The Ice Garden’s NCAA Poll: Wild West

We are approaching the end of the regular season and the big picture is coming into focus. That assumes that these next few weeks won't bring us some crazy upsets en route to the final PWR rankings.

1. Yale (23-1-1), 85 (5) — Last poll: T-1

• Last week: W 10-1 @ Union (2/3), W 4-2 @ Rensselaer (2/4)
• Coming Week: @ Colgate (2/10), @ Cornell (2/11)/

A pair of easy wins sets the table for Yale to win two trophies at once in Ithaca. If the Bulldogs beat Colgate, along with Quinnipiac dropping half a point, it might set up a chance for them to win both the ECAC and Ivy crowns in their second game on the weekend.

2. Ohio State (25-3-2), 82 (3) — Last poll: T-1

• Last week: L 2-4 @ Minnesota (2/3), W 5-1 @ Minnesota (2/4)
• Coming Week: v St. Thomas (2/10, 2/11)/

A weekend split on the road against the top team in their conference was enough to make them this week’s ‘Belles of the Ball.’ Now they host bottom-of-the-table St. Thomas for what should be an easy six points setting up their final weekend of the season.

3. Minnesota (23-4-2), 75 (1) — Last poll: 3

• Last week: W 4-2 v Ohio State (2/3), L 1-5 @ Minnesota (2/4)
• Coming Week: v Wisconsin (2/10, 2/11)/

The Gophers just weren’t able to finish off the weekend where they could have put a stranglehold on the top of the WCHA. They still hold the tiebreaker with Ohio State but now have a razor-thin margin with four games to go.

4. Colgate (24-4-2), 58 — Last poll: 4

• Last week: T 3-3 OT v St. Lawrence (1/31), W 2-1 @ St. Lawrence (2/3), W 2-0 @ Clarkson (2/4)
• Coming Week: v Yale (2/10), v Brown (2/11)/

Over the weekend Colgate held serve on the road but a midweek home game that saw them tie St. Lawrence might come back to bite them in the PWR as the season starts to wrap up. This week they have a huge home game against Yale that could either throw them right back into the ECAC conversation or all but eliminate them.

5. Northeastern (25-2-1), 53 — Last poll: 5

• Last week: W 4-1 v New Hampshire (2/3)
• Coming Week: v Boston University (2/7), @ Connecticut (2/10)/

Another conference win for the Huskies as they prepared for the Beanpot. They start that off tomorrow night against a resurgent BU team. They will play a regular conference matchup in Connecticut between Beanpot games.

6. Quinnipiac (25-5-0), 46 — Last poll: 6

• Last week: W 8-0 @ Dartmouth (2/3)
• Coming Week: v Rensselaer (2/10), v Union (2/11)/

This weekend the Bobcats remembered to make the road trip as they blew out Dartmouth. This weekend brings a pair of easy games as Quinnipiac is hanging by a thread in the ECAC race.

7. Minnesota-Duluth (20-8-2), 39 — Last poll: 7

• Last week: W 4-3 OT @ Minnesota State (2/3), T 0-0 (SOW 1-0) @ Minnesota State (2/4)
• Coming Week: v St. Cloud State (2/10, 2/11)/

The Bulldogs are lucky to come away with the four points this weekend, a furious comeback in the first game plus a disallowed OT goal in the second salvaged Duluth in the PWR but this weekend won’t be much easier as they will likely be hosting this same Huskies team in the WCHA playoffs.

8. Wisconsin (21-8-1), 24 — Last poll: 8

• Last week: L 0-1 v St. Cloud State (2/3), W 3-2 v St. Cloud State (2/4)
• Coming Week: @ Minnesota (2/10, 2/11)/

The Badgers did walk away with a win this weekend which might be enough to lock up the third seed in the WCHA, with a very outside chance at a higher seed still alive. The loss was pretty bad for them though and they needed to come back from being down plus hold off a comeback to salvage the split. This weekend starts a brutal end to their season as they play both of the teams ahead of them starting with a road trip to Minneapolis.

9. Penn State (22-8-2), 16 — Last poll: 9

• Last week: W 7-0 @ Syracuse (2/3), W 4-1 @ Syracuse (2/4)
• Coming Week: No Games/

Your CHA regular season champions, folks. An easy sweep of a very down Syracuse team was enough to lock it up with only two games remaining as the Nittany Lions will take this week off.

10. Clarkson (22-8-2), 9 — Last poll: 10

• Last week: W 2-1 v Cornell (2/3), L 0-2 v Colgate (2/4)
• Coming Week: @ Harvard (2/11), @ Dartmouth (2/11)/

Finally, our tenth member decided to stay put. A split was good enough as they beat a previous member of the poll, Cornell, but were unable to take out Colgate. This weekend should be a pair of easy road wins.

Also Receiving Votes: Princeton 4, St. Cloud State 4