The Ice Garden’s NCAA Poll: Creeping Ivy

Before we go into the poll we first have to acknowledge the news from the week. As this site has been demonetized by SB Nation we will be changing the name of the poll. As for other changes we are sure more will be coming down the pipe but as we are all still gathering information about the new landscape we plan to continue to publish this poll as usual and thank you for your continued support.

We have some major separation of our top three, our next three and then the last four are all separate from each other. We had a team stake their claim for their top seed and another all but clinch theirs.

1. Ohio State (22-2-2), 85 (5) — Last poll: 1

• Last week: W 6-2 @ St. Cloud State (1/20), W 3-2 OT @ St. Cloud State (1/21)
• Coming Week: v Minnesota State (1/27, 1/28)/

The Buckeyes remain at the top but the lead is narrowed after they were taken to OT by the northern Huskies. They will have another weekend of easier games to get them ready for their final stretch when they host the Mavericks.

2. Yale (19-1-1), 82 (2) — Last poll: 2

• Last week: W 3-1 @ Princeton (1/20), W 4-2 @ Quinnipiac (1/21)
• Coming Week: v St. Lawrence (1/27), v Clarkson (1/28)/

Yale has put themselves squarely in the driver's seat for the ECAC and Ivy League crowns while also having a strong chance at the overall #1 seed in the PWR after they swept their road weekend including the trip down the road to Quinnipiac. This made them this week’s ‘Belles of the Ball’ as they play host to the north country teams this weekend.

3. Minnesota (20-3-2), 73 (2) — Last poll: T-3

• Last week: W 7-0 @ Bemidji State (1/20), W 4-1 @ Bemidji State (1/21)
• Coming Week: @ Minnesota-Duluth (1/27, 1/28)/

After taking the trip to last place Bemidji for an easy sweep the Gophers will now head back north up to Duluth for their first real test in a long time.

4. Quinnipiac (23-4-0), 57 (1) — Last poll: T-3

• Last week: W 3-1 v Brown (1/20), L 2-4 v Yale (1/21)
• Coming Week: v Princeton (1/28), @ Princeton (1/29)/

An easy win over Brown was expected. A relatively bad loss to a very good Yale team was less than ideal but doesn’t end Quinnipiac’s season even if it makes paths to hardware a lot more difficult. They now will play their pair against their travel partner Princeton.

5. Colgate (20-4-1), 51 — Last poll: 5

• Last week: W 9-3 v Cornell (1/20), L 2-4 @ Cornell (1/21)
• Coming Week: v Dartmouth (1/27), v Harvard (1/28)/

The short road trip was not kind to the Raiders after blowing out the Big Red at home the trip to Ithaca was rife with peril apparently as Cornell split the weekend hurting Colgate in the PWR majorly.

6. Northeastern (23-2-1), 48 — Last poll: 6

• Last week: W 3-1 @ Merrimack (1/20), W 3-1 @ Vermont (1/21)
• Coming Week: v Holy Cross (1/27)/

While neither win was dominant or impressive they were both wins, the latter game being against a team that is still hunting for an at-large bid to the tournament allowed the Huskies to move their magic number down to three for the HEA regular season crown, which they can make zero when they Host Holy Cross on Friday.

7. Minnesota-Duluth (19-6-1), 38 — Last poll: 7

• Last week: W 3-0 @ St. Thomas (1/21), W 5-1 @ St. Thomas (1/22)
• Coming Week: v Minnesota (1/27, 1/28)/

No slip-ups this time for the Bulldogs as the Tommies were no match for Duluth. Now the Golden Gophers will visit for a pair which is critical for both teams.

8. Wisconsin (18-7-1), 27 — Last poll: 8

• Last week: W 2-1 v Minnesota State (1/21), W 6-0 v Minnesota State (1/22)
• Coming Week: @ St. Thomas (1/27, 1/28)/

A win is a win when you are on a losing streak. The first game was tight but the second was old-school Wisconsin, beating up on a team not in their class. Now they will get another pair of easy games visiting St. Thomas.

9. Cornell (12-7-2), 18 — Last poll: 9

• Last week: W 4-1 @ Syracuse (1/17), L 3-9 @ Colgate (1/20), W 4-2 v Colgate (1/21)
• Coming Week: v Harvard (1/27), v Dartmouth (1/28)/

The Big Red won their midweek color matchup against the Orange and then somehow pulled off a split against Colgate despite being blown out in Hamilton. This week a much easier pair of games is on the slate.

10. Vermont (17-9-1), 7 — Last poll: ARV

• Last week: W 3-1 v Holy Cross (1/20), L 1-3 v Northeastern (1/21)
• Coming Week: @ Boston College (1/27), @ Boston University (1/28)/

We continue to swap out this pot as Clarkson stumbled Vermont moved back in. The Catamounts righted the ship against hapless Holy Cross but were unable to slay the giant in Northeastern despite tying up the game in the second period. They now wrap up their series against the other Boston schools on a two-site road trip.

Also Receiving Votes: Clarkson 6, Penn State 3