The CCHA released their Coaches and Media polls today, and in a bit of a surprise, Michigan was picked first in both. I don't know, apparently that flukely goal that bounced off the back boards and sent the wheels off the wagon against Bemidji State last spring was enough to make people forget how Notre Dame kicked everyone's ass last year.
Here are what the polls looked like:
COACHES POLL
Rank
School (First-Place Votes)
Points
1
Michigan (5)
114
2
Notre Dame (4)
111
3
Miami (2)
104
4
Ohio State
90
5
Northern Michigan (1)
85
6
Nebraska-Omaha
63
7
Alaska
61
8
Ferris State
50
9
Michigan State
46
10
Lake Superior State
29
11
Western Michigan
28
12
Bowling Green
11
MEDIA POLL
| Rank | School (First Place Votes) | Points |
| 1 | Michigan (24) | 731 |
| 2 | Notre Dame (20) | 712 |
| 3 | Miami (20) | 707 |
| 4 | Ohio State (1) | 547 |
| 5 | Northern Michigan | 502 |
| 6 | Alaska | 386 |
| 7 | Nebraska-Omaha | 377 |
| 8 | Michigan State (1) | 332 |
| 9 | Ferris State | 314 |
| 10 | Western Michigan | 256 |
| 11 | Lake Superior | 189 |
| 12 | Bowling Green | 95 |
I guess the poll pretty accurately reflects what a three-team race the CCHA will be this year. I'd love to know who thought the team that couldn't outscore American International(How can you be both???) last season is going to turn it around and win the league this year. I like to imagine they found a 10-year-old ballot just lying around the CCHA offices one day decided to throw it into this year's poll.
Anyway, the league seems to be broken down into tiers just year. The race for 1-3 should be fun to watch. 4-7 should be fun to watch. And the rest....well, it may not be fun to watch, but those last couple first home ice spots should at least be competitive.