DENVER – The Denver Pioneers hockey team is No. 9 in the USCHO.com poll and No. 11 on the USA Hockey list after the latest rankings were released on Monday.
DU split its homecoming series against Alaska Anchorage last weekend, falling 4-3 in overtime on Friday before earning a 6-0 shutout victory on Saturday.
The Pioneers get set for the start of NCHC play and a Frozen Four rematch, as they travel to Kalamazoo this weekend to take on No. 4 and the defending national champion Western Michigan Broncos. WMU, which was previously No. 3 in the USCHO.com rankings, went 1-1-0 to begin conference play last week at St. Cloud State, winning 6-4 and losing 5-1.
Michigan State, which had a bye, stayed at No. 1 while in-state foe Michigan secured the No. 2 spot in each ranking. Penn State is at No. 3 after sweeping Ohio State, while Quinnipiac follows WMU in both polls to round out the top five.
Ahead of DU (360 points) in the USA Hockey ranking is Wisconsin at No. 9 (395) and Connecticut at No. 10 (388), with the three teams separated by just 35 points
The NCHC's five and six ranked teams, respectively, are the second-most in each poll, and its four in the top 10 in the USCHO.com poll is tied with the Big Ten for the most. Joining Dever and Western Michigan in the polls are Minnesota Duluth at No. 7/7, North Dakota at No. 8 and Colorado College at No.20/19. Additionally, Miami returns to the USA Hockey rankings for the first time since Oct. 26, 2015 at No. 20 and received the most votes among non-ranked squads in the USCHO.com poll. The other three league members—Arizona State, Omaha and St. Cloud State—also received votes among the electorate.
UP NEXT: Denver heads to Kalamazoo to face the No. 4 Western Michigan Broncos on Friday at 5 p.m. MT and Saturday at 4 p.m. MT at Lawson Arena. Both games will be broadcast on NCHC.tv.
About the USCHO.com: The Division I men's ice hockey poll is compiled weekly and consists of 50 voters, including coaches and media professionals from across the country.
About the USA Hockey/The Rink Live Poll: The 31st annual USA Hockey Men's College Hockey Poll is conducted each week in conjunction with the American Hockey Coaches Association. The poll includes input from coaches and journalists representing each of the six NCAA Division I ice hockey conferences, as well as composite votes from officers of the AHCA and USA Hockey.
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