Maine Trust for Local News sports columnist Travis Lazarczyk is a voter in the USCHO.com men’s hockey poll. Each week he will share his top 20, as well as hit on a few items of interest in the sport.
With the holiday break over, the second half of the season cranked up over the weekend. Here’s how I voted on my first ballot of 2026.
- Michigan
- Michigan State
- North Dakota
- Quinnipiac
- Wisconsin
- Western Michigan
- Minnesota-Duluth
- UConn
- Denver
- Penn State
- Boston College
- Maine
- Minnesota State
- Cornell
- Dartmouth
- Northeastern
- Princeton
- Providence
- Boston University
- St. Thomas
Maine stays hot coming out of the break
The Black Bears bottomed out in early December when they were swept at Alfond Arena by UNH. Those two losses, each by a goal, dropped Maine’s record to 8-7-1, and I took the Black Bears out of my top 20 for a week. After a win and a tie at No. 6 Denver this past weekend, the doldrums of December look like ancient history. Whatever culture issues the Black Bears faced, it’s obvious they’re working through them. Since those home losses to UNH, Maine is 4-0-1, and the effort against the Pioneers was their best of the season. I jumped the Black Bears up to No. 12 on my ballot, which is right where they ended up in the full poll. There are 13 games left in the regular season, all against Hockey East opponents, and eight against teams currently in the top 20, starting this weekend at Providence.
Princeton makes a move in the ECAC
Princeton swept a pair of ranked opponents this weekend, beating Dartmouth and Harvard. Princeton has a five-game winning streak and stands at 10-4. The Tigers have a one-point lead for first place in the ECAC, which is looking like a strong conference this season. I added Princeton to my ballot at No. 17, and they came in at No. 20 in the full poll. Harvard, coming off an 0-2 weekend, dropped out of the top 20.
Games with national interest this weekend
Maine at Providence is the only series in Hockey East this weekend between a pair of ranked teams. With its strong showing at Denver, Maine jumped from 34 to 22 in the NPI rankings, used by the NCAA to select the the NCAA tournament field. Providence is ranked 18th, so wins over the Friars would help the Black Bears move into position for an at-large bid should they not repeat as Hockey East champion. Another series to watch is Western Michigan at Denver. Both are ranked in the top 10 in both the USCHO.com poll and NPI standings. Wins by Denver over the defending national champs would help Maine’s case.
