College Hockey Expansion

[nodak651]

5 hours ago, cberkas said:

At the State of College Hockey Press Conference, Steve Chapman (Executive VP St. Louis Blues) Alluded to "another University is talking about going D-1." He made it sound like it would be in St. Louis. Maryville and SLU (SLU was a CCHA member from 1971-79) are the two in St. Louis Metro, Missouri, Missouri State, Dury (shares arena with Missouri State), and UMKC (doesn't have a ACHA team). 

Maryville is the logical choice on who Chapman is talking about with maybe St. Louis coming back. Maryville plays in a 2,000 seat arena that could be expanded to add a sheet with around 4,000 seats, or Maryville could share The Centene Community Ice Center with Lindenwood. St. Louis plays in both Maryville University Ice Center (Maryville) and The Centene Community Ice Center (Lindenwood). Chaifetz Arena on SLU's campus doesn't have ice making ability. 

UMKC has two arenas in the area (T-Mobile Center, and Cable Dahmer Arena) but no ACHA team, so this is highly unlikely. Mizzou needs an arena and would love to see A Walton or Kroenke help fund and build arena for them. There ACHA D2 team looks to be a decent team that moved up from ACHA D3. Missouri State and Dury are the ACHA D1 teams but would need a bigger arena they could share. 

If any school makes the jump, I'd put money on it being Mayville.

This is somewhat relevent.  Maryville has been considering building a 3k seat e sports arena of some sort and they cancelled their plans.  They could or maybe are working to incorporate hockey into a new development plan?  

https://www.westnewsmagazine.com/news/maryville-withdraws-redevelopment-plans-for-woods-mill-center/article_0d96b16a-4042-11ee-a460-8fcdf80a4980.html

 

UMKC should really look up the road to Omaha and look at what hockey has done for Omaha.  Like UMKC IS, Omaha would be a complete afterthought in that city if they tried to focus on basketball.  UMKC could be THE team for Kansas City.  The major cities directly to the North, West, and East all have hugely popular hockey teams (UNO, Blues, Avs/DU).

[SIOUXFAN97]

28 minutes ago, nodak651 said:

Hockey makes a lot of sense for D2 schools because the can capitalize on the visibility of having a D1 program without the need to dump millions more, annually, into funding non rev sports at the D1 level.

BUT....do the smaller D2 schools have enough cash to get players to make a difference.....does a school like Bemidji that made the Frozen Four a decade or so ago have any chance of getting back with their limited budget and resources?

[SIOUXFAN97]

40 minutes ago, nodak651 said:

This is somewhat relevent.  Maryville has been considering building a 3k seat e sports arena of some sort and they cancelled their plans.  They could or maybe are working to incorporate hockey into a new development plan?  

https://www.westnewsmagazine.com/news/maryville-withdraws-redevelopment-plans-for-woods-mill-center/article_0d96b16a-4042-11ee-a460-8fcdf80a4980.html

 

UMKC should really look up the road to Omaha and look at what hockey has done for Omaha.  Like UMKC IS, Omaha would be a complete afterthought in that city if they tried to focus on basketball.  UMKC could be THE team for Kansas City.  The major cities directly to the North, West, and East all have hugely popular hockey teams (UNO, Blues, Avs/DU).

if you don't have BOTH football and hockey are you even really trying???!!!

[SIOUXFAN97]

49 minutes ago, nodak651 said:

This is somewhat relevent.  Maryville has been considering building a 3k seat e sports arena of some sort and they cancelled their plans.  They could or maybe are working to incorporate hockey into a new development plan?  

https://www.westnewsmagazine.com/news/maryville-withdraws-redevelopment-plans-for-woods-mill-center/article_0d96b16a-4042-11ee-a460-8fcdf80a4980.html

 

UMKC should really look up the road to Omaha and look at what hockey has done for Omaha.  Like UMKC IS, Omaha would be a complete afterthought in that city if they tried to focus on basketball.  UMKC could be THE team for Kansas City.  The major cities directly to the North, West, and East all have hugely popular hockey teams (UNO, Blues, Avs/DU).

both sdac and usd both will look back and wonder how they let augie hockey be the "team of the state"......

[cberkas]

https://www.coloradoan.com/story/news/2025/04/16/greeley-votes-to-fund-1-billion-entertainment-district-new-arena-for-colorado-eagles/83111846007/
 

This is interesting. I don’t see Northern Colorado adding hockey, but having this in Greeley might get the talk started. 
 

If this gets done, Colorado State at Loveland, Northern Colorado in this new arena, and Colorado builds the Shedeur Sanders/Travis Hunter Arena 🤣 (last one is joke). 

[nodak651]

Some new UAA renderings.  Their Board of Regents is going to officially enter an MOU with the Seawolf Hockey Alliance tomorrow.  Doesn't mean anything is going to get built, but it's another step in the right direction.

Meeting      May 21, 2025 - Board of Regents' Facilities and Land Management Committee Agenda

Category      Full Board Consent Agenda

Subject      Approval to sign and execute a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA) and the Seawolf Hockey Alliance (SHA)

Type      Action

Recommended Action      MOTION:
“The Facilities and Land Management Committee recommends that the Board of Regents grant authorization to the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA) to sign and execute the MOU, as presented, between UAA and the Seawolf Hockey Alliance (SHA) to facilitate the development of formal agreements between the parties to pursue construction of a Division 1 competitive community ice complex on the Anchorage Campus (the “project”). This motion does not grant approval for a ground lease of land or overall project approval – any such actions will be subject to future Board approval. This motion is effective May 21, 2025.”

 

Rational and Recommendation:

During the February 20-21, 2025 Board of Regents (BOR) meeting the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA) brought forward a request to negotiate a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Seawolf Hockey Alliance (SHA) to jointly pursue a new community ice complex. The board passed a motion for UAA to draft an MOU for presentation at the May 2025 BOR meeting. This action is the follow-on of that motion based upon UAA and SHA development and negotiation of the authorized draft MOU.

This MOU is meant to serve as a non-binding, general framework for future agreements between the university and SHA in pursuit of a Division 1 competitive ice complex. The MOU positions SHA as the primary fundraiser for this effort, with UAA securing necessary project approvals and ensuring master plan and programmatic alignment. Both UAA and SHA will guide the technical aspects of the building design and fundraising plan. The MOU does not grant approval for any ground lease or overall project approval.

The anticipated next steps following execution of this MOU is for UAA to prepare a request for Formal Project Approval (FPA) for consideration, prospectively at the September 2025 BOR meeting. In addition to FPA, UAA and SHA will develop a more detailed development agreement that will set specific terms on items such as fundraising, design considerations, timeline to execute the project, building/space naming plan, the terms of which will be shared with the BOR as part of the FPA approval.

https://go.boarddocs.com/ak/alaska/Board.nsf/files/DGPMPZ5C471D/$file/20250521 - UAA-SHA MOU presentation.pdf

[nodak651]

What's an FPA? 

[SIOUXFAN97]

what conference are they aiming for?  any takers?

[Und Princess]

1 minute ago, SIOUXFAN97 said:

what conference are they aiming for?  any takers?

It will be interesting to see.  I'd love for them to join NCHC.  But what are the odds?

[SIOUXFAN97]

would the state of alaska have the stones to say....we can and will only have one d1 hockey program in this state and it will be university of alaska_________________?

 

[siouxkid12]

24 minutes ago, Und Princess said:

It will be interesting to see.  I'd love for them to join NCHC.  But what are the odds?

Very slim I'd say. Even though they are looking at building an arena, they still disbanded the program for 2 years and the thought of the program being cut again is there. With Miami wanting out of the NCHC (for various reason), I doubt the NCHC wants to add a program that is still on shaky ground. 
It would make more sense to add Bemidji State (not saying it would happen) over Alaska anyway.

[tnt]

Just now, siouxkid12 said:

Very slim I'd say. Even though they are looking at building an arena, they still disbanded the program for 2 years and the thought of the program being cut again is there. With Miami wanting out of the NCHC (for various reason), I doubt the NCHC wants to add a program that is still on shaky ground. 
It would make more sense to add Bemidji State (not saying it would happen) over Alaska anyway.

Yeah, and for the longest time schools bit the costs of traveling to Alaska just to keep them viable.  In the age of NIL and big money, I don't see NCHC schools wanting to spend extra money on expensive travel for a team that could be a drain on the league in more than one way. 

[petey23]

2 minutes ago, tnt said:

Yeah, and for the longest time schools bit the costs of traveling to Alaska just to keep them viable.  In the age of NIL and big money, I don't see NCHC schools wanting to spend extra money on expensive travel for a team that could be a drain on the league in more than one way. 

I might be wrong but I thought Alaska Oil Money paid travel expenses.

[siouxkid12]

3 minutes ago, petey23 said:

I might be wrong but I thought Alaska Oil Money paid travel expenses.

I don't recall ever hearing that but that's just me and I've been wrong before.🤣

[SIOUXFAN97]

56 minutes ago, petey23 said:

I might be wrong but I thought Alaska Oil Money paid travel expenses.

alaska oil money=the state of alaska...so probably yeah.

[cberkas]

1 hour ago, siouxkid12 said:

Very slim I'd say. Even though they are looking at building an arena, they still disbanded the program for 2 years and the thought of the program being cut again is there. With Miami wanting out of the NCHC (for various reason), I doubt the NCHC wants to add a program that is still on shaky ground. 
It would make more sense to add Bemidji State (not saying it would happen) over Alaska anyway.

The only ones saying this is a group of their fans. 

[siouxkid12]

13 minutes ago, cberkas said:

The only ones saying this is a group of their fans. 

no, its not. Adam Wodon wrote about it a couple years back when Arizona State was added to the NCHC.

[Blackheart]

1 hour ago, siouxkid12 said:

Very slim I'd say. Even though they are looking at building an arena, they still disbanded the program for 2 years and the thought of the program being cut again is there. With Miami wanting out of the NCHC (for various reason), I doubt the NCHC wants to add a program that is still on shaky ground. 
It would make more sense to add Bemidji State (not saying it would happen) over Alaska anyway.

You mean Mankato State, right?

[SIOUXFAN97]

1 hour ago, Blackheart said:

You mean Mankato State, right?

yeah augie or msu gets an invite years aghead of bsu

[cberkas]

2 hours ago, siouxkid12 said:

no, its not. Adam Wodon wrote about it a couple years back when Arizona State was added to the NCHC.

Their fans bring it up all the time and Miami voted to have ASU in the conference. 

Miami isn't going to pay $2 million+ to leave. 

[SIOUXFAN97]

19 minutes ago, cberkas said:

Their fans bring it up all the time and Miami voted to have ASU in the conference. 

Miami isn't going to pay $2 million+ to leave. 

if fenton was smart he would waivethe exit fees for scsu and miami

[cberkas]

Just now, SIOUXFAN97 said:

if fenton was smart he would waivethe exit fees for scsu and miami

Fenton has nothing to do with the NCHC

[SIOUXFAN97]

1 minute ago, cberkas said:

Fenton has nothing to do with the NCHC

that's what u think...

[SiouxperDave]

On 4/27/2024 at 11:18 AM, SiouxperDave said:

Construction of the Mosaic Iceplex in Tucson should start soon.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/C6PPBCAypWA/?igsh=Y2wwMnpxN3FwcHBl

Progress is being made!