Storied rivals will collide once again, not on the grid iron as fans would hope but on the ice.
Yesterday, Notre Dame informed Hockey East that they would be joining the Big Ten conference starting in the 2017-18 season.
This wouldn’t be the first time that Notre Dame has been affiliated with Big Ten schools. Notre Dame was a member of the CCHA with Michigan, Michigan State and Ohio State from 1980-2013. Notre Dame also was a part of the WCHA – which included teams like Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota and Wisconsin – in the 1960’s.
In 2013, the Central College Hockey Association was dissolved with the creation of the Big Ten Conference. The Fighting Irish would then move to the Hockey East Conference.
Notre Dame has ties to the Big Ten as coach Jeff Jackson was once a star for Michigan State and has been coaching the Fighting Irish since 2006. Coach Jackson has led the Irish to six NCAA Tournaments 2006-2009, 2010-2011 and 2012-2014 seasons. He led them to two trips to the Frozen Four in 2008 and 2011. In 2008, they were national runners up to Boston College.
A Big Ten official informed the Chicago Tribune and the Minneapolis Star Tribune – who both first reported this – late Tuesday afternoon of the move. Now, the Big Ten will have seven teams in the conference and have stated that they are not adding an eighth team yet.
“While we have enjoyed our affiliation with Hockey East, the opportunity to participate in Big Ten hockey is a compelling one from the perspective of our student-athletes,”said Jack Swarbrick, Notre Dame vice president and James E. Rohr director of athletics, in a press release from the university. “The move will significantly reduce the time our team spends traveling, increase the broadcast exposure for our program and allow us to take advantage of the natural rivalries that exist with the Big Ten schools that participate in hockey.”
This addition means that the Big Ten adds another historical school to its conference. It will also help with the branding of the conference as a premier hockey conference.
The Big Ten will only send the University of Michigan to the NCAA Tournament this year, which will ironically face Notre Dame at the US Bank Arena in Cincinnati, Ohio for the Midwest Regionals on Friday afternoon at 5:30 PM EST.
