The No. 18 Colorado College Tigers return home to play an NCHC game at Robson Arena for the first time since Nov. 18 with a weekend series against the Miami University RedHawks, Jan. 19-20. Friday's game is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. (MT), while Saturday's contest will begin at 4 p.m. (MT). Live streaming and live stats links can be found at CCTigers.com.

85 Years of CC Hockey
This season marks the 85th year of varsity ice hockey at Colorado College and 11th season as a member of the National Collegiate Hockey Conference. CC was a charter member of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (1951-52) for 62 seasons before joining the NCHC with seven other schools prior to the 2013-14 campaign.

How To Listen / Watch
Both games will be broadcast live in the Colorado Springs area and Southern Colorado on KRDO NewsRadio 105.5 FM / 95.5 FM / 1240 AM with the 'Voice of the Tigers' Ken Landau. Friday's game will be televised nationally on CBS Sports Network (Alex Heinert, Dave Starman and Shireen Saski), while Saturday's will be shown regionally on SOCO CW (Josh Howe and Kyle Huson) and streamed on NCHC.tv.

Last Time Out
The Tigers split a pair of game at Minnesota Duluth in the first NCHC series of 2024 ... On Friday, Ben Steeves scored 1:06 into overtime Friday night to give Minnesota Duluth a 3-2 victory. Stanley Cooley scored a pair of third-period goals for CC, including one with 1:45 remaining in the third period as the Tigers had an extra attacker on the ice that evened the score at 2-2. After a scoreless first period in which the Tigers outshot UMD, 13-7, the Bulldogs took the lead 4:42 into the second period. Jack Smith took a shot from the side boards that hit the far post and went in the net behind CC goaltender Kaidan Mbereko. Owen Gallatin doubled the lead for the home team at the 2:23 mark of the third period with another shot from the side boards that went over Mbereko's left shoulder. Cooley cut the lead to 2-1 at the 6:55 mark when he scored his second goal of the season by putting the puck past UMD goalie Zach Stejskal through a scrum in front of the net. Then, with less than two minutes remaining in the third, he deflected a shot from the point by Chase Foley past Stejskal for the equalizer. Steeves scored the game-winner during a 2-on-1 rush and placed a wrister past Mbereko from the slot ... On Saturday, Noah Laba scored 1:39 into overtime to lift No. 17/18 Colorado College to a 3-2 victory. Laba collected the puck in the CC end, skated up the ice and placed a wrister from the top of the right circle past Stajskal for his fourth game-winning goal of the season. Mbereko was excellent with 34 saves, including 17 in the third period. He made five saves during a penalty kill with seven minutes remaining in the third period. Carter Loney put the Bulldogs ahead 1-0 with just 10.7 seconds left in the first period. Tyler Coffey evened the score with his fourth goal of the season just 2:02 into the second period with a rocket from the top of the slot that cleanly beat Stejskal. Cooley posted his third point of the weekend with the only assist on the play. The 1-1 draw lasted just 34 seconds before Kyle Bettens regained the lead for the home team at 2:36 of the middle frame. It looked like the Bulldogs were going to head into the second intermission with the lead, but Nicklas Andrews took a pass from Laba and scored from the top of the left circle with .2 of a second remaining on the clock for his third goal of the season. Gleb Veremyev also collected a helper on the play. Neither team found the net in the third period, setting up Laba's heroics.

18th in the National Polls  
Following the series split at Minnesota Duluth, Colorado College is ranked 18th in both Division I national polls this week.   

Best Start in 12 Years  
Colorado College's 11-8-1 record after 19 games is the best since the 2011-12 season (started 12-7-1). The Tigers are tied for 15th in the country with 11 victories. Meanwhile, Jan. 13 is the earliest date CC has reached 11 victories since the '11-12 campaign (Dec. 17, 2011).  

Historic Sweep  
On Dec. 8-9, Colorado College posted its first sweep at North Dakota since Nov. 26-27, 1993, and the first over a No. 1-ranked team since Jan. 8-9, 2005, at Minnesota.

The Coaches
Kris Mayotte is in his third season at the helm of the Tigers. He came to Colorado College after serving two years as an assistant coach at the University of Michigan. Mayotte was an assistant coach for Providence College when the Friars won the NCAA Division I title in 2015. In addition, he has won a pair of gold medals and a bronze in four stints as an assistant coach with Team USA at the World Junior Championships … Chris Bergeron is in his fifth season as head coach at his alma mater. He served as head coach at Bowling Green for the previous nine seasons after 10 years as an assistant coach at Miami.

Previous Meetings
Colorado College and Miami have met 34 times, with CC holding a 19-11-4 advantage in the series, including an 8-5-1 mark in Colorado Springs. The Tigers have a 11-game unbeaten streak (9-0-2) against Miami, and are 11-1-2 in the last 14 games vs. the RedHawks. Colorado College swept the RedHawks earlier this season in Oxford, Ohio, winning 5-1 and 4-1.

Mbereko Named NCHC Goaltender of the Week
Colorado College sophomore Kaidan Mbereko has been named the KJ Branding NCHC Goaltender of the Week after helping the Tigers split a pair of games at Minnesota Duluth. In Friday's 3-2 overtime loss, he made 33 saves, including 16 in the second period. He also made nine saves short-handed in the opener to help CC's penalty kill finish 5-for-5. The next night, he did one better, totaling 34 stops in a 3-2 overtime win, including half (17) of the saves coming in the third period to keep the game tied. Mbereko was named Third Star of the Game in Saturday's win. Mbereko compiled 67 saves against Minnesota Duluth, leading the NCHC on the weekend, while his .931 save percentage was tops among NCHC goalies with two games played. He also posted a 2.46 goals-against average and helped kill all six UMD power plays in the series, making 14 short-handed saves.

Youngsters Scoring  
Freshmen and sophomores have combined for 40 of the team's 62 goals and 91 of the 157 points. 19 of CC's last 30 goals have been scored by freshmen or sophomores.  

Up Next
The Tigers head back out on the road for a weekend series at #11 Western Michigan, Jan. 26-27, in Kalamazoo, Mich.

Tiger Tales
Colorado College's 7-3 record is the best after 10 games on the road since the 2004-05 season (7-2-1) ... The Tigers are tied for the national lead with a .551 faceoff winning percentage ... Colorado College is tied for fifth in the NCHC and tied for 22nd in the nation in goals per game, averaging 3.1 per contest (62 in 20 games) ... Logan Will is third in the NCHC with a .592 faceoff win percentage ... Noah Laba is tied for the lead in the NCHC and fourth in the country with four GWG ... Laba is tied for second in the NCHC and fourth in the nation with two shorthanded goals ... Max Burkholder is tied for 10th in the league with three power-play goals ... Jack Millar is tied for fourth in the NCHC with 31 blocked shots, while Nicklas Andrews is tied for 10th with 27.

Three is the Number
The Tigers are 11-1 this season when scoring three or more goals. The only loss was a 4-3 defeat at the hands of Augustana. CC is 10-3-1 when it allows three goas or less.

Mbereko Named NCHC Goaltender of the Month For December
Colorado College sophomore Kaidan Mbereko was named the NCHC Goaltender of the Month. Mbereko started all four Colorado College games in December, posting a 2-1-1 record. He ranked third in the NCHC with a .926 save percentage and a 1.95 goals-against average during the month. Mbereko compiled 46 saves in a series with future NCHC member Arizona State to start the month. He racked up 34 stops, including 19 in the first period, in a 2-2 overtime tie on Dec. 1 for his second-highest save total of the season. His best outings came a week later, when he backstopped CC to a pair of 3-2 overtime wins at then-No. 1 North Dakota. Mbereko compiled 32 saves in the series opener on Dec. 8 before making 22 more stops in another overtime win a night later.

Three Future Tigers Sign National Letter of Intent
Three future Tigers recently signed a National Letter of Intent to attend and play hockey at Colorado College. The players are forwards Jordan Brisson (Chicago Steel – USHL),  Cooper Conway (Omaha Lancers - USHL) and Coy Pighin (Drumheller Dragons - AJHL).
This group joins six players, forwards Owen Beckner and Gavin Lindberg, defensemen Philippe Blais-Savoie, Ryan Koering and Fisher Scott, and goaltender Carsen Musser, who previously signed an NLI with Colorado College.

16 Televised Games This Season
Colorado College is excited to announce a new partnership with SOCO CW, which will televise 14 games during the upcoming 2023-24 season. SOCO CW is available to viewers throughout Colorado Springs, Pueblo and Southern Colorado. CBS Sports Network will televise two games nationally, Jan. 19 vs. Miami and March 8 vs. Denver.

Tigers Picked Seventh in NCHC Preseason Poll
Colorado College was picked seventh in the 2023-24 NCHC Preseason Poll.

1.    Denver – 199 points (11 first-place votes)
2.    North Dakota – 175 (12)
3.    St. Cloud State – 155 (2)
4.    Western Michigan - 126 (2)
5.    Minnesota Duluth – 123 (1)
6.    Omaha - 113
7.    Colorado College – 89
8.    Miami - 28