WCHA Becomes First College Conference to Release Schedule

The WCHA became the first Division I men’s college hockey conference to release a 2020-21 schedule on Wednesday.

Each WCHA team will play a single series against the other nine league schools with all but three of the contests slated to be played in January and February 2021.

Additionally, the WCHA said that league teams will play a total of 38 non-league games beginning Nov. 20, but 30 of those contests will pit WCHA teams against each other in games that will not count in the league standings due to limited non-conference opportunities this season (most leagues are playing conference games only).

The Alaska schools are on the schedule. They will begin the season playing each other before Minnesota State is slated to travel to Anchorage on Dec. 18.

Alabama Huntsville and Bowling Green are the only WCHA teams scheduled to face teams from outside the league. The Chargers will visit Robert Morris on Nov. 20-21, the opening weekend of the regular season, while Bowling Green will travel to Robert Morris on Nov. 24 before a home-and-home series with Mercyhurst, Nov. 27 (away) and Nov. 29 (home).

BGSU will visit Quinnipiac Dec. 18-19 and host Robert Morris on Dec. 29 to conclude the non-league season for the WCHA. The Falcons are also slated to play a road exhibition game against the U.S. National Team Development Program on Nov. 7, in what could be the first college hockey game since March.

In addition to state and local health and safety guidelines in force at each WCHA campus, the 2020-21 schedule will play out under the WCHA’s Return to Competition protocols. Those protocols will include COVID-19 testing for student-athletes, coaches, staff and game officials as well as social-distancing requirements at all WCHA arenas.

The league said that the format for the 2021 WCHA Postseason Tournament will be determined in the coming weeks. The postseason will play out over the weekends of March 12-13 and March 19-20.