ANGOLA, IND. – The Trine ACHA D2 men's hockey team made their debut on the American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA) national rankings as the third-ranked team in the central region.
This is the second season that the ACHA has utilized computerized rankings for their men's Division 2 teams. This week's rankings are the first of the season for the weekly poll. The rankings determine the top 20 teams from four regions (Central, Northeast, Southeast and West).
The season's final rankings are used to determine which teams receive invites to the national championship tournament. Four teams from each region receive an invite to the national championships which take place in Columbus, Ohio. The top two teams in each region receive an automatic bid to the national tournament, while teams ranked 3-12 compete in a regional competition for the final two slots.
The Thunder burst onto the scene with 2017-18 being their inaugural season. Trine started the year with nine straight wins and remains unbeaten with 14 games in the book. Their record stands at 12-0-2 and the Thunder have emerged as an offensive juggernaut averaging over nine goals per game.
The Thunder face off with fellow regionally-ranked Michigan State University in a home-and-home doubleheader this weekend. Trine travels to Lansing, Mich. tonight, Nov. 10 at 8:30 p.m. to take on the Spartans before returning home tomorrow, Nov. 11 for a 3:00 p.m. contest.