Time to set those DVRs. Minnesota men's hockey released its 2026-27 TV schedule this week. FOX9 is back as the program's local TV partner, and 11 more Gopher games will air nationally on Big Ten Network and FS1.
The program said 14 regular-season games and its lone exhibition will air on FOX9 or FOX9+ and stream on B1G+. This is the 3rd straight season of the FOX9 partnership. Games that air on FOX9/FOX9+ in the Twin Cities will also be free over the air in the Duluth, Mankato, Rochester, Austin, Albert Lea, Mason City and Fargo/Moorhead markets.
The FOX9 package starts with a big one: North Dakota on Oct. 22 at 7 p.m. on the main FOX9 channel, then Oct. 23 at 6 p.m. on FOX9+. Penn State follows on Oct. 30 at 7 p.m. and Oct. 31 at 6 p.m. Wisconsin is set for Nov. 7, time to be announced. Alaska-Anchorage plays Nov. 13 at 7 p.m. and Nov. 14 at 6 p.m. Minnesota State Mankato gets a 4 p.m. slot on Nov. 27.
After the holiday break, Bemidji State is on Jan. 2 at 2 p.m. Next come weekend sets with Michigan on Jan. 8 at 7 p.m. and Jan. 9 at 6 p.m., and Notre Dame on Jan. 22 at 7 p.m. and Jan. 23 at 6 p.m. Michigan State follows on Jan. 29 at 7 p.m. The FOX9 slate wraps up with Ohio State on Feb. 20 at 6 p.m. Every game after the North Dakota opener airs on FOX9+. Twin Cities viewers can also watch the Oct. 16-17 series with Minnesota Duluth on FOX9+.
If you're hunting for FOX9+, it's on Comcast channel 10/807, DirecTV 29, DISH 29, Spectrum 10, Mediacom 10/803 and over the air on 9.2. Streamers can find it on Hulu with Live TV, Sling TV, FuboTV and YouTube TV. The full list of network assignments, including the BTN and FS1 games, is on the program's schedule page.
The voices are familiar. Jim Rich will call play-by-play and host a 30-minute pregame show before each FOX9/FOX9+ broadcast. Pat Micheletti, Minnesota's 2nd all-time leading scorer, stays in the booth as analyst.
The person behind the bench is new. Brett Larson took over in March after 8 seasons as head coach at St. Cloud State. There he made 4 NCAA tournament trips, won 2 conference titles and led the Huskies to their first national championship game in 2021. He also had 2 stints as an assistant at Minnesota Duluth and helped the Bulldogs win national titles in 2011 and 2018. That gives the Oct. 16-17 Duluth series on FOX9+ a little extra intrigue. With a new coach running things, there's plenty of reason to tune in all winter.
