We knew it might be a pretty good year for hockey in Greater New Haven. Yale lost a ton of talent, but returns quite a bit as well. Quinnipiac lost almost nothing, brought in a couple of top-notch recruits, and gets a year of experience under the belts of young players like the Jones twins.

The latest USCHO.com poll has Yale at No. 10 and Quinnipiac breaking in at No. 20.

And just to be clear, Yale's lone first-place vote didn't come from me. I voted Colorado College first and the Bulldogs sixth.