December 29, 2003
INCH Power Rankings

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Did you have a nice holiday?

That's the question on everyone's lips as you return to work or school after the Christmas break. Everyone answers "yes", of course – unless they are fans of Maine, Brown, Harvard, ...

Here's how the Inside College Hockey editors and staff ranks the nation's top teams (along with movement since last week and a note). You can let us know what you think, including your name and hometown, and we'll share your thoughts below.

No. Team

Of Note
1. North Dakota It's almost January and the Sioux are undefeated on the road. Of course, they've played just two games away from home thus far.
13-2-0 (7-1-0 WCHA). LAST WEEK: W vs. Findlay, 3-1; W vs. Wayne State 8-2. THIS WEEK: at St. Cloud State, at St. Cloud State.
2. Boston College G Joe Pearce, subbing for suspended Matti Kaltiainen, extends Eagles' unbeaten streak to 12 as BC wins GLI.
13-2-3 (6-0-2 Hockey East). LAST WEEK: W vs. Michigan, 4-1; W vs. Michigan State, 4-3. THIS WEEK: at Northeastern.
3. Wisconsin 1 Speaking of suspended goalies, Brian Elliot played well in place of Bernd Bruckler, but the Badgers ran into red-hot Mike Brown and Ferris State Sunday.
12-4-4 (6-2-4 WCHA). LAST WEEK: W vs. Union, 8-1; L vs. Ferris State, 3-1. THIS WEEK: at Minnesota State, at Minnesota State.
4. Colorado College 1 Tigers are back in action this week, but the real matchup of interest for CC, RPI, SLU and Clarkson looms Jan. 12 at the NCAA Convention.
9-4-3 (4-4-2 WCHA). LAST WEEK: Off. THIS WEEK: vs. Wayne State, vs. St. Lawrence.
5. Maine 2 If it's truly a down year in the CCHA, that's news to the Black Bears.
12-4-1 (6-2-1 Hockey East). LAST WEEK: L vs. Ohio State, 4-2; L vs. Notre Dame, 1-0. THIS WEEK: vs. Vermont.
6. Denver Pioneers are 8-0-0 outside the WCHA, with two more non-conference visitors this weekend.
13-6-3 (5-6-3 WCHA). LAST WEEK: W vs. Niagara, 3-2; W vs. Nebraska-Omaha, 6-3. THIS WEEK: vs. St. Lawrence, vs. Wayne State.
7. St. Cloud State 3 Dunk this: Huskies take Dunkin' Donuts Coffee Pot title by scoring a dozen goals in two games.
12-6-2 (8-4-2 WCHA). LAST WEEK: W vs. Harvard, 6-4; W vs. Providence, 6-1. THIS WEEK: vs. North Dakota, vs. North Dakota.
8. Cornell 4 A gulden effort: First two goals of the year land Mike Iggulden Everblades MVP honors.
6-2-5 (4-0-2 ECAC). LAST WEEK: W vs. Notre Dame, 4-0; W vs. Ohio State, 4-3 ot. THIS WEEK: Off.
9. New Hampshire Eddie Caron faces his former teammates – practice teammates, at least – when Yale visits this weekend.
11-6-2 (5-3-2 Hockey East). LAST WEEK: Off. THIS WEEK: vs. Yale.
10. Michigan 2 Hard to believe Wolverines, who won nine straight GLI titles not long ago, haven't taken the tourney's top honors since 1996.
12-7-1 (7-4-1 CCHA). LAST WEEK: L vs. Boston College, 4-1; W vs. Michigan Tech, 6-2. THIS WEEK: Off.
11. Ohio State Buckeyes, in their fourth appearance in the tourney, made their first Everblades final and were one goal away from taking the title.
12-8-0 (8-5-0 CCHA). LAST WEEK: W vs. Maine, 4-2; L vs. Cornell, 4-3 ot. THIS WEEK: Off.
12. Miami 2 Two RedHawks – seniors Derek Edwardson and Greg Hogeboom – scored their 100th career points in Dec. 21 win vs. Princeton.
11-7-2 (8-3-1 CCHA). LAST WEEK: Off. THIS WEEK: Off.
13. Minnesota 2 For some reason, we're hearing a lot more from Gopher fans the past few weeks than we did in October and November.
9-8-1 (4-7-1 WCHA). LAST WEEK: Off. THIS WEEK: vs. Boston University, vs. Boston University.
14. Massachusetts Two ties for the Minutemen, and two more reasons we wish the Sheraton/Banknorth Classic had stuck with a true tournament format.
9-4-5 (5-2-2 Hockey East). LAST WEEK: T vs. Dartmouth, 3-3 ot; T vs. Vermont, 5-5 ot. THIS WEEK: at UMass Lowell, vs. UMass Lowell.
15. Dartmouth 1 Dartmouth and Cornell have combined for 10 ties, but here's an even more important number: they've combined for zero conference losses.
5-2-5 (3-0-3 ECAC) LAST WEEK: T vs. Massachusetts, 3-3 ot; W vs. Minnesota State, 8-5. THIS WEEK: vs. Vermont.
16. Brown 9 We're man enough to admit that we had overrated the Bears. But it's still saying something that they are the superior team in the ECAC's toughest travel pairing (with Harvard).
6-3-3 (6-2-1 ECAC). LAST WEEK: L vs. Wayne State, 3-2 ot; T vs. Findlay, 1-1 ot. THIS WEEK: at Rensselaer, at Union.
17. Notre Dame Bring on UNH: the Irish have beaten Hockey East's top two teams, BC and Maine, both by 1-0 scores, with Mike Walsh scoring the lone goal in each game.
9-6-2 (7-5-2 CCHA). LAST WEEK: L vs. Cornell, 4-0; W vs. Maine, 1-0. THIS WEEK: vs. Findlay.
18. Michigan State Even though they fell short in GLI championship game, give the Spartans credit for battling back from a three-goal, first period deficit against BC.
10-9-1 (7-4-1 CCHA). LAST WEEK: W vs. Michigan Tech, 7-2; L vs. Boston College, 4-3. THIS WEEK: vs. Northern Michigan, vs. Northern Michigan.
19. Minnesota Duluth Enjoy memories of Lake Placid as Bowling Green and UMD face off this weekend.
9-8-2 (7-5-0 WCHA). LAST WEEK: Off. THIS WEEK: vs. Bowling Green, vs. Bowling Green.
20. Holy Cross NR Crusaders – 9-1-1 in their last 11 games – look for first non-conference win of the season this weekend as they host Alabama-Huntsville.
11-4-1 (11-1-1 Atlantic Hockey). LAST WEEK: T vs. Concordia, 2-2 (Ex.); L vs. Dalhousie, 4-2 (Ex.). THIS WEEK: vs. Alabama-Huntsville, vs. Alabama-Huntsville.

Dropped out: Harvard

Bubble-licious: Niagara, Ferris State, Quinnipiac, Alaska Anchorage

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