Hockey East Preseason Power Rankings: No. 10 Massachusetts

By Scott McLaughlin/DFP Staff

For the next two weeks, I’ll be running through my preseason power rankings one team at a time. I’ll post one team a day every weekday, culminating with the No. 1 team being revealed on Sept. 28 — one day before the coaches poll is released. We start today with No. 10.

10) University of Massachusetts
2009-10 record: 18-18-0 (13-14-0 HE)
Finish in HE: T-6th (lost in tournament quarterfinals)
Key returners: Jr. F T.J. Syner (8-12-20), Jr. D Michael Marcou (7-3-10), Sr. G Paul Dainton (3.08, .901)
Key losses: F James Marcou (11-40-51), F Casey Wellman (23-22-45), D Justin Braun (8-23-31), F Will Ortiz (13-13-26), D Matthew Irwin (7-17-24)
Notable freshmen: F Mike Pereira, F Branden Gracel, D Colin Shea
Coach: Don “Toot” Cahoon

How they finished
Through mid-January, the Minutemen appeared to be serious contenders in Hockey East. But then they lost eight of their next nine down the stretch and needed a sweep at Maine on the final weekend of the regular season just to salvage a playoff spot. The next weekend, UMass got swept by Boston College in the quarterfinals to end the season.

Offense
To say this is going to a rebuilding year on offense would be an understatement. The Minutemen lose their top five scorers and 66.7 percent of their goals, which marks the biggest turnover in the conference, after ranking just seventh in scoring last season. They return only one 20-point scorer — T.J. Syner — and just three other double-digit scorers. In order for UMass to score enough to make the playoffs, it will need its returners to take a big step forward and its freshman class — which comprises eight forwards, including BU captain Joe Pereira’s younger brother Mike — to make an impact from the get-go. That’s probably asking too much.

Defense and goaltending
There will also be a good deal of rebuilding on defense, as the Minutemen lose three of their top four defensemen from a season ago. Michael Marcou will be counted on to lead that group, but he’s far from being one of the top d-men in the conference. The only area that isn’t a question mark for UMass entering the season is in goal, where Paul Dainton has proven to be a reliable netminder in his three Hockey East seasons. He’ll have to be closer to spectacular than reliable if the Minutemen are going to make any noise, though.

Scott’s poll
1) Sept. 28
2) Sept. 27
3) Sept. 24
4) Sept. 23
5) Sept. 22
6) Sept. 21
7) Sept. 20
8) Sept. 17
9) Sept. 16
10) Massachusetts