Ben Kenney, Badgers WireTue, December 2, 2025 at 10:31 AM UTC·1 min readWisconsin sits at No. 2 in USA TODAY Sports' latest NCAA men's hockey power rankings. The Badgers, who sit at 10-2-2 on the season, trail only the 15-3 Michigan Wolverines.
Those rankings reflect the official USCHO rankings, which are led by No. 1 Michigan, No. 2 Wisconsin, No. 3 Michigan State, No. 4 Minnesota Duluth and No. 5 North Dakota. The Badgers have four first-place votes in that national poll, trailing Michigan by just 67 total points.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementHere's what Ryan Kennedy, the author of USA TODAY's latest power rankings, had to say about the Badgers' current form:
The Badgers may not have the same big names as some of their Big Ten cohorts, but they did recently sweep Michigan State, who had been the No. 1 team in the nation. So give Bucky his due. Forwards such as Christian Fitzgerald and Gavin Morrissey are pacing the offense, but keep an eye on sophomore defenseman Logan Hensler (Ottawa), as he is finding his scoring range in his second year.
Wisconsin's turnaround under head coach Mike Hastings is one of the biggest stories of the season to date. The team went just 13-21-3 (7-16-1 Big Ten) a year ago, its third losing season in four years. Hastings, aided by leading point-getters Christian Fitzgerald, Gavin Morrissey and Ben Dexheimer, could now be authoring one of the program's better seasons in the last decade.
The Badgers are back on the ice on Friday, Dec. 5, on the road against Notre Dame. They'll look to repeat their effort in a two-game road sweep over No. 3 Michigan State.
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