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The defending National Champion Boston College Eagles men's hockey program earned top billing in the preseason USCHO.com Division I Preseason Poll, garnering 35 out of a possible 50 first-place votes. Unlike the USA Today/USA Hockey preseason poll, the USCHO.com voters must have remembered the result of last season's second Frozen Four National Semifinal.
Minnesota received 12 first-place votes and finished second in the preseason poll. Michigan received the remaining first-place votes and finished third. North Dakota and Union round out the top five.
From Hockey East, Massachusetts-Lowell ranked seventh, Boston University 13th and Maine 15th. Hockey East-in-waiting Notre Dame ranked 14th. In addition, every other Hockey East program with the exception of Vermont received votes.
The preseason polls typically put a premium on named programs and the results of the previous season, so this poll really doesn't say much. And don't freak out when BC loses its top-billing throughout the season. It's college hockey. These polls don't really mean anything. Nevertheless, Boston College begins the season where they left off -- at number one.
The complete preseason poll is below:
1. Boston College (35) 972
2. Minnesota (12) 937
3. Michigan ( 3) 857
4. North Dakota 826
5. Union 789
6. Cornell 631
7. Massachusetts-Lowell 599
8. Denver 566
9. Miami 553
10. Western Michigan 516
11. Ferris State 472
12. Minnesota-Duluth 460
13. Boston University 413
14. Notre Dame 395
15. Maine 234
16. Michigan State 219
17. Harvard 213
18. Wisconsin 202
19. Air Force 116
20. Colorado College 81
Others receiving votes: New Hampshire 78, St. Cloud State 78, Quinnipiac 64, Ohio State 54, Merrimack 43, Nebraska-Omaha 31, Northern Michigan 25, Massachusetts 13, Lake Superior 12, Northeastern 11, Providence 8, Rochester Institute of Technology 6, Yale 6, Michigan Tech 5, Rensselaer 5, Mercyhurst 2, Minnesota State 2, Niagara 2, Colgate 1, St. Lawrence 1.
Also in case you missed it over the weekend, the school released the 2012-13 hockey commercial. This was played on the video boards during last weekend's BC-Clemson game. Get excited. The season is less than two weeks away.
Go Eagles!