The WCHA Men's League Archives
Spanning from 1951 through the end of the 2021 season, the WCHA men's league was one of rich history and tradition including member schools Alabama Huntsville, Alaska Anchorage, Alaska, Bemidji State, Bowling Green, Ferris State, Lake Superior State, Michigan Tech, Minnesota State, and Northern Michigan.
- 408 All-Americans
- 16 Hobey Baker Award Winners
- 19 Spencer Penrose Honorees
- 1,044 NHL Draft Picks
- 217 Olympians
- 37 NCAA Championship Teams
Born as the Midwest Collegiate Hockey League in 1951, the original WCHA consisted of Colorado College, Denver, Michigan, Michigan State, Michigan Tech, Minnesota, and North Dakota. Over the 70-year-history, Minnesota Duluth, Notre Dame, Nebraska Omaha, St. Cloud State, and Wisconsin all competed in the league.
Final Record Book
Tradition Starts Here - The MacNaughton Cup 
Dating back 106 years to its original purchase in 1913, handcrafted of pure silver, standing three-feet high, and weighing more than 40 pounds, the MacNaughton Cup is the shining symbol of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association and its distinguished tradition as a premier collegiate hockey conference since the league's founding in 1951.
The MacNaughton Cup is awarded annually to the winner of the league's regular season championship and, as a traveling trophy, is on display each season at the home of the reigning champion. Beginning in 2005-06, the WCHA also began awarding a replica MacNaughton Cup to the regular season champion each season. The MacNaughton Cup has gone to the league's regular season winner on all but seven occasions since 1951. From 1962-65, the MacNaughton Cup was presented to the league playoff winner.
With seven WCHA regular season titles, Michigan Tech (1962, 1966, 1969, 1971, 1974, 1976, 2016) has won or shared the most MacNaughton Cups among current league members. Minnesota State (2015, 2016, 2018, 2019) is second with four. Northern Michigan (1991), Ferris State (2014) and Bemidji State (2017) have each won one title.
In 1981-82, 1982-83 and 1983-84, the trophy left with Cup custodian Michigan Tech and was presented to the champion of the Central Collegiate Hockey Association for those three seasons.
The WCHA Regular Season Championship
The Western Collegiate Hockey Association men's regular season championship, as has proven time and time again over the past 67 seasons, has traditionally been one of the toughest titles to win in collegiate sports.
Since the Association's founding in 1951-52, the number of games that have made up the league's regular season championship race have fluctuated as well as the methods of determining the champions. The number of league games have ranged from a low of 12 in the founding season of 1951-52 to a high of 35 that ran from 1986-87 through 1988-89. Since 1997-98, the conference schedule has consisted of 28 games per team.
Methods of determining the annual regular season team champion have included points accumulated (1951-58, 1973-79 and 1980-present) and winning percentage (1959-73, 1979-80).
The conference regular season title includes the awarding of the fabled MacNaughton Cup to the team champion.
| All-Time WCHA Men’s League Regular Season Champions |
| Season |
Champion |
GP |
Record |
Pts/Pct. |
| 1951-52 |
Colorado College |
12 |
10-2-0 |
20 |
| 1952-53 |
Minnesota (co) |
20 |
16-4-0 |
19 |
| Michigan (co) |
16 |
12-4-0 |
19 |
| 1953-54 |
Minnesota |
20 |
16-3-1 |
20½ |
| 1954-55 |
Colorado College |
18 |
14-4-0 |
19 |
| 1955-56 |
Michigan |
18 |
15-2-1 |
19 |
| 1956-57 |
Colorado College |
18 |
14-4-0 |
19 |
| 1957-58 |
North Dakota (co) |
20 |
15-5-0 |
16 |
| Denver (co) |
22 |
12-10-0 |
16 |
| 1958-59 |
No League Play |
| 1959-60 |
Denver |
22 |
17-4-1 |
.795 |
| 1960-61 |
Denver |
18 |
17-1-0 |
.944 |
| 1961-62 |
Michigan Tech |
20 |
17-3-0 |
.850 |
| 1962-63 |
Denver (co) |
18 |
12-6-0 |
.667 |
| North Dakota (co) |
18 |
11-5-2 |
.667 |
| 1963-64 |
Michigan |
14 |
12-2-0 |
.857 |
| 1964-65 |
North Dakota |
16 |
13-3-0 |
.813 |
| 1965-66 |
Michigan Tech |
20 |
15-4-1 |
.775 |
| 1966-67 |
North Dakota |
22 |
16-6-0 |
.727 |
| 1967-68 |
Denver |
18 |
15-3-0 |
.822 |
| 1968-69 |
Michigan Tech |
20 |
14-5-1 |
.725 |
| 1969-70 |
Minnesota |
26 |
18-8-0 |
.692 |
| 1970-71 |
Michigan Tech |
22 |
18-4-0 |
.818 |
| 1971-72 |
Denver |
28 |
19-9-0 |
.679 |
| 1972-73 |
Denver |
28 |
20-8-0 |
.714 |
| 1973-74 |
Michigan Tech |
28 |
20-6-2 |
42 |
| 1974-75 |
Minnesota |
32 |
24-8-0 |
48 |
| 1975-76 |
Michigan Tech |
32 |
25-7-0 |
50 |
| 1976-77 |
Wisconsin |
32 |
26-5-1 |
53 |
| 1977-78 |
Denver |
32 |
27-5-0 |
54 |
| 1978-79 |
North Dakota |
32 |
22-10-0 |
44 |
| 1979-80 |
North Dakota |
28 |
21-6-1 |
.768 |
| 1980-81 |
Minnesota |
28 |
20-8-0 |
40 |
| 1981-82 |
North Dakota |
26 |
19-7-0 |
38 |
| 1982-83 |
Minnesota |
26 |
18-7-1 |
37 |
| 1983-84 |
Minnesota Duluth |
26 |
19-5-2 |
40 |
| 1984-85 |
Minnesota Duluth |
34 |
25-7-2 |
52 |
| 1985-86 |
Denver |
34 |
25-9-0 |
50 |
| 1986-87 |
North Dakota |
35 |
29-6-0 |
58 |
| 1987-88 |
Minnesota |
35 |
28-7-0 |
56 |
| 1988-89 |
Minnesota |
35 |
27-6-2 |
56 |
| 1989-90 |
Wisconsin |
28 |
19-8-1 |
39 |
| 1990-91 |
Northern Michigan |
32 |
25-3-4 |
54 |
| 1991-92 |
Minnesota |
32 |
26-6-0 |
52 |
| 1992-93 |
Minnesota Duluth |
32 |
21-9-2 |
44 |
| 1993-94 |
Colorado College |
32 |
18-9-5 |
41 |
| 1994-95 |
Colorado College |
32 |
22-9-1 |
45 |
| 1995-96 |
Colorado College |
32 |
26-2-4 |
56 |
| 1996-97 |
North Dakota (co) |
32 |
21-10-1 |
43 |
| Minnesota (co) |
32 |
21-10-1 |
43 |
| 1997-98 |
North Dakota |
28 |
21-6-1 |
43 |
| 1998-99 |
North Dakota |
28 |
24-2-2 |
50 |
| 1999-00 |
Wisconsin |
28 |
23-5-0 |
46 |
| 2000-01 |
North Dakota |
28 |
18-4-6 |
42 |
| 2001-02 |
Denver |
28 |
21-6-1 |
43 |
| 2002-03 |
Colorado College |
28 |
19-4-5 |
43 |
| 2003-04 |
North Dakota |
28 |
20-5-3 |
43 |
| 2004-05 |
Denver (co) |
28 |
19-7-2 |
40 |
| Colorado College (co) |
28 |
19-7-2 |
40 |
| 2005-06 |
Minnesota |
28 |
20-5-3 |
43 |
| 2006-07 |
Minnesota |
28 |
18-7-3 |
39 |
| 2007-08 |
Colorado College |
28 |
21-6-1 |
43 |
| 2008-09 |
North Dakota |
28 |
17-7-4 |
38 |
| 2009-10 |
Denver |
28 |
19-5-4 |
42 |
| 2010-11 |
North Dakota |
28 |
21-6-1 |
43 |
| 2011-12 |
Minnesota |
28 |
20-8-0 |
40 |
| 2012-13 |
St. Cloud State (co) |
28 |
18-9-1 |
37 |
| Minnesota (co) |
28 |
16-7-5 |
37 |
| 2013-14 |
Ferris State |
28 |
20-6-2 |
42 |
| 2014-15 |
Minnesota State |
28 |
21-4-3 |
45 |
| 2015-16 |
Michigan Tech (co) |
28 |
18-7-3 |
39 |
| Minnesota State (co) |
28 |
16-5-7 |
39 |
| 2016-17 |
Bemidji State |
28 |
20-6-2-2 |
64 |
| 2017-18 |
Minnesota State |
28 |
22-5-1-0 |
67 |
| 2018-19 |
Minnesota State |
28 |
22-5-1-1 |
68 |
| The fabled MacNaughton Cup has gone to the WCHA regular season champion in all but seven seasons . From 1962-65, the MacNaughton Cup was presented to the league playoff winner. In 1981-82, 1982-83 and 1983-84, the trophy left with Cup custodian Michigan Tech and was presented to the champion of the CCHA for those three seasons. |
| Most WCHA Regular Season Championships, by Team |
| No |
Team (Championship Seasons; * denotes co-champion) |
| 15 |
North Dakota (1958*, 1963*, 1965, 1967, 1979, 1980, 1982, 1987, 1997*, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2004, 2009, 2011) |
| 14 |
Minnesota (1953*, 1954, 1970, 1975, 1981, 1983, 1988, 1989, 1992, 1997*, 2006, 2007, 2012, 2013*) |
| 12 |
Denver (1958*, 1960, 1961, 1963*, 1968, 1972, 1973, 1978, 1986, 2002, 2005*, 2010) |
| 9 |
Colorado College (1952, 1955, 1957, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2003, 2005*, 2008) |
| 7 |
Michigan Tech (1962, 1966, 1969, 1971, 1974, 1976, 2016*) |
| 4 |
Minnesota State (2015, 2016*, 2018, 2019) |
| 3 |
Michigan (1953*, 1956, 1964)
Minnesota Duluth (1984, 1985, 1993)
Wisconsin (1977, 1990, 2000) |
| 1 |
Northern Michigan (1991)
St. Cloud State (2013*)
Ferris State (2014)
Bemidji State (2017) |
WCHA Postseason
The Broadmoor Trophy
The Broadmoor Trophy symbolized both regular season and postseason excellence in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association from 1982-2017.
The trophy is named after The Broadmoor Resort in Colorado Springs, Colo., which has a long history of supporting college hockey. The Broadmoor Trophy was commissioned as a replacement for the MacNaughton Cup, held in trust by Michigan Tech. In 1981, Michigan Tech left the WCHA for the Central Collegiate Hockey Association, taking the Cup with them. To fill the void, The Broadmoor Resort presented a new trophy to the WCHA to award to their regular season champion. North Dakota (1982), Minnesota (1983) and Minnesota Duluth (1984) were the three recipients of the Broadmoor as WCHA regular season titlists.
Upon the return of Tech and the MacNaughton Cup to the WCHA in 1984, the MacNaughton again became the league’s regular season award and the Broadmoor came to serve as the WCHA postseason trophy.
The trophy was redesigned in 2010. The new bronze cast trophy, created by Blue Ribbon Trophies & Awards of Colorado Springs, Colo., was a recreation of the Broadmoor Resort. North Dakota became the lone WCHA program to win the Broadmoor in three consecutive seasons when the Fighting Sioux took home the Final Five championship in 2010, 2011 and 2012.
Broadmoor Trophy Winners
| Year |
Champion |
| 1982 |
North Dakota * |
| 1983 |
Minnesota * |
| 1984 |
Minnesota Duluth * |
| 1985 |
Minnesota Duluth |
| 1986 |
Denver |
| 1987 |
North Dakota |
| 1988 |
Wisconsin |
| 1989 |
Northern Michigan |
| 1990 |
Wisconsin |
| 1991 |
Northern Michigan |
| 1992 |
Northern Michigan |
| 1993 |
Minnesota |
| 1994 |
Minnesota |
| 1995 |
Wisconsin |
| 1996 |
Minnesota |
| 1997 |
North Dakota |
| 1998 |
Wisconsin |
| 1999 |
Denver |
| 2000 |
North Dakota |
| 2001 |
St. Cloud State |
| 2002 |
Denver |
| 2003 |
Minnesota |
| 2004 |
Minnesota |
| 2005 |
Denver |
| 2006 |
North Dakota |
| 2007 |
Minnesota |
| 2008 |
Denver |
| 2009 |
Minnesota Duluth |
| 2010 |
North Dakota |
| 2011 |
North Dakota |
| 2012 |
North Dakota |
| 2013 |
Wisconsin |
| 2014 |
Minnesota State |
| 2015 |
Minnesota State |
| 2016 |
Ferris State |
| 2017 |
Michigan Tech |
* - From 1982-84, the WCHA Regular Season Champion received the Broadmoor Trophy
The Jeff Sauer Championship Trophy 
The beginning of each season brings with it the hope and promise that the late Jeff Sauer gave to all. Each day carries the love of hockey that shone through with his ever-present smile. At season’s end, a championship – the ultimate symbol of teamwork and unity that Coach Sauer exemplified.
Our league is truly honored to award the Jeff Sauer WCHA Championship Trophy, Presented by Anderson’s Pure Maple Syrup, to our annual WCHA Postseason Tournament champion as a tangible reminder of the man who meant so much to our league and to the sport of hockey.
Sauer’s time with the WCHA spanned six decades, beginning with his playing career at Colorado College in the 1960s, continuing through 31 years as head coach of the Tigers and Wisconsin, and for 14 seasons in various consulting capacities to the WCHA Commissioner and Conference Office. The only WCHA head coach with 30 years behind the bench, he is the league’s all-time winningest coach with 665 victories – the 10th most in NCAA men’s hockey history. A two-time WCHA Coach of the Year, Sauer guided his CC and UW teams to a pair of league regular season titles and six WCHA playoff championships – the league pinnacle for which teams will now raise a trophy in his honor.
Jeff Sauer was a legendary coach, a tremendous ambassador for the game of hockey and, above all, a wonderful person who brought great joy to all. From the WCHA to his extensive involvement with the U.S. National Sled Team and the American Hearing Impaired Hockey Association, Jeff embodied the kindness, generosity and heart that makes our sport truly special.
All who knew Coach Sauer, on and off the ice, are better for the experience. We are blessed that he was – and always will be – part of the WCHA family.
About the Jeff Sauer WCHA Championship Trophy
The custom-designed, perpetual Jeff Sauer WCHA Championship Trophy, Presented by Anderson’s Pure Maple Syrup, debuted in 2018. Designed by renowned manufacturer Jostens, the trophy stands more than two feet high on its own (and more than three-feet high upon its perpetual base) and weighs approximately 46 pounds altogether (about 30 without the base). The hockey stick uprights are solid, brass-plated in 24-karat gold, while the rest of the trophy is produced with a mix of metals and aluminum accents, around a polished steel bowl. In the center is a bronze-cast medallion plated in gold with the name “Jeff Sauer” to symbolize the trophy’s namesake. The octagon-shaped base is made of the same materials and features nickel silver plates for etching the history of past winning teams.