NFL
By: Jason Gluden
As we embark on the last weekend for most teams before the Christmas Break, we have some items that need to be taken care of first.
There were three series last weekend that featured NCHC teams.
North Dakota swept St. Cloud State over the weekend, winning 4-3 on Friday and 4-2 on Saturday to earn all 6 points.
Miami (OH) lost both games at Denver, falling 4-0 on Friday and 5-2 on Saturday. Denver swept the series and took all 6 points.
The last series of the weekend put the Bulldogs against the Broncos, with Duluth and Western Michigan facing off in Kalamazoo. On Friday night, Duluth would come out victorious by a 4-1 score. Saturday night, Western earned the victory in overtime by a 3-2 score. Duluth would gain 4 points in the standings while Western would earn 2 points on the weekend.
Players of the Week: December 1-7, 2025
Denver University earned two of the awards this week. The Goaltender and the Rookie of the Week. The Goaltender of the Week was Quintin Miller. Over the weekend, he would stop 44 of the 46 shots he faced as he helped Denver sweep Miami at Magness Arena. Quentin would improve his record to 10-4-1 for the Pioneers.
The Rookie of the Week goes to Quentin’s teammate at Denver in Kyle Chyzowski. Kyle would have two goals on the weekend, one of which came on the Power Play for Denver in Saturday night’s victory. He would also win 50% of his faceoffs he took on the weekend.
The Defenseman of the Week goes to Jake Livanavage for North Dakota. He would help the Fighting Hawks kill 7 of the 8 penalties that they took over the weekend. He would also be a force on the offensive side by scoring two goals and one assist. He would have the first shorthanded goal of his career. He added an empty net goal later in the game on Saturday.
The Forward of the Week would score the game-winning goal in overtime for Western Michigan on Saturday night. William Whitelaw would earn the award this week. Not only did he score the game-winning goal. William would also score the Broncos’ first goal on Saturday.
Rankings
As we head into the middle of December, NCHC has 5 of its 9 teams ranked in the top 20 in the USCHO rankings.
With their sweep this past weekend, North Dakota moved up 1 spot to #4.
Minnesota Duluth follows them at #5. They would drop a spot after their split over the weekend.
Denver would stay pat at #6 after sweeping the previous #19-ranked Miami (OH).
Western Michigan would stay pat at #7 after the split with Minnesota-Duluth.
Colorado College, after being ranked #20 and having a bye last weekend, moved up 1 spot to #19.
Upcoming schedule
This is the last weekend until after Christmas that we have more than 1 team playing.
We have Denver traveling to St. Cloud State. This will be both teams’ final game until the 2026 portion of the schedule. Currently, Denver leads the conference with 21 points, and St. Cloud State sits in 7th place with 8 points. Will Denver extend the lead in the conference, or will St. Cloud State head to the holiday break on a high note?
Colorado College travels to face off with Miami (OH). This is Colorado College’s last game of the 2025 portion of the schedule. Miami (OH) will be off until December 28th, when they take part in the Great Lakes Invitational tournament. The tournament features Michigan Tech, Michigan State, and Ferris State. This series is a big one for both teams. Colorado College and Miami are in 8th and 9th place, respectively, just two points apart.
Omaha faces off against North Dakota up in Grand Forks. After this weekend, North Dakota will have finished their 2025 portion of the schedule. They don’t return to the ice until January 2nd. However, that is not the case for Omaha. Following this weekend against North Dakota, they will be the only team in the NCHC that plays next weekend. They will travel to Sioux Falls, SD, to take on Augustana next weekend. That will be their last game until December 30th, when they take on Manitoba in an exhibition game in Omaha. North Dakota heads into the weekend trailing Denver by 2 points in the standings and in 2nd place. Omaha comes in at 6th place with 9 points.
Arizona State travels up to Minnesota Duluth. Arizona State comes into the series in 5th place with 10 points. Duluth comes into the series in 3rd with 18 points. Following the series, Duluth will also have completed its 2025 portion of the schedule and won’t play again until January 2nd. Arizona State will be off until Christmas weekend, when it will travel to Dartmouth.
Western Michigan is off this weekend and won’t play again until December 28th, when they take part in the Kwik Trip Holiday Face-off Tournament in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The other teams in the tournament are Boston College, which Western will play on the 28th, Lake Superior, and Wisconsin. Western Michigan heads into the break with 17 points and in 4th place. They will be in 4th place after this weekend.
Weeks ahead
As this is the final weekend of competition for most NCHC teams prior to the Holiday Break, I will also be pausing coverage of NCHC events during this period. Coverage will resume with a recap of this weekend’s games and an overview of all tournaments involving our teams around December 29th.
If you want to stay updated on this weekend’s events or the tournaments, simply visit NCHC.com. Otherwise, no worries—I’ll be back to share all the details with everyone around December 29th.
Lastly, I want to wish all of you, NCHC hockey fans, a happy and safe holiday season with friends and family. It’s been my pleasure since October to bring you NCHC action. I’m excited to return in late 2025 or early 2026 and guide you through the Penrose Cup race, the NCHC tournament, and the NCAA tournament, which wraps up in April.
