Gophers picked No. 1 in WCHA coaches' poll

The Gophers are picked to win the WCHA title this season by league coaches.

October 4, 2012 at 4:03AM

The annual WCHA coaches' preseason hockey poll was released on Wednesday night.

The Gophers, as expected, are picked to repeat as the MacNaughton Cup champions. They received 11 of a possible 12 first-place votes. North Dakota got the other one and was picked to finish second. The poll:

42nd annual Grand Forks Herald coaches poll

1. Minnesota 121 (11)

2. North Dakota 110 (1)

3. Denver 91

4. SCSU 90

5. Wisconsin 70

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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

Preseason player of the year:

Nick Bjugstad, F, Minnesota (8); Mark Zengerle, F, Wisconsin (2); Matt White, F, Omaha (1); Ben Hanowski, F, SCSU (1)

Preseason rookie of the year:

Rocco Grimaldi, F, North Dakota (7); Mike Reilly, D, Minnesota (3); Nic Kerdiles, F, Wisconsin (1); Andrew Welinski, D, Duluth (1)

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