The University of Minnesota Duluth women's hockey team officially begins the 2011-12 on Tuesday, but when the Bulldogs step on the ice tomorrow afternoon, they will be in a well accustomed spot as one of the best teams in the nation.

UMD, certainly no stranger to the top of the national polls, will start the season as the No. 6 team in the country, according to USCHO.com.  The poll, conducted weekly during the season, consists of 15 voters, including 14 coaches of Division I programs and one women's hockey writer.

The Bulldogs have spent over a decade as one of the top-ten nationally ranked teams, and have never been left out of a preseason top-ten poll since the program began in 1999-2000.  UMD, which finished 22-9-3 overall last season, will host both the NCAA Frozen Four and the WCHA Final Face-Off in March of 2012.