KALAMAZOO, Mich. – With a 3-0-1 record in hand, Western Michigan will now begin NCHC play with a two-game series in Omaha this weekend. The Broncos and Mavericks begin play on Nov. 3 at 8 p.m. ET. 

LAST TIME OUT
The Brown and Gold moved to 3-0-1 with a 5-2 victory over Bowling Green on Oct. 21. WMU has now scored five or more goals in three of its first four games. 

Sam Colangelo had his first career hat trick in the contest and Ethan Phillips tallied his fifth goal of the season. 

50 YEARS OF BRONCO HOCKEY
WMU will be celebrating the 50th anniversary of varsity hockey this season, which will be commemorated in a variety of ways. Along with a 50th anniversary logo at center ice, there will be special in-game tributes to former players and teams and an alumni weekend for the Colorado College series on January 26 and 27. 

The program kicked off the festivities by having former captain Brian Tulik participate in the One More Lap promotion, which allows former Bronco captains to be honored by skating around the ice during pregame and announced during player introductions. 

COLANGELO MAKES WAVES
Since transferring from Northeastern this offseason, forward Sam Colangelo has done nothing but produce for the Broncos. 

An Anaheim Ducks draft pick, Colangelo has at least one point in all four games this season, with his best game being WMU's most recent win against Bowling Green. 

In a 5-2 victory over the Falcons on Oct. 21, Colangelo netted the first hat trick of his career and dished out an assist for four points in the contest. 

He also had a goal the night before in Bowling Green, which helped him collect NCHC Forward of the Week honors on Oct. 23. He is the first Bronco to win a weekly award this season. 

On the season, Colangelo is up to seven points on five goals and two assists. 

SHARING IS CARING
Through four games this season, Western Michigan has proven to be a very unselfish team in the attacking zone. The Broncos are second in the NCHC with an 8.75 assists per game mark. 

The effort has been spearheaded by captain Luke Grainger, who currently leads the team with seven assists. That mark is tied-for-second in the NCHC and tied-for-ninth nationally. 

Chad Hillebrand and Dylan Wendt have also been great passers to begin the season. Hillebrand has six assists through four games this season, while Wendt has four. Over the team's first four games, 14 different players have at least one assist. 

SCOUTING THE MAVERICKS
Omaha has gotten off to a strong start this season, boasting a 2-1-1 record, which has the Mavericks receiving votes in the latest national polls. 

As a team, Omaha is averaging three goals per game, while only allowing two. The Mavericks have struggled on the power play, scoring only two goals in 21 chances. However, they are perfect on the penalty kill, holding opponents to no goals on 13 penalties. 

Individually, they have gotten some good production throughout the lineup with six players having three points or more through four games this season. Leading the way is Jacob Guevin, who has four assists in four games. Behind him, Joaquim Lemay has been strong, posting three points on two goals and one assist. He leads the team in goals so far this year. 

In net, Omaha has one of the best duos in the country in Simon Latkoczy and Seth Eisele. Latkoczy has a 1-0-1 record, 1.45 goals against average and .932 save percentage. Eisele is 1-1-0 overall and has a 2.50 goals against average and .902 save percentage. 

CONSISTENCY IS KEY
Since early in the 2021-22 season Western Michigan has been consistently among the top teams in the nation, and the polls reflect that. WMU has made back-to-back NCAA Tournaments and cracked the top-five of the USCHO poll each of the last two seasons. 

The Broncos have been ranked in the top-20 since Oct. 11, 2021 and currently sit at No. 11 in nation. 

A CHANCE AT HISTORY
The 2023-24 Broncos will have a chance to make history, as the program has never reached the NCAA Tournament in three consecutive seasons. WMU has made back-to-back appearances on two separate occasions (2011 & 2012, 2022 & 2023). 

In 2022, the Brown and Gold earned a No. 1 seed in the tournament and picked up the first NCAA Tournament win in program history. The Broncos upended Northeastern, 2-1, in overtime. 

OH CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN
Senior forward Luke Grainger was named the program's captain, while fellow seniors Cedric Fiedler, Chad Hillebrand and Tim Washe will serve as assistants. 

Grainger is the team's leading returning scorer, as he posted 32 points on 12 goals and 20 assists last season. 

PRESEASON POLL
The NCHC released its preseason poll on Sept. 12, with WMU picked to finish fourth in the conference. 

The Broncos have never finished below third under head coach Pat Ferschweiler. Denver led the poll with 199 points, while North Dakota (175) and St. Cloud State (155) rounded out the top three. 

Minnesota Duluth (123), Omaha (113), Colorado College (89) and Miami (28) were picked as the bottom four teams in the conference.