We get a quick break from conference play with Thanksgiving coming up, so now seems like a good time for some power rankings. We have a pretty clear top three and a pretty clear bottom two right now (you can debate the order in both places, though), but everything in between is pretty tight.
Providence leads the pack thanks in large part to the play of goalie Jon Gillies, who ranks second in Hockey East in save percentage. (AP)
1. Providence (10-2-1, 6-2-0 HE)
The Friars suffered the scare of all scares Friday night when Jon Gillies left the game with an apparent leg injury, but the star goalie was back in net Saturday to help Providence pick up a split against UNH. The Friars have won six of their last seven, and they rank second in Hockey East in both offense and defense. Gillies is second in the league in save percentage and Ross Mauermann is second in points. The junior forward is already just one goal shy of his career high (12).
2. Boston College (8-3-2, 4-1-1 HE)
The Eagles would have had a good case for the top spot had they beaten Maine on Saturday, but a 5-1 loss keeps them behind Providence. Every team has stinkers, and there’s no reason to think Saturday was anything more than that. Getting freshman goalie Thatcher Demko healthy should be a nice boost, as junior Brian Billett has been inconsistent at times (in fairness, he had been very good in his four starts prior to getting pulled Saturday). Johnny Gaudreau leads the nation in scoring and has at least a point in all but one game this season.
3. UMass-Lowell (10-4-0, 4-1-0 HE)
So much for that slow start. The River Hawks have won nine of their last 10 after sweeping Notre Dame over the weekend, and they now look like the contender everyone expected them to be. Connor Hellebuyck was outstanding in the series, as he stopped 74 of the 75 shots he faced. The Winnipeg Jets draft pick leads Hockey East with a .951 save percentage. The River Hawks could still use some work on offense (they’re seventh in the conference), but their defense and goaltending should hold them over until the scoring picks up.
4. New Hampshire (7-6-1, 5-3-0 HE)
Speaking of overcoming a slow start, the Wildcats lost five of their first seven, but then reeled off six straight wins before having that streak come to an end against Providence on Saturday. After splitting time with Jeff Wyer earlier in the season, Casey DeSmith has apparently reclaimed the full-time starting job, and deservedly so since he has a .955 save percentage over his last six starts. Trevor van Riemsdyk has more points (14) than any other defenseman in the country.
5. Notre Dame (8-5-1, 2-3-1 HE)
The Fighting Irish got swept by Lowell over the weekend and are now just 3-5-1 in their last nine. The defense continues to be very good (third in the league in goals against, second in shots against), but offense has been a bit of a problem with leading scorer Vince Hinostroza out of the lineup for the last four games. He could miss another week or two with a leg injury. Steven Summerhays is third in Hockey East in save percentage (.938).
6. Maine (6-4-1, 3-2-1 HE)
The Black Bears have certainly turned some heads with their last two games — a 7-0 win over BU and a 5-1 win over BC. Their defense and goaltending appear to be solid, but their offense is a little tougher to figure out. They’ve scored five or more goals three times, but they’ve also been held to two or fewer six times. Maine is one of two teams in the league (along with UNH) to rank in the top five in offense, defense, special teams net and shot differential.
7. Northeastern (8-5-0, 3-4-0 HE)
Merrimack proved to be just what the reeling Huskies needed, as they swept the Warriors to halt a 1-5-0 skid. Dalen Hedges registered four points on the weekend and is now tied for third in the league in freshman scoring (classmate Mike Szmatula is first). Kevin Roy, who scored twice on Friday to pull within one goal of Gaudreau for the conference lead, was benched for the first period of Saturday’s game for unspecified reasons.
8. Vermont (5-5-1, 4-4-0 HE)
After getting swept by Providence the week before, the Catamounts picked up a sweep of their own against UMass over the weekend. Freshman Mike Santaguida recorded his first career shutout on Sunday, stopping all 39 shots he faced. That marked a nice bounce-back after surrendering nine goals over his previous three starts, and it should keep him in a rotation with Brody Hoffman for the time being.
9. Boston University (6-6-1, 2-3-0 HE)
The Terriers picked up a win and tie against North Dakota over the weekend and are now 2-0-1 in their last three — a much-needed turnaround following a 1-5-0 stretch. They’re still giving up a ton of shots, though. Matt O’Connor had to face a whopping 96 against UND (fortunately for BU, he stopped 92 of them), and the Terriers are now giving up 37.23 per game — easily the most in Hockey East. At least they’ve put 30-plus shots on goal each of the last four games, so they’re making some progress there (although they also missed the net 24 times Saturday, which coach David Quinn was not happy about).
10. UMass (3-9-2, 1-6-2 HE)
Every time the Minutemen provide a glimmer of hope, they go out and lay an egg. Sweep Michigan State, then get swept by Maine. Take three of four points from Maine, then get their doors blown off by UNH. Play BC tough, then get swept by Vermont. At some point you just throw your hands up and acknowledge the fact that this team’s way too inconsistent to compete for anything meaningful.
11. Merrimack (3-8-1, 0-5-1 HE)
The Warriors are easily the most disappointing team in Hockey East this season. They returned pretty much everyone from a team that was in contention for the regular-season title with two weeks to go last year, but they haven’t looked anything like that team this year. Their offense was already bad (last in the league with 1.67 goals per game), but things got even worse without leading scorer Mike Collins for the last three games. He should be back soon, but it’s not going to matter if everyone else continues to struggle.