yzerman19

The other issue is that Merrimack might be a COP for a different team in Hockey East that could take NH's PWR. You can be ahead of a team in the PWR, even if you lose the individual PWR to them!

The hotels east of the MOA on 494 aren't really that far from the X either. Some might even have shuttle service!

SIoux-CIA, I'll look for you and your entourage. I'm glad to be near SIoux fans! I think we are right by you. GO SIOUX !

I'll be there in 119! Looking for a Sioux win

I respect the Wooger's opinions on college hockey. Frank, well, he is what he is... Why are we even talking about this clash of the #8 team vs the #10 team in the league?? We should be focusing on going 15 unbeaten and riding a Sioux sweep back into the stad!

I think the major junior route vs NCAA hockey is really a family decision. The Toews family is really high on education. The CHL does still offer more games and a schedule that more closely resembles the NHL. It would be a tough decision to go #1 in a bantam draft and choose college hockey, but I have to believe that there are other perks to being an 18 year old on a college campus. The clear success of Toews, Parise, Vanek, Stastny, etc certainly helps our cause.

Hey AZ, Who the heck is nuber 13 in your gallery? I'm assuming the 24 is from last year and is Porter...

INCH 4x4 is a projection. They do not look at it as if it were to end today, but look at it as a whole and try and project what will happen. Bracketology is set up as if the season ended today. I would guess that INCH is looking at the schedule of MN and thinking that they have a legit shot at grabbing a couple wins vs COP and TUCs (especailly vs UMD). They will also get a shot at a WCHA bubble team in the playoffs. MN can take a lot of pwrs against the likes of WI, UMD, SCSU as we finish out the season. A strong finish will catapult them over UMD and WI.

Don't you love how in this week's bracketology all the MN schools are in with the exception of the Golden Gophers!

Michigan came out like gangbusters, eh? Sounds like our regional quarterfinal last year. Red's teams always have skill, and they always play good, open, up tempo hockey as compared to say...Wisconsin. While I don't think Miami's record shows that they've really beaten anyone other than Michigan State, I don't think that they are a bad team. However, given the structure of the NCAA tournament, I would certainly rather play Miami than a lot of other teams to go to the FF.

Miami has not beaten anyone...only winning record against a tier 1 team is against Michigan State. They also beat SCSU in OT. Split with Notre Dame, Lost and tied vs MI. They have only played 9 games against TUCs: 2-0 vs MI State 0-1-1 vs MI 1-1-0 vs Notre Dame 1-0-0 vs SCSU 2-0-0 vs Vermont

Check out Krach...WCHA has 6 of the top 10, and 9 of the 10 WCHA teams are in the top 17. I think there is little doubt that outside of NH, BC, MI and MI State, everyone else with a snowball's chance of winning the NCAAs is in the WCHA.

You can buy beer at the Blue Line Club or the Curling Club. The Curling Club requires a small membership fee. Most people go to the Blue Line club between periods. It is bottles of beer for like $3.75 or so.

NH will come out of their bracket. Remember, we saw them without uberfrosh Van Riemsdyk, because he was leading the USA at the WJC. They are a team to be reckoned with.

NCAA tourney is always hard. Number one for us has to be to stay a #1 seed. One has to assume that CC, NH and MI are all going to remain #1s, and all 3 are dangerous teams that I would prefer not having to deal with until the frozen four or not at all if someone pulls an upset. I'd love to see Michigan end up in Madison and have to deal with the Badgers. It would be fitting after all of those years getting the Yost advantage. It is also important to maintain that last line change throughout the regional as the "home" team (highest seed).

Having to face Bucky in Mad Town is a bad draw. Fortunately there is still some hockey left to play.

I haven"t heard...game on!!!

losing Jones is a huge blow. He is the quiet rock back there.

AM i reading the lines correctly? Duncan back to the right wing, and Kozek on the off wing?

AZ- I like the new banner! Give Blood...play the Fighting Sioux!!!!

Are you sure he was passed out and not just sleeping? If a player is getting pass out drunk a night before a game, then we have some serious leadership issues on this team. That is a pretty insidious statement to make. I hope you are being truthful. Going out for a few after a series is common place, to get pass out drunk after the first game of a series is inexcusable. Wow...I hope it was Radke or someone else who isn't going to play today...

Not scared of you, but never want to play a big rival when all the chips are down. I'm not scared of any team, no one holds a winning record against us...we'd have to get swept by UMD or SCSU or lose to CC or Wisconsin in the Final Five for anyone to have a winning record against us going into the NCAAs. CC 1-1-0 .500 Denver 3-1-0 .750 Mankato 2-0-0 1.000 Minnesota 2-1-1 .6250 Michigan Tech 3-1-0 .750 Alaska Anchorage 2-0-0 1.000 Wisconsin 1-1-0 .500 SCSU 1-1-0 .500 UMD 1-1-0 .500 Michigan State 1-0-0 1.000 BC 0-0-1 .500 Northeastern 1-0-0 1.000 New Hampshire 1-1-0 .500 Bemidji State 1-0-0 1.000

A split flips the UNH pwr. we're at .6250 COP. A split moves NH to .6250 COP. This makes it worth 0 to both. We win RPI, they win TUC. We split H2H. RPI is the tiebreaker! Go BC Eagles!!!!!

Let's not be mean here guys, c'mon. It is stated that there has to be more reasons to stay in the WCHA. I agree. Helping the CHA, while noble and in the spirit of supporting american collegiate hockey is like throwing our program underneath the bus. It would be great if I gave half my income to charity too, but hey, I'm a Sioux Fan, not Mother Theresa. The history, tradition and success of UND hockey has been due to being part of the WCHA. The WCHA has become The premier league in college hockey because of programs like UND. MN, WI, UMD, Denver and CC also contributed to this for decades. Recent success in Mankato and SCSU have helped too. AA is still working on some things, Tech and Northern Michigan have both spent plenty of time helping build this conference too. Now Northern MI is in the CCHA. I am for inviting as many kids to the party as we can, but not to the point where we run out of cake and ice cream. Hockey will always be a regional sport. You don't build fans where kids can't play it on their own, and don't have heros to watch. As much as I want BSU to be successful, and for CHA to be successful, there is no way I trade the chance at beating MN, WI, Denver, CC, UMD, et all in the best conference in college hockey year in and year out. Long live the Sioux, long live the WCHA. No matter what Bruce McClown and the Sheep heard want to do to it.

Supposedly the integrity of the brackets is the paramount consideration. Next is host schools at home. Next is number one seeds closest to home. Last is intraconference matchups. I believe that we will be the #2 seed overall following a BC/NH split this coming weekend. With that being said, I would predict: By the numbers: MI vs Army BC vs Mankato UND vs BSU MSU vs UMD NH vs SCSU Denver vs Clarkson CC vs Notre Dame WI vs Miami You won't move CC, as a #1 seed and a host, so you have to move WI. If you swap Denver and WI, you end up with two eastern teams heading west (bad for eastern attendance). If you swap MSU and WI, you end up with an intraconference first round matchup. So, I think they swap a whole bottom bracket. BC vs Mankato swaps with WI vs Miami So we have: MI vs Army WI vs Miami UND vs BSU MSU vs UMD NH vs SCSU Dever vs Clarkson CC vs Notre Dame BC vs Mankato We still have an attendance problem out in Mass. So, we swap BC and MSU. Now we have Madison MI vs Army WI vs Miami Attendance - GREAT Worcester UND vs BSU BC vs UMD Attendance - As good as can be Albany NH vs SCSU Denver vs Clarkson Attendance - GOOD Colorado Springs CC vs Notre Dame MSU vs Mankato Attendance - GOOD