Hockey East Power Rankings

Standings:

Boston College (20-6-1) 41 points

UNH (17-6-4) 38 points

BU (15-6-6) 36 points

Merrimack (16-8-3) 35 points

Maine (14-8-5) 33 points

Northeastern (10-10-7) 27 points

Vermont (6-14-7) 19 points

UMass (5-16-6) 16 points

Providence (4-16-7) 15 points

Lowell (4-21-2) 10 points

1. Boston College - It doesn’t matter how they do it or who they do it with, Jerry York’s squad just wins. That usually bodes well in March.
2. Boston University - Until losing to Northeastern on Saturday night at Agganis Arena, the Terriers hadn’t lost a Hockey East game since January 21st, a span of ten games. Jack Parker’s teams usually step up in March, but they’re going to need to do some more stepping to have a chance to play for the NCAA Championship.
3. UNH - Another weekend in March, another series that UNH came out on the wrong end of. The guys say they’re hungry and they want it; history says it doesn’t matter. Could this be the year that UNH kicks the trend and starts writing a new chapter?
4. Maine - Nobody in a Black Bears sweater should feel comfortable about facing Merrimack at Lawler Arena for the right to advance to Boston. But if Dan Sullivan can continue his strong play, the offense will take care of the rest and Maine could be a very dangerous team in a few weeks.
5. Merrimack - Though they don’t like letting opponents see them, there are chinks in the armor of Mark Dennehy’s squad, and heading into the playoffs losing three of four doesn’t bode well for a team lacking serious post-season experience.
6. Northeastern - Just when you thought he might have hit a well, Sebastien Leplante proved work isn’t yet done, coaching the Huskies to a 4-3 win over BU at Agganis Arena. If Northeastern taught us anything these past three weeks, it’s that they’re not a team to be taken lightly.
7. Vermont - The Cats will return to a murder scene on Friday when they re-visit the Whit on Friday night. The memories of last year’s UVM dismantling of UNH are no doubt still strong in the minds of everyone who was there, but whether or not this Vermont squad can find what it takes to keep up with the Wildcats is very much up in the air.
8.  UMass - The Minutemen could have given up when they went down 3-0 to Maine on senior night at the Mullins Center. They could have thrown in the towel and hoped Merrimack would beat Providence so their backslide into the playoffs continued. But instead, they went out and got it, proving that there may still be some fight in Toot Cahoon’s troops. Enough to knock off BC? Probably not. But hey, at least they made it there.
9. Lowell - They’re not good. They’re very unpolished. But the RiverHawks showed some promise at the end of the season, taking points in three of their last four games. They’ll be a year wiser and a year more experienced next year, which puts them in a better spot than the only team below them.
10. Providence - Tim Army’s tenure as coach of the Friars is likely over after six years which concluded with the Friars missing the playoffs for the third straight season. They’ll also lose their three top scorers (and five of their top seven) and will likely look in a new direction to get things turned around - though that goal is a long ways off.