regular season with a home-and-home series against Ferris State. The Broncos host the Bulldogs on Friday night at Lawson Ice Arena before traveling up to Big Rapids on Saturday night.
 
CAN'T MAKE IT TO THE GAME?
All Western Michigan home games can be streamed live with a subscription to NCHC.tv. Saturday's game at FSU can be streamed on FloHockey.tv for a stream.
 
Friday's game can be heard on the Bronco Radio Network on WVFM 106.5 in the Kalamazoo area. Due to WMU Football, Saturday's game moves to WKZO 590 AM and 106.9 FM.
 
LAST WEEK
Western Michigan traveled down to Ohio State last Saturday to take on the Buckeyes in an exhibition game, coming away with a 3-1 win. The Broncos picked up goals from Ethen Frank, Josh Passolt and Luke Grainger. Junior goaltender Brandon Bussi made 25 saves, including 10 in the first period. The Broncos finished 1-for-4 on the power play, while holding OSU scoreless on four.
 
Frank tallied on the power play 7:37 into the first period to give the Broncos the early 1-0 lead with Drew Worrad and Michael Joyaux picking up assists. Georgii Merkulov tied it up at 1-1, scoring for the Buckeyes at 4:29 in the second period. Passolt gave the lead back to the Broncos at 13:58 in the third period and just 25 seconds later Grainger scored unassisted to seal the exhibition win.
 
WELL, WELL, LOOK WHO'S INSIDE AGAIN
Friday night the Broncos will see something in Lawson Ice Arena that they haven't since an 8-4 win over Miami on March 7, 2020, fans. That was the last game that fans were allowed inside the arena due to COVID-19. This season the only restriction on fans will be the wearing of masks.
 
THE FERRIS STATE BULLDOGS (1-1-0)
- THE SERIES: The last time the two teams met was back on Nov. 8-9, 2019. Western Michigan swept Ferris State in the home-and-home series with wins of 4-2 and 8-2. The Broncos hold the all-time series lead at 83-52-13 with this Friday and Saturday being the 149th and 150th games in the rivalry.
 
Fifth-year senior Josh Passolt leads all Broncos with seven career points against Ferris States with two goals and five assists in six games. Ethen Frank, Drew Worrad, Paul Washe and Rhett Kingston all have four career points with Kingston posting a hat trick in 2019. Brandon Bussi is 2-0-0 all-time against FSU with a goals against average of 2.0 and a save percentage of .897.
 
- THAT NAME SOUNDS FAMILIAR: Long-time Bronco fans will recognize the name on a back of one of the Bulldog jerseys this weekend and that's of junior forward Dallas Tulik. Tulik is the son of former WMU captain Brian Tulik. Brian holds the all-time games played record in Western Michigan history at 168 games from 1987-92. As a shutdown defenseman, he also produced 16 goals and 33 assists for 49 career points. Dallas has played 40 career games entering his third season with five goals and eight assists.
 
- SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS: Ferris State opened the regular season last weekend hosting the Miami RedHawks, splitting the two games with MU. On Friday the Bulldogs jumped out to a 4-2 lead in the first period but Miami went on to add five goals and beat FSU 7-4. On Saturday Miami tied the game up at 3-3 in the final minute of regulation but Stepan Pokorny scored a short-handed goal in overtime to win it for Ferris State.
 
Sophomore forward Antonio Ventu had a team-high two goals over the weekend, while six other Bulldogs lit the lamp. Dallas Tulik and Liam MacDougall each had a team-best two assists in the series. Senior forwards Jake Transit and Ethan Stewart are the top returning scorers for the Bulldogs. Both put up six goals and eight assists for 14 points last season. Transit had a goal and an assist in the series against the RedHawks.  
 
Sophomore Logan Stein started both games between the pipes. Saturday's win was the first of his career after going 0-11-1 last season.
 
Last season the power play finished at 19.4 percent (14-for-72) and is 2-for-8 so far this season. The penalty kill finished last weekend 7-for-10 and was 72.2 percent (65-for-90) last season.
 
HOCKEY ROSTER FOR OLD MEN
Western Michigan seniors Ethen Frank, Josh Passolt and Paul Washe all chose to come back to the Broncos, using their COVID exemption granted to all athletes by the NCCA last season. The trio combined for 25 goals and 33 assists for 58 points last season.
 
Frank was WMU's leading goal scorer with 13 while Washe is one of the top draw men in the nation. Passolt has more career points than either of his classmen with 80 on 37 goals and 73 assists.
 
BAND OF BROTHERS
Thanks to his COVID exemption, fifth-year senior captain Paul Washe gets to play a full season with his younger brother Tim. Tim joined the Broncos after the December break last season and immediately jumped into the lineup, playing in 13 of the 15 games possible. Tim scored his first collegiate goal in a 6-2 win over St. Cloud State.
 
MEET THE NEW BOSS
For the first time since 2011, the Western Michigan hockey team opens the season with a new head coach. Pat Ferschweiler was appointed head coach of the Broncos back in August after the resignation (not retirement, as he would want everyone to know) of Andy Murray. Murray spent 10 seasons as the bench boss for WMU, coaching the team to two NCAA Tournament appearances and a CCHA Tournament Championship in 2012.
 
Ferschweiler twice served as an assistant and associate head coach under Murray, while also coaching professionally as an assistant coach with the Grand Rapids Griffins and a four-year stint as an assistant coach under former WMU head coach Jeff Blashill with the Detroit Red Wings. Ferschweiler played three seasons at Western Michigan before graduating early to pursue a professional hockey career. As a Bronco he was named the CCHA's Best Defensive Forward.
 
RETURNING ALL-AMERICAN
Western Michigan hasn't often been able to say it has a returning All-American on the roster but can this season as defenseman Ronnie Attard returns for his junior season.
 
Attard finished the COVID-19 shortened season with 22 points on eight goals and 14 assists in just 25 games. All three offensive statistics were career highs for the Philadelphia Flyers' draft pick. Attard went on to be voted a NCHC First Team All-Conference selection, the NCHC Best Offensive Defenseman and eventually a CCM/AHCA West Division First Team All-American.
 
The last returning All-American the Broncos had was defenseman Danny DeKeyser, who earned the honors his sophomore season as well back in 2012.

ON THE HORIZON
Western Michigan has next weekend off and returns to action on Oct. 22 and 23 with a home-and-homes series against No. 3 Michigan. The Broncos head to Yost Arena for 7:30 p.m. showdown on Friday before hosting the Wolverines on Saturday at 7 p.m.