DENVER – The University of Denver was selected as the favorite to win the 2024-25 National Collegiate Hockey Conference regular season in the annual NCHC Preseason Media Poll that was released on Wednesday.
 
Denver was voted first by local and national media members for the third consecutive season. The Pioneers finished second in the NCHC regular-season standings a year ago but won its third NCHC Frozen Faceoff Championship and eventually its 10th NCAA title three weeks later.
 
The Pioneers were listed as the first-place team on 24 of the 30 ballots, totaling 263 points. North Dakota was voted second with 241 points and four-place nods, while Colorado College came in third with 200 points and one top vote. Sixth place Western Michigan had two first-place votes (127 points) and seventh-place Minnesota Duluth had one (123 points).
 
DU went 32-9-3 overall in 2023-24 to record the program's third consecutive 30-win season, first in the program's 75-year history. The Pioneers posted a 15-7-2 mark in NCHC play.
 
Denver finished the last year on a season-best nine-game winning streak and went 4-0-1 in its final five home contests.
 
This is the fourth time that DU has been selected as the favorite in the NCHC Preseason Media Poll, as the team was also picked first in 2017-18, 2021-22, and 2023-24. Denver has won national championships in two of the last three years.

Media members from each of the nine NCHC school's markets as well as select national college hockey media voted in the annual poll. Points were awarded on a descending scale with a first-place vote worth nine points, a second-place vote worth eight points and so on. 
 
NCHC 2024-25 PRESEASON POLL
1. Denver – 263 points (24 First-Place Votes)
2. North Dakota – 241 (4)
3. Colorado College – 200 (1)
4. St. Cloud State – 149
5. Omaha – 137
6. Western Michigan – 127 (2)
7. Minnesota Duluth – 123 (1)
8. Arizona State – 80
9. Miami – 38

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