Hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly) and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) unpack the January 28, 2026 Bracketology column on USCHO.com with this weekly episode Bracketology XTRA.

Hockey East has three participants in this week's updated bracket:

ALBANY REGION

1) Michigan (1 overall)
4) Bentley

2) Quinnipiac
3) Wisconsin

WORCESTER REGION

1) Michigan State (2)
4) Connecticut

2) Providence
3) Cornell

SIOUX FALLS REGION

1) North Dakota (3)
4) Boston College

2) Minnesota Duluth
3) St. Thomas

LOVELAND REGION

1) Penn State (4)
4) Denver

2) Western Michigan
3) Dartmouth


For details on how this bracket was put together, visit this week's column at https://www.uscho.com/2026/01/28/bracketology-less-chaos-this-week-as-ncaas-approach

This episode is sponsored by the NCAA Men's Frozen Four, April 9 and 11 in Las Vegas. Tickets: https://ncaa.com/mfrozenfour


Find all of our podcasts at USCHO.com/podcasts

Hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly), Derek Schooley (@derekschooley), and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) look at sometimes controversial or overlooked topics in our midweek episode called Upon Further Review.

This week we discuss whether Penn State is "for real," including their resumé, their identity, their goaltending tandem, and how they match up against different styles of play.

This episode is sponsored by the NCAA Men's Frozen Four, April 9 and 11 in Las Vegas. Tickets: https://ncaa.com/mfrozenfour

Find all of our podcasts at USCHO.com/podcasts

Hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly), Derek Schooley (@derekschooley), and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) review games of the weekend and news of the past week.

Teams on a hot streak kept it going over the weekend as Penn State, Michigan State, Providence, Western Michigan, St. Thomas, and Cornell swept their opponents. UConn picked up a pair of wins for its second straight Connecticut Ice title.

We also look at the NPI and how it has changed the potential number of teams for each conference significantly in the past two weeks.

This episode is sponsored by the NCAA Men's Frozen Four, April 9 and 11 in Las Vegas. Tickets: https://ncaa.com/mfrozenfour

Find all of our podcasts at USCHO.com/podcasts

Hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly) and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) unpack the January 22, 2026 Bracketology column on USCHO.com with this weekly episode Bracketology XTRA.

A regional 4th seed move should help attendance:

ALBANY REGION

1) Michigan (1 overall)
4) Bentley

2) Wisconsin
3) Quinnipiac

WORCESTER REGION

1) Minnesota Duluth (4)
4) Boston College

2) Western Michigan
3) Providence

SIOUX FALLS REGION

1) North Dakota (3)
4) Augustana

2) Penn State
3) Cornell

LOVELAND REGION

1) Michigan State (2)
4) St. Thomas

2) Dartmouth
3) Denver


For details on how this bracket was put together, visit this week's column at https://www.uscho.com/2026/01/21/bracketology-shifting-teams-necessary-to-protect-attendance

This episode is sponsored by the NCAA Men's Frozen Four, April 9 and 11 in Las Vegas. Tickets: https://ncaa.com/mfrozenfour

Find all of our podcasts at USCHO.com/podcasts

Hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly), Derek Schooley (@derekschooley), and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) look at sometimes controversial or overlooked topics in our midweek episode called Upon Further Review.

This week is another round of "Buy or Sell" on these four propositions:

1. All four number one NCAA tournament seeds will come from the Big Ten or NCHC.
2. College hockey will have a 40 goal scorer this season.
3. The CCHA will earn more NCAA bids than Hockey East.
4. The Big Ten finally wins its national championship this season.

This episode is sponsored by the NCAA Men's Frozen Four, April 9 and 11 in Las Vegas. Tickets: https://ncaa.com/mfrozenfour

Find all of our podcasts at USCHO.com/podcasts

Hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly), Derek Schooley (@derekschooley), and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) review games of the weekend and news of the past week.

The biggest highlight is Michigan State's road sweep of Wisconsin, which has major implications for the Big Ten standings and NCAA tournament positioning.

Other discussions include the chaos in the CCHA with strong performances from Michigan Tech, St. Thomas, and Augustana, as well as the Governor's Cup rivalry between Alaska Anchorage and Fairbanks.

The show also covers a controversial fight between UMass Lowell and BU players, resulting in extended suspensions, and a four-year contract extension for Michigan's Brandon Naurato.

The episode concludes with opinions on the new 15-day window for the transfer portal, aimed at reducing disruption in college hockey.

This episode is sponsored by the NCAA Men's Frozen Four, April 9 and 11 in Las Vegas. Tickets: https://ncaa.com/mfrozenfour

Find all of our podcasts at USCHO.com/podcasts

Hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly) and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) unpack the latest Bracketology column on USCHO.com with this weekly episode Bracketology XTRA.

Four western No. 1 seeds and some pretty good attendance possibilities highlight this week's bracket:

ALBANY REGION

1) Michigan (1 overall)
4) Bentley

2) Michigan State
3) Cornell

WORCESTER REGION

1) Minnesota Duluth (4)
4) Providence

2) Western Michigan
3) Quinnipiac

SIOUX FALLS REGION

1) North Dakota (2)
4) Princeton

2) Penn State
3) Augustana

LOVELAND REGION

1) Wisconsin (3)
4) St. Thomas

2) Dartmouth
3) Denver


For details on how this bracket was put together, visit this week's column at https://www.uscho.com/2026/01/15/bracketology-all-eyes-on-attendance-when-building-brackets

This episode is sponsored by the NCAA Men's Frozen Four, April 9 and 11 in Las Vegas. Tickets: https://ncaa.com/mfrozenfour

Find all of our podcasts at USCHO.com/podcasts

Hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly), Derek Schooley (@derekschooley), and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) look at sometimes controversial or overlooked topics in our midweek episode called Upon Further Review.

We discuss the impacts of No. 1 Michigan losing star freshman goalie Jack Ivankovic possibly long-term and Providence losing senior starter Philip Svedeback but adding ECHL goaltender Michael Simpson to support freshman Jack Parsons.

This episode is sponsored by the NCAA Men's Frozen Four, April 9 and 11 in Las Vegas. Tickets: https://ncaa.com/mfrozenfour

Find all of our podcasts at USCHO.com/podcasts

Hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly), Derek Schooley (@derekschooley), and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) review games of the weekend and news of the past week.

This episode discusses Michigan's dominating performance against Notre Dame despite key injuries, Minnesota Duluth's surprising offense, Western Michigan's resurgence, and key wins for Quinnipiac and Providence. The team also dives deep into the NPI and how it compares to the old PairWise system.

This episode is sponsored by the NCAA Men's Frozen Four, April 9 and 11 in Las Vegas. Tickets: https://ncaa.com/mfrozenfour

Find all of our podcasts at USCHO.com/podcasts

Hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly), Derek Schooley (@derekschooley), and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) look at sometimes controversial or overlooked topics in our midweek episode called Upon Further Review.

One month after our first analysis of the NPI, we compare and contrast the teams "inside the bubble" in each, and look at which teams are pretty safe and which have work to do.

This episode is sponsored by the NCAA Men's Frozen Four, April 9 and 11 in Las Vegas. Tickets: https://ncaa.com/mfrozenfour

Find all of our podcasts at USCHO.com/podcasts