A Look at the Bottom of Each College Hockey Conference Standings: Puck Drop

Someone has to come in last.

That's the way it works in sports, and no one like being at the bottom looking up or reminded of his or her status. Yet, it's the team that can shrug that off and improve that's often the ones we're going "Hey, where did they come from?" about a year or two later. Or with this season, a certain team from the NCHC that finished a woeful 3-28-3 last year, 0-23-1 in conference play, and is currently national ranked.

We'll be singing and shouting the praises of that team again soon when evaluating the surprise teams of 2025-26. Instead, this is more in tandem with the Most Disappointing Teams this season, but on a conference level.

We started with a simple question, who's in last? But sometimes there wasn't an easy answer. Occassionally, we were surprised by what we found because like with most fans our focus is usually at the top of the standings and not the bottom.

Here's a league-by-league look, starting with the men, and then the women:

AHA

Worst overall record: Mercyhurst 4-23-3
Worst conference record: Mercyhurst 4-15-3
Lowest NPI Ranking: Mercyhurst No. 63 (out of 63)
Biggest Drop from Preseason Projection: It's either Sacred Heart, the preseason favorite, or Niagara, which was picked fourth. Both are about 3-4 spots lower in the standings.
Change From Last Year: There's been very little. Mercyhurst finished last in the Pairwise rankings a year ago, 64th out of 64 teams.

Big Ten

Worst overall record: Notre Dame 6-20-4
Worst conference record: Notre Dame 2-15-1
Lowest NPI Ranking: Notre Dame No. 52
Biggest Drop from Preseason Projection: Minnesota, which was projected to finish third, ahead of Michigan.
Change From Last Year: Notre Dame was at the bottom last year, too, No. 38 in the final Pairwise rankings.

CCHA

Worst overall record: Northern Michigan 3-26-1
Worst conference record: Northern Michigan 3-18-1
Lowest NPI Ranking: Northern Michigan No. 61
Biggest Drop from Preseason Projection: It's Minnesota State, but that's pretty unfair as the Mavericks were the preseason pick in the conference media poll to top the league and they're still in the mix despite being in fifth place.
Change From Last Year: Northern Michigan was No. 62 in the Pairwise a year ago, so not much.

ECAC

Worst overall record: St. Lawrence 5-22-3
Worst conference record: St. Lawrence 4-13-1
Lowest NPI Ranking: St. Lawrence No. 62
Biggest Drop from Preseason Projection: Clarkson was supposed to challenge for the league title and voted second in the preseason poll. Instead, the Golden Knights are tied for eighth in the ECAC and at No. 44 in NPI.
Change From Last Year: Yale finished last season 56th in Pairwise, and wasn't just projected to finish last in the ECAC this season, but was nowhere near the second-to-last team in the voting — so voters thought it would probably regress even more. The Bulldogs haven't. They're tied for eighth and are 54th in NPI.

Hockey East

Worst overall record: UMass Lowell 12-18
Worst conference record: New Hampshire 6-11-1, but with extra games to play.
Lowest NPI Ranking: Vermont No. 50.
Biggest Drop from Preseason Projection: Maine landed a first-place vote in the preseason coaches poll and was projected to finish fourth in Hockey East. Instead, the Black Bears are in ninth place. Despite this, they're still a team to watch as all five final regular season games are against teams below .500.
Change From Last Year: Vermont was the last team in the Pairwise rankings at No. 34, which reflects just how tough the conference was last year with six teams making the 16-team NCAA Tournament.

NCHC

Worst overall record: Omaha 10-20
Worst conference record: Omaha 6-14
Lowest NPI Ranking: Omaha No. 43
Biggest Drop from Preseason Projection: Arizona State landed two first-place votes in the preseason media poll, and was the solid pick to place fourth behind the big three of Western Michigan, Denver and North Dakota. Instead, the Sun Devils are one point ahead of last-place Omaha.
Change From Last Year: Miami wasn't just in the cellar a year ago, it was in the emergency storm shelter below the cellar. The RedHawks were expected to still be there this season, but instead are chasing a spot int the NCAA Tournament.

AHA Women

Worst overall record: Delaware 2-30-0
Worst conference record: Delaware: 1-23-0
Lowest NPI Ranking: Delaware No. 44 out of 45
Biggest Drop from Preseason Projection: No team is more than one place out of where it was projected.
Change From Last Year: Robert Morris finished last at 2-16-2 in league play. It's better this season at 8-14-2, but didn't move up the standings, finishing only ahead of Delaware, which was playings its first season in Division I.

ECAC

Worst overall record: Dartmouth 5-22-3
Worst conference record: Union 3-18-1
Lowest NPI Ranking: RPI at No. 42
Biggest Drop from Preseason Projection: St. Lawrence was tied for fourth with Quinnipiac. the top teams that didn't receive any first-place votes for the predicted order of finish. The Saints finished the regular season ninth.
Change From Last Year: Harvard finished last in the ECAC in 2024-25, finishing 1-20-1 in league play. The Crimson wrapped up the regular season in eighth, at 8-11-3.

Hockey East

Worst overall record: Merrimack 7-21-4
Worst conference record: Merrimack 4-16-2
Lowest NPI Ranking: Merrimack at No. 39
Biggest Drop from Preseason Projection: Boston University just isn't having a good year in hockey. The women's team split the 10 first-place preseason votes with UConn, with the Huskies getting the edge as league favorite. Instead, the Terriers are tied with Providence for eighth, ahead of only Merrimack.
Change From Last Year: Merrimack was last in 2024-25 as well, at 5-18-4 in league play.

NEWHA

Worst overall record: St. Michael's 1-29
Worst conference record: St. Michael's 1-25
Lowest NPI Ranking: St. Michael's at No. 45
Biggest Drop from Preseason Projection: Sacred Heart was thought to be the team to beat in the New England's Women's Hockey Alliance, but the Pioneers are in sixth place at 11-13-2 in league play.
Change From Last Year: St. Michael's placed s last in 2024-25 at 4-24.

WCHA

Worst overall record: Bemidji State 6-23-3
Worst conference record: Bemidji State 3-22-1
Lowest NPI Ranking: Bemidji State at No. 37
Biggest Drop from Preseason Projection: No team is more than one spot away from where it was projected to be in the standings. Having the top three teams in the nation limits movement.
Change From Last Year: Bemidji State finished 4-24 in league play last season.

At least six, if not seven, of the various conferences are on target to have the same team that finished last a year ago still there at the end of 2025-26.

Puck Drop: Thursday, February 19, 2026

• Minnesota Duluth announced that long-time volunteer and Bulldog Hall of Fame assistant equipment manager Dale "Hoagie" Haagenson passed away. He was 65. "Hoagie' taught us invaluable lessons about kindness, humility, loyalty, and what it truly means to be a good teammate and an even better person," the men's hockey team said in a statement. "He had an extraordinary ability to connect with people, making everyone feel seen, valued, and welcome. His love for others was unconditional, and he left a lasting impression wherever he went." A GoFundMe has been established to support the Haagenson family, with proceeds going toward a funeral and celebration of life.

The heart and soul of Bulldog Country, Dale 'Hoagie' Haagenson, has passed away at the age of 65.

I caught up with leaders of both the men's and women's hockey teams to cherish his legacy and hear some wonderful memories from Hoagie's 44 years with UMD.@UMDBulldogs pic.twitter.com/PCMm4SpPo9
— Daniel Chiarelli (@Dan_Chiarelli1) February 19, 2026

• Former Providence defenseman Max Crozier of the Tampa Bay Lightning will miss the rest of the regular season following surgery for a core muscle injury. The team said in a social media post that his recovery time is expected to be around 10 weeks.

• According to Providence hockey reporter Mark Divver: "Rumor in the rinks is Brown coaching search is down to four: Jason Tapp, Dartmouth; Scott Ford, Columbus Blue Jackets; Tommy Upton, UMass; and Dana Borges, Arizona State. Ford is a Brown alum.

.• Forward Matouš Kucharčík, a fourth-round draft pick of the Buffalo Sabres who is playing for the Youngstown Phantoms (USHL) this season announced his commitment to Miami.

• Michigan State Prepping for Notre Dame After Bye

Wednesday's College Hockey Scores

No Games Scheduled

Games between ranked opponents are bolded. All times are local to where the game is being played.

Men's College Hockey Thursday Schedule

No Games Scheduled

Women's College Hockey Thursday Schedule

AHA Tournament
Opening Round
At St. Charles, Mo.
Delaware vs. Robert Morris, 2 p.m. ET

Hockey East
Maine at Merrimack, 3:30 p.m. ET

Olympics Hockey Update

• Former Michigan defenseman Quinn Hughes scored at 3:27 of overtime to give Team U.S. a 2-1 victory over Sweden in the men's hockey quarterfinals at Santagiulia Arena. He and his brother Jack also had an assist on a second-period goal by Dylan Larkin (Michigan) that got past Sweden netminder Jacob Markstrom. The game was sent into overtime by Sweden’s Mika Zibanejad, who with his goaltender pulled hit a one-timer from the top off the left circle with just 1:31 remaining. Connor Hellebuyck (Lowell) got the win. Team USA outshot Sweden, 40-29. For more see SI.com

• Team USA’s Identity Takes Shape in Gritty Quarterfinal Win

• Despite losing captain Sidney Crosby to a lower-body injury in the second period, Canada came back from a third-period deficit against Czechia to win 4-3 in overtime and advance to the semifinals. Mitch Marner got the game-winning goal 1:22 into overtime after Nick Suzuki tied it with 3:27 remaining. Former Boston University standout Macklin Celebrini scored Canada's first goal and assisted with Connor McDavid on Nathan MacKinnon's power-play goal in the second period. Goaltender Jordan Binnington made 21 saves, while Lukas Dostal made 37 for the Czechs, who had goals from David Pastrnak, Ondrej Palat and Lukas Sedlak. For more see Breakaway On SI

• Finland had the comeback of the quarterfinals as Artturi Lehkonen scored on a breakaway 3:32 into overtime for a 3-2 victory over Switzerland. Finland trailed 2-0 with six-plus minutes remaining, but Sebastian Aho (13:54), and Miro Heiskanen (18:48) after Juuse Saros had been pulled, scored to force overtime. Saros made 21 saves to get the win. Damien Riat and Nino Niederreiter scored and Leonardo Genoni made 28 saves for Switzerland. Finland will face Canada in the semifinals.

One more time for the bar down SNIPE to keep Finland alive in the Olympic tournament… Artturi Lehkonen man 😮‍💨

(via @NBCOlympics) pic.twitter.com/jyaImvKPYC
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) February 18, 2026

• In the only quarterfinal that didn't go to overtime. Pavol Regenda scored twice and Dalibor Dvorsky had a goal and an assist as Slovakia advanced with a 6-2 victory against Germany. Milos Kelemen and Oliver Okuliar also scored, and Tomas Tatar had an empty-net goal while Samuel Hlavaj made 25 saves. Lukas Reichel had a goal and an assist, and Frederik Tiffels also scored for Germany. Leon Draisaitl had an assist and Philipp Grubauer made 29 saves. Slovakia took control while scoring two goals 33 seconds after in the second period after forward Juraj Slafkovsky was shook up after going awkwardly into the boards on a hit. He stayed down for a while, but was able to return. Slovakia will face team USA in Friday's semifinals. For more check out Breakaway On SI.

Olympics Hockey Scores, Schedule

Wednesday's Schedule
MEN
Quarterfinal: Slovakia 6, Germany, 2
Quarterfinal: Canada 4, Czechia 3 (OT)
Quarterfinal: Finland 3, Switzerland 2 (OT)
Quarterfinal: Team USA 2, Sweden 1 (OT)

Thursday's Schedule
WOMEN
Bronze Medal Game
Sweden vs. Switzerland, 8:40 a.m. ET

Gold Medal Game
United States vs. Canada. 1:10 p.m.

Friday's Schedule
MEN
Semifinals
Canada vs. Finland, 10:40 a.m. ET
Team USA vs. Slovakia, 3:10 p.m.

Hockey Quote of the Day

"My biggest thrill as a player was competing in my first Olympic Games in Lillehammer, Norway. My father Tetsuhiko always said the highest honor you can have as an athlete is to represent your country".
Paul Kariya (Maine)

Check Us Out On:

• Twitter/X
• Facebook
• YouTube
• Instagram
• Threads
• Blue Sky

We'll Leave You With This ...

Watching this on repeat 🔁 #WinterOlympics pic.twitter.com/EPjid4pZvg
— USA Hockey (@usahockey) February 18, 2026

Check out our Facebook page, which has a new name and we hope will be your college hockey home through the postseason and Frozen Four in Las Vegas.