Conference bragging rights on the line as Wisconsin faces Denver for the NCAA hockey title

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Bruno Mars Day was celebrated outside T-Mobile Arena on Friday, the recording artist honored for the musical impact he has had on Las Vegas.

Another celebration will occur inside the building Saturday when Wisconsin meets Denver for college hockey's national championship.

Both teams not only will be playing for the respective schools, but notable conference bragging rights will be on the line, and the Big Ten comes into this Frozen Four final with plenty to crow about.

Should the Badgers (24-12-2), who defeated North Dakota 2-1 in Thursday's semifinals, emerge as the NCAA's newest champion, it will continue a remarkable run for the conference. The Big Ten already is home to the current champions in football ( Indiana ), men's basketball ( Michigan ) and women's basketball ( UCLA ).

Only the Southeastern Conference in the 2006-07 academic year produced such a trifecta. Florida won the football and men's basketball titles and Tennessee cut down the nets in women's basketball.

A victory by Wisconsin, a No. 3 regional seed, would set the Big Ten apart because no conference has won championships in those three major sports and men's hockey as well. To be fair, the Big Ten is the only power conference that sanctions the sport, but it still doesn't discount the kind of run that conference is on at the moment.

“It just speaks volumes to the skill level, all up and down the sports,” Badgers defenseman Ben Dexheimer said. “First (priority) is the school. I think it would be really cool to do it for the Big Ten.”

Wisconsin has won six national championships, but its most recent was 20 years ago.

Not only would a Wisconsin victory further separate the Big Ten, it also would establish Madison as the country's college hockey capital. The women's team defeated Ohio State for the national championship for its second title in a row and third in four years.

That accomplishment would otherwise be another notch for the Big Ten since Wisconsin and Ohio State are members, but the conference doesn't sanction women's hockey.

“There’s so many people that are behind the scenes that do so much work that we want to win for them, too, as well as the guys in the locker room,” Wisconsin front-line center Gavin Morrissey said. “With the women’s team, what they’ve done, is so impressive over the last however many years. Just to catch up with them a little bit would be great.”

Denver, a No. 2 seed, has plenty to say lest anyone think this weekend will be a Wisconsin coronation. The Pioneers (28-11-3), in fact, are the standard in men's college hockey and what it takes to win this time of year.

Denver is going for its third championship in five years, and it already owns the overall record with 10 titles. Big Ten teams don't scare the Pioneers, who overcame being outshot 52-26 to defeat top overall seed Michigan 4-3 in double overtime in the semifinals.

“You come to Denver to play in these games,” Pioneers defenseman Cale Ashcroft said.

If Saturday's title game is also a referendum on conferences, the National Collegiate Hockey Conference doesn't have to back down to any league. The NCHC can make a strong argument it is the country's best regardless of what happens in the final, having claimed seven of the past nine national championships.

“It's a badge of honor for all of us to be part of the best conference in college hockey,” Denver coach David Carle said. “We’re proud to be members. I think a big part of our success as a league is how hard we are on each other all throughout the year, but certainly in the second half when it comes down to just conference play. We carry that torch very proudly. Look forward to doing again tomorrow night for our league.”

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

Denver forward Clarke Caswell (25) celebrates after scoring against Michigan in the third period of a semifinal game of the NCAA Frozen Four men's college hockey tournament Thursday, April 9, 2026, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Denver defenseman Kent Anderson, right, celebrates after scoring against Michigan in the second overtime of a semifinal game in the NCAA Frozen Four men's college hockey tournament Thursday, April 9, 2026, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Wisconsin forward Ryan Botterill (21) scores against North Dakota goaltender Jan Spunar (35) in the first period of a semifinal game of the NCAA Frozen Four men's college hockey tournament Thursday, April 9, 2026, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Fans celebrate after Wisconsin defeated North Dakota in a semifinal game of the NCAA Frozen Four men's college hockey tournament Thursday, April 9, 2026, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)

MALE, Maldives (AP) — Divers on Wednesday recovered the last two bodies of four Italians who died deep inside an underwater cave in the Maldives last week.

The Italian divers had been exploring the cave in Vaavu Atoll on Thursday when they disappeared. The body of their Italian diving instructor was recovered outside the cave and the Finnish recovery divers brought the bodies of two of the divers to the surface Tuesday.

Presidential spokesperson Mohameed Hussain Shareef said the last two bodies were recovered by three Finnish divers supported by the Maldives coastguard and police.

The bodies were taken to a morgue and identified as Muriel Oddenino and Giorgia Sommacal. On Tuesday Monica Montefalcone and Federico Gualtieri were brought out, government spokesperson Ahmed Shaam said. The instructor, Gianluca Benedetti, was found near the mouth of the cave on the day the divers disappeared.

Montefalcone and Sommacal were mother and daughter.

“After that we will coordinate with the Italian government and start the procedure to repatriate the bodies,” Shareef said. He thanked the Finnish divers, praising them for their professionalism and leadership.

The four bodies were located Monday at a depth of around 60 meters (200 feet), twice the legal depth for recreational diving in the island nation. The search had been temporarily suspended after a local military diver died during a perilous retrieval attempt.

The Maldives government said the recovery divers spotted the bodies in the cave’s innermost area. Shaam said the four bodies were found “pretty much together.”

The cave has been explored in the past by local experts and foreign divers, presidential spokesperson Shareef told The Associated Press earlier.

While the Italian divers had a permit, authorities didn’t know from their proposal the exact location of the cave they were exploring, and at least two of the dead were not on the list of researchers that had been submitted, “so we didn’t know they were part of the expedition,” Shareef said.

He described the conditions deep in the cave as “challenging” with difficult terrain, strong currents and poor visibility.

An alert had also been issued due to bad weather and investigators must determine whether the divers took adequate precautions, Shareef said.

The Divers’ Alert Network Europe, which deployed the Finnish divers, described them as technical and cave divers with experience in search and recovery missions, including operations in “deep overhead environments, confined spaces and high-risk scenarios.”

The rescue team used closed-circuit rebreathers, a system that recycles exhaled breathing gas and removes carbon dioxide through a chemical scrubber, allowing for “significantly longer dives,” the organization said.

The cause of death of the Maldivian military diver was still under investigation, but colleagues have suggested he may have died from nitrogen narcosis or decompression at depth.

Francis reported from Colombo, Sri Lanka.

In this handout photo release by Maldives President Media Division, a Finnish diver gets ready to attempt to recover the bodies of two of the four Italians who died deep inside an underwater cave in an atoll earlier this month, at Alimathaa Island, in Vaavu Atoll, Maldives, Tuesday, May 19, 2026. (Maldives President Media Division via AP)

In this handout photo release by Maldives President Media Division, a Finnish diver, left, gets ready to attempt to recover the bodies of two of the four Italians who died deep inside an underwater cave in an atoll earlier this month, at Alimathaa Island, in Vaavu Atoll, Maldives, Tuesday, May 19, 2026. (Maldives President Media Division via AP)