Western Michigan returns to Lawson Arena on Thursday night for the first of two nonconference games against Long Island University, with puck drop at 7 p.m. both Thursday and Friday in Kalamazoo. It is the Broncos’ last tune-up before they open National Collegiate Hockey Conference play at North Dakota on Nov. 6-7.
Where the Broncos stand
The 2025 national champions are 4-1-0 and ranked No. 6 in the USCHO.com poll and No. 5 in the USA Hockey poll. They opened with a home-and-home sweep of Ferris State (6-0 and 5-1) and swept Notre Dame (6-1 and 4-0), then lost 3-2 at top-ranked Michigan on Oct. 23 in their only regular-season defeat. Through five games, Western Michigan has outscored opponents 23-5 and posted two shutouts. The Broncos also dropped a 4-0 exhibition to Wisconsin at Lawson on Oct. 24, a game that does not count in their record.
Western Michigan sits seventh in the NPI, the formula the NCAA uses to select and seed its tournament field, as of College Hockey News’ Oct. 27 chart. With North Dakota looming, this weekend is a chance to keep that number healthy against a nonconference opponent at home.
The opponent
LIU, which plays as a Division I independent, makes the trip to Kalamazoo for a Thursday-Friday set rather than the usual weekend pair. The Sharks’ current record was not available from their athletics site Thursday morning.
How to follow
Both games start at 7 p.m. at Lawson Arena and stream on NCHC.tv, with radio on the Bronco Media Network and live stats on the Western Michigan athletics site.
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