Wisconsin No. 1 in Men's Hockey Polls

Despite not playing this past weekend, Wisconsin is the new number one team in this week's USCHO.com NCAA Division I men's hockey poll. The Badgers are also first overall in the most recent USA Hockey/The Rink Live Poll. 

Wisconsin, who is 9-1-0 overall under new head coach Mike Hastings, and previously swept former No. 1 Minnesota this season, garnered 32 out of 50 first-place votes in the Nov. 13 USCHO poll to move up from third place the week before. The Badgers also earned 28 of 34 first-place votes in this week's USA Hockey/The Rink Live Poll, and it's the first time since the fall of 2006, when it was the defending NCAA champion, that Wisconsin has been ranked first overall in either poll.

Rounding out the USCHO.com top five this week are North Dakota (7-2-1), Denver (7-2-1), Boston College (7-2-1) and Providence (8-1-2), while the USA/Rink poll listed Denver, BC, North Dakota and Providence sequentially. BC fell from the top spot in both polls after two weeks, following a loss and a tie at Hockey East rival Maine last weekend.

Wisconsin returns to action this weekend with two games at No. 11 Michigan State in Big Ten play.

Hastings Leaves MSU for Wisconsin

Longtime Minnesota State men's hockey coach Mike Hastings has been named the new head coach at Wisconsin. The St. Cloud State alumnus takes over the reins from Tony Granato, who was let go earlier this month by the Badgers.

Originally from Eugene, Ore. Hastings coached his final game at MSU in the Mavericks' 4-0 loss to St. Cloud in the 2023 NCAA Fargo Regional on March 23. Last season he took MSU to its first-ever NCAA Division I national title game, where the Mavs fell to Denver, 5-1, in Boston.

In 11 seasons at the MSU helm, Hastings, 57, compiled a record of 299-109-25, all with at least 21 victories, and also guided the Mavericks to nine NCAA tournament berths. They also won six WCHA regular-season and three WCHA tournament crowns under his tutelage, along with two of each title in the new CCHA that began play in 2021-22. He earned the Spencer Penrose Trophy three times as the top men's hockey head coach in NCAA Division I, including these last two seasons.

Prior to taking the top jab in Mankato, Hastings served as the coach and general manager of the USHL's Omaha/River City Lancers from 1994 to 2008, where he was named USHL General Manager of the Year on five occasions. He then rejoined the college ranks, and served one season as an assistant coach with Minnesota, and three years as the associate head coach at Nebraska-Omaha, before moving on to MSU in 2012.

Wisconsin finished 13-23 overall this season, and was last in the Big Ten with a 6-18 conference mark.