The University of Maine men’s hockey team was picked fourth in Hockey East in the 2024-25 pre-season coaches poll, as announced on Monday by the league office.
Maine had 83 points in the poll, five points behind Providence who was tabbed to finish third. Boston College (109 points) was picked to win Hockey East, while Boston University (99) was projected second. The Eagles had nine first place votes, while the Terriers and Friars had one each.
The Black Bears are coming off a highly successful 2023-24 season that saw them go 23-12-2 overall, and 14-9-1 in Hockey East. They advanced to the Hockey East semifinals in Boston and also made the NCAA Tournament, which was the first time in 12 years that those two things have occurred. Maine opens up the 2024-25 campaign at home on Saturday, October 5 when they host American International College at 7 p.m. The conference openers are the weekend of October 25-26 at Northeastern in Boston. Below is the full pre-season coaches poll-
1. Boston College (9 first place votes)- 109 points
2. Boston University (1 first place vote)- 99 pts.
3. Providence College (1 first place vote)- 88 pts.
4. Maine- 83
5. UMass-Amherst- 72
6. Northeastern- 67
7. UNH- 58
8. UConn- 47
9. UMass-Lowell- 40
10. Merrimack- 27
11. Vermont- 25
Maine defenseman Brandon Chabrier plays the puck during a game against Providence College on February 10, 2024 at Alfond Arena in Orono. The Black Bears, who open their new season at home vs American International College on October 5, were picked fourth in Hockey East in the pre-season coaches poll on Monday. Photo by Anthony DelMonaco
