National Rankings as of 11.8.09

Rankings as of 11.8.09

1. Miami —
You know you've had a rough go at a particular road venue when you get a sweep and your school's all-time win total in that arena nearly doubles. That's what happened to the RedHawks, who got all-time wins nos. 4 and 5 at Yost Ice Arena this past weekend.

8-1-1 (5-1-0 CCHA) LAST WEEK: W at Michigan, 3-1; W at Michigan 5-1. THIS WEEK: vs. Ferris State, vs. Ferris State

2. North Dakota —
The Fighting Sioux have scored three or more goals seven times in eight games this season, the lone exception being a 2-1 loss at Alaska Anchorage on Oct. 24.

6-1-1 (4-1-1 WCHA) LAST WEEK: W at Michigan Tech, 4-2; W at Michigan Tech, 4-1. THIS WEEK: vs. St. Cloud State, vs. St. Cloud State

3. Cornell +2 (from last week)
Talk about feeling shame in the penalty box, through three games Cornell's power play is clicking at a 44.4 percent rate, converting 8 of 18 chances thus far.

3-0-0 (2-0-0 ECAC Hockey) LAST WEEK: W vs. Dartmouth, 5-1; W vs. Harvard 6-3. THIS WEEK: at Yale, at Brown

4. Denver -1 (from last week)
Saturday's 7-3 loss to Alaska Anchorage at Sullivan Arena snapped the Pioneers' 13-game unbeaten streak on the Seawolves' home ice.

6-3-1 (4-1-1 WCHA) LAST WEEK: W at Alaska-Anchorage, 3-2; L at Alaska-Anchorage, 7-3. THIS WEEK: Off

5. UMass Lowell +4 (from last week)
Nick Schaus is Lowell's best defenseman, and right now, he's their top scorer, too. The senior's nine points (four goals, five assist) are tops on the team and tied for ninth in Hockey East.

5-2-1 (3-1-1 Hockey East) LAST WEEK: T at Vermont, 3-3 ot; W vs. New Hampshire, 6-3. THIS WEEK: at Alabama-Huntsville, at Alabama-Huntsville

6. Michigan -2 (from last week)
Miami became the first team to sweep Michigan in Ann Arbor since Oct. 26-27, 2001, when Northern Michigan did it. Those Wildcats were coached by Rick Comley, who brings his Michigan State squad to Yost Friday.

4-4-0 (2-2-0 CCHA) LAST WEEK: L vs. Miami, 3-1; L vs. Miami 5-1. THIS WEEK: vs. Michigan State, at Michigan State

7. Nebraska-Omaha -1 (from last week)
Apropos of nothing, the Mavericks' roster boasts players from 11 different states—California, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, New York, North Dakota, Virginia, and Wisconsin.

4-1-3 (1-1-2 CCHA) LAST WEEK: L at Michigan State, 3-0; T at Michigan State, 3-3 ot. THIS WEEK: vs. Lake Superior State, vs. Lake Superior State

8. Notre Dame —
The Irish have scored a total of 23 goals in their first 10 games this season. That's the same number they scored last season in five games against Northern Michigan, this weekend's opponent.

5-4-1 (2-1-1 CCHA) LAST WEEK: W at Alaska, 3-2; L at Alaska, 3-1. THIS WEEK: vs. Northern Michigan, vs. Northern Michigan

9. Alaska +2 (from last week)
The Nanooks are off to a terrific start, but they've played all of their first eight games on Alaskan soil. That changes this weekend when Alaska shuffles off to Bowling Green for the first of three road series in four weekends.

6-1-1 (3-1-0 CCHA) LAST WEEK: L vs. Notre Dame, 3-2; W vs. Notre Dame, 3-1. THIS WEEK: at Bowling Green, at Bowling Green

10. Bemidji State +3 (from last week)
Matt Read has 14 points through eight games and Bemidji State is one of two remaining teams without a loss on their ledger.

7-0-1 (4-0-0 CHA) LAST WEEK: W vs. Robert Morris, 2-0; W vs. Robert Morris, 6-1. THIS WEEK: at Minnesota, at Minnesota

11. Vermont +1 (from last week)
Senior forward Brayden Irwin leads the team in goals (four), assists (five), points (nine), penalty minutes (25), plus-minus (+7) and shots on goal (20).

3-3-1 (2-2-1 Hockey East) LAST WEEK: T vs. UMass Lowell, 3-3 ot; W vs. Providence, 3-0

12. Yale -5 (from last week)
Sean Backman's goal with six seconds left in the third period of Saturday's game tied the score and helped Yale salvage at least one point in the standings on the weekend trip to New York's Capital Region.

1-1-1 (0-1-1 ECAC Hockey) LAST WEEK: L at Rensselaer, 5-2; T at Union, 3-3 ot. THIS WEEK: vs. Cornell, vs. Colgate

13. Michigan State +3 (from last week)
Interested spectators will be keeping an eye on Spartan forward Corey Tropp Friday — and not just because he's the top scorer in the CCHA with 15 points in 10 games — when MSU travels to Yost Ice Arena to face Michigan.

7-2-1 (4-1-1 CCHA) LAST WEEK: W vs. Nebraska-Omaha, 3-0; T vs. Nebraska-Omaha, 3-0. THIS WEEK: at Michigan, vs. Michigan

14. Massachusetts +3 (from last week)
The schedule hasn't been overly difficult, so the Minutemen can legitimize their early-season hot streak with a pair of home games against UNH this weekend. Those two teams have played some great games in recent years.

6-1-0 (3-1-0 Hockey East) LAST WEEK: W vs. Niagara, 4-1; W at Niagara, 4-2. THIS WEEK: vs. New Hampshire, vs. New Hampshire

15. Colorado College —
Senior forward Bill Sweatt, the WCHA's second-leading scorer, has 4-8—12 in his last five games.

5-2-1 (4-1-1 WCHA) LAST WEEK: L vs. Minnesota Duluth, 4-3; W vs. Minnesota Duluth, 6-2. THIS WEEK: at Minnesota State, at Minnesota State

16. Minnesota Duluth +2 (from last week)
The Bulldogs close out the first half of the season (isn't it a little early to be saying that?) with six of their next eight at home starting with two games against Michigan Tech this weekend.

6-3-1 (3-2-1 WCHA) LAST WEEK: W at Colorado College, 4-3; L at Colorado College, 6-2. THIS WEEK: vs. Michigan Tech, vs. Michigan Tech

17. Princeton -3 (from last week)
Junior goalie Alan Reynolds made just his fifth career start Saturday, and it was a good one. He had 31 saves in a 4-1 win over Clarkson.

2-2-0 (1-1-0 ECAC Hockey) LAST WEEK: L vs. St. Lawrence, 5-2; W vs. Clarkson, 4-1. THIS WEEK: vs. Dartmouth, vs. Harvard

18. Boston College +2 (from last week)
BC followed up a disappointing loss -- a 4-1 lead turned into a 4-4 tie in Durham -- with a 5-1 pounding of Northeastern on Saturday.

3-2-1 (2-2-1 Hockey East) LAST WEEK: T at New Hampshire, 4-4 ot; W vs. Northeastern, 5-1. THIS WEEK: vs. Vermont, vs. Vermont

19. Quinnipiac NR (from last week)
The Bobcats' lineup features as many as eight freshmen, but seniors Brandon Wong (11 points) and Eric Lampe (10) are leading the way.

6-1-0 (2-0-0 ECAC Hockey) LAST WEEK: W vs. Clarkson, 4-2; W vs. St. Lawrence, 5-2. THIS WEEK: vs. Harvard, vs. Dartmouth

20. Wisconsin -1 (from last week)
It took place in Saturday's 5-2 loss to Minnesota, but the third-period goal scored by defenseman Ryan McDonagh—he wheeled around in the near faceoff circle and swatted the puck into the net with a baseball swing—was highlight-reel caliber.

4-3-1 (2-3-1 WCHA) LAST WEEK: W vs. Minnesota, 4-2; L vs. Minnesota, 5-2. THIS WEEK: vs. Alaska-Anchorage, vs. Alaska-Anchorage