In its fifth season as an end of the year, mid-season tournament, the Kwik Trip Holiday Face-Off will be played Dec. 28-29 at Fiserv Forum in downtown Milwaukee.
Wisconsin men’s hockey will face Lake Superior State, and Boston College will face the reigning NCAA Frozen Four champions Western Michigan in semi-final games.
The winner of the two semi-finals will battle it out Monday, Dec. 29 in the championship game, as the other two teams will play for third place that same day.
Wisconsin has a positive history in the holiday tournament, taking home victories in the inaugural 2021 season, as well as 2023 and 2024. Wisconsin is the only team to have competed in the tournament since it was announced and first played in Dec. 2021.
Clarkson took the victory in their first and only appearance in 2022. Lake Superior State is making their second appearance in the tournament after a fourth place finish in 2022, while Boston College and Western Michigan are playing in the tournament for the first time.
In a Big Ten and Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA) match-up, No. 2 Wisconsin will play the unranked LSS Lakers, who the Badgers defeated 4-0 in the 2022 Holiday Face-Off.
No. 15 Boston College and No. 7 Western Michigan will meet in a Hockey East and National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) match-up. Western Michigan won last year’s Frozen Four, while BC was knocked out in the quarter finals.
In the 2025 Frozen Four, BC was eliminated in the quarterfinals, while WMU went all the way
The competition
Boston College Eagles 10-5-1
Currently on a three game win streak, the Eagles are gunning for another chance in the Frozen Four. Beating the defending champion Broncos would give them an edge in the rankings.
Sophomore forward James Hagens leads the team in points with 10 goals and 8 assists in 16 games. Hagens is tied for No. 15 with Wisconsin senior forward Christian Fitzgerald in goals per game.
BC has a .104 shot percentage, forcing their opponents to make 456 saves this season. A team that has 199 penalty minutes could be an issue WMU could take advantage of.
Wisconsin Badgers 12-2-2
Wisconsin has won five of their last six games and has a wide range of players lighting up the scoresheet. Dominating in goals per game with 4.4 and a .133 shot percentage, the Badgers are holding their opponents to an average of 2.5 goals per game and a .092 shot percentage.
Sophomore forward Gavin Morrissey leads the team in points with 3 goals and 15 assists in 16 games. Fitzgerald leads the team in goals with 10.
Leading their opponents in faceoffs .538 to .462, Wisconsin is a popular choice to be a team to make it to the championship game for the holiday tournament.
Lake Superior State 6-11-1
Coming off weeks of split series against Ferris State, Augustana University and St. Thomas, the Lakers find themselves struggling in close games. Four of their last six games have been decided by just one goal.
Lake Superior State currently has a .099 shot percentage and .501 faceoff percentage, but struggles in almost every other field. Their opponents outscore them 3.2 to 2.7 goals per game and average 34 shots on the Lakers 26.9 per game.
Sophomore forward William Ahlrik leads the team in points with 4 goals and 12 assists in 18 games. Freshman forward Calem Mangone leads the team in goals with 8 and has 15 points in 18 games.
Western Michigan Broncos 10-6-0
Winning five of their last six games, the Broncos are heating up. Still at a solid place in the rankings, WMU split with unranked St. Cloud State and was swept by No. 9 Denver in early November.
The Broncos, averaging a .098 shot percentage, have allowed their opponents to average a .118. Lacking in power play conversion percentage with a .118 to their opponents .207 could mean a sloppier performance against the heavily penalized BC.
Junior forward Willaim Whitelaw is tied in the lead for points with 9 goals and 6 assists in 16 games. Junior forward Grant Slukynsky has 3 goals and 12 assists in 16 games.
