It's becoming tougher and tougher for teams to maintain their spot in the rankings. This week, the top five teams were relatively clear-cut. But with teams like Boston College, Union, and St. Cloud State faltering, it created chaos in the bottom half of our poll, and an opportunity for some new faces to make an appearance on this week's big board.
Rank |
Chris |
Jeff |
Nate |
Matt |
Ryan |
Mary |
Josh |
SBN Rank |
1 | Minnesota | Minnesota | Minnesota | Minnesota | Minnesota | Minnesota | Minnesota | Minnesota (70) |
2 | Boston University | Boston University | North Dakota | North Dakota | Boston University | Boston University | North Dakota | Boston University(60) |
3 | North Dakota | North Dakota | Boston University | Boston University | North Dakota | North Dakota | Boston University | North Dakota (59) |
4 | Michigan Tech | Michigan Tech | Michigan Tech | UMass Lowell | Michigan Tech | Michigan Tech | Michigan Tech | Michigan Tech (48) |
5 | UMass Lowell | UMass Lowell | Miami | Michigan Tech | UMass Lowell | UMass Lowell | UMass Lowell | UMass Lowell (41) |
6 | Miami | Miami | UMass Lowell | Omaha | Omaha | Miami | Miami | Miami (33) |
7 | Colgate | Omaha | Minnesota Duluth | Minnesota Duluth | Miami | Colgate | Omaha | Omaha (22) |
8 | Minnesota Duluth | Colgate | Colgate | Miami | Minnesota Duluth | Omaha | Colgate | Colgate (21) |
9 | Minnesota State | Robert Morris | Robert Morris | Colgate | Colgate | Robert Morris | Vermont | Minnesota Duluth(14) |
10 | St. Lawrence | Vermont | Omaha | Minnesota State | Robert Morris | Vermont | Robert Morris | Robert Morris(8) |
1. Minnesota 7-1-0 (70)
Father got the last laugh over son, as Minnesota swept Notre Dame over the weekend. Minnesota showed no ill effects in their first games after losing center Travis Boyd and defenseman Brady Skjei to injury. The Gophers cruised to a 5-0 win on Friday. On Sunday, three goals in a dominant first period carried the Gophers to a 4-2 win.
-Chris Dilks
2. Boston University 5-1-0 (60)
The Terriers continued their hot start this past weekend, earning a 5-3 win at archrival Boston College and a 4-4 tie with Connecticut to improve to 5-1-1 on the season. Three different players recorded four points each over the weekend as senior Evan Rodrigues and junior Danny O'Regan posted two goals and two assists while freshman Jack Eichel scored once and chipped in three assists. Friday night's win, in which Rodrigues scored the fourth two-goal game of his career, marked BU's first on the other end of Commonwealth Ave. since recording two in 2011-12. O'Regan scored twice, including a goal 35 seconds into the first period, and dished an assist in the Terriers' first-ever Hockey East clash with the UConn. BU plays its lone game of next weekend on Friday night at Maine's Alfond Arena.
-Josh Kummins
3. North Dakota 7-1-1 (59)
A North Dakota trip to Madison used to be occasion to throw water bottles and punches, but these days, Wisconsin just makes people want to throw up. North Dakota let Wisconsin hang around in both games this weekend, but North Dakota outscored the Badgers a combined 6-1 in the third period this weekend and picked up a pair of wins against a Wisconsin team that is the only team in the nation without a win or tie to their credit.
-Chris Dilks
4. Michigan Tech 8-0-0 (48)
On a weekend when Michigan Tech welcomed back their 1965 national championship-winning team for a 50-year reunion, the Huskies remained unblemished on the season with a pair of victories over Alaska-Anchorage. The Huskies are now a perfect 8-0-0 on the season. Credit former insidecollegehockey.com editor Mike Eidelbes for pulling the amazing stat that between '96-97 and '10-'11, Michigan Tech won 8 or fewer games for their entire season in 10 out of those 16 seasons. It's been quite a turnaround in Houghton.
-Chris Dilks
5. UMass Lowell 6-1-2 (41)
The River Hawks picked up three Hockey East points with a win and a tie in a home-and-home with Northeastern, maintaining their tie with Vermont atop the league standings. Junior Adam Chapie netted the equalizing goal in Friday's 3-3 home stalemate before Jeff Smith registered his first shutout as a collegian with a 20-save effort in a 5-0 victory at Matthews Arena. Norm Bazin's team has received incredible offensive depth as 18 different players have recorded at least one goal in the early going. UML welcomes Penn State to Tsongas Center next weekend for the Nittany Lions' first-ever visit to a Hockey East school as a Division 1 program.
-Josh Kummins
6. Miami 7-3-0 (33)
The RedHawks took care of business against NCHC bottom-feeder Colorado College with victories of 3-0 and 5-1. Miami fired 41 shots on goal in both games to bring their season average to 39.60 per game, the second-highest total in the NCAA. They'll face a much tougher test next weekend when they travel to North Dakota.
-Chris Dilks
7. Nebraska Omaha 6-1-1 (22)
The Mavericks continue to be one of college hockey's biggest surprises. They finished off their six-game road trip unbeaten with a pair of wins at Ohio State. They trailed 3-1 in the third period on Saturday, but came back to earn a 4-3 win. They'll have next weekend off, before playing their first home series since the season's opening weekend when they face Minnesota Duluth.
-Chris Dilks
8. Colgate 7-3-0 (21)
The Raiders got hammered on Friday night when Quinnipiac beat them 5-0, but bounced back with a 5-1 win over Princeton the following night. That makes splits in back-to-back weekends for Colgate, who seems to have cooled off a bit since their hot start to the season, but is still playing well enough to hold a place in our poll.
-Chris Dilks
9. Minnesota Duluth 6-4-0 (14)
After four consecutive series splits against good competition, Minnesota Duluth made a statement by sweeping St. Cloud State in St. Cloud. Cal Decowski's overtime winner on Friday gave UMD their first regular season win in St. Cloud since 2004. On Saturday, they completed their first sweep in St. Cloud since 1999. The Bulldogs are an elite team at their best, but have struggled to put together two strong games on the same weekend this year. This was a great weekend for them to start.
-Chris Dilks
10. Robert Morris 7-0-1 (8)
Robert Morris had last weekend off. The Colonials are one of only three teams in the country without a loss yet, alongside Michigan Tech and 1-0-2 Harvard. Their unbeaten record will be put to the test this upcoming weekend when they host Air Force.
-Chris Dilks