National Polls Showcase Three League Teams

ALBANY, N.Y. -- Union, Cornell, and Colgate each earn national recognition in the latest Division I Men’s Ice Hockey Polls, released Monday, January 30.



Union (9-3-3, 15-6-6) took over first-place in the ECAC Hockey standings with two high-powered home offensive wins as it handled Clarkson, 5-2 and blanked St. Lawrence, 6-0 last weekend. As a result the Dutchmen moved up three positions in the USCHO.com poll to the No. 14 spot (451) and one position in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine poll to the No. 12 position with 128 points. Union improved to 7-1-3 in its last 11 ECAC Hockey contests and boasts a 5-2-3 overall mark at its home rink. The Dutchmen are two points ahead of No. 14/ 14 Cornell and four points ahead of No. 20 Colgate. Both teams will visit Messa Rink this weekend. Union will take on Colgate Friday night before squaring off against the Big Red Saturday night, both games beginning at 7 p.m.



After dropping two league contests to league foes Colgate, 2-1 and 5-3 last weekend, Cornell (8-3-3, 11-6-4) fell to the No. 14 spot in both national polls this week. The Big Red earned 338 points in the USCHO.com poll and 108 points in the points in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine poll. It marked the first time this season which Cornell lost bak-to-back contests allowing them to slip into second-place in the league standings. The Big Red continues its three-game stretch away from home next weekend with a swing through New York's Capital District. Cornell will be back on national television at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 3 when its visit to Rensselaer appears on NBC Sports Network, then the Big Red battles Union the following night.

Colgate finds itself back in the national spotlight after sweeping Central New York rival Cornell last weekend in a home-and-home series. The Raiders (8-5-1, 14-9-3), who now sit in third-place in the league standings, are ranked No. 20 in the USCHO.com poll earning 87 points. The Raiders lead the nation with 10 shorthanded goals and senior forward Austin Smith leads the country with six. Colgate will be back on the road for a trip to the Capital District to take on Union and Rensselaer in a key weekend series.



Harvard and Quinnipiac also earned votes in the USCHO.com poll this week.



Click here to access complete USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Poll

Click here to access complete USCHO.com Poll

About the Polls:

The USCHO.com Poll consists of 50 voters, including 28 coaches from the Division I conferences and 22 beat writers and sports professionals from across the country. The poll, published weekly by the Associated Press, is a production of USCHO.com, which provides in-depth coverage of college hockey.



The 17th annual USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine 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 five NCAA Division I ice hockey conferences, as well as composite votes from officers of the AHCA and USA Hockey Magazine, the most widely distributed hockey magazine in the world.