With just two weeks left, teams are racing to solidify their positions and potentially secure their tickets to Jacksonville. Let’s take a look at where College Hockey South teams stand in this week’s national rankings.
College Hockey South Division 1 Teams
College Hockey South teams continue to dominate the top spots in the rankings, though their order has shifted slightly. After Tampa swept Florida last weekend, the Spartans have moved ahead of Tennessee into the No. 3 spot.
While this may seem like a minor change, as both teams are headed to Nationals, a difference of one ranking spot could mean the difference between being placed with a sneaky, dangerous team in pool play.
With the College Hockey South conference tournament just under two weeks away, we could see the rankings undergo a major shake-up.
The top 16 teams in Division 1 receive an invite to Nationals.
College Hockey South Division 2 Teams
Florida Atlantic remains steady at the No. 2 spot, but a new College Hockey South team has cracked the top five following a pair of upsets.
After securing a win in the first game of their weekend series, previous No. 5 Middle Tennessee State suffered a surprising loss to Embry-Riddle in the second. The USF Ice Bulls also took a hit, having followed up a thrilling overtime win over Tampa with an upset loss to the Spartans during the annual Gasparilla weekend series. As a result, Tampa moved into the top five for the first time this season.
The Clemson Tigers have officially entered the rankings at No. 8. However, due to not playing games in the fall, the Tigers will fall short of the 16-game minimum required by the MyHockeyRankings polls to be eligible for the national tournament, with only two weeks remaining before the rankings deadline. Despite this setback, the Tigers are focused on the CHS Division 2 Playoffs as a way to cap off their abbreviated season.
The top 20 teams in Division 2 receive an invite to Nationals.
Other CHS teams ranking: Miami (21), UCF (22), ERAU (26), Lynn (28), Florida Southern (30), Vanderbilt (34), Georgia Tech (35), Alabama-Huntsville (46).
College Hockey South Division 3 Teams
College Hockey South’s slide down the Division 3 rankings continues, with only two teams still holding onto a spot in the Nationals field.
South Carolina secured two wins over playoff-eligible Kennesaw State over the weekend, but still dropped from third to fifth in the rankings. Tennessee, unbeaten since the end of October, also fell three spots this week.
With just a couple weeks remaining before National invitations are extended, several top College Hockey South teams are closing in on the field, making these final weeks absolutely crucial.
The top 12 teams in Division 3 receive an invite to Nationals.
Other CHS teams ranking: FAU (13), Alabama (14), Georgia (15), Florida State (17), Kennesaw State (18), Florida (27), Florida Tech (34), USF (42), Miami (44), ERAU (47), APSU (49), UNF (51), EKU (52), Alabama-Birmingham (54).
For the full list of rankings at each division level, visit https://myhockeyrankings.com/rankings.php?x=0&level=college.
ABOUT College Hockey South: Founded in 2008, College Hockey South is a 30-school, 50-team intercollegiate hockey conference spanning eight southeastern U.S. states that competes in AAU College Hockey. College Hockey South is a 501(c)3 not for profit organization.