Men's Hockey | 9/26/2023 11:15:00 AM
Moon Township, Pa. – According to a poll done by AHA head coaches, the RMU men's hockey team has been picked to finish 10
th for the 2023-24 season, in their first season back on the ice. The poll was announced Tuesday, September 26 at 11:00 a.m. by the AHA conference.
RELEASE: AHA Preseason Coaches' Poll
Earning the most first-place votes, RIT was voted by seven coaches to finish first. At the end of last season's campaign, RIT finished at the top of the standings with a 18-7-1 conference record. Following them, Sacred Heart received two first-place votes.
Predicted to be the #3 seed, AIC was given one vote to finish at the top. Holy Cross, who reached the final last year also was voted once for a first-place season finish. AIC collected higher seed votes to end eight points over Holy Cross in the poll.
In the preseason poll, from fifth place to ninth, the team's in order were: Canisius, Niagara, Army West Point, Air Force and Mercyhurst. The Golden Griffins this past season took home the AHA title, defeating Holy Cross, 3-0, to win their first AHA postseason title since 2013.
Receiving 30 total points, the Colonials were predicted 10
th for the upcoming campaign as the program returns to action. Most recently in RMU's last season, in 2020-21, the Colonials finished 10-5 in conference games and were 15-9 overall. Qualifying for the playoffs, Niagara outlasted RMU in a best-of-three series in the quarterfinal round.
And, voted to end the season in 11
th place, Bentley earned 27 total points in the preseason poll.
Led by head coach Derek Schooley, his staff brought back six returners from last year. Filling out the depth chart, the coaches recruited a mix of freshmen and transfers, totaling 23 new players to max out a 29-man roster.
Historically, the men's hockey program has won two regular season championships back-to-back in 2015 and 2016. At the end of the 2014 season, RMU won the AHA Championship and qualified for the NCAA Playoff Tournament.
RELATED: RMU Men's Hockey 2023-24 Schedule
RMU's season officially begins on Saturday, October 7 at 7:00 p.m. They'll host Bowling Green at the Clearview Arena in the RMU Island Sports Center.
Fans interested in season tickets, group tickets and group experiences,
please call Ticket & Operations Associate, Zack Cannon, at (412) 397-4989.
2023-24 Atlantic Hockey Preseason Coaches' Poll
| Rank |
Team (1st Votes) |
Points |
| 1. |
RIT (7) |
105 |
| 2. |
Sacred Heart (2) |
99 |
| 3. |
AIC (1) |
90 |
| 4. |
Holy Cross (1) |
82 |
| 5. |
Canisius |
79 |
| 6. |
Niagara |
68 |
| 7. |
Army West Point |
53 |
| 8. |
Air Force |
47 |
| 9. |
Mercyhurst |
35 |
| 10. |
Robert Morris |
30 |
| 11. |
Bentley |
27 |
Coaches could not vote for their own teams. Based on an 11-10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2 scale.
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