The Wisconsin Badgers are off to Minneapolis this weekend as the new number one team in the nation, looking to pounce on the Gophers and continue their undefeated start. The No. 18 Minnesota Gophers hasn’t quite played up to their usual standard the last couple of years, but they still possess enough firepower to pull off some upsets against highly ranked teams.
The last Border Battle to feature the top ranked team in college hockey came in the 2023-24 season when the Gophers held the top spot; they
suffered back-to-back losses that eventually helped Wisconsin earn the number one ranking weeks later.
You have to go all the way back to the days of Joe Pavelski and Brian Elliot in December 2005 to find the last Border Battle in which the Badgers entered ranked number one, resulting in another Wisconsin sweep.
Both teams were ranked in each series, producing a trend that results in a Wisconsin sweep when the number one ranking is involved on either side. These Badgers will have a chance to replicate those results with a squad that has certainly played like one of college hockey’s best teams dating back to the start of last year’s NCAA tournament.
The Badgers (6-0-0, 2-0-0 Big Ten) are 9-1 in their last 10 games dating back to the tournament opener against Dartmouth. The only loss came to Denver in the championship game. They haven’t disposed of a murderer’s row thus far in the early season, their only games against a ranked opponent came against Minnesota State, who has since freefallen from the polls.
They did start Big Ten play on a high note last weekend and sit in first place all alone after easily overcoming Notre Dame, scoring 16 goals over the two-game set and only conceding two. The second game of the series included six power play goals—one short of the program record—aided heavily by a few game misconducts and generally undisciplined play from the Fighting Irish.
Aside from an exhibition against No. 5 Western Michigan, these games against Minnesota should be the biggest challenge since Denver.
Minnesota (3-3-2, 1-0-1 Big Ten) struggled at home in their conference opener last weekend, tying with Penn State before winning game two in overtime. The Nittany Lions have struggled out of the gate after losing top NHL draft pick Gavin McKenna and J.J. Wiebusch, who now operates from the wing on Wisconsin’s top line. The Gophers were hoping for a breath of fresh air after a 2-3-1 start against Michigan Tech, Minnesota Duluth, and North Dakota, all top 15 teams.
Not a lot of time for Minnesota to catch their breath before their archrival comes to town riding a six-game winning streak. They’re not scared of the Badgers though; they managed a season split last year despite winning less than a third of their conference games. The Gophers are also loaded with talent, boasting 13 NHL draft picks on their roster.
Christian Humphreys leads the way with five goals for Minnesota, but the player to always account for is Wyatt Cullen. The tenth overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft by the Nashville Predators, Cullen is already turning heads as a freshman. He netted a hat trick in a 5-3 win over then-No.3 North Dakota. Not to be confused with his brother, Brooks, also a freshman for the Gophers, Wyatt is exactly the type of player that’s given Wisconsin fits in the past. It’s a lofty comparison considering he was the first overall pick, but Cullen can impact the game like Gavin McKenna, who averaged nearly two points per game against the Badgers.
Junior Brodie Ziemer, the Gopher captain and a third-round pick of the Buffalo Sabres in 2024, is the other primary offensive threat. Ziemer led Minnesota in points last year and could very well do so again. He is especially deadly on the power play where he scored nearly half his goals last year.
Senior goaltender Luca di Pasquo is back in net for the Gophers, making saves at the same clip as last season but giving up nearly half a goal less per game with a 2.66 goals against average. Minnesota as a whole is letting up just over three goals per game.
Expect Wisconsin to put the pressure on throughout the series. This Badger squad is not shy about putting pucks on the net, they average roughly 40 shot attempts per game. Much of that starts with the defense doing their job by rarely allowing sustained pressure in their own zone, tilting the ice and creating opportunities to get defensemen into the rush with an onslaught that never seems to stop.
Speaking of the defensive zone, through six games Wisconsin is allowing just 0.8 goals per game thanks to a tremendously skilled group of blue liners and the sophomore tandem of Daniel Hauser and Alexis Cournoyer in net. Giving up less than a goal per game is probably not sustainable over the next five months, but the Badgers are no joke defensively. Something clicked around mid-February, and aside from a slip up against Ohio State in the Big Ten Tournament, Wisconsin has been one of the premier defensive units in college hockey. Coupled with an offense that scores nearly five goals per game, these Badgers are looking like a complete hockey team.
Minnesota will be looking to ensure Wisconsin’s reign at number one is short-lived, and cliché as it may be to say, you really have to throw out the records and who has done what recently when the Border Battle shows up on the schedule. The Badgers could easily come back tucking their tails if they don’t show up ready to play.
But that’s a thing of the past, right? Mike Hastings’ teams at Wisconsin had developed a bit of a knack for not bringing their best from the opening faceoff and taking a bit to settle in, though that’s mostly been an afterthought so far this season. It also helps that Hastings deploys the best defense he’s had during his tenure in Madison, and defense travels.
We’ll see if it travels to Minneapolis this week. The series opener will air on the Big Ten Network Thursday night starting at 7:00 p.m. Puck drop for game two is slated for the same time on Saturday, with that game streaming on Big Ten Plus.
Game Info
Game 1
Date: Thursday, November 5
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Place: Minneapolis, Minn. | 3M Arena at Mariucci
TV: Big Ten Network | Radio: 1310 WIBA
Game 2
Date: Saturday, November 7
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Place: Minneapolis, Minn. | 3M Arena at Mariucci
TV: B1G+ | Radio: 1310 WIBA
