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CIS men’s hockey Top 10 (#18): No. 2 Redmen, No. 3 Bears claim conference titles
OTTAWA (CIS) – The University of New Brunswick Varsity
Reds top the Canadian Interuniversity Sport men’s hockey
rankings for the 10th straight week, while the McGill Redmen follow
in second place for the ninth week in a row.
The V-Reds (23-5-0 regular season / 4-2 playoffs) received all but
one first-place votes from the 18-member national media panel in
the new poll for a total of 179 points. The Redmen (24-2-2 / 7-1)
earned the remaining first place nod and 158 points.
The Alberta Golden Bears (19-6-3 / 4-0) tallied 147 points to round
out the leading trio for the six consecutive week, while the St.
Francis Xavier X-Men (17-10-1 / 6-3) move up three positions to No.
4 in the 18th poll of the campaign after eliminating the 2010
national champion Saint Mary’s Huskies from University Cup
contention.
Saint Mary’s (18-9-1 / 2-3) drops three spots to No. 7.
The No. 5 Western Ontario Mustangs (20-3-5 / 6-2), No. 6 Calgary
Dinos (17-8-3 / 2-3), No. 8 UQTR Patriotes (19-8-1 / 5-4), No. 9
Saskatchewan Huskies (17-11-0 / 1-2) and No. 10 Acadia Axemen
(14-11-3 / 3-3) all hold on to their previous rankings.
Only one conference champion remains to be declared before the
University Cup championship tournament gets underway in Fredericton
on March 24.
Top-ranked UNB and StFX are tied at one game apiece in the
best-of-five AUS final, with the first two contests requiring extra
time. The V-Reds took the opener 3-2 last Friday and the X-Men
responded with a 2-1 double OT win on Saturday.
The series moves to the X-Men’s home in Antigonish, N.S.,
Tuesday and Wednesday. If necessary, a fifth and decisive game will
be played in Fredericton later this week (date TBD).
StFX advanced to the AUS final thanks to an exciting 3-2 double OT
victory over Saint Mary’s in Game 5 of their semifinal
matchup on March 8.
In the OUA, McGill captured its third conference title in four
years Saturday in London, Ont., with an impressive 6-2 road win
over Western in the 100th presentation of the Queen’s
Cup.
In Canada West, Alberta proved too much for provincial rival
Calgary in the best-of-three conference final. The Bears swept the
Dinos 3-0 and 8-1 in Edmonton to win their fourth consecutive
banner, and their 10th in 11 seasons.
CIS MEN’S
HOCKEY TOP 10 (#18)
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 / 4-2 playoffs) / 179 pts (17) / (1)
2. McGill (24-2-2 / 7-1 playoffs) / 158 (1) / (2)
3. Alberta (19-6-3 / 4-0 playoffs) / 147 / (3)
4. StFX (17-10-1 / 6-3 playoffs) / 123 / (7)
5. Western Ontario (20-3-5 / 6-2 playoffs) / 104 / (5)
6. Calgary (17-8-3 / 2-3 playoffs) / 88 / (6)
7. Saint Mary’s (18-9-1 / 2-3 playoffs) / 77 / (4)
8. UQTR (19-8-1 / 5-4 playoffs) / 45 / (8)
9. Saskatchewan (17-11-0 / 1-2 playoffs) / 39 / (9)
10. Acadia (14-11-3 / 3-3 playoffs) / 23 / (10)
Other teams receiving votes: Manitoba (4), Guelph (3).
CIS MEN’S
HOCKEY SCHEDULE:
Best-of-5 AUS final (series tied 1-1)
Tuesday, March 15, 19:00 AT: UNB at StFX (Game 3)
Wednesday, March 16, 19:00 AT: UNB at StFX (Game 4)
TBA: StFX at UNB (Game 5 if necessary)
University Cup CIS championship
March 24-27, Aitken University Centre, Fredericton, N.B.
-CIS-
