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Shooting to usher in the New Year with some offensive fireworks at the World Arena, Colorado College returns from a short Christmas break to play host to opponents from two different leagues in a pair of non-conference games this week.

The No. 5-ranked Tigers try to match their longest winning streak of the season on Friday, when they take on local rival Air Force Academy of the Atlantic Hockey Association and take aim at their fourth consecutive victory. Faceoff is 7:37 p.m. MT. 

CC, currently 11-5 overall and 9-5 in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association, then says good-bye to the 2011 calendar year on Saturday with a 7:07 p.m. encounter against 10th-ranked Union College of the ECAC. It's the first New Year's Eve contest at the World Arena in more than a decade, and just the second ever since the facility opened its doors in January 1998.

AHA-leading AIr Force is 9-4-2 overall and 8-2-1 in league play, a point ahead of three teams tied for second place. The Falcons, who haven't played since prevailing twice (8-3, 7-3) at American International University on Dec. 2 and 3, ride a four-game winning streak of their own into Friday's weekend opener.

Union, meanwhile, is among five teams tied for fourth place in the ECAC, where the Dutchmen own a 3-2-2 record. They're 9-3-5 overall and take a six-game undefeated string (4-0-2) into Friday's game at the University of Denver before heading to Colorado Springs on Saturday.

Colorado College never has lost to either of this week's foes at the CSWA.

Friday marks the 68th all-time showdown between CC and the Falcons in a rivalry that began in early December of 1969. The Tigers, who own a 58-7-2 advantage overall after prevailing by a 6-4 count at the Cadet Ice Arena last season, have won all nine previous outings against AFA at the World Arena and are 29-2-1 in 32 home games altogether in the series. Since 1985, they've lost just once in the last 39 (37-1-1) meetings between the teams.

They are 3-0 against Union after skating to a pair of 4-2 victories over the Dutchman to start the 2004-05 season and defeating them again, 6-1, to open the 2005-06 campaign. All three games were on home ice.

Tiger Bites: While junior right wing Scott Winkler expects to return to the lineup this weekend, CC will continue to be without the services of sophomore left wing Jaden Schwartz, who is serving as captain for Team Canada at the 2012 Junior World Championships. Winkler missed the Dec. 16-17 series at Minnesota State in order to represent his native country of Norway at a pre-Christmas international EuroChallange tournament in Ljubljana, Slovenia. The Tigers have been minus the younger Schwartz for all three victories in their current streak. On Monday, he collected a pair of assists as the Canadians opened Junior Worlds with an 8-1 victory over Finland at Rexall Center in Edmonton.