CIS Men’s Hockey Top 10 (#13): No. 1 UNB sets CIS record, looks to write more history

OTTAWA (CIS) – The reigning University Cup champion New Brunswick Varsity Reds top the CIS men’s hockey rankings for the 13th time in as many media polls this year.

The Varsity Reds, who were a unanimous choice at No. 1 for the 12th straight week thanks to 17 first-place votes, racked up three more wins over the past seven days to set a CIS record for consecutive victories to open the regular season.

UNB improved to 26-0 in conference play defeating Moncton, 5-1, StFX, 5-3, and Dalhousie, 4-1. The previous CIS mark for consecutive wins at the start of a campaign was held by Western Ontario since 2002-03, when the Mustangs skated to a perfect 24-0 season.

The V-Reds also tied their own AUS record for most wins in a season and need two points over their final two conference games to set a new AUS mark for most points. They established both records in 2007-08 when they went 26-1-1.

The defending national champions hope to become the sixth CIS men’s hockey team since 1962-63 (first year of University Cup championship) to finish the regular season with a perfect record following the ‘02-03 Mustangs, Saint Mary’s (21-0) and Toronto (17-0) in 1972-73, Laurentian (10-0) in 1970-71, as well as St. Francis Xavier in 1965-66 (14-0).

UNB wraps up conference play at home this weekend with tilts against StFX (10-12-4) on Friday and Dalhousie (8-14-4) on Saturday. Both games are set for 7 p.m. Atlantic Time.

Following UNB in this week’s national media poll are No. 2 Alberta (20-3-1), No. 3 UQTR (21-3-2), No. 4 Acadia (18-6-2), No. 5 McGill (20-6-0), No. 6 Western Ontario (19-7-0), No. 7 Waterloo (19-6-1), No. 8 Lakehead (18-6-2), No. 9 Manitoba (14-8-2) and No. 10 Saint Mary’s (14-8-4).

Ranked second in the nation for the 13th time in 13 weeks, Alberta clinched first place in the Canada West conference with a weekend split against Lethbridge (10-11-3). The Golden Bears, who won the series opener 8-6 before dropping a 5-4 decision in the rematch, finish first in the CWUAA standings for the 10th consecutive year and are now running a streak of 12 straight seasons with at least 20 conference wins. The Bears host UBC (7-16-1) for a pair this weekend.

UQTR stays put at No. 3 for the second straight week thanks to a 4-3 shootout win over Concordia (8-16-3) and an 8-2 domination of Ottawa (6-18-1). The Patriotes, who peppered goaltender Maxime Joyal with 68 shots in the one-goal victory over the Stingers, hold a four-point lead over McGill in the OUA East Division and only need one point over their final two conference duels to clinch first place. They host Ottawa on Friday and Carleton (14-9-3) on Saturday.

Acadia remains at No. 4 for the seventh consecutive week after going 3-for-3 over the past seven days, including a pair of overtime victories. With two games left on the AUS schedule, the Axemen secured second place in the Atlantic with a 4-3 OT decision over Dalhousie (8-14-4), a 6-4 defeat of St. Thomas (7-17-2) and a 4-3 OT win against Moncton (8-15-3).

McGill, which can’t finish lower than second in the OUA East, moves up one spot in the Top 10 following a pair of convincing results in the nation’s capital, 5-1 over Carleton and 4-1 over Ottawa.

In the OUA West, the battle for first place is on between Western, Waterloo and Lakehead. With two contests remaining for each club, the No. 7 Warriors are currently first with 39 points, followed by the No. 6 Mustangs with 38 and the No. 8 Thunderwolves with 36.

Western is down one spot in the new national media poll following a 6-2 win over Windsor (10-13-4) and a 4-3 loss to Guelph (13-11-3). The Mustangs wrap up conference play with a visit to UOIT (10-15-1) on Friday and a home date with Wilfrid Laurier (16-8-2) on Saturday.

Waterloo is up two positions and earns its best ranking of the season thanks to a 2-1 OT win over York (11-12-3) and a 6-4 defeat of Brock (9-16-1). The Warriors conclude OUA play this weekend against Windsor and UOIT.

Lakehead drops one spot in the Top 10 following a weekend split at home against UOIT. The T-Wolves, who lost the series opener 6-5 to the Ridgebacks before rebounding with an 8-2 victory, end the OUA schedule at Laurier and Brock.

Saint Mary’s stays at No. 10 for the second straight week after edging Moncton 3-2 in OT and outscoring St. Thomas 5-2.

NOTE: No. 3 UQTR beat No. 5 McGill 5-4 on Monday night (February 8). That result is NOT reflected in this week’s Top 10 and will count towards next week’s rankings. However, the win for UQTR and loss for McGill are included in the teams’ records in this week’s poll.

Perfect regular season records since 1962-63 (first year of University Cup championship)

Western Ontario, 2002-03 (24 wins, 0 loses, 0 ties)
Saint Mary’s, 1972-73 (21-0-0)
Toronto, 1972-73 (17-0-0)
Laurentian, 1970-71 (10-0-0)
St. Francis Xavier, 1965-66 (14-0-0)

Undefeated regular season records since 1962-63 (first year of University Cup championship)

Alberta, 2003-04 (26 wins, 0 losses, 2 ties)
Western Ontario, 2002-03 (24-0-0)
Western Ontario, 2001-02 (22-0-2)
Toronto, 1981-82 (18-0-4)
Concordia, 1975-76 (19-0-1)
Toronto, 1973-74 (18-0-1)
Saint Mary’s, 1972-73 (21-0-0)
Toronto, 1972-73 (17-0-0)
Laurentian, 1970-71 (10-0-0)
St. Francis Xavier, 1965-66 (14-0-0)

SOURCE: Steve Knowles, CIS men’s hockey Top 10 coordinator

CIS MEN’S HOCKEY TOP 10 (#13)

Voting is based on a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis, with a 1st place vote worth 10 points. The CIS Men’s Ice Hockey Top Ten Committee is made up of media members from across Canada.

(Regular season record) / votes (first-place votes) / (last week)

1. UNB (26-0-0) / 170 points (17) / (1)
2. Alberta (20-3-1) / 149 / (2)
3. UQTR (21-3-2) / 129 / (3)
4. Acadia (18-6-2) / 121 / (4)
5. McGill (20-6-0) / 96 / (6)
6. Western Ontario (19-7-0) / 70 / (5)
7. Waterloo (19-6-1) / 62 / (9)
8. Lakehead (18-6-2) / 60 / (7)
9. Manitoba (14-8-2) / 38 / (8)
10. Saint Mary’s (14-8-4) / 21 / (10)

Other teams receiving votes: Saskatchewan (12), Wilfrid Laurier (7).


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