Saturday night when the Dubuque Fighting Saints visit the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders, it will be the first of 36 games which will determine which Iowa team takes home the 2026/27 Dupaco Cowbell Cup.

This year, every head-to-head matchup involving the Des Moines Buccaneers, the Waterloo Black Hawks, the RoughRiders, and the Fighting Saints will count toward the Dupaco Cowbell Cup standings.  The series will run through the final night of the regular season when Waterloo hosts Des Moines on April 3rd.

"The Dupaco Cowbell Cup has become a fun tradition that brings Iowa hockey fans and communities together," said Tara McDermott, Senior Marketing & Communication Specialist at Dupaco.  "We're proud to continue supporting this series and the teams, players, and fans who make it such a special part of the hockey season. We look forward to another exciting year of competition."

Each year since 2015, Dupaco Community Credit Union has presented the Cowbell Cup to the team celebrating the strongest results in the geographic rivalry.  The Dubuque Fighting Saints claimed the trophy during the 2025/26 season.

Hockey fans in each market will have the chance to score a "hat trick" of sorts during the Dupaco Cowbell Cup series this year.  Each team will give away hundreds of Dupaco Cowbell Cup hats on one promotional night during their respective home schedules. At Young Arena, the free hats will be given away when the Black Hawks host the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders on Saturday, January 30th.  In addition, dozens of Dupaco Cowbell Cup t-shirts will be tossed into the crowd at each rink throughout the course of the winter.  Fans may have opportunities to snag other promotional items when they attend games during the series.

"Iowa is home to some great hockey fans who really make these rivalry games exciting," said Black Hawks President and COO Joe Greene.  "Without the passion and enthusiasm of the fans in all four cities, these games would not be the special occasions they are.  The Black Hawks would like to thank Dupaco for their long-term commitment to this partnership, which highlights the world-class hockey played in Waterloo, Cedar Rapids, Des Moines, and Dubuque."

In order to make every game count with an unbalanced schedule, standings for the four teams will be computed based on a new formula.  The percentage of possible points earned from each head-to-head series will be averaged equally to create a modified winning percentage (MWP).  For example, through Thanksgiving the Black Hawks will play six Dupaco Cowbell Cup games worth two points apiece.  If the Hawks earn one of two points against Cedar Rapids (.500), one of four points versus Des Moines (.250), and five of six points versus Dubuque (.833), the average of those three percentages yields a .527 MWP.

Standings for the Dupaco Cowbell Cup will be updated on each team's website and also displayed on a dedicated standings board in each arena.

The full 2026/27 Dupaco Cowbell Cup composite schedule follows:
 

September 26	Dubuque at Cedar Rapids	ImOn Ice Arena	7:05 p.m.
October 2	Dubuque at Waterloo	Young Arena	6:35 p.m
October 3	Cedar Rapids at Dubuque	ImOn Arena	7:05 p.m.
October 16	Waterloo at Des Moines	MidAmerican Energy Company RecPlex	7:05 p.m.
October 17	Des Moines at Waterloo	Young Arena	6:35 p.m.
October 31	Dubuque at Waterloo	Young Arena	3:05 p.m.
November 1	Waterloo at Dubuque	ImOn Arena	5:05 p.m.
November 13	Dubuque at Des Moines	MidAmerican Energy Company RecPlex	7:05 p.m.
November 14	Des Moines at Dubuque	ImOn Arena	7:05 p.m.
November 26	Cedar Rapids at Waterloo	Young Arena	6:35 p.m.
November 28	Waterloo at Cedar Rapids	ImOn Ice Arena	7:05 p.m.
December 4	Cedar Rapids at Des Moines	MidAmerican Energy Company RecPlex	7 :05 p.m.
December 5	Des Moines at Dubuque	ImOn Arena	7 :05 p.m.
December 15	Cedar Rapids at Des Moines	MidAmerican Energy Company RecPlex	7:05 p.m.
December 18	Cedar Rapids at Dubuque	ImOn Arena	7:05 p.m.
December 19	Dubuque at Cedar Rapids	ImOn Ice Arena	7:05 p.m.
December 29	Des Moines at Waterloo	Young Arena	6:35 p.m.
December 31	Des Moines at Dubuque	ImOn Arena	6:05 p.m.
January 8	Waterloo at Dubuque	ImOn Arena	7:05 p.m.
January 9	Dubuque at Cedar Rapids	ImOn Ice Arena	7:05 p.m.
January 17	Waterloo at Des Moines	MidAmerican Energy Company RecPlex	3:05 p.m.
January 30	Cedar Rapids at Waterloo	Young Arena	6:35 p.m.
February 5	Des Moines at Cedar Rapids	ImOn Ice Arena	7:05 p.m.
February 6	Des Moines at Cedar Rapids	ImOn Ice Arena	7 :05 p.m.
February 9	Dubuque at Waterloo	Young Arena	6:35 p.m.
February 12	Cedar Rapids at Dubuque	ImOn Arena	7:05 p.m.
	Waterloo at Des Moines	MidAmerican Energy Company RecPlex	7:05 p.m.
February 13	Dubuque at Des Moines	MidAmerican Energy Company RecPlex	6:35 p.m.
	Waterloo at Cedar Rapids	ImOn Ice Arena	7:05 p.m.
February 26	Cedar Rapids at Dubuque	ImOn Arena	7:05 p.m.
February 27	Cedar Rapids at Waterloo	Young Arena	6:35 p.m.
March 5	Dubuque at Cedar Rapids	ImOn Ice Arena	7:05 p.m.
	Waterloo at Des Moines	MidAmerican Energy Company RecPlex	7:05 p.m.
March 6	Waterloo at Cedar Rapids	ImOn Ice Arena	7:05 p.m.
March 30	Des Moines at Waterloo	Young Arena	6:35 p.m.
April 3	Des Moines at Waterloo	Young Arena	6:35 p.m.

About Dupaco

Dupaco Community Credit Union is a not-for-profit, member-owned financial cooperative headquartered in Dubuque, Iowa. It is dedicated to the financial well-being of its members, and specializes in personalized financial counseling, money advice, and education. It offers savings, loans, investments, insurance and wealth management products for individuals and businesses. Dupaco serves residents in 118 counties throughout Iowa, northwest Illinois and southwest Wisconsin. Founded in 1948 by ten Dubuque Packing Company employees, membership has grown to more than 180,000 with assets exceeding $3.6 billion. It has over 600 employees and 22 branch office locations.  Learn more at www.dupaco.com.