Quinnipiac Picked as Preseason Favorite in ECAC Hockey

Quinnipiac was selected as the preseason favorite in ECAC Hockey by the coaches and media, as announced at the league's media day Monday at Times Union Center in Albany, N.Y. St. Lawrence, led by first-year head coach Mark Morris, and Harvard round out the top three in both polls.

The Bobcats received first-place votes from six of the league's 12 head coaches, leading second-place St. Lawrence by eight points and two votes for the top spot. QU finished last season with a 32-4-7 record and lost just one game in ECAC play, advancing to the NCAA Tournament for the fourth straight season.

Harvard and Clarkson rounded out the top four as selected by the coaches, while Yale and Cornell finished in the next two spots and earned a first-place vote apiece. The Saints gained seven first-place votes and trailed by ten points in the media's ranking.

Quinnipiac and St. Lawrence each had two players named to the Preseason All-Conference Team, which the coaches and media picked identically. The Bobcats' selections are brothers in seniors Connor and Tim Clifton.

The following are the full polls, with first-place votes indicated in parentheses and team points earned, and the preseason All-Conference Team:

Coaches Poll
1. Quinnipiac (6), 110
2. St. Lawrence (4), 102
3. Harvard, 96
4. Clarkson, 88
5. Yale (1), 84
6. Cornell (1), 75
7. Union, 71
8. RPI, 51
9. Dartmouth, 41
10. Brown, 31
11. Colgate, 22
12. Princeton, 21

Media Poll
1. Quinnipiac (12), 288
2. St. Lawrence (8), 280
3. Harvard (3), 257
4. Yale, 222
5. Cornell (1), 216
6. Clarkson (3), 214
7. RPI, 166
8. Union, 160
9. Dartmouth, 110
10. Colgate, 85
11. Brown, 62
12. Princeton, 59

Preseason All-Conference Team
G - Kyle Hayton, St. Lawrence
D - Gavin Bayreuther, St. Lawrence
D - Connor Clifton, Quinnipiac
F - Tim Clifton, Quinnipiac
F - Alexander Kerfoot, Harvard
F - Mike Vecchione, Union