Faceoff Factor

NCAA Power Rankings - Week of 3/4

Andrew Chiappazzi | College/NCAA

Mar 4, 10:10 PM | Hype this story!

So with Ferris State making such a drastic impact on our rankings this week, we’re going to celebrate the “little guy”. With each comment, including our new number one, we’re going to mention a guy that gets the job done but doesn’t get the publicity for that respective team.

THE TOP 20:
1. (2) North Dakota (23-8-2) – WCHA
Joe Finley – Defensemen don’t get a lot of credit unless they put up the points from the blueline. But this junior is a +25 with 13 points.
2. (1) Michigan (27-5-4) – CCHA
Matt Rust/Louie Caporusso – Max Pacioretty gets the pub as a fab freshie, but Rust and Capo each have 11 goals and each adds a particular element. Rust is physical, with 61 PIM, while Caporusso 4 game winning goals.
3. (2) Colorado College (24-9-1) – WCHA
Nate Prosser – On a team with quality defense and an offensive blue liner like Jack Hillen, Prosser slips into the shadows but has the best plus/minus on the roster as a sophomore.
4. (4) Miami of Ohio (29-6-1) – CCHA
Nino Musetelli – Senior defensemen is a physical presence on a team based on skill, so while guys like Alec Martinez get the interest and Ryan Jones puts up the points, Musetelli is cleaning out the front of his net.
5. (5) Denver (22-11-1) – WCHA
Andrew Thomas – On a team with a horrible collective plus/minus, Thomas leads the way. Goalie Peter Mannino should take him out to dinner when the season is over.
6. (6) New Hampshire (22-7-3) – Hockey East
Jaime Fritsch – The run of defensemen with good plus/minus numbers continues. Fritsch also has two game winners, though, so when he does contribute offensively, it’s big.
7. (7) Michigan State (23-9-5) – CCHA
Matt Schepke – The junior forward is in the middle of the pack when it comes to scoring, but six of his 11 goals have come on the power play.
8. (8) Notre Dame (22-12-4) – CCHA
Brock Seahan – Senior D-man is a +20 while still leading the team with 51 PIM. That tells me he puts himself near the play every single time, and he’s also very key to the offense despite having just 11 points.
9. (9) Clarkson (20-10-4) – ECAC
Nick Dodge – He must like fours. The senior forward has 23 points, and mixed in that point total are four game winners, four power play goals, and four shorthanded goals.
10. (11) St. Cloud State (17-14-3) – WCHA
Andreas Nodl – Sophomore has 40 points, so he’s gotten some publicity, but one aspect of his game that really stands out is the 10 power play goals. That is about 1/4 of all power play goals scored by the Huskies.
11. (10) Boston College (16-9-7) – Hockey East
Brian Gibbons – Freshman leading the team in +/- is almost unheard of, but Gibbons is doing it to go with his 23 points.
12. (13) Niagara (19-9-4) – CHA
Egor Mironov – Only six penalty minutes all year long and he’s a sniper. Six of his 11 goals have come on the power play.
13. (12) Air Force (17-11-6) – Atlantic Hockey
Josh Frider – Again with the outstanding power play numbers, as this junior forward has seven of his 11 goals with the man advantage.
14. (15) RIT (17-11-6) – Atlantic Hockey
Matt Smith – He’s second on the team in points, but this is another case of a goal-scorer deserving some extra credit because of his prowess on the man-advantage. Thirteen, yes thirteen, of his 21 goals have come on the power play.
15. (14) Princeton (17-12-0) – ECAC
Mark Magnowski – Sophomores tend to either be explosive stars or quality third-liners, but Magnowski has found a niche as a clutch source for goals. He was four game winners.
16. (19) Army (17-13-4) – Atlantic Hockey
Chris Blair – He’s one of the senior leaders on the best team in the AH right now, and while the total of 9 isn’t high, he does lead the team in the +/- category.
17. (17) Boston University (15-15-4) – Hockey East
Brian Strait – Penguins prospect has some publicity because he’s a future NHL guy playing for a big team, but he deserves more. He’s a true defensive defenseman, and as a sophomore he’s already a leader on and off the ice.
18. (16) Minnesota State (17-13-4) – WCHA
Andrew Sackrison – Just four penalty minutes, an amazing number for a freshman through 31 games with 18 points. Reminiscent a little bit of Jordan Staal his rookie year.
19. (20) Wisconsin (15-14-7) – WCHA
Shane Connelly – On a team with Kyle Turris and Ben Street, it’s rough being a goalie. But Connelly has put up good numbers as a junior, including a .915 save percentage.
20. (NR) Harvard (14-11-4) – ECAC
Alex Biega – Sophomore blue-liner has sixteen points and is among the team leaders in +/- at 7.

DROPPED OUT #18 Northeastern

ON THE OUTSIDE, LOOKING IN:
Cornell, Ferris State, Minnesota