Last spring, four Hockey East teams made the national tournament. While Maine and UMass were bounced in the first round, Boston College and Boston University punched tickets to the Frozen Four.
The Eagles made it to the national championship but fell to Denver, 2-0.
Still, it showed how strong the league was last season — and it projects to be the same this winter. The top half of Hockey East men's teams ranked in this story have legitimate shots at the national tournament. Teams like Providence, Northeastern and UNH should also be in the mix.
Here's our preseason rankings of Hockey East men's teams.
1. Boston College
The Eagles are coming off a national championship loss, and Will Smith (Lexington, Mass.) and Cutter Gauthier, their two leading scorers from last season, departed for the NHL. But so much is returning, headlined by forwards Ryan Leonard (Amherst, Mass.) and Gabe Perreault, as well as star goalie Jacob Fowler. And how about those freshmen? Head coach Greg Brown’s squad is the league favorite again.
2. Boston University
Coming off two straight Frozen Four appearances, BU must account for the losses of its two leading scorers, Hobey Baker winner Macklin Celebrini and Lane Hutson, who are off to the pro ranks. The good news: BU has plenty returning to the fold, be it forwards like Ryan Greene and Shane Lachance (Andover, Mass.), Tom Willander on defense or starting goalie Mathieu Caron. Add in more high NHL draft picks such as Cole Eiserman (Newburyport, Mass.), Cole Hutson and Kamil Bednarik, and Jay Pandolfo’s group has a chance to be the top dog.
3. Providence College
The top five scorers from last year’s Friars squad return, along with junior goalie Philip Svedeback. But the big story here is the high-level freshmen entering the fray. Forward Trevor Connelly was picked 19th by the Vegas Golden Knights in June’s NHL Draft. Forward John Mustard was a third-round pick by the Chicago Blackhawks at No. 67. Eleven picks later, forward Logan Sawyer was taken. This is one of the best Providence rosters in recent memory.
4. Maine
Maine had its best season in Hockey East since 2009-10 and earned a spot in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2012 last season. Expectations remain high for Ben Barr the Black Bears, despite losing top scorer Bradley Nadeau to the pros. His brother, Josh, who was second on the team in points (45), returns, along with veteran Lynden Breen. Albin Boija seems poised for a strong sophomore season after running with the starting job in net during the second half of last season.
5. UMass
Losing top defensemen Scott Morrow (Darien, Conn.) and Ryan Ufko will hurt, and there’s no great way to replace them. However, head coach Greg Carvel’s team still has goalie Michael Hrabal, who turned in a solid freshman performance. The big improvement will be up front as Jack Musa, Dans Locmelis and Aydar Suniev are now sophomores. Remember: UMass went to the national tournament last spring.
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6. Northeastern
The Huskies fell short of the national tournament last year but still took home some hardware with another Beanpot win. Forwards Jack Williams (Biddeford, Maine) and Cam Lund (Bridgewater, Mass.) and defensemen Vinny Borgesi and Jackson Dorrington (North Reading, Mass.) headline the returners, along with goalie Cameron Whitehead. Jerry Keefe’s squad was busy in the transfer portal, landing some productive transfers. Among them: former Colgate (and Belmont Hill) star Ryan McGuire and former Quinnipiac standout Cristophe Tellier.
7. UNH
Last year was a big one for the program. The Wildcats finished tied for fifth in Hockey East and were in the hunt for the NCAA tournament late in the season. The downside to this roster: UNH will have a new goalie. The upside: All five leading scorers from last season are returning. That's Ryan Conmy, Cy LeClerc (Brentwood, N.H.), Morgan Winters, Colton Huard and Liam Devlin (Needham, Mass.).
8. Merrimack
The Warriors had a down season in 2023-24 after reaching the national tournament the year prior. They lost leading scorer Matt Copponi (Mansfield, Mass.) to BU via the transfer portal as well as Alex Jefferies (Lunenburg, Mass.) to the pros. But junior defenseman Zach Bookman and sophomore forward Ty Daneault, both coming off impressive seasons, offer optimism. As does sophomore goalie Nils Wallstrom, who starred as a freshman at AIC last winter.
9. UConn
First-round pick Matthew Wood leaving UConn for Minnesota in the transfer portal was the biggest storyline of the offseason, and that impact projects to be felt on the scoresheet. Ethan Haider and Arsenii Sergeev, the goalies who split time last season, are gone. Graduate forward Hudson Schandor and sophomore forward Jake Richard are the top returning scorers. This should be a bit of a rebuilding year for the Huskies.
10. Vermont
The Catamounts improved under Steve Wiedler, who had the interim tag removed in February, putting forth their winningest season since 2019. Leading scorer Jens Richards returns. UVM will lean on graduate transfer Keenan Rancier out of Minnesota State in net.
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11. UMass Lowell
The River Hawks had a rough season last year, finishing last in Hockey East. They do have their three leading scorers from last season returning, as well as eight freshmen. They also have four skaters who transferred in. Still, don’t expect much from UMass Lowell this season.
