This won't come as a shock to Dean Blais.

UNO's coach knows how tough the competition is in the WCHA, and he knew that those around the league weren't going to predict a top-half finish for the Mavs during their first year in the conference.

Blais' Mavericks were picked for eighth place in the WCHA preseason coaches poll released early Wednesday. In a vote of league media members, the Mavs were tabbed ninth.

North Dakota, the program Blais led to NCAA titles in 1997 and 2000, was a near-unanimous favorite to win the WCHA in both polls. Minnesota-Duluth was second in the media poll, while St. Cloud State was tabbed runner-up by the coaches.

UNO graduated seven seniors and all three captains from last season's team, which finished 20-16-6 and came in sixth in the CCHA. The Mavs will have 11 newcomers, including 10 rookies, and Blais expects his squad to experience growing pains while adjusting to its new conference.

Still, he said, UNO will give everything it has in trying to prove the prognosticators wrong.

“I know our guys will play as hard as they're capable of playing,” Blais said. “But it takes awhile for them to gel. It takes time for guys to learn the league, and it takes a lot of character to win on the road in the WCHA.”

UNO opens its second season under Blais on Saturday, when it plays an exhibition against British Columbia at Qwest Center Omaha. The Mavs will host their Mutual of Omaha Stampede tournament on Oct. 8 and 9, and they will play their first WCHA series at Minnesota on Oct. 15 and 16.

Colorado College's Jaden Schwartz, a former Tri-City Storm standout, was preseason rookie of the year in both polls. In the coaches' voting, UNO freshman forward Matt White, the former Omaha Lancers star, earned one vote for preseason rookie of the year.

“We're all expecting the going to be really tough in the WCHA,” UNO sophomore forward Terry Broadhurst said. “But that's the good thing — I don't think we're going in with too high or too low of expectations. We're just going to work hard, and I don't think anyone should count us out of anything yet.”

“It doesn't matter where you're ranked in the preseason. It's where you finish. And we know our coaches are going to have us prepared to fight hard every night.”

Contact the writer:

444-1207, chad.purcell@owh.com

• Preseason WCHA player of the year voting: Chay Genoway, North Dakota (10 votes); Garrett Roe, St. Cloud State (5); Justin Fontaine, Minnesota-Duluth (4); Jack Connolly, Minnesota-Duluth (3); Jason Gregoire, North Dakota (2); Mike Connolly, Minnesota-Duluth (1); Matt Read, Bemidji State (1); Evan Trupp, North Dakota (1).

• Preseason WCHA rookie of the year voting: Jaden Schwartz, Colorado College (10 votes); Derek Forbort, North Dakota (6); Beau Bennett, Denver (4); Nick Bjugstad, Minnesota (2); Tyler Barnes, Wisconsin (1); J.T. Brown, Minnesota-Duluth (1); Rob Gunderson, Alaska-Anchorage (1); Radoslav Illo, Bemidji State (1); Jason Zucker, Denver (1).

• Preseason coaches WCHA player of the year voting: Jack Connolly, Duluth (5), Chay Genoway, UND (4), Garrett Roe, SCSU (3)

• Preseason coaches WCHA rookie of the year voting: Jaden Schwartz, Colorado College (9), Nick Bjugstad, Minnesota (1), Tyler Barnes, Wisconsin (1), Matt White, Omaha (1)

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