First M2 Ranking Sees some Familiar Faces and some New Ones.
Logan, Utah-(11/12/21): The American Collegiate Hockey Association has released the first Men's Division 2 Rankings for the 2021/2022 Season. The rankings include games played through November 7th. This will be the 3rd year that Men's Division 2 will be using computer rankings provided by USHSO. The ranking is combination of three aspects: Strength of Schedule, Goal Differential, and Winning Percentage.
The release finds the defending National Champion, University of Mary, in first place in the West Region and the overall top rating in the Division. Right behind them, on the strength of a 10-0 start has the University of Denver in the #2 slot, seeking to unseat the Marauders, on top of the region.
North Carolina State University has seen its program rise from needing league autobids to make the regionals, to securing two national appearances in three years. The Icepack now has another milestone to add; holding of the #1 spot in the Southeast for the first time ever. Following NCSU are the perennial powerhouses of the region with teams like Liberty, FGCU, and Penn State positioning themselves for a run at the top spot.
In the Central, Last year's Nationals runner up, Iowa State finds itself starting out at the top of the hill. The Cyclones enjoy a small lead over the team they knocked out in the National Semifinals, Lindenwood University. Two teams from the WCCHA find themselves in new territory as Gustavus Adolphus and University of Minnesota find themselves ranked #3 and #5 respectively.
Finally, 2019 National Semifinalist, University of Massachusetts-Amherst, has come back strong after missing last season due to COVID restrictions. The Minutemen have the second highest rating nationally, behind only University of Mary. The Top Ten for the region is full of long time successful programs with National asperations.
Rankings will now be done weekly until the semester break. The next ranking will include all games through Nov 14th and will be posted at their regular weekly time of Thursdays at 12pm EST.
