Omaha Hockey is no. 15 in the 2024-25 USCHO.com Top 20 Preseason Poll, released on Monday, Sept. 23. The Mavericks are one of eight NCHC teams showing up in the national rankings, a first in the NCHC’s 12-year existence.
The Mavericks made history in the 2023-24 season, earning a trip for the first time to the NCHC Frozen Faceoff, but falling to Denver in the title game after beating the University of North Dakota in the first game of the playoff finals. Omaha finished the season at no. 12 in the USCHO poll after an NCAA Tournament appearance in Sioux Falls. The Mavs finished the season with a 23-13-4 record.
Omaha starts the 2024-25 season hosting no. 10 Wisconsin in an exhibition game on Saturday, Oct. 5 and then takes on Massachusetts in the opening game of the 2024 Ice Breaker Tournament in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Mavericks will face either no. 6 Minnesota or Air Force in the second game.
The eight ranked NCHC teams lead all conferences by at least two teams, with 88.9 percent of the Conference (8 of 9 teams) ranked in the USCHO Preseason Poll. NCHC teams make up 38.1 percent of the total teams in the Preseason Poll. Hockey East is second with six ranked teams, followed by the Big Ten with five and ECAC Hockey with two.
Not only does the NCHC lead all conferences in the poll, but an NCHC team sits on top as reigning National Champion Denver is ranked no. 1 in the Preseason Poll. The Pioneers received 42 of 50 first-place votes in the poll. North Dakota comes in at no. 5, followed by Colorado College at no. 11. NCHC teams then hold spots 15-18 with Omaha, St. Cloud State, Western Michigan and Minnesota Duluth ranked consecutively, respectively. NCHC newcomer Arizona State rounds out the poll tied for no. 20.
The Pioneers enter the 2024-25 season coming off the program’s 10th NCAA title, becoming the kings of men’s college hockey with the most national championships in the sport’s history. DU collected 988 points total in the USCHO Preseason Poll, ahead of no. 2 Boston College, who the Pioneers defeated in the 2024 National Championship Game last year. BC garnered six first-place votes and 945 points total. Denver, the preseason favorite in the NCHC as well, opens the season Oct. 5-6 at Alaska Anchorage. DU went 32-9-3 overall last season.
North Dakota ranks no. 5 in the Preseason Poll after finishing last season ranked 8th in the USCHO Poll with a 26-12-2 record. The defending Penrose Cup champions, who were picked second in the NCHC Preseason Poll this year, collected 755 points and sit between no. 4 Michigan State and no. 6 Minnesota. This marks the fifth straight year UND has started the season in the top 10 nationally. The Fighting Hawks open the 2024-25 campaign with an exhibition game against Augustana on Saturday, Oct. 5 before hosting no. 13 Providence in the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Game on Oct. 12.
The third ranked NCHC team is Colorado College, which starts the year at no. 11 in between no. 10 Wisconsin and no. 12 Maine. The Tigers had a breakout season in 2023-24, earning a fourth-place finish in the NCHC, their best ever, while posting a 21-13-3 record overall. Despite narrowly missing the NCAA Tournament, CC finished last season ranked no. 15 and starts this year with its best ranking since the 2011-12 campaign. The Tigers, who were picked third in the NCHC Preseason Poll, start the season with an exhibition against Briercrest College on Oct. 5, before hosting Northern Michigan a weekend later.
Right behind the Omaha Mavericks is St. Cloud State at no. 16 with 247 points, just in front of no. 17 Western Michigan. The Huskies are coming off a season that saw them end the year ranked no. 18 with a 17-16-5 record. SCSU was picked fourth in the NCHC Preseason Poll this year and starts the season hosting no. 6 Minnesota in an exhibition game on Oct. 5. The Huskies then open the regular season Oct. 11 against Bemidji State, which is receiving votes.
No. 17 Western Michigan picked up 224 points in the poll, well ahead of no. 18 Minnesota Duluth (95 points). The Broncos finished last season ranked no. 14 in the USCHO Poll after making a program-record third straight trip to the NCAA Tournament. WMU posted a 21-16-1 overall record last year and was picked sixth in this year’s NCHC Preseason Poll. Western Michigan starts the season on Oct. 5 by hosting the U.S. National Team Development Program in an exhibition, before welcoming Ferris State the following Friday. WMU has been ranked in the USCHO Poll consecutively since Oct. 11, 2021.
Ending the run of four straight NCHC teams in the USCHO Preseason Poll is the 18th-ranked Bulldogs. UMD collected 95 points in the poll and sits between WMU and no. 19 Notre Dame. Minnesota Duluth is looking to bounce back from a seventh-place finish in the NCHC last season after going 12-20-5 overall. The Bulldogs, who were picked seventh in the NCHC Preseason Poll, open the year hosting Bemidji State on Saturday, Oct. 5.
The final ranked NCHC team is newcomer Arizona State, which is tied for no. 20 with Northeastern of Hockey East after both picked up 61 points in the poll. The Sun Devils won a program-record 24 games last season, compiling a 24-8-6 overall record as an independent team last season, but landed eighth in its first NCHC Preseason Poll. Arizona State starts the season at Air Force on Oct. 4-5 and is set to play its first NCHC games on Nov. 8-9 at no. 11 Colorado College.
The USCHO.com Division I Men’s Ice Hockey Poll is compiled weekly and consists of 50 voters, including coaches and media professionals from across the country. To see the complete USCHO.com Preseason Poll, click here.
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