THIS WEEK
The Western Michigan hockey team travels to St. Paul, Minn., and the Xcel Energy Center for the 2022 National Collegiate Hockey Frozen Faceoff. The Broncos will take on North Dakota in the second semifinal game on Friday at 8:37 p.m. ET. The game can be watched live on CBS Sports Network and heard live on the Bronco Radio Network.
 
LAST WEEK
WMU advanced to the NCHC Frozen Faceoff in dramatic fashion with an overtime win against Omaha to complete the two-game sweep of the Mavericks in the NCHC Quarterfinals at Lawson Ice Arena.
 
In the series opener the Broncos came back from a 2-1 deficit to win 4-2 on the back of sophomore forward Luke Grainger's first collegiate hat trick. Grainger's first of the night gave WMU a 1-0 lead just 3:45 into the game. UNO responded with two goals in 1:53 seconds at the end of the period to take a 2-1 lead. After a scoreless second period that saw Brandon Bussi make 13 of his 29 saves, Grainger tied it up at 2-2 with his second goal of the game at 7:57 in the third period. He completed the hat trick at 15:38 to give the Broncos a 3-2 lead before Ethen Frank capped things off with an empty-net goal.
 
In game two the Broncos had a bigger deficit to overcome. The teams traded power play goals in the first period with Kevin Conley scoring at 10:05 to give the Mavericks a 1-0 lead before Max Sasson tied it up at 16:17. Omaha responded with another power play goal just over a minute later and then took a 3-1 lead early in the second period. WMU responded with three goals in the span of five minutes to take a 4-3 lead. Jason Polin cut the lead to 3-2 after punching in his own rebound from just in front of the crease. Ronnie Attard tied it up just 34 seconds later with a shot that trickled past UNO goalie Isaiah Saville. Drew Worrad then gave the Broncos a 4-3 lead when he put in a rebound on a shot by Attard at 18:07 in the second period. The Mavericks tied it up at 10:47 in the third period, taking advantage of a goaltending error. The game went in to overtime and Worrad scored off of a faceoff at 4:42 into the OT period to finish off the series.
 
2021-22 WMU HOCKY TEAM: THE MOST EDITION

• The Broncos are averaging 3.77 goals per game this season, most since the 2000-01 squad that averaged 3.82.
• Junior defenseman Ronnie Attard's 35 points are the most by a WMU defenseman since Mike Posma tallied 36 on eight goals and 28 assists during the 1989-90 season.
• Fifth-year senior Ethen Frank's 26 goals are the most since Jeff Campbell lit the lamp 26 times during the 2000-01 season.
• Frank's six game-winning goals puts him in a four-way tie for the program record for game-winning goals in a single season and is the most since Steve Rymsha in 2000-01.
• The team's 24 wins are the most since the 1995-96 team that posted 27.
• Junior goalie Brandon Bussi currently sits second in program history for wins in a single season with 24. He needs one more to tie the program record set by Bill Horn back during the 1985-89 season.

 
30 & 30
Defensemen Ronnie Attard and Michael Joyaux have each eclipsed the 30-point mark on the season. Attard has 35 on 13 goals and 22 assists, while Joyaux has 31 on eight goals and 23 assists. Western Michigan has not had two defensemen reach 30 points in the same season since Mike Posma (54) and Chris Clark (39) during the 1987-88 season.
 
AGAINST THE NATION'S BEST
Friday's tilt against North Dakota will be the 23rd game against a nationally-ranked opponent this season for Western Michigan. WMU has an 11-10-1 record in those previous 22 games. Fifth-year senior Ethen Frank has 16 of his 26 goals on the season come against nationally-ranked teams, while Drew Worrad has tallied 28 of his points in those 22 games.
 
WMU has averaged 3.09 goals per game against ranked opponents and held them to 2.91 goals per game. Brandon Bussi has posted two of his four shutouts on the season against ranked teams, including one against North Dakota.
 
NOT SO FRIENDLY CONFINES
This is WMU's third trip to the NCHC Frozen Faceoff and the Broncos are searching for their first win. In Western Michigan's _­first trip in 2014 the Broncos fell to Denver 4-3 in the semifinals and also lost to North Dakota, 5-0, in the NCHC Third Place Game. In its second trip, WMU fell to Minnesota-Duluth in the semifinals and fell 3-1 in the now defunct third place game. This is Western Michigan's first trip to the NCHC Frozen Faceoff since it switched to the Xcel Energy Center but this is not WMU's first game at the arena. The Broncos battled the Fighting Hawks back in 2012 in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament, falling 3-1.
 
THE NORTH DAKOTA FIGHTING HAWKS | 24-12-1, 17-6-1
- THE SERIES: North Dakota has a 27-9-0 lead in the all-time series and are 2-0 against the Broncos in the postseason with a win in the NCHC Third Place Game in 2014 and the First Round of the NCAA Tournament in 2012. Josh Passolt leads all Broncos in scoring against UND with 11 points on six goals and five assists in 14 games. Ronnie Attard has averaged a point-per game with six on two goals and four assists in six games. Brandon Bussi has a 2-6-0 record against the Fighting Hawks with a 2.47 goals against average and a .909 save percentage.
 
- SCOUTING THE FIGHTING HAWKS, AGAIN: North Dakota advanced to the NCHC Frozen Faceoff with a pair of 2-1 home-wins over Colorado College in the NCHC Quarterfinals. UND is playing its best hockey of the season and is 9-1-0 in its last 10 games, which includes a sweep over the Broncos.
 
Sophomore forward Reese Gaber leads an offensive that scores 3.14 goals per game. Gaber has 36 points on 15 goals and 21 assists with his goal mark a team-best. UND will be without its third leading scorer in defenseman Jake Sanderson, who is out injured. Ashton Calder and Judd Caufield are North Dakota's only other double-digit goal-scorers but the team has five others with at least eight goals on the season. Connor Ford has a team-best 23 assists on the season.
 
UND is allowing 2.57 goals per game. Bemidji State transfer Zach Driscoll has started in 31 of the team's 37 games this season, posting a 22-9-1 record with a 2.34 goals against average, a .908 save percentage and two shutouts.
 
ON THE HORIZON SHOW
No matter the outlook this weekend, Western Michigan has locked up an at-large bid in the NCAA Tournament. The team will find out where it goes during the NCAA Selection Show on Sunday evening at 6:30 p.m. on ESPNU