TROY, MICH. (January 25, 2024)- The Men's Division 2 Regional Rankings for all games through January 28th have been released. This is the 8th of nine (9) Regional Rankings that will culminate with the Final Ranking on Tuesday, February 13th. For the final two weeks of the regular season, there is a list of Leagues that have a Regional Autobid provided in each Regional Breakdown
Central Rankings
The University of Wisconsin made a big move this week, jumping three spots, from #11 to #8. The Badgers will now try to hold onto that spot as they go into the WCCHA playoffs as the top seed. Both Maryville and Drury seem to have secured a spot in the Regionals for the first time in program history. Lake Superior State sits .22 out of a potential Wild Card Regional spot, as they will be watching the WCCHA and NCHL playoffs to see what happens with Minnesota and DePaul, as the Lakers prepare for their weekend vs. Davenport.
Leagues with Regional Autobid
MACHA (Mid-Atlantic Collegiate Hockey Association)
NCHL (Northern Collegiate Hockey League)
WCCHA (Western Collegiate Club Hockey Association)
Dropped out of Top 20:
Michigan Tech
Rankings Breakdown by League:
Independent: 7
WCCHA: 6
NCHL: 4
MACHA: 3
Northeast Rankings
Keene State used a huge win over then #2 Army last week to propel themselves back into the #2 spot with just one weekend remaining in the regular season. The race for the second Nationals Autobid seems to have come down to KSC and RPI, with defending Nationals Champion, UMass, needing a big weekend and some help. With only one League Autobid in the NE coming from the SECHL, and three of the six teams in the Super East playoffs ranked high enough to get into the Regionals already, the #14 seed is in play for a Wild Card. UConn has been holding steady for that spot for awhile, however, Connecticut College has been making a late run and sits .08 behind the Huskies. Both teams will need to avoid a bad loss this weekend to get a shot at a spot in Keene, NH in two weeks.
Leagues with Regional Autobid
SECHL: (SuperEast Collegiate Hockey League)
Dropped out of Top 20:
None
Rankings Breakdown by League
NECHA- 15
SECHL- 4
Independent-1
Southeast Rankings
In many years, League Autobids go unneeded, because few times does a League Champion need it to make the Regionals. This year, the SE could see several. Both the ACCHL and TSCHL have playoff teams currently on the outside of the playoff picture that have won games this season against the higher ranked opponents that they will match up with. On top of that, the CSCHC will be guaranteed to take a spot in their League Championship, so for teams like Rowan, Michigan, and UNC-Wilmington, a conference championship would take the edge off the announcement on Tuesday.
Leagues with Regional Autobid
ACCHL: (Atlantic Coast Collegiate Hockey League)-Premier only
CSCHC: (Colonial State Collegiate Hockey Conference)
TSCHL: (Tri-State Collegiate Hockey League)
Dropped out of Top 20:
None
Rankings Breakdown by League
TSCHL- 9
ACCHL- 8
Independent-2
CSCHC- 1
West Rankings
The West Region may be the tightest of any Region in the history of the computer rankings. The #15 team is under a point difference from the #5, with nine teams sandwiched in between. Weber State remains at #2 but MSU-Denver is just .02 behind them and both will have chances for big wins this weekend in their conference playoffs. Northern Arizona rose the most of any teams in the nation this week, going from #12 to #7. The University of Washington will have double the pressure on them this weekend as they will are top #1 seed in the Pac playoffs and they are holding on the last potential Wild Card spot for the regionals. An early exit could allow UCLA, Grand Canyon, or Texas A&M to sneak by them.
Leagues with Regional Autobid
MWCHL: (Mountain West Collegiate Hockey League)
PAC: (Pacific Athletic Conference)
TCHC: (Texas Collegiate Hockey Conference)
WCHC: (Western Collegiate Hockey Conference)
Dropped out of Top 20:
None
Rankings Breakdown by League
MWCHL-6
WCHC- 5
TCHC-4
BMHC-2
PAC-2
Independent-1
The rankings will be released weekly on Thursdays at 6pm EST through December 12th. They will resume on a weekly basis on January 25th and will continue until the final ranking are released on February 13th. The top two teams in each region will receive an automatic invitation to the 2024 ACHA Men's Division 2 National Championships. Teams ranked #3-#10 will receive an automatic invitation to the 2024 Men's Division 2 Regional Tournaments. Finally, four (4) teams will earn a spot in the Regional Tournaments either through a League Auto bid or as a wild card if the league does not use their respective auto bid. The 2024 Regional Tournaments will be on February 23-25th. The 2024 National Championships for Men's Division 2 will be March 11th-15th, in Saint Louis, Missouri.
