College Hockey Rankings: Denver Pioneers Slotted At No. 15 In Both Polls

The Denver Pioneers moved back into the top 15 on both the USA Today and USCHO national college hockey rankings this week. Last week, Denver failed to qualify for USA Today's Top 15 list while it came in at No. 16 on USCHO's Top 20 list. The Pioneers have won five of their past six games to get back into the thick of things.

Minnesota-Duluth is once ranked No. 1 in both polls this week, the unanimous top team in each set of rankings. The overall top 5 was shook up a bit, though, by Ohio State and Notre Dame dropping in the rankings. While both were ranked in the top 3 in both polls last week, Ohio State is now ranked No. 5 in both polls while Notre Dame is out of the top 5. Colorado College also dropped, going from No. 8 to No. 11 in both polls this week.

Although the orders aren't identical, the same five teams populate the top of both polls: Minnesota-Duluth, Boston University, Boston College, Minnesota and Ohio State. The full USA Today poll is shown below, but you can find both polls in the links given above.

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NCAA Hockey Rankings: Colorado College, Denver Pioneers Fall In USCHO Poll

The Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs remained the No. 1 hockey team in the nation in the latest USCHO Top 20 Poll. They received 49 of 50 first-place votes while the other vote went to the Ohio State Buckeyes. The whole top five remained unchanged with the Minnesota Golden Gophers, the Boston College Eagles and the Meriimack Warrios checked in at Nos. 2, 3 and 5, respectively.

The Colorado College Tigers fell one spot to No. 7 after splitting a series with the Alaska-Anchorage Seawolves, 3-6 and 4-3.

The Denver Pioneers also dropped one spot from No. 13 to No. 14. The Pioneers beat the Bemidji State Beavers in the first game of the series, but on Saturday the team lost its first game to the Beavers, 1-2. At 7-6-3, the Pioneers are just hanging onto a spot in the top 20. They'll look to get back on track with a road trip against St. Cloud State.

College Hockey Rankings: Minnesota-Duluth Moves To Top Spot; Denver Pioneers Fall To No. 13

The Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs, last year's Frozen Four champions, are atop the latest college hockey polls. Both USCHO and USA Today have the Bulldogs at No. 1. Minnesota-Duluth swept the Michigan Tech Huskies over the weekend in the team's first games since Nov. 19.

Previously No. 1, Merrimack lost its first two games over the weekend. The Providence College Friars defeated Merrimack, 2-1 and 6-1.

In local action, the Colorado College Tigers moved to No. 6 in both polls, up from No. 8 last week. The Tigers won the second leg of the Battle for the Gold Pan against the Denver Pioneers, 4-3, on an overtime penalty shot. The Pioneers dropped from No. 10 in both polls to No. 13.

The Air Force Falcons received 30 votes in the USCHO Poll and one vote in the USA Today poll. The Falcons swept American International over the weekend to improve to 9-4-2 on the season.

Here is the latest Top 20 USCHO poll:

NCAA Hockey Rankings: Merrimack Remains At No. 1, Denver Pioneers No. 10 In Both Polls

The Denver Pioneers defeated the Princeton Tigers in the first leg of the 2011 Denver Cup Classic, but then fell to the Miami RedHawks, 4-2, in the championship game. As such, the Pioneers are now 6-4-3 and ranked No. 10 in both the USCHO and USA Today polls. The Pioneers play the Colorado College Tigers on Friday in the next leg of the Battle for the Gold Pan. The Tigers dropped from No. 4 in both polls to No. 8 after losing both road games to the North Dakota Fighting Sioux over the weekend.

The Merrimack Warriors remained the No. 1 team and have yet to suffer a loss this season. They defeated the Alabama-Huntsville Chargers, 6-0, on Wednesday.

The Air Force Falcons received six votes in the USCHO poll and two in the USA Today poll this week after taking a two-game set against the Connecticut Huskies. They are 7-4-2 overall and 6-2-1 in the AHA.

Dropped Out (USCHO): No. 19 Nebraska-Omaha.

Others Receiving Votes: Nebraska-Omaha 94, Massachusetts-Lowell 17, North Dakota 11, Northern Michigan 8, Air Force 6, Clarkson 5, St. Cloud State 3, Harvard 1.

College Hockey Rankings: Merrimack Moves To No. 1, Denver Pioneers Re-enter Top 10

The Merrimack Warrior have reached No. 1 in the college hockey polls for the first time in the program's history. The USCHO Top 20 and the USA Hockey Poll have elevated the Warriors to that spot this week. The Warriors are the only remaining undefeated team in the nation. The Warriors were idle this past week while the previous No. 1, the Minnesota Golden Gophers, went 1-1 against St. Cloud State over the weekend. The Gophers fell to No. 3 in the USCHO poll and No. 2 in the USA Hockey poll.

The Denver Pioneers re-entered the Top 10 at No. 9/10 in the polls after picking up a 7-3 victory over Nebraska-Omaha and then rallying for a 3-3 tie in the next game. In other local news, the Tigers moved to No. 4 in both polls after defeating the Wisconsin Badgers in two games over the weekend.

Here is the latest USCHO Top 20 Poll:

College Hockey Rankings: Denver Pioneers Move To No. 11, Colorado College Falls To No. 5

With a 5-4 victory over the Colorado Tigers on Friday evening, the Denver Pioneers have captured the first leg of the Battle for the Gold Pan that the school's play for annually. The Pioneers also saw a slight move up in the latest USCHO poll. After falling to No. 12 last week, the Pioneers moved to No. 11 this time around.

Colorado College dropped two spots from No. 3 to No. 5 with the loss. The Minnesota Gophers stayed at No. 1 while Merrimack moved from No. 6 to No. 2. Merrimack is 8-01 this season, the only undefeated team left this season. the Notre Dame Fighting Irish moved from No. 7 to No. 4 and Boston College dropped one spot to No. 3.

The Air Force Falcons received four votes this week even though they lost to both RIT and Mercyhurst.

Here is the current USCHO Top 20 poll:

College Hockey Rankings: Denver Pioneers Fall To No. 8 In USA Today Poll

The Denver Pioneers went winless over the weekend and fell six spots to No. 8 in the latest USA Today Top 15 Poll. The Michigan Tech Huskies shockingly defeated the Pioneers on Friday, 7-2, but the Pioneers did lose starting goalie Adam Murray in the first period. Juho Olkinuora completed the game and made his first start on Saturday night. That game ended in a 2-2 tie after the Pioneers blew a third-period lead. The Huskies gained 21 points in this week's poll.

Boston College remained No. 1 and its only loss was against the Pioneers. The Colorado College Tigers remained unbeaten after sweeping a two-game set against Rennselaer, 4-1 in each game. Rylan Schwartz scored three goals and brother Jaden had one goal. Yale finally began its season and has a 1-0-1 record for No. 9 and a first-place vote.

The Air Fore Falcons received vote after tying Robert Morris on Saturday, 3-3. The Falcons are 3-2-2 on the season.

Here is the latest USA Today Top 15 poll:

Dropped Out: No. 14 Colgate.

Others Receiving Votes: Northern Michigan 23, Colgate 21, Michigan Tech 21, Quinnipiac 18, Maine 12, Clarkson 9, Dartmouth 6, Air Force 1.

College Hockey Rankings: Denver Pioneers Move To No. 2 In USCHO Poll

The Boston College Eagles hockey team returned to No. 1 in the USCHO Top 20 poll this week. Since dropping a decision to the Denver Pioneers, the Eagles have won three straight games against New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Northeastern.

Also making the jump up this week are the Denver Pioneers. They defeated the Minnesota State Vikings in a two-game series over the weekend. They picked up a 10-2 victory in the second game of the series. Colorado College had the weekend off and moved up to No. 3.

Formerly No. 1, the Michigan Wolverines dropped their first game of the season with a 5-3 loss to Northern Michigan. They barely pulled out the win the next night, taking the victory in a shootout after regulation and overtime resulted in a 3-3 tie.

The Air Force Falcons (3-2-1) received 17 votes this week after going 1-0-1 against the Alabama-Huntsville Chargers.

Here is the USCHO Top 20 Poll:

Others Receiving Votes: Wisconsin 74; Maine 72; Michigan Tech 33; Nebraska-Omaha 30; Dartmouth 29; Alaska-Anchorage 25; Bowling Green 22; Providence 21; Air Force 17; Alaska 16; Clarkson 16; Holy Cross 14; Bemidji State 7; Massachusetts-Lowell 5; St. Cloud State 3; Ohio State 2; Vermont 2.

College Hockey Rankings 2011: Denver Pioneers Remain At No. 3 After Splitting Road Series

There's a new No. 1 team in college hockey, but it isn't the Denver Pioneers. Rather, it's the Michigan Wolverines, who are 4-0 for the season after a 10-3 victory over St. Lawrence last Thursday. They jumped from No. 4 to the top spot.

The Boston College Eagles, previously the No. 1 team fell to No. 2 with a loss to the Denver Pioneers last Friday. However, the Pioneers stayed at No. 3 in the rankings as a result of a Saturday loss to the Boston U. Terriers.

The Colorado College Tigers come in right behind the Pioneers at No. 4, three spots better than last week. The Tigers defeated the Bemidji State Beavers, 3-1 and 6-4, over the weekend. Sophomore Jaden Schwartz has two goals and four points to start the season. His brother Ryland leads the team with three goals.

The Air Force Falcons went 2-0 over the weekend with victories over Niagara and Robert Morris. They received 15 votes this week with a 2-2 record.

Here is the Top 20 from USCHO:

Others receiving votes: Michigan Tech 97, Alaska-Anchorage 88, Providence 69, Alaska 66, Quinnipiac 42, Dartmouth 33, Nebraska-Omaha 16, Air Force 15, Massachusetts-Lowell 12, New Hampshire 12, Rochester Institute of Technology 9, Wisconsin 9, Harvard 8, Ohio State 4, Northeastern 3, Rensselaer 2.

College Hockey Rankings: BC Eagles, DU Pioneers Move To Nos. 1, 3 In USA Hockey Poll

The USA Hockey Top 15 Poll has followed the USCHO poll and moved the Boston College Eagles up to No. 1. They are the overwhelming No. 1 team in the nation, picking up 27 first-place votes. They went an impressive 2-0 in the 2011 Ice Breaker Tournament.

The Miami University Redhawks dropped from the top spot to No. 4 following a 1-1 opening weekend. Notre Dame remained at No. 2 while the Denver Pioneers, who have yet to start their regular season, moved up to No. 3.

Michigan leaped from No. 9 to No.5 this week, causing several teams to fall in the rankings. The 1-0 Boston University and the 0-0 Colorado College Tigers dropped to Nos. 7 and 8.

Here is the latest USA Hockey Top 15 Poll:

Others receiving votes: University of New Hampshire, 43; University of Maine, 21; University of Wisconsin, 15; Colgate University, 10; Cornell University, 7; Ferris State University, 6; Northern Michigan University, 6; University of Alaska, 5; Dartmouth College, 5; Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 3; St. Cloud University, 2; Bemidji State University, 1; Rochester Institute of Technology, 1

College Hockey Rankings: Boston College Moves To No. 1, Denver Pioneers Walk To No. 3

The college hockey season is sure to be an exciting one. We already have a new No. 1 team after the first week of play.