Hockey ranked in final USCHO.com poll for fourth straight season
MINNEAPOLIS – For the fourth year in a row, the Michigan Tech hockey team is ranked in the top 20 in the final USCHO.com poll. The Huskies finished 2017-18 ranked No. 16 in the USCHO.com Poll and No. 15 in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Poll after a 22-17-5 overall record.
Tech was ranked No. 9 at the end of the 2014-15 season, No. 16 after the 2015-16 season, and No. 19 after the 2016-17 season. It was also the fourth season in a row that the Huskies won 20 games—something that hasn't been done since 1972-76 when Tech went to three NCAA Championship games.
The Huskies received preseason votes in the USCHO.com poll and were ranked throughout the month of October, coming in as high as No. 15 on October 9 after winning the Ice Breaker Tournament. They were No. 15 on October 16, No. 16 on October 23, and No. 20 on October 30. Tech received votes in the January 1, 15, and 22 polls before climbing back in at No. 19 on March 19 after winning the WCHA Tournament Championship.
The Black and Gold appeared in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Poll on October 9 (No. 13) and April 9 (No. 15). The Huskies received votes in the preseason, on October 16, 23, 30, and on March 19.
Tech finished fifth in the WCHA standings with a 12-11-5-2 league mark. The Huskies went on to win the WCHA Championship Game on March 17 over Northern Michigan, taking home the Jeff Sauer Trophy and securing a bid to the NCAA Tournament for the 13th time in school history and third time in four seasons.
The senior class won 97 games—the most since the 1984 class. The class was the first since 1978 to have a winning record all four seasons. They took the Huskies to three NCAA Tournaments, won a pair of WCHA Tournament Titles, won the MacNaughton Cup as WCHA regular season champs as sophomores, and were ranked the No. 1 team in the nation in 2014-15 after a program-best 10-0 start. They also won the Desert Hockey Classic in 2015-16 and the Ice Breaker Championship earlier this season.
The USCHO.com Poll consists of 50 voters, including coaches, beat writers, and sports professionals from across the country. The poll, published weekly by the Associated Press, is a production of USCHO.com, which provides in-depth coverage of college hockey.
USCHO.com Poll - April 9, 2018
|
|
Team (1st) |
Record |
Points |
Last |
|
1. |
Minnesota Duluth (50) |
25-16-3 |
1000 |
11 |
|
2. |
Notre Dame |
28-10-2 |
950 |
2 |
|
3. |
Ohio State |
26-10-5 |
901 |
5 |
|
4. |
Michigan |
22-15-3 |
825 |
10 |
|
5. |
Denver |
23-10-8 |
787 |
3 |
|
6. |
St. Cloud State |
25-9-6 |
721 |
1 |
|
7. |
Providence |
24-12-4 |
658 |
7 |
|
8. |
Cornell |
25-6-2 |
605 |
4 |
|
9. |
Minnesota State |
29-10-1 |
602 |
6 |
|
10. |
Boston University |
22-14-4 |
536 |
13 |
|
11. |
Northeastern |
23-10-5 |
532 |
8 |
|
12. |
Clarkson |
23-11-6 |
470 |
9 |
|
13. |
Penn State |
18-15-5 |
358 |
12 |
|
14. |
Air Force |
23-15-5 |
287 |
NR |
|
15. |
Princeton |
19-13-4 |
273 |
16 |
|
16. |
Michigan Tech |
22-17-5 |
246 |
18 |
|
17. |
North Dakota |
17-13-10 |
235 |
14 |
|
18. |
Minnesota |
19-17-2 |
189 |
15 |
|
19. |
Boston College |
20-14-3 |
140 |
17 |
|
20. |
Northern Michigan |
25-15-3 |
87 |
19 |
USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Poll - April 9, 2018
|
|
Team (1st) |
Points |
Last |
Records |
|
1. |
Minnesota Duluth (34) |
510 |
3 |
25-16-3 |
|
2. |
Notre Dame |
476 |
1 |
28-10-2 |
|
3. |
Ohio State |
436 |
2 |
26-10-5 |
|
4. |
Michigan |
396 |
4 |
22-15-3 |
|
5. |
St. Cloud State |
367 |
6 |
25-9-6 |
|
6. |
Denver |
353 |
5 |
23-10-8 |
|
7. |
Cornell |
270 |
7 |
25-6-2 |
|
8. |
Minnesota State |
259 |
9 |
29-10-1 |
|
9. |
Providence |
244 |
8 |
24-12-4 |
|
10. |
Northeastern |
203 |
10 |
23-10-5 |
|
11. |
Boston |
202 |
11 |
22-14-4 |
|
12. |
Clarkson |
148 |
12 |
23-11-6 |
|
13. |
Penn State |
87 |
13 |
18-15-5 |
|
14. |
Air Force |
36 |
14 |
23-15-5 |
|
15. |
Michigan Tech |
27 |
15 |
22-17-5 |