Minnesota–Wisconsin ice hockey rivalry

Series history

Quick facts First meeting, Latest meeting ...

Minnesota–Wisconsin men's ice hockey rivalry

Minnesota Golden Gophers Wisconsin Badgers
First meeting	January 20, 1922 Minnesota 3, Wisconsin 0
Latest meeting	November 1, 2025 Wisconsin 4, Minnesota 0
Statistics
Meetings total	317
All-time series	Minnesota leads, 188–105–25
Largest victory	Minnesota, 12–2 (1922)
Longest win streak	Minnesota, 12 (1931–1965)
Longest unbeaten streak	Minnesota, 24 (1922–1927)
Current win streak	Wisconsin, 2 (2025–present)

Close

The rivalry has its origins in informal play beginning in 1922, before halting 12 years later. The rivalry^[2] was revived in 1965 with Wisconsin resuming its sponsoring of the sport. In the 1981 season, the teams met for their first and only matchups to-date for the national championship. After three periods, the Badgers topped the Gophers by a score of 6 to 3 under head coach Bob Johnson. After competing together in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association since 1999,^[3] both teams moved to their all-sports home, the Big Ten Conference, in anticipation of the 2013–14 season as part of widespread NCAA realignment in hockey.^[4] While questions surrounded the continuation of many of the rivals' other historic series,^[5] such as North Dakota and Minnesota Duluth, their rivalry with each other continued uninterrupted. As of the end of the 2023–24 season, Minnesota leads the series 184–103–25.^[6]

Rival accomplishments

The following summarizes the accomplishments of the two programs.^[7][8]

• Wisconsin vacated results from the 1992 NCAA tournament

Game results

Series history

Quick facts First meeting, Latest meeting ...

Minnesota–Wisconsin women's ice hockey rivalry

Minnesota Golden Gophers Wisconsin Badgers
First meeting	November 19, 1999 Minnesota 7, Wisconsin 4 (Per Wisconsin) February 7, 1998 Minnesota 10, Wisconsin 0 (Per Minnesota)
Latest meeting	November 1, 2025 Wisconsin 7, Minnesota 2
Next meeting	TBD
Statistics
All-time record	Wisconsin, 59–58–16 (per Wisconsin) Tied, 59-59-16 (Per Minnesota)
Largest victory	Minnesota, 11–3 (2000) (Per Wisconsin) Minnesota, 10-0 (1998) (Per Minnesota)
Longest win streak	Minnesota, 14 (2012–2015)
Longest unbeaten streak	Minnesota, 18 (2011–2015)
Current win streak	Wisconsin, 1 (2025–present)

Close

Since women's ice hockey became an NCAA sport, the two have been the flagpole programs, with frequent Top-5 meetings^[9] and matchups in the NCAA tournament and three national championships.^[10] The rivalry^[11] is fueled by the local nature of its players; in 2019, 24 players on the two rosters hailed from either Minnesota or Wisconsin.^[12] After the Badgers prevailed in the 2019 national title, no team has been ranked lower than eighth nationally during any of their meetings. As of the end of the 2025–26 season, Wisconsin leads the series 60–59–16.^[13]

Rival accomplishments

The following summarizes the accomplishments of the two programs.^[14][13]

Game results