Last weekend, BGSU hockey (14-6-6, 11-4-3) played Notre Dame (5-18-3, 1-13-0) of the Big 10 in a home and home series that would see the Falcons and Fighting Irish draw twice with a 3-3 scoreline from Friday night’s game at NDU’s Compton Family Ice Arena and a 2-2 draw on Saturday night at the Slater Family Ice Arena.
While both games will be recorded as draws in the records, Bowling Green would claim the shootout victory on Friday, while Notre Dame would claim the shootout victory on Saturday after eight rounds.
Bowling Green’s series against the Fighting Irish marked the fourth and final non conference series of the season for the Falcons.
Bowling Green’s previous non conference matchups included opponents from the Atlantic Hockey America (AHA), Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC), and the Big 10.
BG opened their season and their non conference slate with a series against Niagara University (8-16-1, 5-11-1) of the AHA at NU’s Dwyer Arena on Oct. 10 and 11. Bowling Green would suffer a sweep at the hands of the Purple Eagles by scorelines of 2-0 and 5-2.
The Falcons’ next non conference opponent would come during the Thanksgiving weekend when BG hosted Princeton (12-9-1, 8-6-0) of the ECAC on Nov. 28 and 29. Bowling Green would sweep the Tigers by scorelines of 4-1 and 4-3.
Bowling Green’s final two non conference matchups would be a home-and-home series against Big 10 opponents, as the Falcons would face Ohio State (8-15-1, 4-10-0) on Jan. 2 and 3 and Notre Dame on Jan. 30 and 31. Bowling Green would draw with OSU 2-2 on Friday night of their series before Ohio State claimed a shootout victory at the Schottenstein Center in Columbus. BGSU would claim a 5-3 win at the Slater Family Ice Arena the following night.
Bowling Green finished with a 3-2-3 record against non conference opponents during the 2025-26 season. During those games, BG outscored its opponents 22-21.
Other than their season-opening series against Niagara, the Falcons would not lose another non conference game in regulation or overtime play and would claim three victories while winning one of the three shootouts that would be recorded as draws in their record.
The Falcons’ non conference slate not only allowed the Falcons to prepare for CCHA games, but also showed that the Falcons can play and beat and/or draw teams from some of the best conferences in college hockey. This doesn’t just stand as an impressive feat for the current Falcon roster; this stands as an example of what the BGSU hockey team is capable of if and when head coach Dennis Williams tries to schedule bigger and tougher opponents in future seasons.
BGSU hockey returns to CCHA play this weekend as they take on No. 15 St. Thomas (17-8-3, 14-4-2) at the Slater Family Ice Arena on Feb. 6 and 7.
