The Antelopes lead the way, LMUโs offense heats up, and four teams fight for position with plenty of hockey left
Six weeks into the 2026-27 season, Grand Canyon is on top of the WCHC M2 standings. Behind the Antelopes, the race for playoff position in Las Vegas is wide open.
The Lopes are perfect
GCU opened with a home sweep of LMU at AZ Ice Peoria, winning 7-1 on October 2 and 4-3 the next night. A week later they beat ASU 5-2 at AZ Ice Arcadia.
Then came a rivalry weekend against Northern Arizona. On October 23 at Arcadia, GCU won an 8-7 thriller, the highest-scoring game of the season. The next night in Flagstaff, they won 6-4 at Jay Lively to complete the sweep. GCU is 5-0 with 10 points and leads the conference in goal differential.
LMUโs offense takes off
The Lions have the most potent attack in the conference, with a league-high 33 goals. On October 23 at The Cube, they beat UCLA 14-6, the biggest scoring night of the year. Last weekend at Paramount Iceland, they swept ASU, winning 6-5 on Friday and 7-5 on Saturday. That moved LMU into second place with seven points.
NAU plays exciting hockey
The IceJacks have been in almost every game theyโve played and have scored 32 goals. They opened in Simi Valley, splitting two one-goal games with CSUN and taking the second 4-3. They also won an 8-6 shootout over ASU in Flagstaff and pushed GCU to the final horn in an 8-7 game at Arcadia. With five points, NAU gets another shot at the league leaders this Saturday at home.
The Sun Devils are built for the stretch run
ASU, last seasonโs DII champion, opened with a 5-4 win over NAU in Flagstaff. Theyโve been in close, competitive games all fall since then. The Sun Devils have plenty of chances ahead, starting with a December home-and-home against GCU. They also get two January games at Mullett Arena.
CSUN and UCLA have the most hockey ahead
The Matadors and Bruins have each played just two conference games, and each has eight still to play, so both can move up quickly. CSUN won its home opener 6-5 over NAU at Simi Valley Iceoplex. UCLA earned a 4-2 win over LMU at Paramount Iceland to split their crosstown series.
ACHA M2 Standings (as of Nov. 12)
| Pos | Team | GP | PTS | GFโGA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GCU Antelope | 5 | 10 | 30โ17 |
| 2 | LMU Lions | 6 | 7 | 33โ31 |
| 3 | NAU IceJacks | 6 | 5 | 32โ34 |
| 4 | ASU Sun Devils | 5 | 3 | 23โ30 |
| 5 | CSUN Matadors | 2 | 2 | 9โ9 |
| 6 | UCLA Bruins | 2 | 2 | 10โ16 |
Whatโs next
The weekend opens Friday, November 13, with CSUN hosting LMU at 7:30 PM at Simi Valley Iceoplex. On Saturday, NAU hosts GCU at 8:00 PM at Jay Lively Ice Arena. GCU then travels to Reseda for two games against UCLA on November 20โ21, and plays ASU twice on December 4โ5.
Everything leads to the WCHC Playoffs at Las Vegas Ice Center, February 12โ14, 2027. Every team still has plenty of hockey left.