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CIS men’s hockey Top 10 (#16): No. 1 UNB off to good playoff start
OTTAWA (CIS) – The University of New Brunswick Varsity
Reds top the Canadian Interuniversity Sport men’s hockey
rankings for the eighth straight week, while the McGill Redmen
follow in second place for the seventh week in a row.
The V-Reds (23-5-0 / 2-0 playoffs) once again received all but one
first-place votes from the 18-member media panel for a total of 179
points. The Redmen (24-2-2 / 4-0 playoffs) earned the remaining
first place nod and 154 points.
Positions 3 through 7 also remain unchanged in the new Top 10 with
the Alberta Golden Bears (19-6-3), the reigning University Cup
champion Saint Mary’s Huskies (18-9-1 / 1-1 playoffs),
Western Ontario Mustangs (20-3-5 / 4-1 playoffs), St. Francis
Xavier X-Men (17-10-1 / 3-1 playoffs) and Calgary Dinos (17-8-3)
following in order.
The No. 8 UQTR Patriotes (19-8-1 / 4-2 playoffs) and No. 9
Saskatchewan Huskies (17-11-0) swap positions this week, while the
previously unranked Guelph Gryphons (15-10-3 / 4-2 playoffs) round
out the 16th poll of the campaign at No. 10.
Top-ranked UNB got off to a solid playoff start over the weekend
jumping to a quick 2-0 lead over Acadia in their best-of-five AUS
semifinal series. The Varsity Reds dominated both contests but
after winning the opener 4-0 on Saturday, they needed a Nick
MacNeil goal at 11:53 of the fourth overtime period on Sunday to
prevail 3-2, despite outshooting the Axemen by a 78-39 margin.
Game 3 is set for Thursday in Wolfville, N.S.
The other Atlantic conference semifinal between No. 4 Saint
Mary’s and No. 6 StFX is tied at one game apiece following a
5-3 X-Men win and a 4-3 Huskies victory. Game 3 goes tonight at 7
p.m. AT in Halifax.
In the OUA, logic was respected in the East Division where No. 2
McGill and No. 8 UQTR will meet in the best-of-three final for the
sixth time in seven years.
The Redmen advanced thanks to 4-1 and 6-4 triumphs over Nipissing
in the previous round, while the Patriotes needed a 4-0 win in the
third and deciding match Sunday in Trois-Rivières to
eliminate Carleton. Game 1 of the McGill-UQTR series is schedule
for Wednesday night in Montreal.
In the OUA West, No. 5 Western and No. 10 Guelph will face off in
the final starting on Wednesday in London.
The Mustangs needed three games to take care of Waterloo in the
divisional semis. They dominated the series clincher 6-0 on Sunday.
The Gryphons, who finished fourth in the division in the regular
season, also went to the limit against Wilfrid Laurier, edging the
Golden Hawks 2-1 in Game 3.
In Canada West, conference play came to an end last weekend with
No. 3 Alberta finishing atop the standings with 41 points. The
Bears closed out the schedule with a 3-2 loss and a 4-0 win against
UBC.
Calgary took second place with 37 points, Saskatchewan had 34
points and fourth-place Manitoba finished with 32.
This week’s best-of-three CWUAA semifinals will see Manitoba
travel to Edmonton to face Alberta, and Saskatchewan making the
trip to Calgary to battle the Dinos. Both series open Friday
evening.
Below is a complete CIS men’s hockey schedule for the period
of March 1-8.
CIS MEN’S
HOCKEY TOP 10 (#16)
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) /
(previous rankings)
1. UNB (23-5-0 / 2-0 playoffs) / 179 pts (17) / (1)
2. McGill (24-2-2 / 4-0 playoffs) / 154 (1) / (2)
3. Alberta (19-6-3) / 141 / (3)
4. Saint Mary’s (18-9-1 / 1-1 playoffs) / 119 / (4)
5. Western Ontario (20-3-5 / 4-1 playoffs) / 107 / (5)
6. StFX (17-10-1 / 3-1 playoffs) / 90 / (6)
7. Calgary (17-8-3) / 70 / (7)
8. UQTR (19-8-1 / 4-2 playoffs) / 46 / (9)
9. Saskatchewan (17-11-0) / 44 / (8)
10. Guelph (15-10-3 / 4-2 playoffs) / 16 / (NR) - X
Other teams receiving votes: Acadia (16) – X, Manitoba (5),
Carleton (1).
X - Guelph was awarded the higher ranking based on number of higher
placed votes.
CIS MEN’S
HOCKEY SCHEDULE: March 1-8 (all times LOCAL)
Tuesday, March 1
19:00 StFX at Saint Mary’s (Game 3 best-of-5 AUS semifinal /
series tied 1-1)
Wednesday, March 2
19:00 UQTR at McGill (Game 1 best-of-3 OUA East final)
19:30 Guelph at Western (Game 1 best-of-3 OUA West final)
Thursday, March 3
19:00 UNB at Acadia (Game 3 best-of-5 AUS semifinal / UNB leads
series 2-0)
Friday, March 4
19:00 UNB at Acadia (Game 4 best-of-5 AUS semifinal – if
necessary)
19:30 McGill at UQTR (Game 2 best-of-3 OUA East final)
19:00 Saskatchewan at Calgary (Game 1 best-of-3 Canada West
semifinal)
19:30 Manitoba at Alberta (Game 1 best-of-3 Canada West
semifinal)
Saturday, March 5
19:30 Western at Guelph (Game 2 best-of-3 OUA West final)
19:00 Saskatchewan at Calgary (Game 2 best-of-3 Canada West
semifinal)
19:30 Manitoba at Alberta (Game 2 best-of-3 Canada West
semifinal)
Sunday, March 6
19:00 Saint Mary’s at StFX (Game 4 best-of-5 AUS
semifinal)
19:00 UQTR at McGill (Game 3 best-of-3 OUA East final – if
necessary)
19:30 Guelph at Western (Game 3 best-of-3 OUA West final – if
necessary)
19:00 Saskatchewan at Calgary (Game 3 best-of-3 Canada West
semifinal – if necessary)
19:00 Manitoba at Alberta (Game 3 best-of-3 Canada West semifinal
– if necessary)
Tuesday, March 8
19:00 StFX at Saint Mary’s (Game 5 best-of-5 AUS semifinal
– if necessary)
19:00 Acadia at UNB (Game 5 best-of-5 AUS semifinal – if
necessary)
-CIS-
