2020–21 Big Ten Conference ice hockey season

The 2020–21 Big Ten men's ice hockey season was the 31st season of play for the Big Ten Conference's men's ice hockey division and took place during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey season. The start to the regular season was delayed until November 13, 2020, and concluded on March 6, 2021.[1] The conference tournament was held at the Compton Family Ice Arena in Notre Dame, Indiana.

2020–21 Big Ten Conference
ice hockey season
Season2020–21
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
DivisionDivision I
Sportice hockey
DurationNovember 13, 2020–
March 28, 2021
Number of teams7
2021 NHL Entry Draft
Top draft pickOwen Power
Picked byBuffalo Sabres
Regular Season
Season championsWisconsin
Season MVPCole Caufield
Top scorerCole Caufield
Big Ten tournament
Tournament championsMinnesota
  Runners-upWisconsin
Tournament MVPJack LaFontaine
Top scorerAlex Limoges
NCAA tournament
Bids4
Record1–2
Best FinishRegional final
Team(s)Minnesota
Big Ten Conference ice hockey seasons
« 2029–20 2021–22 »

Season

Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Big Ten season did not begin until mid-November, 6 weeks later than usual. As a result of the pandemic, the Big Ten only scheduled conference opponents during the regular season with one exception. Arizona State, an independent program, entered into a scheduling alliance with the Big Ten for this season. The group consented to play the full season on the road and forfeit its right to compete in the Big Ten tournament.[2]

The regular season was highlighted by the prominence of Minnesota for most of the year and the scoring exploits of Cole Caufield. Caufield averaged a goal per game pace for the year and led both the Big Ten and the nation in both goals and points. The conference was able to earn 3 at-large bids for member schools, resulting in more than half of the Big Ten making the NCAA tournament.[3] Unfortunately, while the conference was able to avoid too much trouble from COVID during the regular season, both Michigan and Notre Dame had players test positive just before their regional semifinal games and were forced to withdraw.[4] As a result, their matchup with Boston College was ruled a no-contest and the Eagles automatically advanced to the Northeast Regional final. Similarly, on March 26, the NCAA announced Michigan was forced to withdraw as well due to COVID protocols.[5] Minnesota provided the conference with its only tournament victory, defeating Omaha 7–2 before losing in the quarterfinals to in-state rival Minnesota State.

After the season, Michigan made national headlines by having 3 players be drafted in the first five selections of the 2021 NHL Entry Draft. The Wolverines had an incoming freshman taken 4th overall as well.[6]

Standings
2020–21 Big Ten ice hockey Standings
Conference record Overall record
GP W L T OTW OTL 3/SW PTS PT% GF GA GP W L T GF GA
#8 Wisconsin †24176111052.7229252312010111880
#7 Minnesota *22166000048.727694431247011764
#9 Michigan20119010032.550694526151019151
#17 Notre Dame241210212241.542655329141328478
Penn State18711021020.389486822101206581
Ohio State22616002020.273398227719153101
Michigan State22516120015.25032702771824077
Championship: March 16, 2021
† indicates conference regular season champion
* indicates conference tournament champion
Rankings: USCHO.com Top 20 Poll

Coaches

Records
Team Head coach Season at school Record at school Big Ten record
Michigan Mel Pearson 4 53–45–14 30–30–10
Michigan State Danton Cole 4 39–60–9 25–39–8
Minnesota Bob Motzko 3 34–30–11 20–18–10
Notre Dame Jeff Jackson 16 334–206–64 37–26–7
Ohio State Steve Rohlik 8 133–95–33 66–67–17
Penn State Guy Gadowsky 10 145–120–23 59–57–14
Wisconsin Tony Granato 5 62–72–12 36–46–10

Statistics

Leading scorers

GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes[7]

Player Position Team GP G A Pts PIM
Cole CaufieldSophomoreWisconsin242419432
Linus WeissbachSeniorWisconsin24924338
Dylan HollowaySophomoreWisconsin181120314
Alex SteevesJuniorNotre Dame241415298
Thomas BordeleauFreshmanMichigan187182510
Ty Pelton-ByceSeniorWisconsin191114252
Graham SaggertJuniorNotre Dame22618248
Kent JohnsonFreshmanMichigan20712192
Roman AhcanJuniorWisconsin217121922
Sampo RantaJuniorMinnesota22127196
Sammy WalkerJuniorMinnesota22910198
Ben MeyersSophomoreMinnesota229101912

Leading goaltenders

Minimum 1/3 of team's minutes played in conference games.
GP = Games played; Min = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals against; SO = Shutouts; SV% = Save percentage; GAA = Goals against average[8]

Player Class Team GP Min W L T GA SO SV% GAA
Cameron RoweFreshmanWisconsin11555701161.9471.73
Jack LaFontaineSeniorMinnesota2212721660384.9321.79
Dylan St. CyrSeniorNotre Dame181067981383.9302.14
Strauss MannJuniorMichigan16894880333.9242.21
Robbie BeydounSeniorWisconsin168841060343.9272.31

Conference tournament
Main article: 2021 Big Ten Men's Ice Hockey Tournament
Quarterfinals
March 14[9] 		Semifinals
March 15 		Championship
March 16
         
1 Wisconsin 4*
5 Penn State 3
4 Notre Dame 3
5 Penn State 6
1 Wisconsin 4
2 Minnesota 6
2 Minnesota 2*
7 Michigan State 1
2 Minnesota 3*
3 Michigan 2
3 Michigan 4
6 Ohio State 0

Note: * denotes overtime periods.

NCAA tournament
Main article: 2021 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament

East
March 26, 2021
1:00 PM		(1) Wisconsin3 – 6
(0–2, 1–2, 2–2)		(4) Bemidji StateWebster Bank Arena, Bridgeport, Connecticut
Attendance: 0
Game reference
Robbie Beydoun (40 min)
Cameron Rowe (20 min)		GoaliesZach DriscollReferees:
Brendan Blanchard
Chris Leavitt
Linesmen:
Bob Griffin
Brendan Lewis
0–106:33 – Ross Armour (5) (Rosén)
0–219:44 – Elias Rosén (5) (unassisted)
(C. Caufield, Pelton-Byce) Linus Weissbach (12) – PP – 22:381–2
1–334:42 – Ethan Somoza (3) (Miller, Harris)
1–438:39 – SH GW – Owen Sillinger (10) (unassisted)
1–546:08 – Ethan Somoza (3) (Harris)
(Holloway, Pelton-Byce) Cole Caufield (29) – PP – 48:192–5
(Ahcan, Vorlicky) Cole Caufield (30) – 54:563–5
3–659:58 – EN – Brendan Harris (9) (Somoza)
6 minPenalties12 min
33Shots40

West
March 27, 2021
8:00 PM		(1) Minnesota7 – 2
(3–1, 3–0, 1–1)		(4) OmahaBudweiser Events Center, Loveland, Colorado
Attendance: 125
Game reference
Jack LaFontaineGoaliesIsaiah Saville (27:13)
Austin Roden (32:47)		Referees:
Scott Hansen
Holton Walker
Linesmen:
Kevin Briganti
Kyle Richetelle
(Munson, Faber) Mason Nevers (1) – 05:481–0
(Faber, Johnson) Jack Perbix (4) – 15:352–0
(McLaughlin, Walker) Scott Reedy (11) – GW – 17:363–0
3–118:04 – Taylor Ward (12) (Weiss, Scanlin)
(Faber, Meyers) Ryan Johnson (2) – 20:414–1
(LaCombe, Brodzinski) Ben Meyers (12) – 27:135–1
(Ranta, Faber) Mason Nevers (2) – 36:136–1
6–243:05 – Taylor Ward (13) (Weiss, Proctor)
(Nelson, Faber) Sampo Ranta (19) – 44:177–2
2 minPenalties4 min
30Shots28

West
March 28, 2021
6:00		(1) Minnesota0 – 4
(0–2, 0–0, 0–2)		(2) Minnesota StateBudweiser Events Center, Loveland, Colorado
Attendance: 175
Game reference
Jack LaFontaineGoaliesDryden McKayReferees:
Peter Schlittenhardt
Jermey Tufts
Linesmen:
William Kingdom
Nicholas Briganti
0–110:23 – GW – Sam Morton (5) (Sandelin, Zmolek)
0–212:30 – Ryan Sandelin (7) (McNeely, Furry)
0–349:50 – Nathan Smith (7) (Borchardt, Napravnik)
0–457:41 – EN – Dallas Gerads (8) (Aamodt)
6 minPenalties8 min
22Shots27

Ranking
Main article: 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey rankings

USCHO
Team Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Final
Michigan 126475678998778777678N/A9
Michigan State NRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRN/ANR
Minnesota 1411854111114425443442N/A7
Notre Dame 20NRNR161516181818NR16NRNRNRNRNRNR192018N/A17
Ohio State 10910131418NRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRN/ANR
Penn State 91015NRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRN/ANR
Wisconsin NR1414141214131412121213117555554N/A8

USCHO did not release a poll in week 20. [10]

USA Today
Team Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Final
Michigan 126375678910977867776899
Michigan State NRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNR
Minnesota 131175411111442544354267
Notre Dame NRNRNR1315NRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNR
Ohio State 10101014NRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNR
Penn State 9914NRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNRNR
Wisconsin NR1315NR131415151414121312655545488

[11]

Awards

NCAA
AwardRecipient
Hobey Baker AwardCole Caufield, Wisconsin
Tim Taylor AwardThomas Bordeleau, Michigan
Mike Richter AwardJack LaFontaine, Minnesota
AHCA All-American Teams[12]
West First TeamPositionTeam
Jack LaFontaineGMinnesota
Cameron YorkDMichigan
Cole CaufieldFWisconsin
Sampo RantaFMinnesota
West Second TeamPositionTeam
Jackson LaCombeDMinnesota
Dylan HollowayFWisconsin
Linus WeissbachFWisconsin

Big Ten
AwardRecipient[13]
Player of the YearCole Caufield, Wisconsin
Defensive Player of the YearCameron York, Michigan
Goaltender of the YearJack LaFontaine, Minnesota
Freshman of the YearThomas Bordeleau, Michigan
Scoring ChampionCole Caufield, Wisconsin
Coach of the YearTony Granato, Wisconsin
All-Big Ten Teams[13]
First Team  Position  Second Team
Jack LaFontaine, Minnesota G Strauss Mann, Michigan
Cameron York, Michigan D Owen Power, Michigan
Jackson LaCombe, Minnesota D Spencer Stastney, Notre Dame
Sampo Ranta, Minnesota F Thomas Bordeleau, Michigan
Cole Caufield, Wisconsin F Alex Steeves, Notre Dame
Dylan Holloway, Wisconsin F Linus Weissbach, Wisconsin
Freshman Team  Position  
Cameron Rowe, Wisconsin G
Owen Power, Michigan D
Brock Faber, Minnesota D
Matty Beniers, Michigan F
Thomas Bordeleau, Michigan F
Kent Johnson, Michigan F

Conference tournament
Tournament MOP
Jack LaFontaineMinnesota
All-Tournament Team
PlayerPosTeam
Jack LaFontaineGMinnesota
Mike KosterDMinnesota
Ty EmbersonDWisconsin
Cole CaufieldFWisconsin
Sampo RantaFMinnesota
Sammy WalkerFMinnesota

2021 NHL Entry Draft
Main article: 2021 NHL Entry Draft
Round Pick Player College NHL team
11Owen PowerMichiganBuffalo Sabres
12Matty BeniersMichiganSeattle Kraken
14Luke Hughes†MichiganNew Jersey Devils
15Kent JohnsonMichiganColumbus Blue Jackets
118Chaz Lucius†MinnesotaWinnipeg Jets
124Mackie Samoskevich†MichiganFlorida Panthers
125Corson Ceulemans†WisconsinColumbus Blue Jackets
257Matthew Knies†MinnesotaToronto Maple Leafs
258Tristan Broz†MinnesotaPittsburgh Penguins
366Sasha Pastujov†Notre DameAnaheim Ducks
4104Brody Lamb†MinnesotaNew York Rangers
4126Dylan Duke†MichiganTampa Bay Lightning
7195Justin Janicke†Notre DameSeattle Kraken
7206Owen McLaughlin†Penn StatePhiladelphia Flyers
7215Daniel Laatsch†WisconsinPittsburgh Penguins

† incoming freshman [14]

References
  1. "2021-22 Big Ten Schedule". Big Ten. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  2. "ASU/Big Ten Agree to Schedule Arrangement for 2020-21". Arizona State Sun Devils. October 6, 2020. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  3. "2021 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey championship selections announced". NCAA.com. March 21, 2021. Retrieved March 18, 2021.
  4. "BC advances in NCAA men's hockey tournament as Notre Dame has to forfeit Saturday's game - The Boston Globe". BostonGlobe.com. Retrieved March 25, 2021.
  5. Paul, Tony; Bianchi, Nolan. "UM hockey forced out of NCAA tournament because of positive tests". The Detroit News. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
  6. "Michigan Wolverines Strut NCAA Hockey In 2021 NHL Draft". Flo Hockey. July 30, 2021. Retrieved September 16, 2021.
  7. "2020-2021 Men's Ice Hockey Conference Statistics". Atlantic Hockey. Retrieved September 14, 2021.
  8. "2020-21 MEN'S COLLEGE HOCKEY NATIONAL STATISTICS DATABASE". Big Ten Conference. Retrieved September 14, 2021.
  9. "Big Ten Men's Ice Hockey Tournament Bracket Announced". BigTen.org. Big Ten Conference. March 6, 2021. Retrieved March 6, 2021.
  10. "USCHO Division I Men's Poll". USCHO.com. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
  11. "USA Today Men's Poll". USCHO.com. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
  12. "Boston College, Minnesota, North Dakota, Wisconsin lead way with three All-American college hockey players apiece for '20-21 season". USCHO.com. April 9, 2021. Retrieved April 10, 2021.
  13. "Hockey Postseason Honors Announced". Big Ten. March 16, 2021. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
  14. "NCAA player rankings, selections in 2021 NHL Draft". USCHO.com. Retrieved July 24, 2021.
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