It'll be a strange, whacky, and bittersweet year as Wisconsin skates through it's final season in the WCHA and it could be 
a very competitive year as well as the Badgers were picked 4th by the media in the 94X WCHA Media Poll last week and were picked 5th in the Grand Forks Herald WCHA Coaches Poll just released.
In the media poll it was Minnesota coming away as the clear front runner, earning 24 of the 25 first place votes in the poll. They also had the preseason player of the year in Nick Bjugstad (16 votes).
The coaches saw Minnesota as the favorite as well, earning 11 of the 12 first place votes. Nick Bjugstad was named the coaches preseason player of the year.
Badgers forward Mark Zengerle also received some love, earning the only other votes for the coaches preseason player of the year and also receiving votes in the media poll as well.
Overall the media put Minnesota, North Dakota, and Denver ahead of Wisconsin. On the other hand the coaches saw it Minnesota, North Dakota, Denver, and St. Cloud State ahead of Wisconsin.
The full polls after the jump….
Here is the full 94X Media Poll:
1. Minnesota (24 first place votes) … 11.92 poll average
2. North Dakota (1) … 10.76
3. Denver … 9.92
4. Wisconsin … 7.8
5. Minnesota Duluth … 6.88
6. St. Cloud State … 6.84
7. Colorado College … 6.08
8. Nebraska Omaha … 5.48
9. Michigan Tech … 5.2
10. Minnesota State … 3.6
11. Bemidji State … 2.48
12. Alaska Anchorage … 1.04
The full Grand Forks Coaches Poll:
1. Minnesota 121 (11)
2. North Dakota 110 (1)
3. Denver 91
4. SCSU 90
5. Wisconsin 70
6. Duluth 69
7. Colorado College 56
8t. Omaha 51
8t. Michigan Tech 51
10. MSU-Mankato 37
11. Bemidji State 31
12. Anchorage 15
For full Badger Hockey coverage make sure to follow our Hockey reporter, Nate Woelfel, on Twitter @Nate_Woelfel and 'like' our page on Facebook.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
