COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The University of Denver, which went 2-0-0 against Michigan Tech University last weekend, returns to the top spot of the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Men's College Hockey Poll. The Pioneers, who enter the Western Collegiate Hockey Association Final Five with a 27-7-4 record, collected 507 points and 31-of-34 first-place votes.
This Week's Top-15 Match-ups:

Thursday, March 18
No. 5 North Dakota
vs.
No. 11 Minnesota Duluth

Friday, March 19
No. 1 Denver
vs.
No. 5 North Dakota/No. 11 Minnesota Duluth

No. 3 Wisconsin
vs.
No. 6 St. Cloud State

No. 4 Boston College
vs.
No. 14 Vermont

No. 8 Ferris State
vs.
No. 12 Northern Michigan

Saturday, March 20
Conference Championship Games:
Atlantic Hockey
Central Collegiate Hockey Association
ECAC Hockey
Hockey East Association
Western Collegiate Hockey Association

Miami University (467, three first-place votes) is No. 2 after going 2-1-0 against The Ohio State University, while the University of Wisconsin (448), which collected a pair of wins against the University of Alaska Anchorage, retains the No. 3 spot. Boston College (406), which went 2-0-0 against the University of Massachusetts, stays at No. 4, while the University of North Dakota (373) rounds out the top five after going 2-1-0 against the University of Minnesota.

No. 14 University of Vermont and No. 15 Union College both return to the poll this week, while No. 12 Northern Michigan University makes its 2009-10 poll debut after twice defeating then-No. 12 University of Alaska.

NOTES: The University of Alabama Huntsville clinched this season's first NCAA tournament berth with a 3-2 overtime victory against Niagara University in the College Hockey America championship game ... The WCHA boasts five ranked programs. The Central Collegiate Hockey Association and ECAC Hockey each have three ranked teams, while the Hockey East Association has two ranked programs. Bemidji State University is the only ranked CHA team ... A total of 23 teams received votes.

ABOUT THE POLL: The 15th 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 six 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.

USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine
Men's College Hockey Poll - #23
(first-place votes in parenthesis)
Rank

School

Last Poll's Ranking
2009-10 Record
Weeks in Top-15
1 University of Denver, 507 (31)
2

27-7-4

23
2 Miami University, 467 (3)
1

26-6-7

23
3 University of Wisconsin, 448
3

24-9-4

16
4 Boston College, 406
4

23-10-3

20
5 University of North Dakota, 373
5

22-12-5

23
6 St. Cloud State University, 324
7

22-12-5

12
7 Cornell University, 311
9

19-8-4

23
8 Ferris State University, 239
13

21-11-6

14
9 Yale University, 210
6

20-9-3

23
10 Bemidji State University, 181
8

23-9-4

20
11 University of Minnesota Duluth, 166
14

22-16-1

17
12 Northern Michigan University, 158
NR

19-11-8

1
13 University of New Hampshire, 68
10

17-13-7

8
14 University of Vermont, 56
NR

17-13-7

7
15 Union College, 52
NR

20-11-6

4

Others receiving votes: Michigan State University, 39; University of Alaska, 24; University of Michigan, 21; Rochester Institute of Technology, 17; Boston University, 4; Colorado College, 4; University of Nebraska Omaha, 3; University of Maine, 2.

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