From Surf Wiki (app.surf) — the open knowledge base
Western Michigan Broncos men's ice hockey
American college ice hockey team
.jpg)
American college ice hockey team
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| team_name | Western Michigan Broncos |
| current | 2025–26 Western Michigan Broncos men's ice hockey season |
| image | Western Michigan Broncos (2021) logo.svg |
| image_size | 200 |
| university | Western Michigan University |
| sex | men's |
| first_year | 1973; |
| conference | National Collegiate Hockey Conference |
| conference_short | NCHC |
| location | Kalamazoo, Michigan |
| studentsection | Lawson Lunatics |
| coach | Pat Ferschweiler |
| coach_year | 5th |
| coach_wins | 104 |
| coach_losses | 50 |
| coach_ties | 4 () |
| assistant_coaches | |
| arena | Lawson Arena |
| NCAAchampion | 2025 |
| NCAAfrozenfour | 2025 |
| NCAAtourneys | 1986, 1994, 1996, 2011, 2012, 2017, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025 |
| conference_tournament | CCHA: 1986, 2012 |
| NCHC: 2025 | |
| conference_season | NCHC: 2025 |
| uniform_image | CCHA-Uniform-WMU.png |
NCHC: 2025
The Western Michigan Broncos men's ice hockey team is a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I college ice hockey program that represents Western Michigan University. The Broncos are a member of the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC). They play at Lawson Arena in Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States. Western Michigan won their first national championship in 2025.
History
The Broncos program began in 1973 and joined the Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA) for the 1975–76 season. After ten seasons in the league Western Michigan won the 1986 CCHA Playoff Tournament and advanced to the school's first NCAA Division I men's ice hockey tournament in 1986. The 1986 season marked the program's first CCHA Tournament Championship and the program's first bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Broncos entered the tournament in the West Regional against Harvard and lost the two-game aggregate series, being outscored 11–4 by the Crimson.
Western Michigan's next post season appearance came in 1994. Western Michigan received an at-large bid to the 1994 NCAA Division I Tournament and again fell in the first round with a 6–3 loss to Wisconsin. The Broncos rebounded in the 1995–96 season after a sub-.500 season in 1994–95. Western Michigan received the program's second at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. Western Michigan lost again in the first round to Clarkson 6–1.
Under first-year coach Jeff Blashill, Western Michigan received an at-large bid to the 2011 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament, where they would lose their opening game 3–2 in double overtime to Denver. Denver scored two goals in the last 4:29 of the third period to force overtime. In 2011–12, for the second consecutive season, Western Michigan had a new head coach and reached the NCAA tournament. Longtime National Hockey League (NHL) coach Andy Murray was named as coach of the Broncos after Blashill left for the Detroit Red Wings. WMU finished tied for second in the CCHA and won the CCHA tournament, thereby receiving an automatic bid into the NCAA tournament. Western Michigan lost in the first round of the tournament 3–1 to No. 1 seed North Dakota.
The CCHA disbanded after the 2012–13 season, in part due to the addition of men's ice hockey to the Big Ten Conference. This led the Broncos to join the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) starting in the 2013–14 season
Western Michigan won the 2013 four-team Great Lakes Invitational which was played outdoors at Comerica Park in Detroit. The Broncos defeated No. 3 Michigan 3–2 in overtime in the semifinals, and then claimed the championship by beating Michigan Tech 1–0, also in overtime. WMU won the 2014 Shillelagh Tournament with an 8–2 victory over No. 17 Union. The Broncos also defeated Ohio State in the first round of the tournament, 6–2.
In 2016–17, the Broncos followed up a disappointing 8-25-3 season with an impressive 22-13-5 and a third-place finish in the NCHC. Western Michigan was invited to the final Great Lakes Invitational at Joe Louis Arena, where they defeated Michigan Tech in the championship. WMU has been invited to the GLI 5 times dating back to 1977, winning it 3 of those times. The Broncos were defeated in the first round of the 2017 NCAA Division I tournament by Air Force.
In the 2021-2022 season, Western Michigan had a legendary 26-win season under first-year head coach Pat Ferschweiler. The Broncos shared the 2021 Great Lakes Invitational championship by defeating Michigan State. The Broncos advanced to their first NCHC championship game, losing to Minnesota-Duluth 0-3. Western Michigan clinched their first 1-seed in the NCAA Tournament and would claim the first playoff win in program history by defeating Northeastern. They would be defeated by Minnesota 3-0 in the regional final.
The Broncos’ 2024-2025 season was their best season to date. The Broncos collected numerous wins against top-10 ranked opponents and remained ranked in the top-5 for the majority of the season. On February 28, 2025, WMU defeated North Dakota 6-4 to claim their first NCHC regular season championship. After being down 3-0 in the NCHC Tournament Championship, WMU would score four unanswered goals to defeat Denver 4-3 in double overtime. This would the Broncos’ first ever NCHC Tournament Championship and third overall conference championship. WMU earned the 1-seed in the Fargo Regional for the NCAA Tournament, where they defeated Minnesota State and UMass to advance to St. Louis, where they would play in their first Frozen Four in school history. In a rematch of the NCHC Tournament Championship, the Broncos defeated Denver in a 2OT thriller to advance to their first championship game. In the championship game, they defeated Boston University by a score of 6-2 to claim their first national championship.
Season-by-season results
Main article: List of Western Michigan Broncos men's ice hockey seasons
Source:
Coaching
All-time coaching records
As of the completion of 2024–25 season
| Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}};" | Tenure | Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}};" | Coach | Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}};" | Years | Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}};" | Record | Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}};" | Pct. | Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}}" | Totals | Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}}" | 7 coaches | Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}}" | 52 seasons | Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}}" | 916–880–168 | Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}}" | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1973–1978 | Bill Neal | 5 | 91–65–5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1978–1982 | Glen Weller | 4 | 64–73–5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1982–1999 | Bill Wilkinson | 17† | 313–301–53 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1999–2010 | Jim Culhane | 11† | 158–222–48 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2010–2011 | Jeff Blashill | 1 | 19–13–10 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2011–2021 | Andy Murray | 10 | 167–156–43 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2021–Present | Pat Ferschweiler | 4 | 104–50–4 |
† The 1998–99 season was coached by both Wilkinson and Culhane.
Statistical leaders
Source:
Career points leaders
| Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}};" | Player | Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}};" | Years | Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}};" | GP | Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}};" | G | Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}};" | A | Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}};" | Pts | Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}};" | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982–1986 | 157 | 115 | 178 | 293 | ||||||||||||||||
| 1986–1990 | 165 | 82 | 189 | 271 | ||||||||||||||||
| 1983–1987 | 162 | 42 | 199 | 241 | ||||||||||||||||
| 1986–1990 | 159 | 109 | 125 | 234 | ||||||||||||||||
| 1978–1982 | 138 | 100 | 125 | 225 | ||||||||||||||||
| 1974–1978 | 129 | 92 | 106 | 198 | ||||||||||||||||
| 1983–1987 | 162 | 104 | 91 | 195 | ||||||||||||||||
| 1992–1996 | 147 | 57 | 127 | 184 | ||||||||||||||||
| 1983–1986 | 122 | 81 | 102 | 183 | ||||||||||||||||
| 1978–1981 | 130 | 82 | 95 | 177 |
Career goaltending leaders
GP = Games played; Min = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals against; SO = Shutouts; SV% = Save percentage; GAA = Goals against average
Minimum 30 games played
| Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}};" | Player | Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}};" | Years | Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}};" | GP | Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}};" | Min | Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}};" | W | Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}};" | L | Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}};" | T | Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}};" | GA | Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}};" | SO | Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}};" | SV% | Western Michigan Broncos | color=white}};" | GAA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011–2015 | 94 | 6021 | 49 | 38 | 15 | 235 | 7 | .909 | 2.34 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2022–2025 | 93 | 5515 | 58 | 32 | 2 | 220 | 6 | .908 | 2.39 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1995–1996 | 36 | 2110 | 23 | 11 | 2 | 91 | 5 | .910 | 2.59 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2019–2022 | 77 | 4467 | 46 | 25 | 5 | 194 | 4 | .912 | 2.61 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2007–2011 | 63 | 3528 | 16 | 27 | 3 | 158 | 2 | .912 | 2.69 |
Statistics current through the end of the 2024–2025 season.
Current roster
As of October 3, 2025.
Awards and honors
NCAA
Individual awards
Spencer Penrose Award
- Pat Ferschweiler: 2025
Tournament Most Outstanding Player
- Owen Michaels; 2025
All-Americans
AHCA First Team All-Americans
- 1985–86: Wayne Gagné, D; Dan Dorion, F
- 1986–87: Wayne Gagné, F
- 2019–20: Hugh McGing, F
- 2020–21: Ronnie Attard, D
- 2021–22: Ronnie Attard, D
- 2024–25: Alex Bump, F
AHCA Second Team All-Americans
- 1983–84: Dan Dorion, F
- 1985–86: Bill Horn, G
- 1995–96: Marc Magliarditi, G
- 2000–01: Mike Bishai, F
- 2011–12: Danny DeKeyser, D
- 2012–13: Danny DeKeyser, D
- 2021–22: Ethen Frank, F
- 2022–23: Jason Polin, F
CCHA
Individual awards
Player of the Year
- Dan Dorion: 1986
- Wayne Gagné: 1987
Best Defensive Forward
- Pat Ferschweiler: 1992
- Dane Walters: 2013
Best Defensive Defenseman
- Brent Brekke: 1994
- Danny DeKeyser: 2012, 2013
Rookie of the Year
- Chris Brooks: 1993
- Marc Magliarditi: 1996
- Daryl Andrews: 1997
- Patrick Dwyer: 2002
- Mark Letestu: 2007
Coach of the Year
- Bill Wilkinson: 1984, 1986, 1996
Ilitch Humanitarian Award
- Brett Beebe: 2013
Most Valuable Player in Tournament
- Bill Horn: 1986
- Frank Slubowski: 2012
All-Conference teams
First Team All-CCHA
- 1976–77: Tim Dunlop, F
- 1980–81: Ross Fitzpatrick, F
- 1983–84: Dan Dorion, F
- 1985–86: Wayne Gagné, D; Dan Dorion, F
- 1986–87: Wayne Gagné, D
- 1987–88: Paul Polillo, F
- 1991–92: Keith Jones, G
- 1995–96: Marc Magliarditi, G
- 2012–13: Danny DeKeyser, D
Second Team All-CCHA
- 1977–78: Bernie Saunders, F; Paul Cappuccio, F
- 1979–80: Bob Scurfield, F
- 1985–86: Chris MacDonald, F; Stu Burnie, F
- 1986–87: Bill Horn, G; Rob Bryden, F
- 1987–88: Mike Posma, D; Ron Hoover, F
- 1990–91: Mike Eastwood, F
- 1995–96: Jeremy Brown, F
- 1996–97: Joe Corvo, D
- 1999–00: David Gove, F
- 2000–01: Mike Bishai, F; David Gove, F
- 2004–05: Brent Walton, F
- 2008–09: Patrick Galivan, F
- 2011–12: Danny DeKeyser, D; Matt Tennyson, D
- 2012–13: Frank Slubowski, G; Luke Witkowski, D
CCHA All-Rookie Team
- 1991–92: Chris Belanger, D
- 1992–93: Scott Chartier, D; Chris Brooks, F
- 1994–95: Steve Duke, D
- 1995–96: Marc Magliarditi, G; Joe Corvo, D
- 1996–97: Daryl Andrews, D
- 2001–02: Patrick Dwyer, F
- 2002–03: Vince Bellissimo, F
- 2006–07: Mark Letestu, F
- 2010–11: Danny DeKeyser, D; Chase Balisy, F
- 2011–12: Frank Slubowski, G; Garrett Haar, D
- 2012–13: Kenney Morrison, D
NCHC
Individual awards
Player of the Year
- Jason Polin: 2023
Forward of the Year
- Jason Polin: 2023
- Alex Bump: 2025
Offensive Defenseman of the Year
- Ronnie Attard: 2021, 2022
Defensive Forward of the Year
- Tim Washe: 2025 Scholar-Athlete of the Year
- Kale Bennett: 2021
- Drew Worrad: 2022
- Luke Grainger: 2024
Herb Brooks Coach of the Year
- Andy Murray: 2017
- Pat Ferschweiler: 2023, 2025
Frozen Faceoff MVP
- Alex Bump: 2025
All-Conference teams
First Team All-NCHC
- 2019–20: Hugh McGing, F
- 2020–21: Ronnie Attard, D
- 2021–22: Ronnie Attard, D; Ethen Frank, F
- 2022–23: Jason Polin, F
- 2024–25: Alex Bump, F
Second Team All-NCHC
- 2013–14: Chase Balisy, F
- 2016–17: Sheldon Dries, F
- 2018–19: Hugh McGing, F
- 2019–20: Ronnie Attard, D
- 2021–22: Drew Worrad, F
- 2023–24: Luke Grainger, F
- 2024–25: Hampton Slukynsky, G
Third Team All-NCHC
- 2024–25: Cameron Rowe, G; Joona Väisänen, D
NCHC All-Rookie Team
- 2016–17: Ben Blacker, G
- 2019–20: Ronnie Attard, D
- 2022–23: Ryan McAllister, F
- 2023–24: Alex Bump, F
- 2024–25: Hampton Slukynsky, G; Joona Väisänen, D
Western Michigan Broncos Hall of Fame
The following is a list of people associated with the Western Michigan men's ice hockey program who were elected into the Western Michigan University Athletic Hall of Fame.
- Dan Dorion (1998)
- Ross Fitzpatrick (2004)
- Wayne Gagné (2001)
- Rob Hodge (2008)
- Harry Lawson (1990)
- Jamal Mayers (2014)
- Bernie Saunders (1994)
- Neil Smith (1991)
- Danny Dekeyser (2024)
Broncos in the NHL
As of July 1, 2025.
| = NHL All-Star team | NHL All-Star]] | NHL All-Star]] and NHL All-Star team | Hall of Famers]] |
|---|
| Western Michigan Broncos | color=#FFFFFF}};" | Player | Western Michigan Broncos | color=#FFFFFF}};" | Position | Western Michigan Broncos | color=#FFFFFF}};" | Team(s) | Western Michigan Broncos | color=#FFFFFF}};" | Years | Western Michigan Broncos | color=#FFFFFF}};" | Games | Western Michigan Broncos | color=#FFFFFF}};" | [](stanley-cup) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wade Allison | Right Wing | PHI | 2020–2023 | 75 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Bill Armstrong | Left Wing | PHI | 1990–1991 | 1 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Ronnie Attard | Defenseman | PHI | 2021–2024 | 29 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Chase Balisy | Center | FLA | 2017–2018 | 8 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Mike Bishai | Center | EDM | 2003–2004 | 14 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Sam Colangelo | Center | ANA | 2023–Present | 35 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Kevin Connauton | Defenseman | DAL, CBJ, ARI, COL, FLA, PHI | 2013–2022 | 360 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Joe Corvo | Defenseman | LAK, OTT, CAR, WSH, BOS | 2002–2014 | 708 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Paul Cotter | Center | [](vegas-golden-knights) | display=inline | width=2px | color=#B9975B}}''', NJD | 2021–Present | 217 | 1 | |||||||||
| Jim Culhane | Defenseman | HFD | 1989–1990 | 6 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Danny DeKeyser | Defenseman | DET | 2013–2022 | 547 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Dan Dorion | Left Wing | NJD | 1985–1988 | 4 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Sheldon Dries | Center | COL, VAN | 2018–2023 | 122 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Patrick Dwyer | Right Wing | CAR | 2008–2015 | 416 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Mike Eastwood | Center | TOR, WPG, PHO, NYR, STL, CHI, PIT | 1991–2004 | 783 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Ross Fitzpatrick | Center | PHI | 1982–1986 | 20 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Scott Foster ‡ | Goaltender | CHI | 2017–2018 | 1 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Ethen Frank | Center | WSH | 2024–Present | 24 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| David Gove | Center | CAR | 2005–2007 | 2 | 0 |
| Western Michigan Broncos | color=#FFFFFF}};" | Player | Western Michigan Broncos | color=#FFFFFF}};" | Position | Western Michigan Broncos | color=#FFFFFF}};" | Team(s) | Western Michigan Broncos | color=#FFFFFF}};" | Years | Western Michigan Broncos | color=#FFFFFF}};" | Games | Western Michigan Broncos | color=#FFFFFF}};" | [](stanley-cup) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Glenn Healy | Goaltender | LAK, NYI, ****, TOR | 1985–2001 | 437 | 1 | ||||||||||||
| Ron Hoover | Left Wing | BOS, STL | 1989–1992 | 18 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Glenn Johannesen | Left Wing | NYI | 1985–1986 | 2 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Keith Jones | Right Wing | WSH, COL, PHI | 1992–2001 | 491 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Mark Letestu | Center | PIT, CBJ, EDM, WIN | 2009–2020 | 567 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Jamal Mayers | Right Wing | STL, TOR, CGY, SJS, **** | 1996–2013 | 915 | 1 | ||||||||||||
| Hugh McGing | Left Wing | STL | 2022–2024 | 6 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Griffen Molino | Forward | VAN | 2016–2017 | 5 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Jordan Oesterle | Center | EDM, CHI, ARI, DET, CGY, BOS, NSH | 2014–Present | 408 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Jason Polin | Right Wing | COL | 2023–Present | 9 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Andy Rymsha | Right Wing | QUE | 1991–1992 | 6 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Mattias Samuelsson | Defenseman | BUF | 2020–Present | 212 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Max Sasson | Center | VAN | 2024–Present | 29 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Bernie Saunders | Right Wing | QUE | 1979–1981 | 10 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Corey Schueneman | Defenseman | MTL, STL | 2021–Present | 35 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Paul Szczechura | Center | TBL, BUF | 2008–2012 | 92 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Matt Tennyson | Defenseman | SJS, CAR, BUF, NJD, NSH | 2013–2022 | 173 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Tim Washe | Center | ANA | 2024–Present | 2 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Luke Witkowski | Right Wing | TBL, DET | 2014–2022 | 132 | 0 |
‡Scott Foster played 14 minutes for the Blackhawks after being signed to a 1-day contract as an emergency backup due to injury.
File:Kevin Connauton 2014-12-13 2.JPG|Kevin Connauton File:Joe Corvo of the Boston Bruins at TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts - 20120204.jpg|Joe Corvo File:Patrick Dwyer 2013-2.jpg|Patrick Dwyer File:Mark Letestu 1 2012-02-26.JPG|Mark Letestu File:Jamal Mayers Flames.png|Jamal Mayers File:Jordan Oesterle 2014.jpg|Jordan Oesterle File:Max Sasson with the Canucks Nov 2024.jpg|Max Sasson File:Luke Witkowski 2015-04-11.jpg|Luke Witkowski
References
References
- "Wmu Men's Hockey Team Page :: USCHO.com :: U.S. College Hockey Online". USCHO.com.
- "Statistics :: USCHO.com :: U.S. College Hockey Online". USCHO.com.
- [http://www.ccha.com/the_ccha/ccha_history_and_records.aspx CCHA history and records]ccha.com {{Webarchive. link. (October 19, 2009)
- "Official 2006 NCAA® Men's and Women's Ice Hockey Records Book".
- "1994 NCAA Tournament". Inside College Hockey.
- "1996 NCAA Tournament". Inside College Hockey.
- Holt, Adam. "Late rally, Zucker's double-OT winner send Denver past Western Michigan". uscho.com.
- AP Staff. (July 26, 2011). "Former NHL coach Andy Murray hired by Western Michigan". [[USA Today]].
- Drew, David. (March 17, 2012). "Western Michigan is CCHA Tournament champ after 3-2 win over Michigan". [[Kalamazoo Gazette]].
- AP Staff. (March 24, 2012). "North Dakota 3, Western Michigan 1: Broncos ousted in first round of NCAA hockey tournament". [[Detroit Free Press]].
- (August 2025). "2015-16 WMU HOCKEY RECORD BOOK". Western Michigan Broncos.
- "Hockey - Career/Season Point Leaders". Western Michigan Broncos.
- "2025–26 Men's Ice Hockey Roster". Western Michigan Broncos.
- "Hall of Fame". Western Michigan Broncos.
- "Alumni report for Western Michigan University". Hockey DB.
- Players are identified as an All-Star if they were selected for the All-Star game at any time in their career.
- "Scott Foster: Accountant makes NHL debut in goal for Chicago Blackhawks". BBC Sport.
This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.
Ask Mako anything about Western Michigan Broncos men's ice hockey — get instant answers, deeper analysis, and related topics.
Research with MakoFree with your Surf account
Create a free account to save articles, ask Mako questions, and organize your research.
Sign up freeThis content may have been generated or modified by AI. CloudSurf Software LLC is not responsible for the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of AI-generated content. Always verify important information from primary sources.
Report