NCAA Hockey: A Weekly Update on The Top Divisions

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As the college football season winds down it’s time for college hockey to take center stage. These players could be future NHL players. Many or all fans love college hockey. The ultimate prize is a national championship. The Frozen Four is the final four very similar to college basketball. The Frozen Four will be taking place in Tampa, Florida at Amalie Arena. The dates of the tournaments are April 6th-8th. The defending national champions are the Denver Pioneers. They have won it all nine times. The college hockey spectrum is vast. It’s so exciting as we get closer to championship time the same feeling happens during college basketball. The leagues that I am going to cover are Hockey East, Atlantic League, Big-10, WCHA, and CCHA. The question is where will the national championship team come from in one of these five divisions? Let’s see who is crowned national champions in April.

Hockey East

In Hockey East, there are 11 teams. This division is in the Northeast part of the United States. Merrimack is at the top and New Hampshire is at the bottom of the division. The Warriors are the top team and are surging. They are ranked number 11 in the country. They got big wins recently against UMass Minuteman and Providence Friars. The Friars were ranked number 10 in the country. Even New Hampshire got a much-needed win. It was the Wildcats’ first win since October 21st. Maine won three games in a row. This division is close so let’s see how it all plays out as we head into 2023.

Atlantic League

The Atlantic League has 10 teams. This, like Hockey East, is in the Northeast part of the US outside of Air Force. The Air Force Academy is in Colorado Springs, Colorado. This division has two military academies, Air Force and Army. The top team in this division is the RIT Tigers. The team that finds itself at the bottom is the Bentley Falcons. Just right behind RIT is the American International Yellow Jackets. The Yellow Jackets are only a few points behind the Tigers. This division is tight. The Army Black Knights have had some good things happen even though they are in the middle of the pack. The Black Knights score six goals in one game just short of the Atlantic League record of seven in one game. We are interested in how or who will make the tournament out of this division.

Big-10

Most will say the Big 10 is known for college football. They have two teams in the college football playoff in the Michigan Wolverines and Ohio State Buckeyes that are fierce rivals in football and basketball. There are only seven teams in hockey. Now the team that is on top is the Minnesota Golden Gophers. The team on the bottom is the Wisconsin Badgers. The top two teams are just separated by eight points and the Nittany Lions of Penn State are looking up at the Golden Gophers. The Ohio State Buckeyes are on the rise. Minnesota has won seven straight conference games. Many will say that one of these teams could be in Tampa in the Frozen Four.

WCHA

The division has eight teams. Both the Minnesota Golden Gophers and Ohio State Buckeyes are part of it. So are the Wisconsin Badgers. Teams that are recognizable outside of those three are St Cloud State Huskies and Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs. Both teams have had one national championship in recent years. Just like in the Big 10, everyone is chasing the red-hot Golden Gophers. I want to see if there may be a surprise as one of the mid-pack teams gets some wins leading into the tournament. Maybe that could be the Huskies or Bulldogs.

CCHA

In this division, many teams are also in WCHA. The top teams are the Bemidji State Beavers and Michigan Tech Huskies. Both teams have 25 points. This, like the WCHA, is small teams that could be the ones that upset the big teams come tournament time. Like the WCHA, conference tournaments begin in the first part of March. I want to see what these teams do in the next two months leading up to the conference championship. It will be an exciting two months.

There is so much college hockey to watch all leading to Tampa. I am excited to see who emerges in the next few months. Will the teams on top continue that way, or will a new leader take center stage? It’s so fun to watch amateur hockey most of these teams have players that have been drafted and are playing college hockey. There are many teams outside that could be the national champion. No matter who you’re a fan of it will be a fun tournament no matter what teams make it and who goes after the ultimate prize.