Top 10 : Alberta and McGill new poll leaders, first No. 1 rankings in Redmen history
OTTAWA (CIS) - Celebrating its 129th birthday on this day the McGill Redmen men's hockey program received an historical anniversary present, the first ever No. 1 rankings in team history.
The world's first organized hockey club, the Redmen played their first game on January 31, 1877. McGill and the reigning national champion Alberta Golden Bears both move past the Saskatchewan Huskies in a tie for first place in this week's CIS poll. It marks only the second time since the 1979-80 campaign that there is a deadlock for the number one position, the other occasion dating back to December 7, 1998 when Alberta and the UQTR Patriotes briefly shared the lead.
The Redmen (15-1-2) move up from the No. 2 spot following a pair of record-setting shutouts over Queen's and RMC. McGill blanked the Golden Gaels 8-0 on Friday and the Paladins 2-0 on Saturday to collect its eighth and ninth whitewashes in 18 conference outings, including four in as many games versus Queen's and RMC. The previous CIS mark for most shutouts in a regular season was seven by UQTR in 1997-98. 2004-05 CIS rookie of the year, Mathieu Poitras turned aside 25 shots for the win on Saturday, and continues to lead the country with a 1.53 goals against average and a .942 save percentage.
McGill, holding a three-point lead over UQTR with two games in hand in the OUA Far East standings, visits the No. 10 Patriotes (14-5-1) tonight. The Redmen's only loss in regular-season play this year, a 4-2 defeat on Jan. 17, occurred at Trois-Rivières on a Tuesday night. McGill also hosts Ryerson (1-17-1-1) and Toronto (6-13-1) this weekend.
The defending champion Golden Bears (16-4-2) had the best of the Saskatchewan Huskies (15-6-3) over the weekend in a re-match of last year's CIS championship final, won 4-3 in overtime by Alberta. The Bears move up from the No. 3 position following a two-game sweep of their arch-rivals on identical scores of 3-1. Freshman netminder Aaron Sorochan was stellar for the Alberta allowing only two goals on 52 shots over the two games, while CIS scoring leader, Huskie forward Dean Beuker (19-23-42) was held to a single assist in the second match-up.
The Bears now hold a one-point lead over the Huskies in the Canada West overall standings, with two games in hand. Alberta hosts the red-hot UBC Thunderbirds (10-11-1) for a pair this weekend. The 'Birds have won three straight, and six of their last seven.
Saskatchewan, which falls to No. 3 following its difficult series against Alberta, had held the top spot in the CIS men's hockey poll for the last 10 weeks. The Huskies, now on a three-game losing streak, visit Manitoba (10-11-2) on Friday and Saturday.
The Western Ontario Mustangs (18-1-1) hold on to fourth place in the new poll. The Mustangs, enjoying an eight-point advantage over No. 8 Waterloo (13-4-3) in the OUA Far West, continued to roll over the past weekend with a dominating, 6-0 win over York. Western visits Laurier (10-7-2-1) and Guelph (5-12-3-0) this week.
Rounding out the top 5 in the new rankings are the Acadia Axemen (16-6-1-1), which take over from the UNB Varsity Reds (15-5-4), which slide to No. 6. Acadia edged UPEI 4-3 on Friday, before defeating UNB by the same score on Saturday. With four games remaining on the AUS regular-season schedule, the Axemen and V-Reds are tied for first place with 34 points apiece.
RANK TEAM CONFERENCE (Overall) RECORD PTS (1st Place) LAST WEEK
T1. McGILL REDMEN-x 15-1-2 (20-5-2) 75 (4) 2
T1. ALBERTA GOLDEN BEARS-x 16-4-2 (22-7-2) 75 (4) 3
3. SASKATCHEWAN HUSKIES 15-6-3 (22-7-3) 64 1
4. WESTERN ONTARIO MUSTANGS 18-1-1 (23-6-1) 56 4
5. ACADIA AXEMEN 16-7-1 (18-9-2) 48 6
6. UNB VARSITY REDS 15-5-4 (19-9-4) 40 5
7. SAINT MARY'S HUSKIES 14-7-3 (19-9-3) 29 7
8. WATERLOO WARRIORS-y 13-4-3 (18-8-3) 18 10
9. MONCTON AIGLES BLEUS-y 14-9-1 (18-12-1) 18 8
10. UQTR PATRIOTES 14-5-1 (17-9-1) 17 9
x - McGill and Alberta tied for first place with an equal number of points and the same breakdown in votes (four 1st place votes, three 2nd place votes and one 3rd place vote).
y - Waterloo was awarded the higher ranking based on number of higher placed votes.
Other teams receiving votes:
None
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.
CIS Men's Ice Hockey Top Ten Committee Chairman: Steve Knowles
For all the info on CIS (standings, results, news, etc.), visit: www.universitysport.ca
Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) is the national governing body of university sport in Canada. Fifty universities, 10,000 student-athletes and 550 coaches vie for 19 National Championships in 11 different sports.
