KALAMAZOO, Mich. -- Western Michigan will have one final game in 2023 with an exhibition contest against Western Ontario on Saturday evening at Lawson Arena. The Broncos had 11 wins in the first half of the season. 

LAST TIME OUT
The Broncos were able to capture four of six points during a series with Denver back on Dec. 8-9. WMU captured a 7-3 victory on Dec. 8 and fell in overtime, 5-6, the following night. Sam Colangelo and Joe Cassetti led the way for the Broncos, each finishing the weekend series with five points. Colangelo had three goals and two assists, while Cassetti had two goals and three assists. 

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. 

Throughout the season, WMU will welcome back former captains and key players from the last 50 years to participate in a One Last Lap promotion, along with other events. 

Former coach Bill Wilkinson, former captains Brian Tulik and Brent Brekke, former NHLer Joe Corvo, former teammates Derek Roehl and Brett Beebe and former off-ice official Bill Saunders have joined the festivities thus far, and more players are scheduled to join for upcoming games. 

NEW TEAM? NO PROBLEM
Western Michigan hit the transfer portal this offseason to help ease the loss of its entire top line, and it's paid off in a big way. 

Sam Colangelo, Ethan Phillips, Matteo Costantini and Joe Cassetti each joined the program this season and have brought tremendous value in just 16 games. That includes some bit-time performances in a series victory over Denver a couple weeks ago. 

Colangelo had a hat trick in the Dec. 8 win and added two assists the following night. On the season, he has totaled 19 points on 11 goals and eight assists. 

Not to be outdone, Cassetti had five points against Denver as well, netting two goals and dishing out three assists. In 16 games, he has five goals and seven assists. 
Phillips had  a goal and three assists against he Pioneers earlier this month, and he is currently sitting at 17 points on seven goals and 10 assists. 

Last but not least has been Costantini, who has been an assist machine this season. He had four helpers in the series against Denver a few weeks ago. In total, he has put up 15 points on three goals and 12 assists. 

HATS OFF
Western Michigan forward Sam Colangelo has been a scoring machine since transferring over from Northeastern this offseason. 

The veteran winger has tallied 19 points on 11 goals and eight assists this season. That includes two hat tricks with one against Denver on Dec. 8 and the other against Bowling Green back in October. 

With those two hat tricks, Colangelo is the nation's leader in that category. It marks the second year WMU has had the nation's hat trick leader, as former Bronco Jason Polin led the country with five last season. 

HAVING A RECORD YEAR
The Broncos have been known for developing players over the years, and this season is no different. Multiple players have already set career highs in various categories and others are on pace to set new career marks later this season. 

After a strong end to the 2022-23 season, Dylan Wendt has carried that momentum into this season. In just 16 games this year, the junior winger has posted career highs in goals (13) and points (24). His previous career-high marks were eight goals and 22 points. 

Ethan Phillips has also been outstanding this season, posting career marks of seven goals and 17 points. He's done this in just 14 games in 2023-24. He previously had a career high of six goals two seasons ago while at Boston University. 

Chad Hillebrand has been a big-time distributor of the puck early in the 2023-24 campaign, dishing out a career high 11 assists in just 16 games thus far. It's his first time with double-digit assists in his career. 

Finally, Joe Cassetti has handed out seven assists, which edges him past the six he had in 2021-22 for Miami. He is also just three points away from a career high in that category. 

SCOUTING THE MUSTANGS
After a 2-11-0 start to the season, Western Ontario has bounced back to win four straight heading into Saturday's game. During that four-game winning streak, the Mustangs have outscored their opponents 19-6. 

Leading the way for Western Ontario is Christiano Aiello, who has 14 points on eight goals and six assists. The Mustangs have also gotten offense from Shane Bulitka. He has four goals and nine assists in 17 games this season. 

In net, Dylan Myskiw has started 12 games, posting a 3-8-0 record to go along with a .891 save percentage and 3.73 goals against average. Jack McNaughton has also seen time, earning five starts. He has a 3-2-0 record, .863 save percentage and 4.39 goals against average. 

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. 12 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.