A Poll Lot of Confusion

Do you have this sudden urge to feel confused?

Then, just check out this week's KBJR-TV (Duluth, Minn.) and WPLM (Hancock, Mich.) collegiate hockey polls. Are they talking about the same season?

The first three spots are filled up by top-ranked Minnesota (15-3), second-ranked Maine (10-1-1) and third-ranked Michigan State (8-2). Easy enough choices. But here's where the similarities end and the questions begin.

The next three spots in the Duluth poll are occupied by Lake Superior (12-3-3), Harvard (6-1) and St. Lawrence (8-2). But the Hancock poll has Harvard ranked seventh, Lake Superior ranked fifth and St. Lawrence fourth.

But wait, there's more. The Duluth poll decided that the Crimson's loss to Colgate didn't hurt Harvard's ranking. Colgate is three spots away from Bill Cleary's icemen. The Hancock poll ranked the Red Raiders sixth, one notch ahead of the Crimson.

But wait, it doesn't stop there. Some teams ranked in one poll aren't even included in another. Northeastern, which suffered an embarrassing 9-0 loss to Lowell, firmly holds the number nine slot in the Duluth poll with a commanding record of 6-5-2. The Huskies aren't listed in the other poll, as Western Michigan (11-7) grabbed the ninth spot.

The same goes for providence (6-3-3). The Friars got some respect in the Duluth poll, as it tied for the final slot with Denver (9-7), but couldn't even break the Hancock poll.

All this confusion could mean a couple of things: (1) this year's season is more balanced than ever; (2) these polls don't mean anything; or (3) college hockey fans should wait until the official NCAA coaches' poll comes out next week to get the real scoop.

Whatta Race: Although Colgate's win over Harvard didn't kick the Crimson out of first place in the ECAC, it sure made the standings tighter.

St. Lawrence (5-1 ECAC) now finds itself only two points behind the Crimson, whose six league wins give the icemen a total of 12 points.

Vermont is alone in third place with nine points. But the league bunches up after that as Colgate, RPI and Princeton are tied with eight points. Don't count out Clarkson and Cornell, which are all two points behind the fourth-place group.

The Leaders: In a year full of freshmen, it's no surprise that two first-year starters lead the ECAC in scoring and goaltending.

RPI's Joe Juneau is the league's top scorer with total of four goals and 11 assists. Princeton junior John Messuri, whose 14 points (eight goals, six assists) have kept the Tigers out of the ECAC's lower tier (where they have perpetually dwelled), is right behind the Engineer freshman.

Harvard goalie Michael Francis, who didn't play this weekend due to the return of senior John Devin, still leads all league netminders with a 1.98 goals-against-average. Mark Salisbury, Princeton's freshman goalie, has posted a 2.00 average, the league's second-best mark.

Weisbrod Update: Freshman John Weisbrod, who hurt his knee in the final period of the Colgate game, will not play this weekend against Dartmouth. Luckily for Cleary, the Christmas break will give his freshman wing two extra weeks to recover.

Huh? have to question Colgate Coach Terry Slater's post-game comments about the roughness of Sunday's win over Harvard. Seems he values the use of protective pads instead of sticks and skates.

When goalie Wayne Cowley, even though he briliantly shut down the Crimson, gets called for three penalties, you wonder if Slater's Red Raiders would prefer to play in the NHL.

Don't know if violence in collegiate hockey has gotten out of hand, but it sure has taken over a big part of the college game.

It should be interesting to watch Saturday's Harvard-Dartmouth game at Bright Center. When these teams met in Hanover two weeks ago, Dartmouth was more content in getting Harvard out of its skating game by playing rough. Harvard won, however, 5-3.

Off to the Island: Over the break, Harvard will participate in the inaugural Long Island Hockey Classic in Nassau Coliseum, home of the NHL's New York Islanders.