Ben Youds and Minnesota State earned a road sweep against No. 4 Bemidji State

There were three marquee series pitting ranked teams against each other in the WCHA last weekend - and all of them delivered riveting hockey. The most competitive of those matchups took place in Grand Forks in front of crowds greater than 11,500 each night and pitted third-ranked North Dakota against No. 11 Wisconsin. On Friday, the Fighting Sioux had a 30-22 edge in shots, but needed a third-period power-play goal from Danny Kristo to salvage a 3-3 draw. UND put 10 more shots on goal than the Badgers the next night, but Wisconsin scored three times with a man advantage en route to a 4-3 win.

WCHA leader and second-ranked Denver earned a road split against 12th-ranked Minnesota Duluth. On Friday, the Bulldogs had a 5-on-3 advantage for over a minute, down a goal late in the game, but couldn't net the equalizer, as DU went on to a 3-2 win. On Saturday, UMD was able to net three goals in the third period after the teams had battled to a draw through the first two, en route to a 6-3 triumph. Duluth's unrelated sophomore Connollys led the attack, with center Jack scoring twice and adding an assist, while winger Mike had three helpers.

No. 6 Colorado College and 17th-ranked St. Cloud State played an offensive showcase on Friday night that saw the teams combine to put 82 shots on goal. CC scored the game's first three goals, but St. Cloud would eventually rally and earn a 4-4 draw to extend the Tigers' winless streak to four games. But Colorado College would rite the ship on Saturday and earn a 4-1 win in the series finale.

The biggest upsets of the weekend both came in a series between a current WCHA member and a school that will join the league next season. Unranked Minnesota State hit the road and registered a sweep of fourth-ranked Bemidji State. On Friday, the Mavericks broke open a 1-1 game with four unanswered goals in the third period - including a pair from Jerad Stewart - for a 5-1 victory. The Beavers controlled the game on Saturday, finishing with a 31-14 advantage in shots, but Minnesota State was still able to pull out a 3-2 win over the Beavers - who came into the weekend with a record of 13-2-1.

Top-ranked Miami kept rolling in a home-and-home series with Ohio State. Junior forward Tommy Wingels notched four goals and an assist on Friday, and sophomore Cody Reichard stopped all 17 shots he faced in a 6-0 victory by the RedHawks - their third consecutive shutout. On Saturday, the Buckeyes held a two-goal advantage heading into the third period, but Miami would score four times in the final stanza for a 4-2 triumph.

Three ranked teams were able to salvage only splits in series against unranked squads over the weekend. No. 9 UMass Lowell beat Princeton 4-1 on Friday, but then lost 3-2 the next night. No. 16 Alaska edged Nebraska-Omaha by a 4-3 tally before falling 5-3 to the Mavericks. Elsewhere in the CCHA, Michigan topped 18th-ranked Notre Dame 4-1 on Friday before the Fighting Irish got a shutout from freshman Mike Johnson in a 2-0 decision on Sunday.

Most teams will now take a break from action for a few weeks, as there are only six games across the country (none of those involve any ranked teams) from now until the holiday tournaments kick off on Tuesday, Dec. 29. So for now - Happy Holidays, hockey fans!

Drew Palmisano and Michigan State swept No. 6 Michigan last week and face No. 14 Notre Dame this weekend

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
A stunning number of ranked teams finished last weekend the same way - with one win and one loss. In fact, there were just four ranked teams that posted wins in both of their games last weekend: No. 5 UMass Lowell, No. 10 Colorado College, No. 13 Michigan State and No. 20 Quinnipiac. The most-impressive, by far, of those sweeps was the one pulled off by the Spartans - who beat sixth-ranked Michigan 3-2 and 2-0 in a home-and-home series. MSU snapped a six-game losing streak against its archrival on Friday in front of a sellout crowd of 6,833 in Ann Arbor and then sophomore goaltender Drew Palmisano registered a shutout the next night at home in front of a capacity crowd of 7,009. It marked Michigan State's first weekend sweep of the Wolverines since the 1997-98 season.

The other series between ranked teams ended in a split. On Friday, No. 15 Vermont and 16th-ranked Boston College were tied at 1-1 in the first period before the Eagles exploded for six unanswered goals en route to a 7-1 victory. Sophomore forward Jimmy Hayes recorded four assists, and freshman defenseman Brian Dumoulin finished with a plus-3 rating to lead BC - which was outshot 31-19. The next night it was the Catamounts that got a victory despite being outshot, as BC had a 32-25 edge in shots but UVM won 3-2.

Heading into the weekend, there were still two Division I teams that had yet to be beaten - but both of them suffered defeats. The first came on Friday in a matchup of ECAC elites, as 12th-ranked Yale topped No. 3 Cornell by a 4-2 score. Junior forward Brendan Mason scored at 15:35 in the third to break a 2-2 deadlock, and the Bulldogs then added an empty-netter. That left No. 7 Bemidji State, at 7-0-1, as the lone unbeaten, and the Beavers were trying to accomplish something they had never done before: beat Minnesota. BSU scored first on Saturday, but the Gophers would respond with four straight goals for a 4-1 home victory in front of 10,198 fans. Bemidji finally broke through the following night, though, getting a pair of goals from sophomore forward Jamie McQueen in a 6-2 triumph over the Gophers - the first for BSU in eight all-time meetings.

The nation's top two teams both had difficulty in conference action. No. 1 Miami ran its unbeaten string to six, but tied and then lost in a shootout in both of its games against Ferris State. On Friday, Blair Riley scored with 23 seconds remaining in regulation to help the Bulldogs earn a 2-2 tie. The following night, the final was 1-1 before Ferris State finally prevailed in a shootout that went 11 rounds, a CCHA record. Ferris killed off all eight MU power plays in the series. Second-ranked North Dakota finished with a conventional split, first getting a pair of goals from David Toews in a 4-2 win over St. Cloud State, before losing 3-2 the next night despite holding a 49-28 advantage in shots. Both games in Grand Forks drew crowds of greater than 11,700.

Northern Michigan came into the weekend with a 2-5-1 mark on the season, but the Wildcats got a win and a tie (shootout loss) on the road against No. 8 Notre Dame. On Friday, the Fighting Irish outshot NMU 38-18, but Northern Michigan won 3-2. The Wildcats scored the game's first two goals the next night, but sophomore right wing Billy Maday scored twice to salvage a tie for the Fighting Irish.

There were five other ranked teams that split with unranked teams over the weekend. No. 9 Alaska lost 3-1 to Bowling Green on Friday, but came back for a 5-3 win the following day. Another CCHA squad, 11th-ranked Nebraska-Omaha, rode senior goaltender Jeremie Dupont in a 4-0 shutout of Lake Superior on Friday, but the Lakers struck back in a 3-1 decision in the series finale. No. 14 Massachusetts split with New Hampshire, winning 4-3 before falling 4-2. Also in Hockey East, 17th-ranked Boston University uas knocked off by Merrimack in a 6-3 decision, but came back for a 6-4 win. No. 18 Minnesota Duluth was edged 3-2 by Michigan Tech, but then made a statement with an 8-1 victory against the Huskies. Junior winger Justin Fontaine - who leads the nation in goal scoring, with 11 - had four goals and an assist in that game.

TONIGHT'S THE NIGHT
We are treated to a pair of big Thursday-night matchups between ranked teams this week. The team that leads Division I in victories (9) and boasts the nation's longest current unbeaten streak (6-0-1), No. 6 Michigan State, has a big home test tonight against 14th-ranked Notre Dame. The Spartans sit atop the CCHA standings and are the top scoring team in the league, while the Fighting Irish are one of just seven teams surrendering fewer than two goals per game this season (1.92). MSU features the CCHA's top scorer - junior forward Corey Tropp (9-7-16) - and the top-scoring defenseman - junior Jeff Petry (1-9-10) - while Notre Dame freshman goaltender Mike Johnson ranks fourth nationally in both goals-against average (1.61) and save percentage (.941). These teams - who will also play Sunday in Fort Wayne, Ind., at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum, which will play host to an NCAA regional this season - have met twice recently in the NCAA tournament, with Michigan State prevailing 2-1 in the 2007 quarterfinals en route to claiming the national title and the Irish winning 3-1 in the same round the following year. ND has won three straight against MSU after the Spartans had been 8-1-1 in the previous 10 games in the series.

In a non-conference matchup, defending ECAC champion and ninth-ranked Yale will play host to the surprise early leader in Hockey East, No. 11 Massachusetts, in what will be the first meeting between these New England schools since 1997. It will match up two of the early national leaders in points per game, as UMass junior forward James Marcou leads Hockey East and is tied for sixth nationally at 1.56 (3-11-14 in 9 games) - while Yale junior Broc Little has eight points (5-3) in five games thus far to rank fifth in DI at 1.60.

TODAY'S SCOREBOARD WATCH
All Times Eastern
No. 11 Massachusetts at No. 9 Yale, 7 p.m. - Live Stats
No. 14 Notre Dame at No. 6 Michigan State, 7:05 p.m. - TV: Comcast | Live Stats

Jarod Palmer and Miami won twice at Michigan

Top-ranked Miami made a strong case that it is the top team in college hockey early in this season with a road sweep of No. 4 Michigan. The RedHawks - now 8-1-1 on the season - got a pair of goals from senior forward Jarod Palmer on Friday in a 3-1 victory (though U-M had a 28-13 shot advantage) and then scored five straight after surrending the opening goal on Saturday to take a 5-1 win. Sophomore goaltender Cody Reichard It marked the first time that a visiting team came into Yost Ice Arena and left with two victories since Oct. 26-27, 2001, a span of 45 series. Crowds of greater than 6,700 took in both games.

The only team to have defeated MU this season - No. 17 Michigan State - also made a statement in a conference series, getting a win and a tie against 10th-ranked Nebraska-Omaha. Sophomore goaltender Drew Palmisano earned his first career shutout on Thursday in a 3-0 win for the Spartans. The Mavericks did bounce back the next night to register a 3-3 tie and then win the shootout on the fourth skater.

The other big clashes over the weekend all ended with no clear winner. On Friday night, No. 8 UMass Lowell and 15th-ranked Vermont battled to a 3-3 draw, though UVM had a 37-22 edge in shots. No. 9 Notre Dame dealt 13th-ranked Alaska its first defeat of the season on Friday in a 3-2 decision, but the Nanooks snapped their 11-game winless streak (0-10-1) against Notre Dame the next night in a 3-1 game that featured a pair of goals by junior forward Derek Klassen.

In the WCHA, No. 20 Minnesota Duluth battled to a 4-3 road win against 12th-ranked Colorado College on Friday despite being outshot by 12 (33-21). But the Tigers got two goals and an assist from senior left wing Bill Sweatt on Saturday en route to a 6-2 triumph that featured four power-play markers. Two traditional national powers also split their WCHA series, as No. 18 Wisconsin topped Minnesota 4-2 on Friday behind a pair of goals from Blake Geoffrion. The Gophers struck back the next night with a 5-2 victory despite being outshot 47-28. Zach Budish had two goals and an assist and a plus-3 rating and Tony Lucia finished as a plus-4 and also added three points (1-2).

Second-ranked Denver opened the weekend with a 3-2 victory at Alaska Anchorage that saw senior forward Rhett Rakhshani score twice, but the Seawolves would come back the next night with a 7-3 upset win. Sean Wiles had a pair of tallies for UAA.

After a big win to open the season, No. 6 Yale failed to get a victory last weekend. The Bulldogs lost 5-2 to Rensselaer on Friday (Chase Polacek had two goals and an assist for the Engineers) and then managed just a 3-3 draw at Union. Another team that had a disappointing weekend was seventh-ranked and defending NCAA champion Boston University. The Terriers were shut out by Northeastern's Chris Rawlings in a 1-0 game on Friday and then lost 3-2 at Maine on Sunday. BU now stands at 2-5. The other upset over the weekend was delivered by St. Lawrence, which beat No. 14 Princeton 5-2 on Saturday.

Adam Shemansky scored twice in Maine's upset of No. 10 Vermont

The marquee series of the weekend did not disappoint, as the teams favored to finish atop Hockey East this season - No. 4 Boston University and No. 9 UMass Lowell - both battled to road victories against each other. On Friday, BU sophomore defenseman David Warsofsky scored twice (including once on the penalty kill) and had a plus-3 rating to lead the Terriers, and junior blueliner Colby Cohen - who scored the overtime game-winner in last season's NCAA title game - came through with an OT goal to give BU a 5-4 win in front of 5,496 fans. The River Hawks struck back the next night in a 3-2 decision in Boston. Senior forward Paul Worthington had two assists for UML.

The Ivy League schools finally began their 2009-10 campaigns over this weekend - meaning that all 58 Division I teams have now played regular-season games. Two of the Ivies hooked up in a big early matchup on Saturday, and seventh-ranked Yale scored four times in the third to rally from a 2-1 deficit for a 5-2 victory on the road against No. 11 Princeton. Junior forward Denny Kearney had three assists and junior defenseman Mike Matczak finished with a plus-4 rating to lead the Bulldogs.

Top-ranked Miami continued to roll with a road sweep against Northern Michigan. The RedHawks scored the game's first four goals - including two tallies in 41 seconds by junior forward Justin Vaive - and held on for a 4-3 triumph on Friday. Sophomore goaltender Cody Reichard, now 5-0-1 on the season, then made 24 saves the following night to lead MU to a 2-1 win.

No. 2 Denver had to settle for three points in its home series with Minnesota State. The Pioneers got two goals and an assist from junior forward Jesse Martin in a 4-3 win on Friday. The next night, freshman forward Tyler Pitlick had a pair of goals for the Mavericks, and DU needed a late tally from junior forward Kyle Ostrow to earn a 4-4 draw. Both games drew crowds of greater than 5,300 fans.

The biggest upset of the weekend occurred on Friday in Orono, as Maine - which came into the game with a 1-5-0 record - posted a 4-1 home victory against 10th-ranked Vermont. The Black Bears scored three times on the power play - including two goals from freshman forward Adam Shemansky - and also got 31 saves from sophomore Scott Darling. The Catamounts took all three meetings with Maine last season.

Three ranked teams - No. 13 Boston College, 17th-ranked Massachusetts and No. 18 Quinnipiac - earned multiple-goal victories on Friday, but then were knocked off in the second game of the series. BC doubled Merrimack's shot toal (36-18) on Friday in a 4-3 win in its home opener, but the Warriors would strike back on home ice in a 5-3 decision. It ended a 20-game winless streak (0-16-4) against the Eagles for Merrimack - which beat BC for the first time since Feb. 15, 2003, and stands 5-0 at home this season. Merrimack junior forward Chris Barton scored his seventh goal of the season on Saturday - which puts him in a tie (with Justin Fontaine of Minnesota Duluth and Michigan State's Corey Tropp) for tops among DI players.

UMass got goals from five different players in a 5-3 road victory over Providence on Friday that gave the Minutemen their first 4-0-0 start in six years. But sophomore goaltender Alex Beaudry stole the series finale for the Friars, making a career-high 47 saves in PC's 2-1 win that saw UMass hold a 48-28 shot edge. It was the second win over a ranked team already this season for the Friars, who split a series at Notre Dame last month.

Quinnipiac dominated Robert Morris on Friday, as freshman goaltender Eric Hartzell led the Bobcats to a 5-0 victory. It would be a different story for the Colonials the next night, though, as Robert Morris got a school-record four goals from junior forward Nathan Longpre - as well as a program-record 58 saves from freshman goaltender Eric Levine in an 8-5 upset win. Quinnipiac outshot RMU 105-53 in the series, but could manage just a split.

Eighth-ranked Notre Dame and No. 12 Nebraska-Omaha both had to settle for a win and a tie in CCHA series. The Irish topped Ohio State 3-1 on Friday before tying 2-2 the next night. The Mavericks tied Bowling Green, 3-3, on Friday and won 3-1 over the Falcons the next night.

No. 14 Bemidji State came home with a road sweep to remain unbeaten (5-0-1), but it wasn't easy. The Beavers took a pair of 2-1 overtime decisions against Alabama-Huntsville. Junior forward Matt Read had three of BSU's four goals.

Denver's Marc Cheverie has notched three straight shutouts

Four of the top five teams tasted defeat last week, but the lone exception - No. 4 Denver - made quite the statement with a pair of 3-0 victories on the road against 11th-ranked Minnesota in front of over 9,700 fans on both nights. Junior goaltender Marc Cheverie was the brightest star and has established himself as one of the elite players of the first month. He made 30 saves in each game and now stands 4-0-0 on the season with a 1.00 goals-against average and a .966 save percentage to go with a current shutout streak of 203:19. Rhett Rakhshani scored a pair of goals on Friday and again on Saturday and finished with a plus-four rating for the weekend. Kyle Ostrow had two goals in the series finale, which gave George Gwozdecky his 500th career victory and marked the first time since 1930 that Minnesota was shut out in back-to-back games.

Defending NCAA champion and third-ranked Boston University earned its first victory of the season on Saturday, as Joe Pereira scored with 2:31 remaining to give the Terriers a 3-2 win over fifth-ranked Michigan. BU had dropped its first two games of the season, but held a 2-0 lead midway through the third before the Wolverines - who had a 35-22 edge in shots - scored twice to tie the score.

The other matchup of ranked opponents also was decided late, as Joe Whitney tallied the game-winner at 11:29 of the third to give 14th-ranked Boston College a 3-2 triumph over No. 9 Notre Dame and allow the Eagles to regain possession of the Lefty Smith-John "Snooks" Kelley Memorial Trophy. The game was a defensive struggle, as the squads combined to put just 38 shots on net (22 for Notre Dame and 16 for BC).

Both of the top two teams earned victories on Friday night before being upset on Saturday. No. 1 Miami got two goals from junior forward Tommy Wingels and 24 saves - including one on a penalty shot - from sophomore Cody Reichard in a 2-1 win over Michigan State on Friday. The following night, it was Andrew Rowe who scored in overtime to give Michigan State a 3-2 upset of the RedHawks. MU did hold a 37-22 shot advantage. North Dakota freshman goaltender Aaron Dell registered a shutout in his collegiate debut on Friday in a 5-0 win for the Fighting Sioux at Alaska Anchorage. But the Seawolves broke through the following night with a 2-1 victory that saw junior Bryce Christianson make 22 saves for UAA.

Merrimack notched an upset on Friday, topping No. 7 Vermont by a 5-2 score. The Warriors outshot the Catamounts 34-27 and got two points each from three players en route to winning their Hockey East opener for the first time in eight years.

In the WCHA, St. Cloud State got three points with a tie (3-3) and a win over 18th-ranked Minnesota Duluth. Both games drew crowds over 6,000. Meanwhile, No. 17 Wisconsin dominated Minnesota State on Friday in a 6-0 decision, but the Mavericks struck back with a 3-2 victory the next day. Brett Bennett posted the shutout for the Badgers on Friday, while Zach Harrison scored the game-winner at 12:22 in the third on Saturday.

Eric Gryba and BU will look for their first win of the season against No. 5 Michigan

• Again, we'll have 14 of the Top 20 teams in action this weekend - though this is the first time that all of the top five will be playing meaningful games in the same weekend.
• No one has a tougher start to the season this year than No. 11 Minnesota. The Gophers hit the road to begin the 2009-10 campaign last weekend against then-No. 4 North Dakota. The Fighting Sioux got a win and a tie in that series and have moved up to No. 2. This week, Minnesota plays host to fourth-ranked Denver - which began the season as the nation's top-ranked team.
• The teams met twice in Denver last season, with the Gophers winning the first matchup by a 5-2 score and the Pioneers rebounding for a 4-0 triumph the next night. That ended Minnesota's 11-game unbeaten streak to begin the season.
• Denver - which begins league action as the preseason conference favorite after splitting series with Vermont and Ohio State over the last two weekends - is 3-1-1 in its last five against Minnesota.
• Defending NCAA champion and third-ranked Boston University is off to a rough start. The Terriers - preseason favorites in Hockey East - opened the season with a 3-2 defeat against UMass (picked to finish seventh in the league) and then were shut out for the first time in nearly three years on Tuesday in a 3-0 loss at home against ninth-ranked Notre Dame. It doesn't get any easier for BU this weekend, as No. 5 Michigan visits Agganis Arena.
• Ninth-ranked Notre Dame also has another challenge left this week, as the Fighting Irish will play host to No. 14 Boston College on Friday. ND has won four of the last five meetings between the schools, but BC took the most meaningful - a 4-1 decision in the 2008 NCAA championship game.
• Top-ranked Miami begins CCHA action with a home series against Michigan State. The RedHawks have won six of their last eight against MSU, a stretch that followed a five-game winning streak for the Spartans.
• Michigan State junior forward Corey Tropp shares the early national lead in scoring with nine points (5-4). Meanwhile, MSU junior Jeff Petry is tied for the most points for a defenseman, with six (1-5), and Derek Grant leads all freshmen in scoring with seven points (2-5).
• No. 18 Minnesota Duluth - which is atop the WCHA standings with a 2-0-0 league mark - boasts the other two players who share the DI lead in scoring: junior winger Justin Fontaine (6-3) and sophomore center Jack Connolly (4-5). Fontaine leads the nation in goals. The Bulldogs head to St. Cloud State for a pair this weekend.
• One of the more interesting non-conference series of the weekend sees 16th-ranked Bemidji State head to Northern Michigan. The Beavers reached the Frozen Four last season and began this campaign with a pair of wins over defending AHA champion Air Force, while Northern Michigan is receiving votes in the poll after handing Minnesota Duluth a defeat in the Superior Cup two weeks ago.
• Northeastern - which was ranked in the preseason but now finds itself just outside of the Top 20 - has a big weekend away from home ahead. The Huskies will head to New Hampshire - another team receiving votes in the poll - on Friday, before challenging 13th-ranked UMass Lowell the following day.
• The other CCHA series this weekend pits a pair of teams that are receiving votes in this week's poll, as Lake Superior - riding a three-game winning streak - plays host to Ohio State on Friday and Saturday.
• The highest-ranked team yet to play a regular-season game, sixth-ranked Cornell, will hit the ice for the first time this weekend. The Big Red has exhibition contests against the University of Windsor (Friday) and the U.S. Under-18 Team (Saturday).

WEEKEND SCOREBOARD WATCH
Top 20 and Television Schedule
Thursday, October 22
Niagara at No. 5 Michigan, 7:35 p.m. - TV: NSN & FCS | Free Video | Live Stats
Friday, October 23
No. 7 Vermont at Merrimack, 7 p.m. - Live Stats
Colgate at No. 13 UMass Lowell, 7 p.m. - Live Stats
Northeastern at New Hampshire, 7 p.m. - TV: NESN | Live Stats
Michigan State at No. 1 Miami, 7:05 p.m. - TV: ONN | Live Stats
No. 16 Bemidji State at Northern Michigan, 7:30 p.m. - Live Stats
No. 14 Boston College at No. 9 Notre Dame, 7:35 p.m. - Free Video | Live Stats
No. 4 Denver at No. 11 Minnesota, 8 p.m. - TV: FSN | Live Stats
No. 18 Minnesota Duluth at St. Cloud State, 8:07 p.m. - TV: Charter Cable Channel 14 (St. Cloud) | Live Stats
No. 17 Wisconsin at Minnesota State, 8:37 p.m. - TV: Charter Media Channel 14 (Mankato) | Live Stats
Michigan Tech at No. 19 Colorado College, 9:37 p.m. - Live Stats
No. 2 North Dakota at Alaska Anchorage, 11:07 p.m. - TV: FSSN & GCI | Free Video | Live Stats
Saturday, October 24
Northeastern at No. 13 UMass Lowell, 5 p.m. - Live Stats
No. 5 Michigan at No. 3 Boston University, 7 p.m. - Live Stats
No. 16 Bemidji State at Northern Michigan, 7:30 p.m. - Live Stats
No. 4 Denver at No. 11 Minnesota, 8 p.m. - TV: FSN (delay) | Live Stats
Michigan State at No. 1 Miami, 8:05 p.m. - TV: ONN & Comcast | Live Stats
No. 17 Wisconsin at Minnesota State, 8:07 p.m. - TV: Charter Media Channel 14 (Mankato) | Live Stats
No. 18 Minnesota Duluth at St. Cloud State, 8:37 p.m. - TV: Charter Cable Channel 14 (St. Cloud) | Live Stats
Michigan Tech at No. 19 Colorado College, 9:07 p.m. - Live Stats
No. 2 North Dakota at Alaska Anchorage, 11:07 p.m. - TV: FSSN & GCI | Free Video | Live Stats

Minnesota's Jordan Schroeder

The second weekend of the regular season again will see most - but not all - of the nationally-ranked teams in action, as 14 of the top 20 will play. Here are some notes on the big matchups:

• It's the first weekend of league action for the WCHA, and we will be treated with a great matchup when No. 9 Minnesota heads to No. 4 North Dakota for games on Friday and Saturday (on Fox College Sports, FSN North and Fighting Sioux Sports Network). UND is the defending McNaughton Cup (WCHA regular-season) champion and was picked to finish second in the league this season, while the Gophers were picked to finish fourth.
• North Dakota has been successful against Minnesota of late, going 8-2-1 in the last 11 meetings. Last season, the Sioux dominated in registering a sweep in the lone series between the squads. UND won 6-3 and 6-1 in Grand Forks.
• It will be a series with no shortage of talent on the ice, as these two teams boast a combined 34 players who have been selected in the NHL Draft. Minnesota has a roster of 26, with 19 of those players having been drafted (most among WCHA teams) - and North Dakota has 15 players who have been drafted (second in the WCHA).
• One of those players, Minnesota freshman Nick Leddy, will make his collegiate debut this weekend. Selected by the Wild as the 16th overall pick in this year's NHL Draft, he was Minnesota's Mr. Hockey award winner last season while helping Eden Prairie High School to a state title. Inside College Hockey tabbed Leddy as the top incoming freshman defenseman in the country.
• On Sunday, there will be another huge conference matchup between ranked teams, as No. 12 Boston College heads to No. 11 Vermont for a game televised by ESPNU in the first Hockey East contest of the season.
• Last season, BC beat UVM 3-2 at home early in the season, before the Catamounts got three points (3-3, 4-2) in a home series in January.
• Vermont split with then-No. 1 Denver last weekend and had an opportunity to get the sweep - having a two-goal lead heading into the third period on Friday before falling 5-4. It will be BC's season opener.
• Miami is now the unanimous top-ranked team in college hockey, but the RedHawks have a tough challenge this weekend. MU will play a two-game series at New Hampshire, which fell just outside of the rankings this week after being 16th last week.
• Denver - which slipped from the top spot to third this week - also has a tough road series ahead, as the Pioneers will play twice at Ohio State. The Buckeyes were ranked 17th last week, but fell out of the top 20 this week.
• The other two WCHA series this weekend also could be entertaining. Colorado College - which is listed 28th in this week's poll - will head to No. 13 Wisconsin for a pair of games, while two of the first five teams outside the Top 20 - Minnesota Duluth and Minnesota State - will play twice in Duluth.
• Other matchups pitting a ranked team against one that is receiving votes include No. 2 Boston University at UMass (Friday), No. 16 Nebraska-Omaha at Colgate (Friday and Saturday), Rensselaer at No. 17 Alaska (Saturday) and Union at No. 19 St. Cloud State (Friday and Saturday).
• Four ranked teams - No. 2 Boston University, No. 9 Minnesota, No. 12 Boston College and No. 13 Wisconsin - will see their first regular-season action this weekend.
• Three ranked teams - No. 6 Cornell, No. 8 Yale and No. 10 Princeton - will not hit the ice until next weekend (for exhibition action) before beginning regular-season play over Halloween weekend.

WEEKEND SCOREBOARD WATCH
Top-20 and Television Schedule (All Times Eastern)
Thursday, October 15
No. 3 Denver at Ohio State, 7:05 p.m. - Live Stats
Providence at No. 7 Notre Dame, 7:35 p.m. - Free Video | Live Stats
Friday, October 16
No. 1 Miami at New Hampshire, 7 p.m. - Live Stats
No. 2 Boston University at UMass, 7 p.m. - Live Stats
No. 16 Nebraska-Omaha at Colgate, 7 p.m. - Live Stats
Bentley at No. 20 Northeastern, 7 p.m. - Live Stats
Michigan State at Maine, 7 p.m. - TV: WABI (Bangor) & CW (Portland) | Live Stats
No. 3 Denver at Ohio State, 7:05 p.m. - Live Stats
Providence at No. 7 Notre Dame, 7:35 p.m. - Live Stats
No. 9 Minnesota at No. 4 North Dakota, 7:37 p.m. - TV: FSSN & Fox College Sports & FSN | Live Stats
Colorado College at No. 13 Wisconsin, 8 p.m. - TV: FSN | Live Stats
Union at No. 19 St. Cloud State, 8:07 p.m. - TV: Charter Cable Channel 14 (St. Cloud) | Live Stats
Minnesota State at Minnesota Duluth, 8:07 p.m. - TV: Charter Communications | Live Stats
Robert Morris at No. 17 Alaska, 11:35 p.m. - TV: KFXF (airs 11 p.m. AT) | Live Stats
Saturday, October 17
Bentley at No. 18 Quinnipiac, 4 p.m.
Union at No. 19 St. Cloud State, 6:07 p.m. - TV: Charter Cable Channel 14 (St. Cloud) | Live Stats
No. 1 Miami at New Hampshire, 7 p.m. - Live Stats
No. 16 Nebraska-Omaha at Colgate, 7 p.m. - Live Stats
Michigan State at Maine, 7 p.m. - TV: WABI (Bangor) & CW (Portland) | Live Stats
Colorado College at No. 13 Wisconsin, 8 p.m. - TV: FSN | Live Stats
No. 9 Minnesota at No. 4 North Dakota, 8:07 p.m. - TV: FSSN & Fox College Sports & FSN | Live Stats
Minnesota State at Minnesota Duluth, 8:07 p.m. - TV: Charter Communications | Live Stats
Rensselaer at No. 17 Alaska, 10:35 p.m. - TV: KFXF (airs 11:30 p.m. AT) | Live Stats
Sunday, October 18
No. 12 Boston College at No. 11 Vermont, 5 p.m. - TV: ESPNU | Live Stats

Pat Cannone and Connor Knapp helped Miami to a 2-0 start

The first weekend of the regular season featured plenty of surprises and upsets. Of the 20 teams listed in the preseason USCHO/CBS College Sports rankings, 13 of them were in meaningful action over the weekend - and just two of those squads (No. 4 Miami and No. 6 North Dakota) would escape without tasting defeat. The teams in the lower portion of the rankings, in particular, struggled - as the bottom seven teams (ranked Nos. 14-20) combined for a 3-10-0 record, including 2-7-0 against unranked opponents.

Miami - which was the top-ranked team in the preseason USA Today/USA Hockey poll after barely falling short in last year's NCAA championship game - had one of the most-impressive weekends of any team, as the RedHawks earned a home sweep of 15th-ranked St. Cloud State. Junior All-America forward Carter Camper scored the game-winner in overtime in a 3-2 victory on Friday. The following night, it was sophomore Connor Knapp earning a shutout while junior forward Andy Miele had the primary assist on both of Miami's goals - scored 20 seconds apart early in the third in the 2-0 game.

The other marquee series of the weekend pitted No. 1 Denver against 14th-ranked Vermont, a Frozen Four participant last season. The offenses were in high gear, and the weekend ended in a split. UVM appeared to be on its way to spoiling the first game of DU's 60th anniversary season, holding a 4-2 lead after two periods on Friday. But the Pioneers got a quick power play goal and then saw sophomore forward Joe Colborne net two more - one on the power play and then the even-strength game-winner with just over two minutes remaining in regulation - to give DU a 5-4 triumph. Vermont would not make the same mistake on Saturday, as senior forward Brayden Irwin scored twice in leading the Catamounts to a 6-4 win.

No. 6 North Dakota dominated Merrimack en route to a home sweep (5-2 and 3-2). The Fighting Sioux outshot the Warriors by a 75-35 margin, and freshman Mike Cichy had an outstanding first collegiate weekend with a goal, two assists and a +4 rating. Both games drew more than 11,000 fans.

The CCHA saw two of its teams ranked among the top five suffer opening-night defeats before rebounding for decisive wins - while two other squads claimed tournament titles. On Friday, Alabama-Huntsville tied the game in the third period and sophomore forward Cody Campbell scored on a wraparound with just five seconds remaining in regulation to give the Chargers a 3-2 upset win at No. 5 Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish outshot UAH 51-14 the next night in a 3-1 win.

Sophomore goaltender Scott Greenham registered the first-ever shutout for Alaska in 45 all-time meetings with No. 3 Michigan on Friday in a 2-0 decision. The Nanooks then claimed the Kendall Hockey Classic title with a 5-1 win over Mercyhurst. Greenham - who stopped 43 of 44 shots and also had an assist - was tabbed the tournament MVP. Michigan posted a 6-1 win over Alaska Anchorage the next night.

Nebraska-Omaha claimed the title in its Icebreaker tournament. The Mavericks scored three third-period goals to beat Army 6-4 on opening night and then upset No. 11 UMass Lowell 4-3 in the championship game.

Quinnipiac finished off a road sweep of No. 17 Ohio State with a 3-1 victory on Friday despite getting outshot 25-6 in the opening period. Bemidji State also swept a ranked team, with 3-1 and 7-3 victories against 19th-ranked Air Force in the battle of the Serratore brothers.

Other noteworthy results included Rensselaer knocking off No. 16 New Hampshire 3-1, Northern Michigan topping 18th-ranked Minnesota Duluth by the same score and No. 20 Northeastern splitting (2-4 and 4-3) a series at Colorado College.

Eric Lampe and Quinnipiac began the season with an upset win

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Highlights from Last Night
Quinnipiac - which was chosen to finish eighth in the conference by ECAC coaches (and 11th by the media) - made a big opening-night statement, scoring three times in the third to rally for a 4-2 road upset of No. 17 Ohio State. Senior forward Eric Lampe had a pair of goals for the Bobcats. In the other Thursday game, sophomore defenseman Matt Irwin scored twice and junior forward James Marcou added four assists as UMass beat Rensselaer 5-2.

WEEKEND PREVIEW
A Look at the Biggest Matchups
• Thirteen of the 20 teams in the USCHO/CBS College Sports rankings begin regular-season play this weekend, including five of the top six (No. 3 Boston University has an exhibition game on Saturday before playing its opener next Friday).
• A pair of top-five teams will face big challenges immediately, as top-ranked Denver welcomes No. 14 Vermont for two games and fourth-ranked Miami will play two at home against No. 15 St. Cloud State.
• The Pioneers are No. 1 for the first time since the preseason poll of the 2005-06 season. After winning NCAA championships in both 2004 and '05, DU went on to finish 21-15-3 and miss the NCAA tournament that season.
• DU will face a Vermont team that reached the Frozen Four a season ago. UVM begins this season the same way it ended the last campaign - facing the top-ranked team in the nation. The Catamounts lost 5-4 to BU in the semis.
• Both Denver and Vermont played Calgary in exhibition play and came away with 3-2 victories. The Catamounts also lost by a 3-2 score to New Brunswick in exhibition action.
• Miami - which has the best winning percentage of any Division I team since 2005-06, at .689 - is ranked first in the USA Today/USA Hockey poll, but is fourth in the USCHO/CBS College Sports listing and was chosen to finish third in the CCHA by both the league coaches and media.
• The last time Miami and St. Cloud State played, it was a thrilling game with current senior forward Jarod Palmer netting the game-winning goal in overtime in a 2-1 decision on Dec. 29, 2007, in the Ohio Hockey Classic.
• Another interesting matchup pits the defending champions of Atlantic Hockey and College Hockey America, No. 19 Air Force and Bemidji State. Both squads put together great NCAA tournament runs last season, with Bemidji State advancing all the way to the Frozen Four and Air Force shutting out fourth-seeded Michigan in the opening round and losing in double-overtime in the quarterfinals.
• The game will feature a battle of brothers, as Air Force coach Frank Serratore is the older sibling of Bemidji State coach Tom Serratore. Tom holds an 18-4-2 edge in head-to-head coaching matchups with his brother.
• Air Force dominated Bemidji State in two games last season, winning at home by scores of 6-2 and 6-0, but the Falcons are just 1-13-2 all-time in Bemidji.
• Other intriguing matchups include No. 18 Minnesota Duluth playing host to Northern Michigan (the first team outside of the Top 20), as well as No. 20 Northeastern playing a pair at Colorado College.

WEEKEND SCOREBOARD WATCH
Top-20 and Television Schedule (All Times Eastern)
Friday, October 9
No. 11 UMass Lowell vs. St. Lawrence (Omaha, NE), 5:05 p.m. - Live Stats
Quinnipiac at No. 17 Ohio State, 7:05 p.m. - Live Stats
Clarkson at Michigan State, 7:05 p.m. - TV: Comcast Television | Live Stats
Lake Superior State at No. 18 Minnesota Duluth, 7:07 p.m. - Live Stats
No. 15 St. Cloud State at No. 4 Miami, 7;35 p.m. - Live Stats
Alabama-Huntsville at No. 5 Notre Dame, 7:35 p.m. - Free Video | Live Stats
Merrimack at No. 6 North Dakota, 8:37 p.m. TV: Fighting Sioux Sports Network & Fox College Sports Atlantic & DirecTV 617 | Live Stats
No. 19 Air Force at Bemidji State, 8:35 p.m. - Live Stats
No. 2 Michigan vs. Alaska (Anchorage, AK), 9:07 p.m. - TV: KFXF | Live Stats
No. 14 Vermont at No. 1 Denver, 9:37 p.m. - TV: FSN Rocky Mountain | Live Stats
No. 20 Northeastern at Colorado College, 9:37 p.m. - Live Stats
Mercyhurst at Alaska Anchorage, 12:07 a.m. - TV: GCI | Free Video | Live Stats
Saturday, October 10
No. 11 UMass Lowell vs. Army or Nebraska-Omaha (Omaha, NE), 5:05 or 8:05 p.m. - Live Stats
No. 16 New Hampshire at Rensselaer, 7 p.m. - Live Stats
Holy Cross at Providence, 7 p.m. - TV: Cox Sports | Live Stats
No. 15 St. Cloud State at No. 4 Miami, 7:05 p.m. - TV: Ohio News Network | Live Stats
Alabama-Huntsville at No. 5 Notre Dame, 7:05 p.m. - Free Video | Live Stats
No. 19 Air Force at Bemidji State, 8:05 p.m. - Live Stats
Alaska vs. Mercyhurst (Anchorage, AK), 8:07 p.m. - TV: KFXF | Live Stats
Merrimack at No. 6 North Dakota, 8:07 p.m. - TV: Fighting Sioux Sports Network & Fox College Sports Central & DirecTV 617 | Live Stats
Bowling Green at Minnesota State, 8:07 p.m. - TV: Charter | Live Stats
No. 14 Vermont at No. 1 Denver, 9:07 p.m. - Live Stats
No. 20 Northeastern at Colorado College, 9:37 p.m. - Live Stats
No. 2 Michigan at Alaska Anchorage, 11:07 p.m. - TV: GCI | Free Video | Live Stats
Sunday, October 11
Northern Michigan at No. 18 Minnesota Duluth, 7:07 p.m. - Live Stats

The 2009-10 regular season officially gets underway tonight with a pair of games (details below). One of the exciting things at the start of every season is to see the new talent across the country, so today we touch on some of the players expected to make be difference-makers in their first collegiate seasons. Inside College Hockey took an early look at who this year's impact freshman might be by ranking the incoming classes. Below are the top 15 in those rankings, along with the top newcomers mentioned for each team on the list. For the full rankings, click here.

Top 15 Freshman Classes
1. Notre Dame - D Sam Calabrese, F Kyle Palmeiri, F Riley Sheahan
2. Denver - D Matt Donovan, F Drew Shore, D William Wrenn
3. Boston College - F Chris Kreider, D Patrick Wey, F Steve Whitney
4. Minnesota - F Zach Budish, D Seth Helgeson, D Nick Leddy
5. Harvard - D Danny Biega, F Marshall Everson, F Louis Leblanc
6. Boston University - F Alex Chiasson, F Justin Courtnall, D Max Nicastro
7. St. Cloud State - F David Eddy, F Ben Hanowski, G Michael Lee
8. North Dakota - F Mike Cichy, F Danny Kristo, D Andrew MacWilliam
9. Rensselaer - F Jerry D'Amigo, F Brandon Pirri, F Marty O'Grady
10. Michigan - F Chris Brown, F Kevin Lynch, D Lee Moffie
11. Minnesota Duluth - F Dan Delisle, D Dylan Olsen, F Mike Seidel
12. Wisconsin - F Derek Lee, D Justin Schultz, D Craig Smith
13. Cornell - F Eric Axell, D Nick D'Agostino, F Greg Miller
14. Yale - F Josh Balch, D Jessie Hudkins, F Andrew Miller
15. New Hampshire - D Connor Hardowa, F John Henrion, D Brett Kostolansky

Inside College Hockey also ranked the top individuals by position. The top five in each category are listed below (along with the NHL teams that selected them in the 2009 draft, where applicable).

Top Incoming Forwards
1. Louis Leblanc, Harvard (Canadiens)
2. Kyle Palmeiri, Notre Dame (Ducks)
3. Chris Kreider, Boston College (Rangers)
4. Riley Sheahan, Notre Dame
5. Drew Shore, Denver (Panthers)

Top Incoming Defensemen
1. Nick Leddy, Minnesota (Wild)
2. Dylan Olsen, Minnesota Duluth (Blackhawks)
3. Justin Schultz, Wisconsin
4. Matt Donovan, Denver
5. Patrick Wey, Boston College (Capitals)

Top Incoming Goaltenders
1. Michael Lee, St. Cloud State (Coyotes)
2. Shawn Sirman, Maine
3. Kevin Murdock, Minnesota State
4. Andrew Hare, Niagara
5. Keith Kinkaid, Union

OPENING NIGHT SCOREBOARD WATCH
Rensselaer at Massachusetts, 7 p.m. - Live Stats | Free Audio: UMass | RPI
Quinnipiac at No. 17 Ohio State, 7:05 p.m. - Live Stats | Free Audio

Joe Colborne and Denver are No. 1 for the first time in four years.

The preseason edition of the USCHO/CBS College Sports Division I Rankings. You can view it here. Here are a few notes about the poll:

• Denver is ranked first, having received 20 of the 46 first-place votes. Defending NCAA champion Boston University earned 17 first-place votes and is second, followed by a trio of teams from the CCHA: Michigan (2 first-place votes), Miami (5) and Notre Dame (2).
• Denver is ranked No. 1 in the poll for the first time since the first poll of the 2005-06 season.
• Both the WCHA and Hockey East led the way with six teams each among the top 20, while the CCHA has four, the ECAC features three and Atlantic Hockey boasts one. Top-ranked Denver leads the way for the WCHA and is followed by No. 6 North Dakota, No. 9 Minnesota, No. 13 Wisconsin, No. 15 St. Cloud State and No. 18 Minnesota Duluth. Defending NCAA champion Boston University is tops among the Hockey East schools and No. 2 overall, with No. 11 UMass Lowell, No. 12 Boston College, No. 14 Vermont, No. 16 New Hampshire and No. 20 Northeastern behind the Terriers.
• Nineteen of the 20 teams that appeared in the final poll of last season - which was released prior to the NCAA tournament - are listed in the preseason rankings. St. Cloud State is the lone new entry, at 15th, while St. Lawrence dropped out after being 15th in the March 23 edition.
• UMass Lowell moved up five spots to 11th - which marks the highest ranking for the River Hawks since Feb. 21, 2005.
• Minnesota made the largest jump since the last poll, up 10 spots to ninth.
• Vermont dropped three spots to 14th, while the other school that lost in last year's NCAA semifinals, Bemidji State, did not earn a national ranking. The Beavers are the second team listed outside of the top 20.
• Denver is not scheduled to play any of the other teams in the preseason top five during the regular season, but the Pioneers have four games against No. 6 North Dakota (Nov. 20 and 21 in Denver and Jan. 29 and 30 in Grand Forks).
• There are two huge matchups of top-five teams scheduled for later this month. BU will play host to Notre Dame on Oct. 20 and Michigan on Oct. 24.
• The three top-five teams from the CCHA, of course, have regular-season battles scheduled. Miami heads to Michigan on Nov. 6 and 7, while the Wolverines and Notre Dame play two home-and-home weekend series (Dec. 11 and 13; Feb. 25 and 27). Miami welcomes the Fighting Irish on Dec. 4 and 5.
• The USA Today/USA Hockey poll was released last week, and it featured the same teams in the top five spots - but the top four appeared in a different order. Miami was listed first and followed by Denver, Boston University, Michigan and Notre Dame. You can view the full poll here.

We got our first look at many teams over the last several days, even though they were only playing exhibition games. Still, let's take a look at some of the more noteworthy results since there will be no more action before the puck drops for the regular season on Thursday.

Alaska Anchorage began the exhibition season with a 9-0 victory over SAIT Polytechnic. The Seawolves found the net on 36% of their 25 shots and scored six power-play tallies. Jon Olthuis and Bryce Christianson combined in goal to give UAA the shutout.

Holy Cross and Northern Michigan both exploded offensively in their victories. The Crusaders scored seven times on the power play and got a hat trick from Rob Linsmayer in a 12-3 victory over Royal Military College. The Wildcats gave up the game's first goal, but then dominated the rest of the way in an 11-2 triumph over Ryerson. Kory Kaunisto netted a hat trick for NMU.

Brady Hjelle and Kenny Reiter combined for one of just three shutouts across the country, as Minnesota Duluth beat British Columbia 4-0. Three UMass Lowell goaltenders - Carter Hutton, Nevin and Michael Heffron - combined to blank Acadia in a 3-0 decision.

Denver - which is ranked No. 1 in the USCHO/CBS College Sports preseason poll (we'll take a closer look at the listing tomorrow) - took a three-goal lead against Calgary before giving up a pair of late markers in a 3-2 victory. Rhett Rakhshani had three assists for the Pioneers.

Five schools suffered exhibition defeats, and two more had to settle for ties. New Brunswick had a perfect weekend playing spoiler, first using three first-period goals en route to a 3-2 win over UMass on Saturday before scoring with 30 seconds remaining in overtime for a 3-2 upset of No. 14 Vermont on Sunday. Ohio State allowed the game-winner in the third period in a 3-2 loss to Western Ontario. Both Sacred Heart and Ferris State held huge shot advantages in their games, but end up losing. The Pioneers outshot St. Thomas 41-23, but fell 5-3, while the Bulldogs had a 56-26 edge in shots against Wilfred Laurier in a 3-1 defeat. On Saturday, Rensselaer scored twice late to salvage a 3-3 tie with PEI and defending NCAA champion Boston University tied 2-2 against St. Francis Xavier - though the Terriers had a 53-16 edge in shots and did not give up a goal while top goaltender Kieran Millan was between the pipes.