Dustin

Agree. I think the loss was a blessing in disguise. As long as any illness is over, we are entering the NCAA with a healthy, very deep roster, that should be able to wear down any team.

I would agree - ESPN will choose early/late games based on potential viewers. I would guess UND would be late, almost regardless of who they play, because that game would have the best optics for television.

https://www.collegehockeynews.com/info/?d=npi Over-emphasis on the 1-16, 2-15 seeding: The NPI -- and KRACH, for that matter -- is not precise enough for the committee to confine itself so strictly to a 1-16 ordering of the teams based upon it. It's a good method for selecting teams -- because at least an objective system, even if flawed, eliminates the problems with subjectivity. But in seeding, there's no need to be so locked into the numbers when they are so close. These are too small sample sizes to do that to yourself.

Yes, I know that's a possibility, I was using that grouping of 3 as an example to showcase that those teams are essentially equal and it doesn't bother if the committee wants to place them interchangeably. The NPI is still useful in that case as it shows those 3 teams are essentially equals, at least based on the metrics input to calculate NPI.

I guess to me, if it's a matter of either UConn (or UMass) or St. Thomas to be the #4 seed in Sioux Falls, it makes sense for it to be St. Thomas.

This may be a bastardization of the "selection and seeding" literature, but I now take it as the "selection" to be any of the teams not receiving their conference AQ to make a 16-team field, and "seeding" is not a literal 1-16 seed, but bands of 1-4 that can be interchanged for travel/attendance/conference purposes. Is that the right interpretation? I don't know. But I also don't see much of difference in teams when NPI is separated by hundredths.

No, in my scenario, one of pods would play their semifinals (2 games) on Thursday, and the other pod would play their semifinals (games) on Friday. Then the regional finals would be on Saturday (1 game) and Sunday (1 game).

I think Denver is enough of draw for Loveland, so I don’t think they’d stack another high drawing school with them, especially considering the two eastern regionals will probably be kinda dead. UND to Sioux makes the most sense on multiple levels.

Yeah, that would be the downside of trying to cram in that many games at one site. speaking of playoff overtime, I would be ok with the first OT being 5x5, the second being 4x4, and the third (and any thereafter) being 3x3, just to save on time and exhaustion.

With the 2021 UND-UMD 5 OT game being the reason for the extra day, I would think they would stick with the Thursday/Saturday and Friday/Sunday groupings.

I hadn't considered the NHL's role in this, but you make a valid point about arena use. I know they were badgers about the Olympics for a while, but realized they could work around them to make it better for everyone. With the NCAA now the premier path to the NHL, I would hope that letting your venue be used to showcase future talent, they would find that as a win-win.

The locations of this year's regional sites and the #1 seeds to fill them are a good reason for me to bring up an idea I've promoting on multiple threads over the last couple years: The Super Regional. Two Super Regionals with 8 teams each in NHL cities close to the college hockey hubs: St. Paul, Detroit, Boston, and maybe Denver. (Denver would be a lot more useful if there were more Colorado teams consistently making the NCAA). Let's say, for instance, that the tournament teams are set as they currently stand in the NPI, with the #16 spot going to Bentley. Let's also say the the super regional sites this year are Detroit and St. Paul. (Boston (and Denver) get to host next year.) As #1 overall seed, Michigan gets to pick (or is assigned by the committee) their pod's regional site first. They go to Detroit for obvious reasons - close travel, big alumni fan base, etc. As #2 overall seed, North Dakota is next and they go to St. Paul, for the same reasons. As #3, Michigan State goes to Detroit, and #4 Western Michigan is left with St. Paul. Notice that the adjacent pods are not at the same regional site (this was an idea that someone else had steered me towards, based on the NCAA BB tournament). I know this doesn't completely solve the problem of regionals being far away. Say this was the bracket for next year, and Michigan had to go to either Boston or Denver. But I think this would inject some excitement into the regional format, and fans would have a chance to see six games at one venue instead of three.

Probably not something that we don't already know, but how Denver fares this weekend is the key to the regional set up. https://www.collegehockeynews.com/news/2026/03/16_Bracket-Breakdown-Denver.php

I kind of doubt that no other Midwestern teams besides UND will be in Sioux Falls, but we could be a bailed out by a team swap to avoid a intra-conference first round match up.

So far, UND has escaped the 4-seed upset, but many blue-bloods have suffered them: Michigan, Denver, Boston College, Minnesota, Wisconsin.

Yep.

If this year's team is lacking anything that would pay off big this time of year, it's upper class defensemen. 2 Juniors and a Grad Student. Not saying our underclass D-men aren't good, but the best formula for success in March and April in college hockey is upper class defensemen complimented with elite scorers and/or goaltending.

Went back and did the research. 2003 was the first year of the 16-team field like we currently use. In 2006, Holy Cross was the first 4-seed to win over a 1-seed. Since then, ONLY 2022 and 2024 were the years the tournament DID NOT feature a 4-seed winning a game. In some years, two (or more) 4-seeds won games. And, in 2013 (Yale) and 2015 (Providence), the National Champion started the tournament as 4-seed.

The Holy Cross game, as embarrassing as that was for Minnesota, was the tipping point of this. Not to say Holy Cross could have won the Natty that year, but after that, #4 seeds not only only beating #1 seeds, but also winning it all, became normalized.

Yes, and this what I love about the tournament, too. And I have no problem with those aforementioned schools winning titles. I would cheer for them playing anybody but UND.

Any NCHC team could easily end our season. Someone pointed out that to compliment Michigan's typically potent offense, their defensive numbers are also really good this year. Other than that, losing to any other team would be a tournament failure.

So, if Jubenvill plays, is Verhoff the D-man that sits? Or, would it someone else?

Without looking it up, I was going to guess 2004

Haven’t been paying attention to the lines- has Jubenville been a healthy scratch?

Based on current NPI, which I know will have some changes, and assuming the AHA champ will have the lowest overall NPI, I would design my bracket like this: Albany, NY - (1) Michigan vs (4) AHA Champ, (2) Dartmouth vs (3) Penn St. Loveland, CO - (1) Western Michigan vs (4) UConn, (2) Denver vs (3) Wisconsin Worcester, MA - (1) Michigan St. vs (4) UMass, (2) Providence vs (3) Cornell Sioux Falls, SD - (1) North Dakota vs (4) St. Thomas, (2) Minnesota-Duluth vs (3) Quinnipiac