The Northern Collegiate Hockey Association released its 2021-22 Men's Preseason Coaches Poll on Friday and Lake Forest College was sixth in the rankings.
Voting is done by the NCHA head coaches. Each coach votes for the other nine teams in the league in order of predicted finish. Points are assigned in reverse order of voting (nine points for first, eight for second, etc.). Coaches may not vote for their own teams.
The Foresters finished with 38 points in the poll. Adrian College was atop the rankings with 80 points and eight first-place votes. St. Norbert College and Milwaukee School of Engineering each received one first-place vote and finished with 69 and 62 points, respectively. Marian University and Aurora University were tied-for-fourth with 55 points apiece.
The Foresters return 20 players from last year's abbreviated season, including those who accounted for 70 percent of the team's points. Fifteen players were also on the squad for the last full season in 2019-20, when Lake Forest was 18-6-3 overall, finished second in the conference standings with a 14-4-2 league record, and earned a berth to the NCAA Division III Tournament.
The 2021-22 Foresters will play their first game under new head coach Sean O'Malley against Saint Mary's University on Friday, October 29. The team will begin its 18-game league schedule against Milwaukee School of Engineering on November 12. The regular season will conclude on February 12 and the top eight teams in the conference will qualify for the Harris Cup Playoffs.
| PLACE | TEAM (First Place Votes) | POINTS |
| 1 | Adrian College (8) | 80 |
| 2 | St. Norbert College (1) | 69 |
| 3 | Milwaukee School of Engineering (1) | 62 |
| 4t | Marian University | 55 |
| 4t | Aurora University | 55 |
| 6 | Lake Forest College | 38 |
| 7 | Concordia University Wisconsin | 30 |
| 8 | Lawrence University | 28 |
| 9 | Trine University | 25 |
| 10 | Finlandia University | 9 |