MafiaMan Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 The attendance at the CCHA tourney would suggest otherwise. Unless it's Michigan vs Michigan State the attendance has has been pretty paltry. I just don't think the Big Ten is going to have that great of attendance. It's likely to be on par with what the NCHC has which will be a step down from the current WCHA Final Five. Hmmm...Michigan State vs Western Michigan and Michigan Tech vs Michigan each drew 16,500 for the GLI and the Western vs Tech championship drew almost 15,000. Not CCHA tournament stats but a very good draw for the weekend. Edit: a quick check revealed the CCHA title game last year between Western and Michigan drew roughly 10,500. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GFG Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 That's because GFG is a closet Sioux fan. Don't make me call your phone continuously until you answer so I can scold you for this libelous allegation! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goon Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 Don't make me call your phone continuously until you answer so I can scold you for this libelous allegation! I have caller ID Adam... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GFG Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 I have caller ID Adam... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Siouxman Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 Been going to the Final Five every year for a number of years and it is a good time with great hockey. We will definitely miss the Final Five, having St. Patty's Day fall during the Final Five tournament and EVERONE wearing green, and a couple of Gopher fans that we have become friends with. The Hoggsbreath tradition can continue (thanks to MafiaMan) even though it will be a farther drive from the hotels people are staying at in Mpls. I expect some Gopher fans who are also diehard hockey fans will attend either the WCHA or NCHC tournament when the B1G is out of town. I think we are all sad to see the WCHA Final Five as we know it fade into history. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GFG Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 I feel some sort of fan get-together should be set up for Saturday night this year to commemmorate the ending of the Final Five as we know it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
watchmaker49 Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 Seriously, with all of the hard feelings that there are towards UND in this whole thing you think that WCHA would go to the Ralph? I'm not getting into another pissing match about whose fault this all is, but you can't seriously think the WCHA school would want to make money for a school that they feel dropped them high and dry, can you? Besides, no one from Grand Forks is going to go to a game that doesn't inlude UND when UND is presumably playing a game at the same time. It's also a long ways out of the way for most school's fans to travel. The only school that would benefit is Bemidji. You are not looking at the big picture. This would be in the same line as having a convention. Economic tool. You seem to forget that the Ralph bid on a regional with no guarantee UND playing in it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bale31 Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 Hmmm...Michigan State vs Western Michigan and Michigan Tech vs Michigan each drew 16,500 for the GLI and the Western vs Tech championship drew almost 15,000. Not CCHA tournament stats but a very good draw for the weekend. Edit: a quick check revealed the CCHA title game last year between Western and Michigan drew roughly 10,500. That's what I was getting at, I guess.Admittedly, that's better than I was thinking it was, but it's certainly not a sellout. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bale31 Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 You are not looking at the big picture. This would be in the same line as having a convention. Economic tool. You seem to forget that the Ralph bid on a regional with no guarantee UND playing in it. As long as UND was in the tourney, they were going to be in Grand Forks though, correct? If so, that's not a big gamble. If that's the case, there would be no UND competition. That's not the case with a conference tourney. OK, so there might, and that's a BIG MIGHT, be a benefit for UND and Grand Forks. What benefit is there for the WCHA and more specifically the schools and fans of those teams? I can tell you having to drive 6 hours to get to the tournament location would be prohibitive for me. If it's the Michigan schools it's more like 15 hours to drive. That's just not realistic for these teams. And putting it in front of a bunch of people that don't give a damn about those schools is not a good way to create a good atmosphere around the tournament. As a fan of Kato, I would be extremely upset if the conference decided to spit in our face and benefit a school that left us instead of having it in a more local location. In that scenario I'm looking at a much bigger picture. The conference's target audience is not UND fans, it's WCHA fans. Pissing off WCHA fans is not a good way to get everyone behind the newWCHA. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
watchmaker49 Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 As long as UND was in the tourney, they were going to be in Grand Forks though, correct? If so, that's not a big gamble. If that's the case, there would be no UND competition. That's not the case with a conference tourney. OK, so there might, and that's a BIG MIGHT, be a benefit for UND and Grand Forks. What benefit is there for the WCHA and more specifically the schools and fans of those teams? I can tell you having to drive 6 hours to get to the tournament location would be prohibitive for me. If it's the Michigan schools it's more like 15 hours to drive. That's just not realistic for these teams. And putting it in front of a bunch of people that don't give a damn about those schools is not a good way to create a good atmosphere around the tournament. As a fan of Kato, I would be extremely upset if the conference decided to spit in our face and benefit a school that left us instead of having it in a more local location. In that scenario I'm looking at a much bigger picture. The conference's target audience is not UND fans, it's WCHA fans. Pissing off WCHA fans is not a good way to get everyone behind the newWCHA. Does not matter where it is at since no matter what it will bomb. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MafiaMan Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 You seem to forget that the Ralph bid on a regional with no guarantee UND playing in it. That was quite a leap of faith, wasn't it? The X bids on these tournaments and so does Green Bay. There's no guarantee...but there's a pretty good chance... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bale31 Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 Does not matter where it is at since no matter what it will bomb. You're right, it's not going to be well attended in comparison to the old WCHA, HCHC, or Big Ten. No one is aruing that it will. But to take it to the location of one of the schools that dropped the other 9 AND put it 6-15 hours out of the way of any of those schools is flat out foolish. It woudl do more damage than good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MafiaMan Posted January 11, 2013 Share Posted January 11, 2013 You're right, it's not going to be well attended in comparison to the old WCHA, HCHC, or Big Ten. No one is aruing that it will. But to take it to the location of one of the schools that dropped the other 9 AND put it 6-15 hours out of the way of any of those schools is flat out foolish. It woudl do more damage than good. Equally foolish is putting the tournament in a rink that holds 18,000. I really don't know what Bruce McLeod is thinking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NorthDakotaHockey Posted January 11, 2013 Share Posted January 11, 2013 Sadly, the WCHA does not have any real good options and it was left high and dry first by the Pig 10 schools and then by the likes of UND and everyone else that jumped ship for no good reason. What's done is done on that front. Now, the WCHA is in dire danger of doing a quick fold and college hockey is in danger of contracting rather than expanding as all the geniuses claimed it would. It's a lot easier for a school to drop a hockey program than it is for a school to start a program. Look at PSU. Still piddling in the wind and it is playing a full Pig 10 schedule next year? I will go to WCHA games, and tournaments, when the opportunity presents far more often that I will to a Pig 10 game. The WCHA still has some solid and storied programs. It needs a wide base of fan support. Those of us who claim that we are fans of the college game, and there are many, had best position ourselves to walk the walk and not just talk the talk. The league no doubt got a sweetheart deal from The X. BSU and MSU are nearby. Relatively so. Northern Michigan and Michigan Tech will travel a shade. The lower bowl will need to be filled largely by the likes of all the "college hockey fans" in the so-called State of Hockey. I trust the league will schedule its tournament on a weekend when the NCHC is not in town. If so, I'll expect to see all you fans of college hockey down at The X, supporting the WCHA. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MafiaMan Posted January 11, 2013 Share Posted January 11, 2013 Sadly, the WCHA does not have any real good options and it was left high and dry first by the Pig 10 schools and then by the likes of UND and everyone else that jumped ship for no good reason. What's done is done on that front. Now, the WCHA is in dire danger of doing a quick fold and college hockey is in danger of contracting rather than expanding as all the geniuses claimed it would. It's a lot easier for a school to drop a hockey program than it is for a school to start a program. Look at PSU. Still piddling in the wind and it is playing a full Pig 10 schedule next year? I will go to WCHA games, and tournaments, when the opportunity presents far more often that I will to a Pig 10 game. The WCHA still has some solid and storied programs. It needs a wide base of fan support. Those of us who claim that we are fans of the college game, and there are many, had best position ourselves to walk the walk and not just talk the talk. The league no doubt got a sweetheart deal from The X. BSU and MSU are nearby. Relatively so. Northern Michigan and Michigan Tech will travel a shade. The lower bowl will need to be filled largely by the likes of all the "college hockey fans" in the so-called State of Hockey. I trust the league will schedule its tournament on a weekend when the NCHC is not in town. If so, I'll expect to see all you fans of college hockey down at The X, supporting the WCHA. Well-said, but how can the WCHA schedule their tournament on a different weekend? I believe all conferences currently wrap up on Saturday night and await the selection show on Sunday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fetch Posted January 11, 2013 Share Posted January 11, 2013 Pig 10 I like that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bale31 Posted January 11, 2013 Share Posted January 11, 2013 Sadly, the WCHA does not have any real good options and it was left high and dry first by the Pig 10 schools and then by the likes of UND and everyone else that jumped ship for no good reason. What's done is done on that front. Now, the WCHA is in dire danger of doing a quick fold and college hockey is in danger of contracting rather than expanding as all the geniuses claimed it would. It's a lot easier for a school to drop a hockey program than it is for a school to start a program. Look at PSU. Still piddling in the wind and it is playing a full Pig 10 schedule next year? I will go to WCHA games, and tournaments, when the opportunity presents far more often that I will to a Pig 10 game. The WCHA still has some solid and storied programs. It needs a wide base of fan support. Those of us who claim that we are fans of the college game, and there are many, had best position ourselves to walk the walk and not just talk the talk. The league no doubt got a sweetheart deal from The X. BSU and MSU are nearby. Relatively so. Northern Michigan and Michigan Tech will travel a shade. The lower bowl will need to be filled largely by the likes of all the "college hockey fans" in the so-called State of Hockey. I trust the league will schedule its tournament on a weekend when the NCHC is not in town. If so, I'll expect to see all you fans of college hockey down at The X, supporting the WCHA. This is pretty much what I was trying to say. The X and the Joe aren't ideal as they are too big, but the alternatives aren't really very good options either. The WCHA schools will be fine. Opposed to popular belief, those schools are committed to making hockey the flagship program of their schools (outside of Bowling Green). We can't afford to put as much money into the programs as much as the likes of UND, DU, Miami, etc (but then again neither can UMD or SCSU, but that's another story). BSU just put up a new arena and is changing the administration to make the financing work, MSU is trying to get funding for a new arena for the 6th year running and hired a new high dollar coach. MTU just hired a new high dollar coach and is trying to find funding to make renovations. There is a commitment there. I, honestly, don't expect fans from outside the conference to support the WCHA teams. College hockey fans and programs have proven that they are no different than any other college sport. Just look at UAH. Everyone "wants" them to survive, but the only team that was willing to travel to UAH was MSU this year. The CCHA denied them entry into the conference even though it made sense. The WCHA is going to have to make it on their own because it's pretty obvious that no one else really gives a damn about anyone except themselves at this point. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
watchmaker49 Posted January 11, 2013 Share Posted January 11, 2013 You're right, it's not going to be well attended in comparison to the old WCHA, HCHC, or Big Ten. No one is aruing that it will. But to take it to the location of one of the schools that dropped the other 9 AND put it 6-15 hours out of the way of any of those schools is flat out foolish. It woudl do more damage than good. I know this. I was pretending to be one of those city boosters who would think this would work. Just like how they thought the Alerus would bring in conventions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
watchmaker49 Posted January 11, 2013 Share Posted January 11, 2013 This is pretty much what I was trying to say. The X and the Joe aren't ideal as they are too big, but the alternatives aren't really very good options either. The WCHA schools will be fine. Opposed to popular belief, those schools are committed to making hockey the flagship program of their schools (outside of Bowling Green). We can't afford to put as much money into the programs as much as the likes of UND, DU, Miami, etc (but then again neither can UMD or SCSU, but that's another story). BSU just put up a new arena and is changing the administration to make the financing work, MSU is trying to get funding for a new arena for the 6th year running and hired a new high dollar coach. MTU just hired a new high dollar coach and is trying to find funding to make renovations. There is a commitment there. I, honestly, don't expect fans from outside the conference to support the WCHA teams. College hockey fans and programs have proven that they are no different than any other college sport. Just look at UAH. Everyone "wants" them to survive, but the only team that was willing to travel to UAH was MSU this year. The CCHA denied them entry into the conference even though it made sense. The WCHA is going to have to make it on their own because it's pretty obvious that no one else really gives a damn about anyone except themselves at this point. Excellent post! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vegas_Sioux Posted January 11, 2013 Share Posted January 11, 2013 You'll have good seats...they might let you sit on the bench Might even be better you might get to be the doorman. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NorthDakotaHockey Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 Well-said, but how can the WCHA schedule their tournament on a different weekend? I believe all conferences currently wrap up on Saturday night and await the selection show on Sunday. I'll give credit for McLeod being smart enough to stagger his tournament. So what if the WCHA already knows who its autobid will be, with a good idea of what other WCHA schools will make The Skate, a week before Selection Sunday. They'll take a leg up on everyone by resting that weekend. Bigger question will be WCHA's price point. Sell 1500 strips at $150 each, or sell 5000 strips at $50 each? We shall see. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MafiaMan Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 I'll give credit for McLeod being smart enough to stagger his tournament. So what if the WCHA already knows who its autobid will be, with a good idea of what other WCHA schools will make The Skate, a week before Selection Sunday. They'll take a leg up on everyone by resting that weekend. Bigger question will be WCHA's price point. Sell 1500 strips at $150 each, or sell 5000 strips at $50 each? We shall see. Are they really staggering it? You mean some years I can spend not one but TWO consecutive weekends watching college hockey? So, NDH, wanna join me at the 'new' WCHA Final Five when it comes to town? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NorthDakotaHockey Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 Are they really staggering it? You mean some years I can spend not one but TWO consecutive weekends watching college hockey? So, NDH, wanna join me at the 'new' WCHA Final Five when it comes to town? Don't know if the WCHA is going to stagger this but if McLeod reads this board for most of his ideas it will look hard at doing this now. Would love to join you at the new Final Five Mafia Man. After the ten year statute of limitations passes on those Columbus bus stories, I want to be the first one to hear. See you around the arenas. Maybe The John this weekend? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MafiaMan Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 Don't know if the WCHA is going to stagger this but if McLeod reads this board for most of his ideas it will look hard at doing this now. Dammit, NDH, so you were SPECULATING that it would be on an earlier weekend? I was looking forward to an additional tournament. I think it's a great idea...Bruce, are you actually reading the posts here? NDH, you're onto something with this idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goon Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 I, honestly, don't expect fans from outside the conference to support the WCHA teams. College hockey fans and programs have proven that they are no different than any other college sport. Just look at UAH. Everyone "wants" them to survive, but the only team that was willing to travel to UAH was MSU this year. The CCHA denied them entry into the conference even though it made sense. The WCHA is going to have to make it on their own because it's pretty obvious that no one else really gives a damn about anyone except themselves at this point. I actually think that the WCHA might not except them either. I would be willing to bet that it's not a slam dunk. I have a bad feeling about this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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