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CIS MEN'S HOCKEY TOP 10 (#10): McGill remains No. 2 in nation for 8th consecutive week

Published: 17 January 2012

OTTAWA (CIS) - Despite a rare winless weekend, the reigning national champion University of New Brunswick Varsity Reds top the CIS men's hockey rankings for the 10th time in as many polls this season.

In the closest Top 10 of the campaign, the V-Reds (13-3-2) received nine of 17 first-place votes - five less than a week ago - and 160 points from the national media panel, compared to six first-place nods and 146 points for the McGill Redmen (16-2-2), who remain at No. 2 for the eighth consecutive week, and two first-place votes and 132 points for the No. 3 Saskatchewan Huskies (15-3-2), who move up two spots to match their best ranking of the season.

Rounding out the new poll are No. 4 Western Ontario (16-2-2), down one position from last week; No. 5 Alberta (13-5-2), also down one spot; No. 6 Acadia (12-6-1), up a pair; No. 7 Moncton (12-6-0) and No. 8 Lakehead (16-4-0), both down one; No. 9 Manitoba (12-4-2), which stays put; and No. 10 Saint Mary's (12-7-1), unranked a week ago.

It was a wild week in CIS men's hockey, with seven of the top eight teams in the country losing at least one game.

Top-ranked UNB dropped a pair of close-fought decisions on the road, 2-1 against No. 10 Saint Mary's last Friday and 5-4 in a shootout versus St. Francis Xavier the following night. It marked the first time since November of 2010 that the V-Reds lost both ends of a two-game set in conference play.

The defending CIS champs, who still hold a three-point lead atop the AUS standings, play three games in four nights this week including Wednesday against St. Thomas (3-13-2), Friday versus No. 7 Moncton and Saturday against UPEI (11-7-0).

In Ontario, division leaders McGill (East) and Western (West) both went 1-1 last week, while in Canada West, Saskatchewan made a statement with a two-game sweep of archrival Alberta.

The No. 2 Redmen easily handled RMC 5-0 Friday in Kingston but lost 4-3 at Toronto on Saturday.

In the most anticipated series of the past week, in Saskatoon, the No. 3 Huskies beat the No. 5 Golden Bears 5-2 and 5-4. Saskatchewan captain Kyle Ross was spectacular with four goals and one assist, including a hat trick in Game 2 on Saturday.

The No. 4 Mustangs were defeated 2-1 by Brock last Wednesday but rebounded on Saturday with a 5-2 victory over Windsor.

CIS MEN'S HOCKEY TOP 10 (#10)

Voting is based on a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis, with a 1st place vote worth 10 points. The CIS Men's Ice Hockey Top Ten Committee is made up of media members from across Canada.

(regular season record) / votes (first-place votes) / (previous rankings)

1. UNB (13-3-2) / 160 pts (9) / (1)

2. McGill (16-2-2) / 146 (6) / (2)

3. Saskatchewan (15-3-2) / 132 (2) / (5)

4. Western Ontario (16-2-2) / 117 / (3)

5. Alberta (13-5-2) / 85 / (4)

6. Acadia (12-6-1) / 73 / (8)

7. Moncton (12-6-0) / 53 / (6)

8. Lakehead (16-4-0) / 49 / (7)

9. Manitoba (12-4-2) / 48 / (9)

10. Saint Mary's (12-7-1) / 41 / (NR)

Other teams receiving votes: UQTR (24).