There was a shootout and a shutout, on the road at rival. That was enough for the college hockey voters to extend and enlarge Wisconsin's lead atop the rankings this week, landing 44 of 50 first-place votes in the USCHO.com poll, and 30 of 34 in the USA Hockey top 20.

No. 2 Michigan, which was off this past weekend while the Badgers traveled to Minnesota, received every other first-place vote, and was listed first in the National Collegiate Percentage (NPI) Index that will eventually be used to determine the at-large teams and seedings for the NCAA Tournament.

Good thing they're on a collision course to play in early December, as we're four week away from a potential No. 1 vs. 2 showdown in Ann Arbor if neither team stumbles before Dec. 4-5. However, that may be a big if.

Wisconsin (7-0-1, 3-0-1 Big Ten) has a bit of an easier route for the rest of the month, with all six games on the schedule at home in Madison, against Ohio State, Penn State and Canisius — none of which are currently ranked. Their NPI rankings are, on order, 19, 53 and 52.

Michigan (8-1-0, 1-1-0) will host Penn State this weekend, play a home-and-home with in-state rival No. 4 Michigan State, and enjoy being home Thaksgiving wekeend against Ferris State: NPI rankings 53, 6 and 54.

Nevertheless, the Big Ten has three of the top four teams in both major polls, with reigning national champion Denver wedged in at No. 3. Quinnipiac moved up to No. 5, but an Eastern school has yet to crack the top four this season.

Moved up the most: Miami went from being the first team out of the top 20 in the USCHO.com poll, to No. 17 after splitting the weekend series at then-No. 6 Minnesota Duluth. It was the first ranked opponent the RedHawks faced this season.

Moved down the most: Union dropped from No. 17 to out of the top 20 after taking road losses at St. Lawrence and Clarkson by a combined score of 8-3,

Most underrated per NPI: Union. A week ago Union was No. 2 in the NCAA Percentage Index (NPI), but the Garnet Chargers (5-4) only dropped to No. 11. If the polls extended down they would be just outside of the top 25.

Most overrated per NPI: Cornell. The Big Red has played just four games, so there's not a large sample size of game for the NPI to weight. It lost to Quinnipiac and edged Princeton

USCHO.com Poll: Week 7

Others receiving votes: Connecticut 51, Minnesota 48, Bowling Green 35, Maine 12, Massachusetts 12, Union 12, Sacred Heart 10, New Hampshire 8, Ohio State 6, Harvard 3, Niagara 2, Arizona State 1, Yale 1

USA Hockey Poll: Week 7

Others receiving votes: Army 38; Massachusetts, 37; Connecticut, 32; Bowling Green State 22; Harvard 9; Union 6; Clarkson 3; Minnesota State 3; New Hampshire 3.

Women's USCHO.com Poll : Week 9

Others receiving votes: Mercyhurst 12, Vermont 4, Minnesota State 2, Brown 1, Syracuse 1

Hockey Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony

The Class of 2026 for the Hockey Hall of Fame was inducted Monday night and had a strong collegiate presence with players Keith Tkachuk (Boston University) and Cindy Curley (Providence), and Brian Burke in the Builder category. The rest of the class included Patrice Bergeron, Carey Price and Pekka Rinne.

• "I began tonight by joking about a Tkachuk finally getting a warm reception in Toronto, but the truth is throughout my life this game has welcomed me at every level," Tkachuk said. "I accept this honor with gratitude to everyone who has been a part of my journey."

• “I couldn’t believe I could actually get a scholarship to play hockey in college,” Curley said. “Those years helped me to grow as a player and as a person. I’m so proud we won the first of Providence’s many national championships during my time and to be named player of the year my senior year, which meant a lot to my dad.”

• “I spent a lifetime fighting for my teams, fighting for my players and occasionally fighting with the media,” Burke said. “But standing here tonight and looking down at this room, I don't feel like fighting. I just feel a profound, profound amount of gratitude and humbleness. Thank you to the Hockey Hall of Fame. Thank you to the game of hockey for giving a kid from Minnesota a life beyond his wildest dreams. God bless.”

"You told me in high school I would never play college hockey. You also told me to quit hockey and go back to law school. Thanks a lot coach!"

Brian Burke with a special message to Lou Lamoriello. 😂

The 2026 @HockeyHallFame Induction Ceremony continues on NHL Network. pic.twitter.com/W6T4SeZ9OU

— NHL Media (@NHLMedia) November 10, 2026

Puck Drop: Tuesday, November 10, 2026

• Caroline Harvey notched the first hat trick of the 2026 IIHF Women’s World Championship in Denmark, and also had an assist as the U.S. Women’s National Team dismantled Austria 11-1 to improve to 3-0 in the preliminary round. Tessa Janecke had two goals and an assist, Hilary Knight scored twice, and Joy Dune had a goal and three assists). It was the first time Austria faced the U.S. in a Top Division IIHF game and the Americans finished with a 66-5 edge in shots. Goaltender Aerin Frankel only made two saves while securing her 17th World Championship win, setting a U.S. record. Team USA wraps up preliminary-round play on Wednesday against Czechia.

• Per College Hockey Inc., 125 players with NCAA ties are competing in the 2026 IIHF Women’s World Championship, representing 50 percent of the field. That number includes 38 student-athletes currently competing in NCAA hockey during the 2026-27 season. Overall, 30 schools are represented, competing on 10 different teams. Wisconsin has the most players with 15.

• Recruiting update: Slovakian goaltender Samuel Hrenak announced his commitment to St. Cloud State, where his older brother played. The third-round selection by Winnipeg in the 2026 NHL Draft is playing with Fargo (USHL) this season. Also for 2027-28, goaltender Parker Snell with Edmonton (WHL) committed to Minnesota State, and left wing Nathan Langlois from Halifax (QMJHL) is heading to Niagara.

• After becoming the first player in Anaheim history to record a hat trick in consecutive games Cutter Gauthier (Boston College) was named the NHL’s First Star for the week ending Sunday. He had eight goals and two assists for 10 points. … Jack Hughes of the New Jersey Devil was the Second Star after having three goals and six assists in four games. … Joseph Woll (Boston College) made 12 of his 18 saves in the third period to lead the Flyers past the Canucks, 3-1. … Jets coach Scott Arniel took a shot at the Devils for announcing that goaltender Connor Hellebuyck (Lowell) won’t start against his former team Tuesday night at Winnipeg. “That’s the part for me that is hard. He just gave up on us, and it would be nice to be finally done with this and all it does is drags it out, and nine more game from now, we’re going start into it and talk about it again here. That’s the biggest disappointment for me.” The Jets will visit New Jersey on Nov. 28.

Hockey Quote of the Day

“She just was so calm and confident and comfortable under pressure in big situations and that’s part of her competitiveness that I always loved.”

Laura Halldorson on Krissy Wendell-Pohl

We'll Leave You With This ...

“Being your father is the greatest title I’ve ever had.” ❤️

Proud dad moment 🥹 Keith Tkachuk takes a moment during his Hall of Fame induction speech to celebrate each of his three children and share how proud he is of them. pic.twitter.com/hN8yLjgXas

— TSN (@TSN_Sports) November 10, 2026

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