Our preseason power rankings come to a close with a look at teams I have ranked No. 4-1.
This issue features in-depth looks at Dartmouth, North Dakota, Quinnipiac, and Michigan.
Remember, you can see my complete national preseason power rankings at the link below, which also includes a conference-by-conference breakdown.
No. 4 Dartmouth
Last Season
Record: 23-7-4
NPI: 6th (56.41)
League Finish: T-2nd/12
2026-27 Projection
NPI: 4th (57.34)
League Finish: 2nd/12
Ranking Tier: 1st/9
Storylines
— The Big Green are coming off one of the best seasons in program history. They reached the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1980 and won the ECAC tournament for the first time ever.
— Dartmouth has posted three straight winning seasons for the first time since 2004 to 2007. Over that span, Reid Cashman has led the Big Green to a 54-31-15 record.
Roster Breakdown
Top 378 Forwards
F1 denotes first-line ranking (No. 1 - No. 189)
F2 denotes second-line ranking (No. 190 - No. 378)
Hayden Stavroff, Jr., F1
Hank Cleaves, Jr., F1
Nathan Morin, Soph., F2
Nikita Nikora, Sr., F2
Jack Silverberg, Jr., F2
Brock Cummings, Soph., F2
Ryan Schelling, Soph., F2
Top 252 Defensemen
D1 denotes first-pair ranking (No. 1 - No. 126)
D2 denotes second-pair ranking (No. 127 - No. 252)
CJ Foley, Sr., D1
Colin Grable, Jr., D1
Eric Charpentier, Sr., D1
Matthew Desiderio, Soph., D1
Tim Busconi, Jr., D2
Cooper Cleaves, Soph., D2
Projected Starting Goaltender
Emmett Croteau, Sr., 1.93/.922, +0.33 xGA+/60
Dartmouth is an interesting team. The Big Green return a huge chunk of last season’s roster, which finished No. 6 in the NPI, but I have to question whether some of last season’s performances are repeatable.
