The Minnesota - Wisconsin rivalry does not lack for tradition and intensity. 
It goes back to the 1920's, when both programs were established.  At one point 
brothers Emil and Kay Iverson were the coaches of the Gophers and Badgers 
respectively.  Here's an excerpt from an article in the Feb. 1926 Wisconsin 
Engineer, which I pulled up via Google:

"Far from being ... considered an uninteresting, poorly attended, and losing 
sport, hockey has risen from this position to that of a top-notch game. In
other years, Wisconsin has finished near the bottom of the heap, but this year 
shows a marked change. Some excellent material is reporting for the team, much 
of it from  the College of Engineering, and under the excellent guidance of Kay 
Iverson, coach of outdoor winter sports, it has been developed into a high 
speed conference team, able to make a good showing with the best of teams.
    ...
"On the following weekend, a real hockey match took place with Minnesota, whose 
team usually walks off with the conference honors in hockey. Coach Kay 
Iverson's team proved fully the equal of his brother's Gophers for the two 
fast games ended in ties, the first 0-0, and the second 1-1.
    ...
"These ties, considering the rating of the opponents, and the fact that this 
year's team is one of the best, are almost as good as victories for Wisconsin. 
Coach Emil Iverson of Minnesota was certain of victory and could scarcely 
believe his eyes-every place he looked he said he could see a redcoat, and he 
counted them to make sure that his brother was not playing too many men."

<<end of excerpt>>

The rivalry went dormant when Wisconsin dropped varsity hockey in the 1930's, 
but it came back with renewed vigor in the 1960's. There's been plenty of 
hatred to go around -- consider the rancor between Herb Brooks and Badger Bob. 
  There have also been comic events, like the time in the 1970's when Paul 
Holmgren took out a row of Wisconsin trombones that were hanging over the 
glass.  And then there's that little matter of the Back-Door Badgers beating 
the Gophers for the 1981 NCAA championship in Duluth.

This rivalry takes a back seat to none.

-- Erik

> Erik,
> 
> Thanks for opening that can or worms, and for not letting sleeping dogs lie.
> 
> There is more to same-state location (all but UM vs. UW) or same conference
> membership (all but UAA vs UAF, yes UAF not UA) to make a rivalry. There is
> history and tradition. Maybe Clarkson stole St. Lawrence's cow (leaving them
> only with the bell) or maybe St. Lawrence reprogrammed the Clarkston arena
> scoreboard to read "Clarkson Good Night". You need these stories, silliness,
> and hatred to make a good rivalry. BU vs BC and MSU vs UM seem to have that
> extra edge that make a real rivalry. I have not seen that edge in UW vs UM
> but I do not know enough about CC vs DU.
> 
> But it is the stories that make the rivalry, the history and the tradition.
> A good brawl -- on the ice or in the stands -- always helps.