KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) has unveiled its 2026-27 conference schedule, with the action beginning Oct. 30. 

WMU is coming off another fantastic season, winning 27 games and making a fifth straight NCAA Tournament appearance. The Brown and Gold have won 20 or more games in each of the last five seasons and won the 2025 National Championship, Penrose Cup and NCHC Frozen Faceoff. 

While most of the league will open on Halloween weekend, the Broncos will kick off conference play on Nov. 6-7 at North Dakota. Western Michigan hasn't played at Ralph Engelstad Arena since the 2024-25 campaign. WMU swept that series and has won four of the last six meetings in Grand Forks. 

From there, the Brown and Gold will get its first home conference series. WMU is set to host Colorado College on Nov. 13-14. The Broncos will also travel to Colorado Springs later in the season (Feb. 12-13). Western Michigan went 3-0-1 against the Tigers in 2025-26. 

A road trip to Omaha is next up on the schedule, as the two teams will square off at Baxter Arena on Nov. 20-21. The Mavericks will return to Lawson Arena on Jan. 15-16. The Broncos are 8-2 against Omaha over the last 10 meetings. 

Western Michigan will close out the first half with a home series against Miami (Dec. 4-5) and a road trip to Arizona State (Dec. 11-12). WMU will also travel to Miami for the last weekend of the regular season (Feb. 26-27). The Broncos went 5-1-0 against the RedHawks and Sun Devils last season. 

After the calendar turns, the Brown and Gold will have a pair of home series. Denver comes to town on Jan. 8-9 followed by a second meeting with Omaha. The Broncos and Pioneers have split the last eight meetings. 

Following the Omaha series, Western Michigan will head to St. Thomas for the first ever meeting between the two programs. That series is set for Jan. 22-23. 

WMU will then host St. Cloud State on Feb. 5-6 before closing out its season series against CC on Feb. 12-13. The Broncos have won five of the last six meetings against the Huskies.

To close out the regular season, the Brown and Gold will host Minnesota Duluth on Feb. 19-20 before traveling to Oxford on Feb. 26-27 to face Miami. The Broncos won three out of four against the Bulldogs in 2025-26. 

When it comes to the NCHC Tournament, quarterfinal series will be played on March 5-7 at the home site of the top five seeds. The semifinals will pit the four remaining teams against one another at the home site of the top two remaining seeds on March 13. 

To close out the tournament, the final two teams will play at the home site of the highest remaining seed. The game will be played on either March 19 or 20. 

Season ticket information will be released later this spring. Visit WMUBroncos.com/Tickets or call the ticket office at 1-888-496-8849.