Two goaltenders and a freshman forward from Michigan schools collected conference honors Tuesday after the Oct. 13-18 weekend. The Big Ten named Michigan sophomore Jack Ivankovic its First Star of the Week and Michigan State freshman Joshua Ravensbergen its Third Star, and the NCHC named Western Michigan’s Adam Benák its Rookie of the Week for the second time this season.
Ivankovic stands tall in Denver
Ivankovic backstopped Michigan’s road sweep of top-ranked Denver at Magness Arena. He made 27 saves in Friday’s 4-1 win, a night that also brought the 1,000th save of his college career, then stopped 33 shots Saturday, including eight while Michigan killed two five-on-three penalties over a four-minute stretch.
The Mississauga, Ontario, native has started every game for the Wolverines, who are 6-0-0 for the best start in program history. It is the second Star award of his career and the third straight week a Wolverine has been named the Big Ten’s First Star, after Jayden Perron took the honor in each of the first two weeks. Ivankovic, a 2026 All-Big Ten Second Team pick, was a second-round selection of the Nashville Predators in 2025.
Ravensbergen wins his road debut
Ravensbergen stopped 25 of 26 shots as Michigan State won 5-1 at RIT in front of a sellout crowd of 10,556 at Blue Cross Arena in Rochester, N.Y. Five of his saves came on the penalty kill, four of them in the third period, and the win moved the Spartans to 3-0-0. The freshman from North Vancouver, B.C., who came to East Lansing from the WHL’s Prince George Cougars, was the San Jose Sharks’ first-round pick (30th overall) in 2025. He is the first Spartan to earn a Big Ten Star since Porter Martone in February.
Benák keeps producing
Benák earned NCHC Rookie of the Week after scoring two goals and adding an assist in Western Michigan’s home-and-home sweep of Notre Dame. He was plus-3 with six shots and won 13 of 24 faceoffs. It is his second weekly award from the conference.
Two of the honorees will be on the same ice this week: Michigan hosts Western Michigan at Yost Ice Arena on Friday, Oct. 23, at 7 p.m.
Weekend coverage: Michigan Series Wrap at Denver, Michigan State Game Recap at RIT, and Western Michigan Series Wrap vs. Notre Dame.
Sources
- Big Ten Conference: Michigan, Ohio State, Michigan State Receive Three Stars Awards (Oct. 20, 2026)
- Michigan Athletics: 2026-27 Ice Hockey Awards and Honors
- Michigan Athletics: Ice Hockey schedule
- NCHC: KJ Branding NCHC Players of the Week, Oct. 12-18, 2026
- The NCHC (@TheNCHC) on X, Oct. 20
- The State News: No. 3 MSU hockey perseveres late in first road test
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