THIS WEEK
Western Michigan opens the 2022-23 season on the road at Alaska-Anchorage on Saturday and Sunday. The puck drops at 10:07 p.m. ET on Saturday and 9:07 p.m. on Sunday. The games can be watched live at YouTube.com/UAASeawolves.
THE SERIES
This weekend is the first road series for the Broncos at Anchorage. WMU has played UAA in Anchorage before as part of the Nissan-Jeep Classic in 1988, but never a true road series against the Seawolves. Saturday and Sunday will be the fifth and sixth meetings between the two programs, with a 2-2-0 split so far. The last time the two teams met was in 2013 with the Broncos prevailing 6-2 at the Alaska Goal Rush tournament in Fairbanks.
SCOUTING THE SEAWOLVES
Alaska-Anchorage has not played a regular season game since the end of the 2019-20 season before COVID-19 shut everything down. UAA then paused its program and did not compete for 2020-21 and 201-22 seasons.
The Seawolves did play an exhibition game against Simon Fraser last Friday, falling 1-0. St. Cloud State transfer Joey Lamoreaux started and played the first two period, making 14 saves without giving up a goal. The team also had a "Green & Gold" game the following night.
OH CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN
Senior forward
Jason Polin was named the 50th captain in program history, with fifth-year senior forward
Cole Gallant and junior defenseman
Aidan Fulp serving as assistants.
Polin enters the season on the back of a career-best junior campaign. He had 26 points on 16 goals and 10 assists, playing in all 39 games and taking just two penalties.
LOTS OF NEW FACES
Western Michigan had a lot of roster spots to fill thanks to five players with eligibility left signing pro contracts in the off season. With other departures, the Broncos have added 13 new faces to the team.
WMU dipped into the transfer portal and picked up Minnesota's
Jack Perbix, UCONN's
Carter Berger, AIC's
Zak Galambos, Wisconsin's
Cameron Rowe, UMASS' Oliver Macdonald and Miami's
Kirk Laursen. The Broncos also brought in seven freshmen.
SONS OF BRONCOS
This season will feature two sons of prominent Bronco Hockey alums in
Barrett Brooks and
Theo Thrun. Brooks is the son of
Chris Brooks, one of the most prolific scorers in program history. Chris played for the Broncos from 1992-96 and racked up 184 points on 57 goals and 127 assists in 147 games, averaging 1.25 points per game in his career. He was named the CCHA Rookie of the Year in the 1992-93 season. He also went on to coach with the Broncos as an assistant, was a head coach in the Central Hockey League, a head coach at Division III Wisconsin Steven's Point and is now an assistant at Clarkson after spending five seasons at Michigan Tech.
Thrun is the son of Troy Thrun. Troy, also one of the most prolific scorers in program history, played three seasons with the Broncos from 1983-86, helping WMU win its first CCHA Tournament Championship and a trip to the NCAA Tournament in 1986. In 122 career games he had 183 points on 81 goals and 102 points. After his college career he went on to play in Germany for five seasons.
A NEW VENUE
Western Michigan will play its first-ever college hockey game in the state of Tennessee when it takes on Northeastern for in the Music City Hockey Classic on Nov. 25.
ON THE HORIZON
Western Michigan heads up 131 to Ferris State for one game on Saturday at night at 7 p.m. The Broncos then return to Kalamazoo to host Bowling Green on Thursday, Oct. 6 at 7 p.m. before visiting BGSU the following night.
