For most of the top teams in the INCH Power
Rankings, the first week of December was a win-win situation,
as five of the top nine teams posted two wins each.
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. |
 Minnesota |
— |
A three-point weekend for the Gophers, and a no-point
weekend for Tyler Hirsch, who was a healthy scratch both
nights for not working hard in practice. |
| 13-1-3 (7-0-3
WCHA) LAST WEEK: T vs. Minnesota State, 5-5 ot; W at Minnesota
State, 2-1. THIS WEEK: at Michigan Tech, at Michigan Tech. |
| 2. |
 New
Hampshire |
— |
The 'Cats have scored four goals or more in 10 of their
14 games this season. |
| 11-2-1 (9-1-1
Hockey East) LAST WEEK: W vs. Merrimack, 5-0; W vs. Vermont,
4-1. THIS WEEK: at UMass Lowell, vs. St. Lawrence. |
| 3. |
 Maine |
— |
Ben Bishop's first career shutout came in his 43rd career
start for the Black Bears. |
| 9-3-1 (4-3-1 Hockey
East) LAST WEEK: W vs. Providence, 3-0. THIS WEEK: vs.
New Brunswick (Ex.), at Northeastern. |
| 4. |
 Notre
Dame |
— |
Memo to athletic director Kevin White: Please deposit
the $4.5 million BCS payout check over to the Build a
New Hockey Arena Fund. |
| 12-3-1 (7-2-1
CCHA) LAST WEEK: W vs. Alaska, 3-1; W vs. Alaska, 6-2.
THIS WEEK: at Michigan, vs. Michigan. |
| 5. |
 Boston
College |
— |
When visiting Boston we find the Foggy Goggle to be
a much better alternative to the foggy hockey rink. |
| 8-4-1 (5-2-1 Hockey
East) LAST WEEK: W vs. Boston University, 1-0. THIS WEEK:
at Massachusetts, vs. Massachusetts. |
| 6. |
 Miami |
 1 |
Special team: The RedHawks rank second nationally on
the power play and fourth in penalty-killing. |
| 13-5-0 (9-3-0
CCHA) LAST WEEK: W vs. Ferris State, 5-3; W vs. Ferris
State, 7-2. THIS WEEK: at Ohio State, vs. Ohio State. |
| 7. |
 Michigan |
 1 |
This weekend's series with Michigan is opposite of the
Wolverine-Irish football game: no one can score on the
Domers, and the Skunk Hats can't keep anyone from scoring.
|
| 12-5-0 (8-3-0
CCHA) LAST WEEK: L vs. Western Michigan, 6-3; W at Western
Michigan, 6-5. THIS WEEK: vs. Notre Dame, at Notre Dame. |
| 8. |
 Colorado
College |
4 |
CC's four-game losing streak earlier in the year
doesn't look so bad when you factor that it came against
the two best teams in the country. |
| 10-5-1 (7-3-0
WCHA) LAST WEEK: W vs. Denver, 5-1; W at Denver, 3-2.
THIS WEEK: vs. Alaska-Anchorage, vs. Alaska-Anchorage. |
| 9. |
 St.
Cloud State |
4 |
At this point last season the Huskies were 6-8-2 overall
and in seventh place in the WCHA. |
| 8-3-3 (6-3-3 WCHA)
LAST WEEK: W at Michigan Tech, 4-1; W at Michigan Tech,
3-2 ot. THIS WEEK: vs. Colgate, vs. Colgate. |
| 10. |
 Boston
University |
1 |
Don't worry BU fans, there's a lot of the season left.
The last two times the Terriers had been shutout were
in the NCAA Tournament. |
| 5-3-5 (3-3-4 Hockey
East) LAST WEEK: T vs. Massachusetts, 2-2; L vs. Boston
College, 1-0. THIS WEEK: vs. Providence. |
| 11. |
 North
Dakota |
1 |
Robbie Bina had two goals and an assist in the exhibition
win against the Under-18s, including the game-winner in
OT. |
| 7-6-1 (5-4-1 WCHA)
LAST WEEK: W vs. US Under-18s, 5-4 ot (Ex.). THIS WEEK:
vs. Wisconsin, vs. Wisconsin. |
| 12. |
 Cornell |
3 |
Freshman goalie Ben Scrivens entered Friday's game when
Troy Davenport got hurt, and Scrivens didn't allow a goal
in 91:46 of playing time. |
| 8-3-1 (5-2-1 ECACHL)
LAST WEEK: T vs. Rensselaer, 3-3 ot; W vs. Union, 6-0.
THIS WEEK: Off. |
| 13. |
 Denver |
5 |
Through 16 games, Denver's defensemen have combined
to score 24 points. Last year, Matt Carle had 22 points
in his first 16 games. |
| 9-6-1 (5-4-1 WCHA)
LAST WEEK: L at Colorado College, 5-1; L vs. Colorado
College, 3-2. THIS WEEK: vs. Minnesota State, vs. Minnesota
State. |
| 14. |
 Massachusetts |
3 |
Senior Chris Capraro played his 100th game for UMass
on Saturday and celebrated the milestone with four assists
in a 6-2 win over Niagara. |
| 7-3-2 (4-2-1 Hockey
East) LAST WEEK: T at Boston University, 2-2; W vs. Niagara,
6-2. THIS WEEK: at Merrimack, vs. Boston College, at Boston
College. |
| 15. |
 Vermont |
NR |
There's no shame in losing at UNH, but Vermont has an
all-time record of 3-29-2 at Durham. |
| 9-5-1 (6-2-1 Hockey
East) LAST WEEK: W at Harvard, 2-1 ot; W at UMass Lowell,
2-1; L at New Hampshire, 4-1. THIS WEEK: vs. US Under-18s
(Ex.). |
| 16. |
 Clarkson
|
NR |
The Golden Knights lost four straight,
but have rebounded with a four-game winning streak and
entertain their biggest rival on Tuesday night in Potsdam. |
| 10-5-1 (4-2-0
ECACHL) LAST WEEK: W at Yale, 4-1; W at Brown, 2-1. THIS
WEEK: vs. St. Lawrence. |
| 17. |
 Michigan
State |
6 |
Last weekend's split with Ohio State gives the Spartans
a 21-27-8 mark during Rick Comley's tenure between Halloween
and Christmas. |
| 7-7-1 (5-5-1 CCHA)
LAST WEEK: W vs. Ohio State, 4-1; L vs. Ohio State, 4-1.
THIS WEEK: at Northern Michigan, at Northern Michigan. |
| 18. |
 Dartmouth |
— |
Only two of Dartmouth's 10 games thus far have been
played on the road, and the Big Green won both of them. |
| 5-3-2 (4-3-2 ECACHL)
LAST WEEK: Off. THIS WEEK: Off. |
| 19. |
 Quinnipiac |
— |
Quinnipiac is 5-0-2 in its last seven games against
Union and Rensselaer, who visit the Bobcats this weekend. |
| 7-4-3 (4-2-2 ECACHL)
LAST WEEK: Off. THIS WEEK: vs. Rensselaer, vs. Union.
|
| 20. |
 Lake
Superior State |
NR |
All he does is stop pucks. Jeff Jakaitis' 6-4-1 record
isn't gaudy, but his 1.70 GAA and .949 save percentage
sure are. |
| 10-5-1 (5-4-1 CCHA) LAST WEEK:
W vs. Northern Michigan, 2-0; W at Northern Michigan,
5-2. THIS WEEK: at Ferris State, at Ferris State. |