March 13, 2005
INCH Power Rankings

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Seeding speculation:
INCH 4x4
Last week's rankings
USA Today/American Hockey Magazine Poll
USCHO.com/CSTV Poll

Five conferences hand out playoff championship trophies this weekend and though it's not the trophy everyone wants, it's still a significant achievement. Seventeen teams in this week's INCH Power Rankings harbor league postseason title aspirations (an 18th, Bemidji State, already won the CHA crown). Our challenge to you this week – avoid focusing solely on highfalutin mathematics that determine who makes the NCAA Tournament based on a team's record against opponents wearing red jerseys on odd-numbered days in months that end in 'y'. Instead, cheer your team on to a league title. If they win, no number cruncher can keep 'em out. If they don't, we've got our projections for the NCAA Tournament field in INCH 4x4.

Here's how the Inside College Hockey editors and staff rank the nation's top teams (along with movement since last week and a note for each team).

No. Team

Of Note
1. Cornell Most fans will remember Topher Scott's OT goal from Saturday night, but we're still stunned by Dave McKee's pad save on Mike Sullivan three minutes earlier.
24-4-3 (18-2-2 ECACHL). LAST WEEK: W vs. Clarkson, 5-0; W vs. Clarkson, 3-2 ot. THIS WEEK: vs. Vermont.
2. Colorado College Ask the Dean. Only once in school history has CC claimed even a share of the WCHA playoff title. The year was 1978, and there was a former Tiger player named Jeff Sauer at the helm.
28-7-3 (19-7-2 WCHA). LAST WEEK: W vs. St. Cloud State, 8-2; W vs. St. Cloud State, 4-2. THIS WEEK: vs. Minnesota.
3. Denver The Pioneers apparently abandoned the "lose in the first round of the WCHA playoffs, win the NCAA title" plan. At least the first part of it.
26-9-2 (19-7-2 WCHA). LAST WEEK: W vs. Michigan Tech, 7-1; W vs. Michigan Tech, 1-0. THIS WEEK: vs. Wisconsin/North Dakota winner.
4. Boston College Unbeaten Cory Schneider (10-0-4) returned from injury to play goal in Saturday's clincher, giving Jerry York an interesting choice between him and senior Matti Kaltiainen.
23-6-7 (14-3-7 Hockey East). LAST WEEK: W vs. Massachusetts, 3-2 ot; W vs. Massachusetts, 5-1. THIS WEEK: vs. Maine.
5. Michigan Wolverines extend unbeaten streak to 11 with sweep of Notre Dame in bipolar first-round playoff series (10-1 Friday, 1-0 Saturday).
28-7-3 (23-3-2 CCHA). LAST WEEK: W vs. Notre Dame, 10-1; W vs. Notre Dame, 1-0 ot. THIS WEEK: vs. lowest remaining seed in CCHA semifinals.
6. Minnesota 1 Gophers improve to 22-0 all time in WCHA playoff games at the new Mariucci. Now they head to the Xcel, where they're merely 11-3 (with a NCAA title and two WCHA playoff titles) all-time.
26-12-1 (17-10-1 WCHA). LAST WEEK: W vs. Minnesota State, 7-2; W vs. Minnesota State, 5-3. THIS WEEK: vs. Colorado College.
7. New Hampshire 1 Memories of UNH's 0-2-2 end to the regular season were erased with four second-period goals Thursday night.
24-9-5 (15-5-4 Hockey East). LAST WEEK: W vs. Northeastern, 6-1; W vs. Northeastern, 4-0. THIS WEEK: vs. Boston University.
8. Ohio State 2 John Dingle's goal 4:40 into OT of Sunday's rubber match vs. Ferris State capped a furious Buckeye rally. They trailed 4-2 halfway through the third period.
26-9-4 (21-5-2 CCHA). LAST WEEK: W vs. Ferris State, 4-2; L vs. Ferris State, 1-0 ot; W vs. Ferris State, 5-4 ot. THIS WEEK: vs. second-lowest remaining seed in CCHA semifinals.
9. Harvard The Crimson senior class is now 15-1-0 in the ECACHL Tournament, making it the one tournament they don't struggle in.
20-8-3 (15-5-2 ECACHL). LAST WEEK: W vs. St. Lawrence, 2-0; W vs. St. Lawrence, 3-2. THIS WEEK: vs. Colgate.
10. Maine 2 The supposedly defensive-minded Black Bears scored 12 goals, including six on the power play, against one of the nation's two best teams not to host games this past weekend.
20-11-7 (13-6-5 Hockey East). LAST WEEK: W vs. UMass Lowell, 7-2; W vs. UMass Lowell, 5-1. THIS WEEK: vs. Boston College.
11. Boston University After 52 Terrier shots didn't lead to a win Friday night, John Curry took matters into his own hands. He stopped every Friar shot Saturday and Sunday.
23-12-4 (15-5-4 Hockey East). LAST WEEK: L vs. Providence, 4-1; W vs. Providence, 2-0; W vs. Providence, 2-0. THIS WEEK: vs. New Hampshire.
12. Colgate 1

Possibly the only team that looks forward to playing Harvard. Raiders swept the Crimson in the regular season.

24-9-3 (14-5-3 ECACHL). LAST WEEK: W vs. Brown, 4-1; W vs. Brown, 3-0. THIS WEEK: vs. Harvard.
13. Wisconsin 3 Yanked in game one, benched in game two, senior goalie Bernd Brückler redeems himself, winning a tight game three as the Badgers dodge an Alaskan bullet.
23-12-4 (16-9-3 WCHA). LAST WEEK: W vs. Alaska Anchorage, 5-4; L vs. Alaska Anchorage, 2-1; W vs. Alaska Anchorage, 2-1. THIS WEEK: vs. North Dakota.
14. Vermont 1 Basketball stars Taylor Coppenrath and David Hehn were rewarded for winning America East title with a ride on the Zamboni at The Gut on Sunday night.
21-12-4 (13-6-3 ECACHL). LAST WEEK: L vs. Dartmouth, 3-2; W vs. Dartmouth, 3-2 ot; W vs. Dartmouth, 1-0. THIS WEEK: vs. Cornell.
15. North Dakota 3 Must See TV? Fighting Sioux are 0-2 in their previous appearances in the Final Five play-in game. Of course, those losses happened in seasons where they weren't averaging seven goals per game in the playoffs.
20-13-5 (13-12-3 WCHA). LAST WEEK: W vs. Minnesota Duluth, 8-2; W vs. Minnesota Duluth, 6-1. THIS WEEK: vs. Wisconsin.
16. Northern Michigan Since the Wildcats re-joined the CCHA in 1997-98, they've advanced to the Joe Louis Arena portion of the league tournament every year but one.
22-10-7 (17-7-4 CCHA). LAST WEEK: L vs. Western Michigan, 2-1; W vs. Western Michigan, 4-2; W vs. Western Michigan, 4-1. THIS WEEK: vs. Alaska-Fairbanks.
17. UMass Lowell 3 The River Hawks were 20-7-4 against everybody besides Maine. If they had only played the Black Bears once, they'd be looking at an NCAA bid.
20-12-4 (11-10-3 Hockey East). LAST WEEK: L at Maine, 7-2; L at Maine, 5-1.
18. Dartmouth 1 How much spunk will Dartmouth's practices have this week, as the Big Green await a potential spot in the NCAA Tournament?
20-13-2 (14-8-0 ECACHL). LAST WEEK: W at Vermont, 3-2; L at Vermont, 3-2 ot; L at Vermont, 2-1.
19. Quinnipiac The Bobcats may be leaving Atlantic Hockey, but for now, they don't have to leave home. They'll host the semis and championship this weekend.
20-12-3 (16-6-2 Atlantic Hockey). LAST WEEK: W vs. Army, 2-0. THIS WEEK: vs. Bentley.
20. Bemidji State Bemidji's Ryan Miller is a forward. The guy playing like The Ryan Miller is Matt Climie, the Beavers' goalie.
23-12-0 (16-4-0 CHA). LAST WEEK: W vs. Air Force, 6-0; W vs. Alabama-Huntsville, 3-0. THIS WEEK: Off.

Dropped out: None

Bubble-licious: Nebraska-Omaha, Michigan State, Alaska-Fairbanks, Alabama-Huntsville

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