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HockeyBuzz NCAA Top-10 Power Rankings |
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Welcome to the HockeyBuzz NCAA Top-10 Power Rankings.
With conference games headlining the weekend, this past weekend provided a handful of interesting storylines across the college hockey landscape.
There were also some impressive individual performances as well, such as a four-goal performance by Harvard’s Alex Laferriere in Saturday’s win over Colgate and a hat trick by Ben Berard in Cornell’s win over Dartmouth.
Here are this week’s HockeyBuzz NCAA Top-10 Power Rankings:
1) St. Cloud State 8-2 (2-0-0 NCHC) | Last Week: 1
It was another weekend at the office for the Huskies, sweeping Colorado College for their first two conference wins of the season. The Huskies got seven goals over the weekend from five different skaters with Jarmi Krannila picking up a pair in Friday’s win, and Micah Miller scoring in each contest.
2) Michigan 8-2 (3-1-0 Big Ten) | Last Week: 3
It was another all-around solid weekend for Michigan, continuing to look like a powerhouse inside college hockey. The Wolverines swept rival Michigan State, scoring 10 goals in the process. Already home to a dangerous group of offensive fire power, Boston Bruins prospect Johnny Beecher returned to the lineup, scoring once and adding an assist over the weekend.
3) Minnesota State 7-3 (3-1-0 CCHA) | Last Week: 2
Minnesota State falling back a spot in the rankings is directly related to their 2-1 loss to Ferris State Friday night as the Bulldogs pulled off the upset. The Mavericks did bounce back nicely the following night with a 5-1 victory. There’s not any concern with where the Mavericks go from here.
4) Minnesota Duluth 6-2 (1-1-0 NCHC) | Last Week: 4
Duluth remains in the four spot after a weekend split with Western Michigan. After dropping Friday’s contest to the Broncos, the Bulldogs responded very well, shutting out Western Michigan behind 35 Ryan Fanti saves.
5) Quinnipiac 7-1-2 (2-0-0 ECAC) | Last Week: 7
The Bobcats continue their climb up the rankings after a weekend that saw Quinnipiac shutout Yale on Friday and Brown on Saturday. The Bobcats have allowed two or less in goals in 10 of 11 games this season and are proving to be a legitimate contende.
6) Western Michigan 6-2 (1-1-0 NCHC) | Last Week: 5
The Broncos continue to impress in a difficult NCHC. There two losses have been against Michigan and Minnesota Duluth, two of the nation’s top teams. The Broncos hit you hard with a balanced attack and stellar goaltending in net.
7) Minnesota 6-4 (3-1-0 Big Ten) | Last Week: 6
Minnesota drops a spot in the rankings after a split at Wisconsin, losing in overtime Friday night. The Golden Gophers were very solid in Saturday’s victory with the scoring spread out between four skaters. Next up for Minnesota is a home slate with Ohio State.
8) Harvard 4-0 (3-0-0 ECAC) | Last Week: 9
I continue to be more and more impressed with Harvard, and how well they continue to look. The Crimson picked up a pair of conference wins with victories over Cornell and Clarkson. Harvard continues to show a tremendous amount of offensive depth.
9) North Dakota 6-3 (2-0-0 NCHC) | Last Week: 10
Just when I thought North Dakota would be falling out of my power rankings, especially after their loss to Penn State in Nashville, the Fighting Hawks bounced back with a solid performance this past weekend, sweeping Denver.
10) UMass 6-2 (4-0-0 Hockey East) | Last Week: NR
I’ve been a bit disappointed with how UMass has looked so far in their title defense. But the Minutemen really impressed me this past weekend, dominating Providence in a weekend sweep and in the process, outscoring the Friars 6-1.
Previously ranked teams missing the cut: Providence
Other teams considered: Omaha, Denver, Northeastern, Ohio State
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