MINOT STATE UNIVERSITY NO. 1 AGAIN IN THE AMERICAN COLLEGIATE HOCKEY ASSOCIATION MEN’S DIVISION I RANKINGS
Beavers Reach 20 Wins; In Top Spot for Seventh Consecutive Ranking
UNION LAKE, Mich. – (January 25, 2023) – Minot State University retains the top spot in the 2022-2023 American Collegiate Hockey Association Men’s Division 1 Ranking No. 12 for the seventh consecutive ranking period. The Beavers (20-0-0), undefeated in Men’s Division I action this season, hit the road to Wilson Arena in Jamestown, N.D. on Friday and came away with a 4-2 victory. The Beavers then traveled home to the friendly confines of Maysa Arena in Minot, N.D. on Saturday and defeated University of Mary, the No. 1 team in Men’s Division II and two-time defending ACHA Men’s Division II National Champions, by a score of 4-1. On Sunday, the Beavers milled Men’s Division II Dakota College at Bottineau 13-1 to cap off a three-win weekend. No. 2 Adrian College (20-2-1) swept a pair of non-conference home games at Arrington Ice Arena over Stony Brook University to reach the 20-win plateau. The Bulldogs cruised to a 15-0 triumph on Saturday before having to rally from a 3-1 third period deficit on Sunday, force overtime, and then celebrate when Brodie Thornton buried the game-winner on the 63rd shot on goal for the Bulldogs. Despite the loss, goaltender Matvei Kazakov was spectacular with 59 saves for the Seawolves. University of Nevada-Las Vegas (15-2-0) moved up to No. 3 after going on the road to the LaHaye Ice Center in Lynchburg, Va. and sweeping No. 5 Liberty University (12-8-1). On Friday, the Rebels needed both overtime and the shootout before prevailing in the fourth round on a five-hole shot from Alec Johnson, while Saturday the Rebels finished the sweep with a 6-2 victory. Dropping a spot to No. 4 was Ohio University (21-4-1), which swept a pair of home games (8-4, 6-2) over Drexel University at Bird Arena in Athens, Ohio.
Moving into the polls this week is No. 25 Colorado State University while dropping out of the Top 25 is United States Naval Academy.
The Central States Collegiate Hockey League (CSCHL) leads the way with two (of 3) of its member teams ranked, while the Western Collegiate Hockey League (WCHL) has six (of 10) of its member teams ranked, the Eastern States Collegiate Hockey League (ESCHL) has four (of 8) of its member teams ranked, the Great Lakes Collegiate Hockey League (GLCHL) has four (of 9) of its member teams ranked, the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) has three (of 7) of its member teams ranked, and Midwest College Hockey (MCH) has two (of 6) of its member teams ranked.
The ACHA uses two computer rankings generated by USHSHO.com, Ranking A (Wins with Maximum Goal Differential of 7) and Ranking B (Wins with Maximum Goal Differential of 1), then comes up with an average of the two rankings. The ACHA will then use the list generated from the average for its weekly ranking. Ties will be broken using the higher ranked team from Ranking B until the Top 25 teams are listed. All games that go to overtime will be scored as ties in the computer ranking.
Over the past 19 seasons, 12 different schools have won the ACHA Men’s Division I National Championship: Lindenwood (4), Central Oklahoma (2), Illinois (2), Minot State (2), Adrian (2), Arizona State, Davenport, Delaware, Oakland, Ohio, Penn State, and Rhode Island.
Now in its 32nd season of action, there have been a total of 14 schools that have won the ACHA Men’s Division I National Championship:
- Penn State University (5 times)
- Lindenwood University (4)
- Ohio University (4)
- Adrian College (2)
- Minot State University (2)
- North Dakota State University (2)
- University Central Oklahoma (2)
- University of Illinois (2)
- Arizona State University
- Davenport University
- Iowa State University
- Oakland University
- University of Delaware
- University of Rhode Island
A total of 70 teams will compete in Men’s Division I this season, including these new members: College of New Jersey, University of Oregon, Purdue University Northwest, and San Diego State University. The defending Men’s Division I National Champions of the American Collegiate Hockey Association, Lindenwood University, has departed to play NCAA Men’s Division I while Iowa State University is on a school suspension for the 2022-23 season.
The computer ranking will for the ninth time determine the 20 teams that qualify for the 2023 ACHA Men’s Division I National Championships presented by FloHockey, which will include the following eight auto bids:
- (CHMA) College Hockey Mid-America
- (ECHA) Eastern Collegiate Hockey Association
- (ESCHL) Eastern States Collegiate Hockey League
- (GLCHL) Great Lakes Collegiate Hockey League
- (MCH) Midwest College Hockey
- (NECHL) Northeast Collegiate Hockey League
- (WCHL) Western Collegiate Hockey League
- (WHAC) Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference
The thirteenth ranking of the regular season will be released on Wednesday, February 1, 2023.
The 2023 ACHA Men’s Division I National Championships presented by FloHockey will be hosted March 16-21 for the first time at the New England Sports Center (NESC) in Marlborough, Mass. This will be the eleventh year of the 20-team format.
| 2022-2023 ACHA Men’s Division 1 Ranking #12 | ||||
| Rank | School Name | M1 Record | Previous | Conference |
| 1 | Minot State | 20-0-0 | 1 | INDEP |
| 2 | Adrian | 20-2-1 | 2 | GLCHL |
| 3 | Nevada-Las Vegas | 15-2-0 | 4 | WCHL |
| 4 | Ohio | 21-4-1 | 3 | CSCHL |
| 5 | Liberty | 12-8-1 | 5 | INDEP |
| 6 | Central Oklahoma | 20-5-1 | 6 | WCHL |
| 7 | Indiana Tech | 24-1-1 | 7 | WHAC |
| 8 | Jamestown | 14-6-0 | 8 | MCH |
| 9 | Pittsburgh | 13-5-3 | 9 | ESCHL |
| 10 | Grand Valley State | 24-5-0 | 10 | GLCHL |
| 11 | Maryville | 15-8-0 | 11 | CSCHL |
| 12 | Illinois State | 22-3-2 | 13 | MCH |
| 13 | Niagara | 15-6-0 | 14 | ESCHL |
| 14 | Calvin | 14-4-3 | 15 | GLCHL |
| 15 | Lawrence Tech | 19-2-2 | 12 | WHAC |
| 16 | Arizona | 11-7-3 | 16 | WCHL |
| 17 | Stony Brook | 14-7-1 | 17 | ESCHL |
| 18 | Utah | 11-8-1 | 20 | WCHL |
| 19 | Arizona State | 10-11-1 | 18 | WCHL |
| 20 | Purdue Northwest | 13-5-1 | 21 | GLCHL |
| 21 | Indiana Pennsylvania | 17-5-0 | 19 | CHMA |
| 22 | Oswego State | 16-4-1 | 22 | NECHL |
| 23 | Rhode Island | 15-7-2 | 23 | ESCHL |
| 24 | Michigan-Dearborn | 12-9-2 | 24 | WHAC |
| 25 | Colorado State | 10-11-0 | NR | WCHL |
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About American Collegiate Hockey Association
The American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA) is a recognized 501(c)3 organization of almost 450 college and university-affiliated programs which provides structure, regulates operations, and promotes the quality of collegiate ice hockey throughout the United States. Headquartered in Troy, Michigan, the ACHA’s primary mission is to support the growth and development of college hockey programs nationwide. The ACHA identifies standards which serve to unite and regulate teams at the collegiate level and entered its 32nd season in September 2022. For more information, visit achahockey.org.
