Our preseason power rankings continue with a look at teams I have ranked No. 44-41.
This issue features in-depth looks at Bemidji State, Sacred Heart, UMass Lowell, and Yale.
Remember, you can follow along with my complete national preseason power rankings at the link below, which also includes a conference-by-conference breakdown.
No. 44 Sacred Heart
Last Season
Record: 23-14-3
NPI: 29th (51.81)
League Finish: 2nd/10
2026-27 Projection
NPI: 44th (48.81)
League Finish: 2nd/9
Ranking Tier: 7th/9
Storylines
— The Pioneers are coming off back-to-back 20-win seasons. Sacred Heart went 23-14-3 last season and is 44-27-8 over the last two years.
— C.J. Marottolo is entering his 18th season behind the Sacred Heart bench. He has led the program to a 232-318-63 record during his tenure.
Roster Breakdown
Top 378 Forwards
F1 denotes first-line ranking (No. 1 - No. 189)
F2 denotes second-line ranking (No. 190 - No. 378)
Devin Phillips (Gr.), F1
Mirko Buttazzoni (Jr.), F2
Gavin Bryant (So.), F2
Vitaly Levyy (Jr.), F2
Emmanuel Vermette (Fr.), F2
Top 252 Defensemen
D1 denotes first-pair ranking (No. 1 - No. 126)
D2 denotes second-pair ranking (No. 127 - No. 252)
Aiden VanRooyan (Jr.), D1
Nick Bernardo (Jr.), D1
Projected Goaltender
Ajeet Gundarah (Jr.), 2.09/.928, +0.51 xGa+ per 60
There’s no doubt the Pioneers lost a huge chunk of last season’s production. Their top four scorers all graduated, including 25-goal scorer Felix Trudeau.
That said, Sacred Heart hit the transfer portal hard and brought in Mirko Buttazzoni and Diego Buttazzoni from UMass Lowell. Mirko makes the cut as a top-six forward in my rankings, and honestly, I think Diego should probably be there, too. The difference is that we only have last season’s production to use for Diego’s projection, while Mirko has two years of data.
There are other strong returners, including Gavin Bryant, who had 21 points as a freshman. Sacred Heart also added Devin Phillips from Holy Cross.
Landon Gunderson is a huge sleeper. He played limited minutes at Ohio State last season, appearing in just six games, but two years ago in the USHL he finished second in the league in scoring with 73 points in 62 games for the Sioux City Musketeers. He finished ahead of some very good players in points per game.
