Colorado College's hockey program moved up in the national rankings this week on the strength of other teams' misfortunes rather than its own play. The Tigers advanced three positions, landing at No. 12 in Monday's USCHO poll, with their sole weekend action being a 4-1 exhibition victory over the U.S. National Team Development Program. A second set of rankings issued the same day, the USA Hockey poll, placed CC one spot lower at No. 13.
The climb was made possible by stumbles from programs that had been positioned just above the Tigers in the previous week's standings. Alaska knocked off Boston College — then ranked 11th — by a score of 3-2, while Michigan Tech, which had held the 12th spot, split its series against unranked St. Cloud State. Those outcomes created enough movement in the upper tier of the poll to push Colorado College upward without the team logging a single game that counts toward its conference record.
Inside the National Collegiate Hockey Conference, CC's top rival navigated a similarly quiet weekend but retained its place at the summit of the rankings. Denver held on as the nation's top-ranked program after a weekend that mirrored the Tigers', with the Pioneers also defeating the USNTDP on Saturday. Among other NCHC programs, North Dakota appears fourth in the poll, Western Michigan sixth, and Minnesota Duluth ninth.
The Tigers are set to return to regular-season competition this weekend, heading on the road to face No. 17 UConn. That contest will be CC's first opportunity to defend its improved ranking in a game with standings implications.
How the Tigers perform against a fellow ranked opponent away from home will offer the clearest indication of whether this week's poll movement reflects where the program genuinely stands in the national picture.