Minnesota–Wisconsin ice hockey rivalry
| Sport | Ice Hockey |
|---|---|
The Minnesota–Wisconsin ice hockey rivalry is an intercollegiate ice hockey rivalry[1] between the Minnesota Golden Gophers and Wisconsin Badgers. An extension of the broader rivalry between the two schools, which includes the Paul Bunyan's Axe football game, the rivalry series is between two of the most successful in collegiate hockey. Including results from both men's and woman's play, the programs have combined for 23 NCAA titles and 59 Frozen Four appearances over their histories. The men's programs compete in the Big Ten Conference, while the women's programs have resided in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) since the National Collegiate Athletic Association first began to sponsor the sport for women.
Men's ice hockey
Series history
| First meeting | January 20, 1922 Minnesota 3, Wisconsin 0 |
|---|---|
| Latest meeting | February 3, 2024 Minnesota 1, Wisconsin 1 |
| Statistics | |
| Meetings total | 310 |
| All-time series | Minnesota leads, 183–103–25 |
| Largest victory | Minnesota, 12–2 (1922) |
| Longest win streak | Minnesota, 12 (1931–1965) |
| Longest unbeaten streak | Minnesota, 24 (1922–1927) |
| Current win streak | Tie, 1 (2024–present) |
The rivalry has its origins in informal play beginning in 1922, before halting 12 years later. The rivalry[2] was revived in 1965 with Wisconsin resuming its sponsoring of the sport. In the 1981 season, the teams met for their first and only matchups to-date for the national championship. After three periods, the Badgers topped the Gophers by a score of 6 to 3 under head coach Bob Johnson. After competing together in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association since 1999,[3] both teams moved to their all-sports home, the Big Ten Conference, in anticipation of the 2013–14 season as part of widespread NCAA realignment in hockey.[4] While questions surrounded the continuation of many of the rivals' other historic series,[5] such as North Dakota and Minnesota Duluth, their rivalry with each other continued uninterrupted. As of the end of the 2020–21 season, Minnesota leads the series 176–99–24.[6]
Rival accomplishments
The following summarizes the accomplishments of the two programs.[6][7]
| Team | Minnesota Golden Gophers | Wisconsin Badgers |
|---|---|---|
NCAA National Titles
|
5 | 6 |
NCAA Frozen Four Appearances
|
21 | 12* |
NCAA Tournament Appearances
|
37 | 26* |
NCAA Tournament Record
|
55–38 | 40–23–2* |
| Conference Tournament Titles | 15 | 13 |
| Conference Championships | 18 | 3 |
| Hobey Baker Award Winners | 4 | 2 |
| All-Americans | 65 | 40 |
| All-time Program Record | 1831–1049–201 | 1231–825–152 |
| All-time Winning Percentage | .627 | .592 |
- Wisconsin vacated results from the 1992 NCAA tournament
Game results
| Minnesota victories | Wisconsin victories | Tie games |
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Women's ice hockey
Series history
| First meeting | November 19, 1999 Minnesota 7, Wisconsin 4 |
|---|---|
| Latest meeting | March 17, 2023 Wisconsin 3, Minnesota 2 |
| Next meeting | March 17, 2023 |
| Statistics | |
| Meetings total | 120 |
| All-time series | Minnesota, 57–47–16 |
| Largest victory | Minnesota, 11–3 (2000) |
| Longest win streak | Minnesota, 14 (2012–2015) |
| Longest unbeaten streak | Minnesota, 18 (2011–2015) |
| Current win streak | Wisconsin, 1 (2023–present) |
Since women's ice hockey became an NCAA sport, the two have been the flagpole programs, with frequent Top-5 meetings
Rival accomplishments
The following summarizes the accomplishments of the two programs.[15][14]
| Team | Minnesota Golden Gophers | Wisconsin Badgers |
|---|---|---|
NCAA National Titles
|
6 | 7 |
NCAA Frozen Four Appearances
|
14 | 12 |
NCAA Tournament Appearances
|
19 | 13 |
NCAA Tournament Record
|
26–11 | 25–8 |
| Conference Tournament Titles | 7 | 8 |
| Conference Championships | 10 | 8 |
| Patty Kazmaier Award Winners | 3 | 5 |
| All-Americans | 40 | 33 |
| All-time Program Record | 680–143–56 | 602–141–58 |
| All-time Winning Percentage | .805 | .788 |
Game results
| Minnesota victories | Wisconsin victories | Tie games |
| ||||||||||||||||||||
References
- ^ Baker, Katie (2012-11-28). "Where Hockey Endures". Grantland. Retrieved 2020-10-24.
- ^ Rand, Michael. "Hockey rivalry takes uncivil form in series at Wisconsin". The Minnesota Daily. Retrieved 2020-10-24.
- ^ Schlossman, Brad Elliott (March 21, 2011). "Minnesota, Wisconsin to leave WCHA for Big Ten. What does it all mean?". Grand Forks Herald. Retrieved 2020-10-24.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-10-24.
- ^ Staff, Pioneer (March 21, 2011). "Minnesota, Wisconsin hockey programs to leave WCHA for Big Ten". Bemidji Pioneer. Retrieved 2020-10-24.
- ^ a b "MHK Media Guide 2019 20 (PDF)" (PDF). University of Minnesota Athletics. Retrieved 2020-10-24.
- ^ "201920 HKY Fact Book (PDF)" (PDF). Wisconsin Badgers. Retrieved 2020-10-24.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-10-24.
- ^ "Rivals Minnesota, Wisconsin to play for women's hockey championship". Star Tribune. Retrieved 2020-10-24.
- ^ Milewski, Todd D. "Ahead of rivalry series, Wisconsin Badgers pass Minnesota for top spot in national women's hockey rankings". Wisconsin State Journal. Retrieved 2020-10-24.
- ^ Whitmore, Will. "Women's Hockey: Minnesota-Wisconsin rivalry best in college sports". The Badger Herald. Retrieved 2020-10-24.
- ^ "More than a Border Battle: No. 2 Gophers face No. 1 Badgers in key women's hockey series". Star Tribune. Retrieved 2020-10-24.
- ^ Myers, Jess (January 23, 2020). "Here we go again as No. 2 Gophers visit top-ranked Badgers". Grand Forks Herald. Retrieved 2020-10-24.
- ^ a b "2019 20 WHKY Recordbook FINAL (PDF)" (PDF). Wisconsin Badgers. Retrieved 2020-10-24.
- ^ "Archives". University of Minnesota Athletics. Retrieved 2020-10-24.