When the best teams in the country host the
worst in their conferences in best-of-three series, we shouldn't
expect much movement at the top of the INCH Power Rankings.
That said, there were some surprises outside the top eight,
and even a couple new faces as we hit the weekend of the NCAA
selection show.
Here's how the Inside College Hockey editors
and staff rank the nation's top teams (along with a note for
each team).
| No. |
Team |
|
Of
Note |
| 1. |
 Notre
Dame |
— |
Tavis MacMillan, Alaska's head coach, called the Irish
"the best team I've ever seen" as a player or
a coach. |
| 29-6-3 (21-4-3
CCHA) LAST WEEK:W vs. Alaska, 7-1; W vs. Alaska, 3-1.
THIS WEEK: vs. Lake Superior State. |
| 2. |
 Minnesota |
— |
The big winners in the Gophers' first-round series win
over Alaska Anchorage? The WCHA, which got an extra night
of gate receipts at Mariucci Arena, not to mention this
week at the X. |
| 28-9-3 (18-7-3
WCHA) LAST WEEK: W vs. Alaska Anchorage, 6-2; L vs. Alaska
Anchorage, 2-1 ot; W vs. Alaska Anchorage, 3-1. THIS WEEK:
vs. winner of Wisconsin/Michigan Tech. |
| 3. |
 St.
Cloud State |
— |
Nodl-eh-hee-hoo: The Huskies' Andreas Nodl scores the
game-winner in Sunday's 3-2 win against Minnesota Duluth,
ending the three-overtime marathon 111:33 after the opening
faceoff. |
| 22-8-7 (14-7-7
WCHA) LAST WEEK: L vs. Minnesota Duluth, 3-1; W vs. Minnesota
Duluth, 3-2 ot; W vs. Minnesota Duluth, 3-2 ot. THIS WEEK:
vs. North Dakota. |
| 4. |
 Clarkson |
— |
The key to Clarkson's 22.8 percent power play? Balance,
with five players recording at least six PPGs. |
| 23-8-5 (13-5-4
ECACHL) LAST WEEK: W vs. Harvard, 3-0; W vs. Harvard,
2-1. THIS WEEK: vs. Dartmouth. |
| 5. |
 North
Dakota |
— |
The WCHA's only favorite to sweep, the Sioux won both
ends of a home series for the first time since Quinnipiac
visited in the first weekend of the year. |
| 21-12-5 (13-10-5
WCHA) LAST WEEK: W vs. Minnesota State, 5-2; W vs. Minnesota
State, 2-1. THIS WEEK: vs. St. Cloud State. |
| 6. |
 New
Hampshire |
— |
The Wildcats coasted to two shutouts, but Kevin Regan
had to earn 'em, posting 42 saves each night. |
| 25-9-2 (18-7-2
Hockey East) LAST WEEK: W vs. Providence, 4-0; W vs. Providence,
6-0. THIS WEEK: vs. Massachusetts. |
| 7. |
 Boston
College |
— |
Cory Schneider claimed the BC shutout record from Scott
Clemmensen Friday night. No word if that comes with a
seat on the New Jersey Devils' bench for a night. |
| 24-11-1 (18-8-1
Hockey East) LAST WEEK: W vs. Northeastern, 3-0; W vs.
Northeasterm, 7-1. THIS WEEK: vs. Boston University. |
| 8. |
 Boston
University |
— |
The Terriers are 3-0-1 against the other Hockey East
semifinalists since Groundhog Day. |
| 20-8-9 (13-6-8
Hockey East) LAST WEEK: L vs. Vermont, 3-2; W vs. Vermont,
2-0; W vs. Vermont, 3-2 ot. THIS WEEK: vs. Boston College. |
| 9. |
 Michigan |
 2 |
If you're a fan of rivalries watching at home Friday
night, where do you turn at 8 p.m. ET? Michigan-Michigan
State or Boston College-Boston University? |
| 25-12-1 (18-9-1
CCHA) LAST WEEK: W vs. Northern Michigan, 4-1; W vs. Northern
Michigan, 8-3. THIS WEEK: vs. Michigan State. |
| 10. |
 St.
Lawrence |
2 |
In the sweep-happy ECACHL, the Saints had one of those
fancy Dyson vacuums while everyone else used brooms. |
| 22-12-2 (16-5-1
ECACHL) LAST WEEK: W vs. Colgate, 6-1; W vs. Colgate,
5-1. THIS WEEK: vs. Quinnipiac. |
| 11. |
 Michigan
State |
2 |
Good news for the green and white entering the season
of interminable OTs: the Spartans are 3-0-3 in extra sessions
this year. |
| 21-12-3 (15-10-3
CCHA) LAST WEEK: W vs. Nebraska-Omaha, 4-2; W vs. Nebraska-Omaha,
4-1. THIS WEEK: vs. Michigan. |
| 12. |
 Miami |
 3 |
The RedHawks' first two-loss weekend came at a bad time.
Assuming they reach the NCAAs, it just takes one loss
from here on out. |
| 23-13-4 (16-8-4
CCHA) LAST WEEK: L vs. Lake Superior State, 2-1; L vs.
Lake Superior State, 2-1. THIS WEEK: Off. |
| 13. |
 Massachusetts |
1 |
The Minutemen make their third trip to the Hockey East
semifinals, and have faced New Hampshire all three times
(1-1 previously). |
| 20-11-5 (15-9-3
Hockey East) LAST WEEK: W vs. Maine, 3-2; W vs. Maine,
5-2. THIS WEEK: vs. New Hampshire. |
| 14. |
 Denver |
4 |
At 1-6-2 in their last nine, if the Pioneers do make
the tournament, they'll enter with a pronounced limp. |
| 21-15-4 (13-11-4
WCHA) LAST WEEK: L vs. Wisconsin, 3-2; L vs. Wisconsin,
2-1. THIS WEEK: Off. |
| 15. |
 Dartmouth |
— |
Junior J.T. Wyman had five points this weekend, or 22.7
percent of his season total (22). |
| 18-10-3 (12-7-3
ECACHL) LAST WEEK: W vs. Princeton, 6-2; W vs. Princeton,
3-2. THIS WEEK: vs. Clarkson |
| 16. |
 Quinnipiac |
3 |
The Bobcats' weekend sweep of Cornell gives them 20+
wins for the third straight season and the eighth time
in the last nine seasons. |
| 20-13-5 (10-8-4
ECACHL) LAST WEEK: W at Cornell, 1-0 ot; W at Cornell,
3-2. THIS WEEK: vs. St. Lawrence. |
| 17. |
 Maine |
1 |
The last time the Black Bears failed to
advance to the Hockey East semifinals was in 2003, when
they were swept out of the first round by – surprise!
– UMass. |
| 21-14-2 (14-12-1
Hockey East) LAST WEEK: L at Massachusetts, 3-2; L at
Massachusetts, 5-2. THIS WEEK: Off. |
| 18. |
 Michigan
Tech |
NR |
Get a look at those scores below. Is this MTU or M.T.
United? |
| 18-16-5 (11-12-5
WCHA) LAST WEEK: W at Colorado College, 2-1 ot; L at Colorado
College, 2-0; W at Colorado College, 1-0. THIS WEEK: vs.
Wisconsin. |
| 19. |
 RIT |
1 |
The bad news: the Tigers' season ended two weeks ago,
as the Atlantic Hockey regular-season champs are ineligible
for the league playoffs. The good news: RIT had a better
weekend than Denver, Maine or Miami. |
| 21-11-2 (20-7-1
Atlantic Hockey) LAST WEEK: Off. THIS WEEK: Off |
| 20. |
 Lake
Superior State |
NR |
Folks in the Soo know all-too-well to fear a Jeff Jackson
team in the postseason. |
| 21-17-3 (11-14-3 CCHA) LAST
WEEK: W at Miami, 2-1; W at Miami, 2-1. THIS WEEK: vs.
Notre Dame. |