Penn State 'close" to adding hockey

[star2city]

I can't believe the BTN propaganda is re-published verbatim without journalists thinking about the premise.

No-one/nobody/ziltch/nada viewers in the Twin Cities market will tune in to a BTN broadcast of a Penn State vs. Ohio State/fill in the blank match up when the Gophers are playing on another network. If they can't get MSP viewers, do they really think they will get viewers from the rest of the BTN coverage area to watch?

The presumption is that Gopher hockey will be allowed to remain on Fox Sports North. But in reality, Big Ten has the right to force Gopher games to the Big Ten Network, which means more subscription and advertising $'s to the Big Ten.

The bright side of that is Fox Sports North could look at a contract with UND and/or the rest of the WCHA.

[Southernmn]

I can't believe the BTN propaganda is re-published verbatim without journalists thinking about the premise.

No-one/nobody/ziltch/nada viewers in the Twin Cities market will tune in to a BTN broadcast of a Penn State vs. Ohio State/fill in the blank match up when the Gophers are playing on another network. If they can't get MSP viewers, do they really think they will get viewers from the rest of the BTN coverage area to watch?

the BTN already holds the rights to ALL of the Gopher hockey games (and all other sports for that matter). FSN has to get approval (and possibly purchase the rights ?) from the BTN for every games that they show. So in theory, when BTN is showing the big PSU vs OS match-up, that COULD be the only hockey game available in the twin cities area, or any other place that gets FSN.

[Snake]

This sounds like a great deal for the six non-hockey Big Ten schools that will get their cut of the additional BTN revenue without putting anything into it! I wonder if this has the potential to create some tension between the hockey and non-hockey schools.

[stickboy1956]

This sounds like a great deal for the six non-hockey Big Ten schools that will get their cut of the additional BTN revenue without putting anything into it! I wonder if this has the potential to create some tension between the hockey and non-hockey schools.

You need to add viewers/subcribers for the BTN to make more $$

I'm not convinced that viewers are interested enough in out-of-market Big Ten hockey games to watch it/pay for it.

[star2city]

You need to add viewers/subcribers for the BTN to make more $$

I'm not convinced that viewers are interested enough in out-of-market Big Ten hockey games to watch it/pay for it.

What the BTN shows in different states is not identical. The BTN has the capability to deliver Penn State games to Pennsylvania and Minnesota games to Minnesota, etc, with the most "national" game to non-Big Ten states.

[Stromer]

I meant that Tech and Anchorage would fill the place in the CCHA if a Big Ten conference was formed. I want things to stay as they are now, but if it happens, I wouldn't mind seeing an 8 team WCHA with the flexibility to schedule more non-conference games.

Flexibility will be key if the BTHC ever comes to fruition. There was already a very limited number of non conference games in a WCHA of 10 teams. Going back to that and trying to still play UW and UM each year will make it very hard to play some quality East Coast programs. While it ideally would be nice to drop down to 8, who would leave? UAF and UAA will never be in the same conference. Tech might be willing to leave but we still would need to cut someone else adrift. Thats why its not such a crazy idea to start a seperate conference with Miami and Notre Dame. It would leave us with the openings to schedule East Coast progams, UW and UM, as well the other Minnesota schools. The same openings would apply to the new Minnesota based conference. I'm sure we would still play many of the Minnesota teams every year. It wouldn't be like we are abandoning them as some would suggest. And they would also have the flexibility to schedule teams they may have not gotten an opportunity to play in the past. Combined with the increased spots in conferences for new schools who want to start hockey, the BTHC wouldnt be the worst thing to happen, but only if UND and other teams don't settle for being a part of a second tier league.

[Phizzy]

The NCAA and Minnesota are one in the same....it''s all about image with those people. They just want the prestige that they think they can get by creating a Big 10 conference. Let them do it. The Big 10 sucks at every other sport anyways! I mean really. At what sport are they good at......other than hockey once in a while?

Well, in reality, the Big Ten might be the best conference athletically, overall.

                  Average

               Directors' Cup

                  Ranking

                  All  Last 5

Conference        Time  Years

Pac-10            27.9   26.2

Big Ten           29.9   29.8

SEC               36.5   36.3

ACC               40.3   35.7

Big 12            45.3   42.7

Big East          86.9   82.6

Mtn West          88.0   95.5

Ivy               93.4   94.4

Colonial         126.2  150.1

Conf USA         126.9  131.6

WAC              129.6  145.6

MAC              157.8  169.9

Patriot          176.3  184.8

Big Sky	         177.1  187.7

Missouri Valley  177.7  179.9

Sun Belt         180.7  187.2

Pioneer	         184.5  170.8

Great West       184.9  183.4

Southern         186.0  195.7

Southland        186.8  208.0

Ohio Valley      199.2  208.9

MEAC             203.7  214.4

Big South        206.9  205.4

SWAC             214.5  230.4

Northeast        216.8  219.0

If you include new Pac-10 teams Colorado and Utah in the Pac-10's stats, and new Big Ten team Nebraska in the Big Ten's stats, the Big Ten moves to #1.

[mksioux]

Not sure if this has been posted yet, but here is Brad's updated take on the BTHC:

http://undhockey.areavoices.com/2010/09/21/more-on-the-big-ten/

The WCHA is in position to move on and be just fine. Even if you take out Minnesota and Wisconsin, the WCHA had five of the top nine in attendance last year (UND, Omaha, CC, Denver, St. Cloud). Duluth and Bemidji are opening new buildings. St. Cloud State is renovating its building. Omaha is looking at building an on-campus facility. Hockey is the No. 1 sport at the schools, which means the athletic departments will continue to put resources into the programs.

The CCHA, on the other hand, is not just fine. It

[GeauxSioux]

With Penn State in, Big Ten hockey likely

When asked about the feasibility of bringing WCHA programs into the Big Ten, Eaves said the conference would look to create new programs from within rather than bringing in established ones.

"If in fact we were going to move in that direction where we wanted to increase the size of the Big Ten, I think we would take a look at other Big Ten schools," he said. "I know that Indiana and Illinois both have pretty strong club sports right now. If they see the success that Penn State is having, who knows if they'll maybe try to find somebody who can make a donation."

[The Sicatoka]

We're all quite sure that the BTHC is happening.

Allow me a contrarian question:

Could Penn State Hockey in the CCHA be the reason why the CCHA left UAH out in the cold?

[ScottM]

We're all quite sure that the BTHC is happening.

Allow me a contrarian question:

Could Penn State Hockey in the CCHA be the reason why the CCHA left UAH out in the cold?

Probably yes, Penn State will bring more interest and money than those poor guys "down south". Even if it wasn't a done deal, I wouldn't be surprised if Penn State had unoffiically expressed "interest" in D1 hockey to a few CCHA people around the time the UAH decision was pending.

[mksioux]

We're all quite sure that the BTHC is happening.

Allow me a contrarian question:

Could Penn State Hockey in the CCHA be the reason why the CCHA left UAH out in the cold?

I don't think there's any question that is the CCHA's hope. But all the talk from people in the know is that the BTHC is an inevitability.

[star2city]

Five years of waiting for $88 million gift

Interview with Joe Battista, who now has a new job at PSU and a dual title that could fill the side of a semi trailer: Associate Athletic Director for Ice Arena Operations (new line) and Director of the Ice Arena and Hockey Campaign.

P-N: How did you meet Terry Pegula?

JB: His son Michael came down from Olean, N.Y., to Penn State hockey camps in the late

[Big A HG]

So SHELL is to blame then....hmmmm, I guess I'm not purchasing anything from them anymore.

[star2city]

So SHELL is to blame then....hmmmm, I guess I'm not purchasing anything from them anymore.

Kind of surprised that BP wasn't the root cause of the hockey blowout!

[star2city]

If the blog has just a slight insight into what is really transpiring in athletic departments, there could be some rather significant changes to the hockey landscape.

Highly doubt most of this, but there is no way that "name" schools outside our region would align themselves with non-Division I Minnesota schools. If UND, Denver, Notre Dame, and Miami started a new conference, any internal hockey efforts at schools like Iowa State or N Illinois would gather some momentum.

From the Rink Blog - Aftermath of Penn State

CCHA/Midwest Hockey will add two of Georgia Tech, Virginia Tech, Oklahoma, Iowa State, Northern Illinois or Oklahoma over the next five-to-seven years.

WCHA/Western Hockey will add three of Arizona State, California, Stanford, USC, UCLA, Weber State or Washington over the next five-to-seven years.

[mksioux]

If the blog has just a slight insight into what is really transpiring in athletic departments, there could be some rather significant changes to the hockey landscape.

Highly doubt most of this, but there is no way that "name" schools outside our region would align themselves with non-Division I Minnesota schools. If UND, Denver, Notre Dame, and Miami started a new conference, any internal hockey efforts at schools like Iowa State or N Illinois would gather some momentum.

From the Rink Blog - Aftermath of Penn State

Wow, I need some of what that guy is smoking.

But I do agree UND needs to keep additional expansion in mind as a possibility and position itself to be part of something like that if it were to happen. But I just don't see any way that the vast majority of the mentioned schools will have the interest or ability to start DI hockey.

[brianvf]

If the blog has just a slight insight into what is really transpiring in athletic departments, there could be some rather significant changes to the hockey landscape.

Highly doubt most of this, but there is no way that "name" schools outside our region would align themselves with non-Division I Minnesota schools. If UND, Denver, Notre Dame, and Miami started a new conference, any internal hockey efforts at schools like Iowa State or N Illinois would gather some momentum.

From the Rink Blog - Aftermath of Penn State

I hope schools like Georgia Tech, VT, OK, Iowa St, UNI, ASU, CA, USC, UCLA, and UWa each have a alum willing to donate $80-90 million like PSU did...otherwise that blogger is reaching thinking that they will add D1 hockey anytime in the near future (if at all).

[darell1976]

Remember the talk of MSU-Moorhead getting D1 hockey started...what happened to that talk? And whats the possibility that with the publicity and more teams being added to College Hockey if all these so-called D1 schools join up (UCLA, Georgia Tech, etc.) that NDSU would want in on this. I just hope all this expansion is NOT going to hurt UND both in recruiting and with our program.