It's like we're back in Worcester. The top-three
teams in the latest INCH Power Rankings played in an NCAA
Regional there last spring. Yale returned to form with a pair
of wins this weekend and Boston College moved up to the second
spot. Third-ranked North Dakota rounds out the trio.
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. |
 Yale |
— |
Yale bounced back from its second loss of the year with
a pair of three-goal wins. The Bulldogs have won 11 of
their 17 games by three goals or more. |
| 17-2-0 (11-1-0
ECAC Hockey) LAST WEEK: W vs. Clarkson, 5-2; W vs. St.
Lawrence, 4-1. THIS WEEK: at Union, at Rensselaer (Big
Red Freakout!) |
| 2. |
 Boston
College |
 2 |
BC defenseman Brian Dumoulin scored a power-play goal
that turned into the game-winner against BU, then assisted
on three Eagle goals in a win over UMass Lowell. |
| 17-6-0 (13-5-0
Hockey East) LAST WEEK: W vs. Boston University, 3-2;
W vs. UMass Lowell, 5-3. THIS WEEK: at UMass Lowell |
| 3. |
 North
Dakota |
 1 |
The eight goals scored by Nebraska Omaha in Grand Forks
Friday are the most scored by a visitor in the 10-year
history of the new Ralph Engelstad Arena and the most
allowed by the Fighting Sioux at home since Minnesota
hung a 10 spot on NoDak back in 1992. |
| 18-7-2 (13-5-0
WCHA) LAST WEEK: L vs. Nebraska-Omaha, 8-4; W vs. Nebraska-Omaha,
4-2. THIS WEEK: at Colorado College, at Colorado College |
| 4. |
 Minnesota
Duluth |
1 |
By blanking Michigan Tech twice in Houghton this past
weekend, the Bulldogs recorded the first series shutout
in school history; it’s just the second time in
the 67-year history of UMD hockey that the Bulldogs held
opponents scoreless in consecutive games. |
| 17-5-3 (12-4-2
WCHA) LAST WEEK: W at Michigan Tech, 5-0; W at Michigan
Tech, 3-0. THIS WEEK: Off |
| 5. |
 Denver |
1 |
The Pioneers were 4-4-2 on Nov. 6 after dropping a 9-2
decision at Colorado College. In the 16 games they’ve
played since then, DU is 12-1-3 overall and 9-0-1 at Magness
Arena. |
| 16-5-5 (12-3-3
WCHA) LAST WEEK: W vs. Alaska Anchorage, 3-2; W vs. Alaska
Anchorage, 5-1. THIS WEEK: Off |
| 6. |
 Michigan |
1 |
Forward Carl Hagelin had five assists in the Wolverines’
weekend sweep of Alaska to extend his current point streak
to nine games (6-13—19). He’s had multiple
points in all but one of those matches. |
| 17-6-4 (14-4-1
CCHA) LAST WEEK: W vs. Alaska, 2-0; W vs. Alaska, 4-0.
THIS WEEK: vs. Michigan State (Joe Louis Arena; Detroit) |
| 7. |
 New
Hampshire |
4 |
Saturday’s 3-2 loss to Boston University at the
Whittemore Center snapped the Wildcats’ 27-game
home unbeaten streak against Hockey East foes. |
| 13-5-4 (11-2-2
Hockey East) LAST WEEK: W vs. Providence, 4-3 ot; L vs.
Boston University, 2-1. THIS WEEK: at Providence, vs.
Providence |
| 8. |
 Rensselaer |
2 |
RPI broke a trend of splitting five-straight conference
weekends with a four-point effort in wins over Harvard
and Dartmouth. Momentum builds ahead of this weekend's
Big Red Freakout! against top-ranked Yale. |
| 15-6-3 (7-5-0
ECAC Hockey) LAST WEEK: W vs. Harvard, 3-2; W vs. Dartmouth,
5-1. THIS WEEK: vs. Brown, vs. Yale (Big Red Freakout!) |
| 9. |
 Union |
1 |
Union rallied for two third-period goals and defeated
Harvard, the Dutchmen's first win this season in six games
when trailing after two periods. |
| 16-7-3 (8-3-1
ECAC Hockey) LAST WEEK: L vs. Dartmouth, 4-1; W vs. Harvard,
2-1. THIS WEEK: vs. Yale, vs. Brown |
| 10. |
 Merrimack |
1 |
A loss on Saturday snapped Merrimack's six-game winning
streak, which was the program's longest since joining
Hockey East and since the 1987-88 season. |
| 13-5-4 (7-5-3
Hockey East) LAST WEEK: W vs. Boston University, 3-2;
L vs. UMass Lowell, 6-4. THIS WEEK: vs. Vermont, vs. Vermont |
| 11. |
 Wisconsin |
2 |
With the weekend sweep of visiting Minnesota State,
the Badgers extended their home winning streak to nine,
the longest in Kohl Center history and the best in a single
season since 1985-86. |
| 17-8-3 (9-7-2
WCHA) LAST WEEK: W vs. Minnesota State, 3-2; W vs. Minnesota
State, 2-1. THIS WEEK: at Michigan Tech, at Michigan Tech |
| 12. |
 Notre
Dame |
1 |
One night after being pulled in the Fighting Irish’s
6-1 loss at Ohio State, sophomore goaltender Mike Johnson
stopped 29 of the 30 shots he faced Saturday to lead his
team to a 4-1 win against the Buckeyes and a series split. |
| 16-9-3 (13-6-1
CCHA) LAST WEEK: L at Ohio State, 6-1; W at Ohio State,
4-1. THIS WEEK: vs. Miami, vs. Miami |
| 13. |
 Miami |
1 |
Disgusted with Friday’s 7-4 loss
at Michigan State, coach Enrico Blasi benched four regulars—defensemen
Cameron Schilling and Will Weber and forwards Alden Hirschfeld
and Curtis McKenzie. The result? A 4-0 shutout of the
Spartans Saturday. |
| 14-9-3 (11-7-2
CCHA) LAST WEEK: L at Michigan State, 7-4; W at Michigan
State, 4-0. THIS WEEK: at Notre Dame, at Notre Dame |
| 14. |
 Maine |
— |
Five of Maine's six losses this year have come against
teams currently ranked in our top-15— BC (twice),
Merrimack, New Hampshire and Miami. |
| 11-6-5 (8-4-3
Hockey East) LAST WEEK: T at Northeastern, 3-3 ot. THIS
WEEK: vs. Boston University, vs. Boston University |
| 15. |
 Nebraska-Omaha |
— |
A simple breakdown of the Mavericks’ season to
date: In its 13 wins, UNO has scored a total of 59 goals,
an average of more than 4.5 goals per game. In its nine
losses, the Mavs have registered a total 18 goals for
an average of 2.0 per game. |
| 13-9-2 (10-6-2
WCHA) LAST WEEK: W at North Dakota, 8-4; L at North Dakota,
4-2. THIS WEEK: vs. Alabama-Huntsville, vs. Alabama-Huntsville |
| 16. |
 Western
Michigan |
1 |
The Broncos have fewer CCHA wins (six) than all but
two teams but are in a fourth-place tie in the league
standings thanks to a conference-best seven ties and a
four overtime shootout wins. |
| 12-6-8 (6-5-7
CCHA) LAST WEEK: T at Lake Superior State, 2-2 ot; T at
Lake Superior State, 4-4 ot. THIS WEEK: vs. Northern Michigan,
vs. Northern Michigan |
| 17. |
 Boston
University |
1 |
The Terriers turned around a pair of one-goal losses
with a 2-1 victory at New Hampshire. Now, a weekend at
Maine and the upcoming Beanpot are an opportunity to get
this BU season turned in the right direction for the stretch
run. |
| 11-7-6 (8-5-4
Hockey East) LAST WEEK: L at Merrimack, 3-2; L vs. Boston
College, 3-2; W at New Hampshire, 2-1. THIS WEEK: at Maine,
at Maine |
| 18. |
 Dartmouth |
— |
If it seems like Dartmouth usually struggles against
RPI, it's because it's probably true. Dartmouth is 3-6-1
in its last 10 games against the Engineers over the last
four seasons. |
| 11-6-2 (7-4-1
ECAC Hockey) LAST WEEK: W at Union, 4-1; L at Rensselaer,
5-1. THIS WEEK: vs. Cornell, vs. Colgate |
| 19. |
 Ohio
State |
1 |
Super Bowl Sunday is a win-win proposition for senior
forward Sergio Somma. The Pittsburgh native, who had a
pair of assists in Friday’s 6-1 win over Notre Dame,
played junior hockey for the United States Hockey League’s
Green Bay Gamblers. |
| 13-10-2
(8-8-2 CCHA) LAST WEEK: W vs. Notre Dame, 6-1; L vs. Notre
Dame, 4-1. THIS WEEK: at Alaska, at Alaska |
| 20. |
 Princeton |
NR |
Princeton returns from its exam break with a non-leaguer
Tuesday against Sacred Heart before making the trip to
upstate New York's North Country and games at St. Lawrence
and Clarkson. |
| 11-6-1 (7-4-1
ECAC Hockey) LAST WEEK: Off. THIS WEEK: vs. Sacred Heart,
at St. Lawrence, at Clarkson |