Monday, September 30, 2019

Leagues Name Preseason Favorites

Coaches, media project their top teams by conference for 2019-20.

Leagues Name Preseason Favorites
Penn State returns its top five scorers from 2018-19, including junior Evan Barratt.

As the Oct. 5 puck drop for the 2019-20 season rapidly approaches, Division I men’s conferences have released preseason coaches’ and media polls projecting the favorites entering the campaign.

Defending league champions take the top spot in Atlantic Hockey (American International), ECAC Hockey (Cornell) and the WCHA (Minnesota State). The two-time defending national champion Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs take the top spot in the NCHC preseason poll.

Penn State and Boston College, two teams that lost in their conference championship games last March, are picked first in the Big Ten and Hockey East, respectively.

Last season’s preseason polls correctly predicted three of six conference champions.

Atlantic Hockey Coaches Poll
1. American International (10) 100
2. Niagara 78
3. Bentley (1) 77
  Sacred Heart 77
5. RIT 66
6. Air Force 60
7. Robert Morris 46
8. Army West Point 38
9. Mercyhurst 25
10. Holy Cross 21
11. Canisius 17
Big Ten Coaches Poll
1. Penn State
2. Notre Dame
3. Wisconsin
4. Ohio State
5. Minnesota
6. Michigan
7. Michigan State
ECAC Hockey Coaches Poll
1. Cornell (8) 118
2. Quinnipiac (3) 109
3. Clarkson (1) 100
4. Harvard 93
5. Yale 74
6. Dartmouth 68
7. Brown 61
8. Union 57
9. Rensselaer 31
10. Princeton 31
11. Colgate 29
12. St. Lawrence 21
ECAC Hockey Media Poll
1. Cornell (13) 185
2. Clarkson 163
3. Quinnipiac (1) 162
4. Harvard (1) 150
5. Dartmouth (1) 123
6. Yale 108
7. Brown 96
8. Union 86
9. Colgate 54
10. Rensselaer 52
11. Princeton 50
12. St. Lawrence 19
Hockey East Coaches Poll
1. Boston College (8) 97
2. Massachusetts (2) 85
3. Providence 78
4. Northeastern (1) 73
5. Boston University 72
6. UMass Lowell 53
7. New Hampshire 40
8. Maine 39
9. Connecticut 38
10. Vermont 19
11. Merrimack 11
NCHC Media Poll
1. Minnesota Duluth (23) 218
2. Denver (2) 178
3. Western Michigan (3) 156
4. North Dakota 143
5. St. Cloud State 138
6. Colorado College 81
7. Omaha 53
8. Miami 41
WCHA Coaches Poll
1. Minnesota State (9) 90
2. Bowling Green (1) 82
3. Bemidji State 63
4. Northern Michigan 61
5. Michigan Tech 59
6. Lake Superior State 58
7. Alaska 39
8. Ferris State 38
9. Alabama Huntsville 30
10. Alaska Anchorage 20
WCHA Media Poll
1. Minnesota State (10) 100
2. Bowling Green 89
3. Northern Michigan 72
4. Michigan Tech 68
5. Bemidji State 62
6. Lake Superior State 57
7. Ferris State 37
8. Alaska 27
9. Alabama Huntsville 26
10. Alaska Anchorage 12