AZSIOUX Posted January 15, 2008 Posted January 15, 2008 Yea, just like Michigan State was gonna bow out early last year. Miami and Notre Dame now have another year of tournament experience under their belts. I'd watch out for them. Anything can happen in a one game situation. Just ask BC. They would beat MSU 9 out of 10 times they played, but in that one magical game last spring... yeah it was damn nice seeing msu beat bc though.........my main gripe is miami and notre dame, they wont do a damn thing in the tourney. they play nobody out of conference when mich st and michighan always do. makes a difference in the end i think. is there a way we can avoid BC just once in the ncaa tourney. just once the last 5 times we have played in the frozen 4 we have played BC. win in title 2000 loss in title 20001 win in regional (beanpot ) 2005 loss in f-4 semi 2006 loss in f-4 semi 2007 Quote
mksioux Posted January 15, 2008 Posted January 15, 2008 And where, pray tell, would either of these two schools go? In the mildly threatened "Big Ten Conference" that would include, at best, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Michigan State, and maybe Notre Dame?? I don't think so. These two schools are not going anywhere as the WCHA, whether or not it includes BSU, is the best thing to happen to them from many perspectives, not the least of which is quality of competition, natural rivalries, and ease of travel. You can call it mildly threatening if you want. Before the Big Ten Network, I also didn't give much thought to it. But all I know now is that the Big Ten Network would love to see it happen and the only thing standing in its way is the fact that the majority of Big Ten schools don't want it right now. Irritating two of the very schools that hold the power to make it happen is not in UND's best interest. Quote
MafiaMan Posted January 15, 2008 Posted January 15, 2008 the last 5 times we have played in the frozen 4 we have played BC. win in title 2000 loss in title 20001 win in regional (beanpot ) 2005 loss in f-4 semi 2006 loss in f-4 semi 2007 Dude, you can go back farther than that to when UND wasn't in the Frozen Four, 1998. To me, the BC/UND rivalry started when BC pulled off the upset in the 1998 regional in Madison en route to the Frozen Four and a championship game loss to Michigan. I hate BC...almost as much as Minnesota. But, seriously, is there a team with more heartbreaking losses in the past 10 years than BC? 1998 Frozen Four championship loss to Michigan (I believe this was OT, too) 1999 Frozen Four semi-final OT loss to Maine 2000 Frozen Four championship loss to North Dakota 2004 Frozen Four semi-final 2-1 loss to Maine 2006 Frozen Four championship loss to Wisconsin 2007 Frozen Four championship loss to Michigan State Quote
AZSIOUX Posted January 15, 2008 Posted January 15, 2008 Dude, you can go back farther than that to when UND wasn't in the Frozen Four, 1998. To me, the BC/UND rivalry started when BC pulled off the upset in the 1998 regional in Madison en route to the Frozen Four and a championship game loss to Michigan. I hate BC...almost as much as Minnesota. But, seriously, is there a team with more heartbreaking losses in the past 10 years than BC? 1998 Frozen Four championship loss to Michigan (I believe this was OT, too) 1999 Frozen Four semi-final OT loss to Maine 2000 Frozen Four championship loss to North Dakota 2004 Frozen Four semi-final 2-1 loss to Maine 2006 Frozen Four championship loss to Wisconsin 2007 Frozen Four championship loss to Michigan State wow, yeah im not a bc fan at all Quote
mksioux Posted January 15, 2008 Posted January 15, 2008 i agree with you here. where exactly are minny and wisco going to go? a five team big ten? if they leave, which they won't, because it would screw up their current respective conferences, how do they fill the rest of the conference? get illinois, iowa, northwestern, pudue and penn state to start programs? i'm all for it, but it won't happen. the wcha isn't ran by minny and the BADgers. as much as i love to watch us kick the s@#t out of those teams, we would be fine without them. wouldn't be the same, but we would survive, and still be the best conference in college hockey. give a little more credit to und, cc, du, mtu, umd and scsu. the wcha is a hell of a conference, and it will stay that way. If the Big Ten schools leave to form their own conference, they could fill out their new conference with pretty much any schools they want. If no other Big Ten schools add hockey, they could fill it out with non-Big Ten affiliate members. Maybe UND would be chosen as an affiliate member, maybe not. But I have no doubt as to which UND would prefer. If you're fine with UND being in a conference without Minnesota and Wisconsin, that's great. But I suspect you're in a tiny minority of Sioux fans that feel that way. I agree Minnesota and Wisconsin don't run the WCHA, but the reality is that they are the only schools where if they left, the others would ask if they could follow. Quote
mikejm Posted January 15, 2008 Posted January 15, 2008 If UND could get into the Big Sky and use influence to expand hockey out west, it would be great. Hockey belongs in places like Montana and Idaho. Get Northern Arizona back on track again. Edit - I think it was United State International University which is now called Alliant International University. Thanks for the US International...yeah, that was it. I hadn't thought of Montana/Idaho for hockey expansion. I wonder how a college team there would do? NAHL teams have have a horrible time in Billings. As far as I can recall, there isn't an American junior team between Bismarck and the Alaska. As I said, adding to the number of D-I hockey programs is more important to me than is the conference affiliation of BSU or any other team. Quote
Millsy Posted January 16, 2008 Posted January 16, 2008 Newest Article (January 16th) on the Bemidji Event Center from the Bemidji Pioneer: ---------------------------------- Legislators pledge support for events center funding Edited by moderator -- please link to and quote articles, no full reproductions. Thanks. Quote
franchise Posted January 17, 2008 Posted January 17, 2008 RMU beat Boston U despite managing a paltry 15 shots on goal compared to BU's 35. This is not one of BU's better teams and they currently reside at 6-10-3. Notre Dame has been a collegiate patsy for years before last season's resurgence under Jeff Jackson. A good team, yes, but also an overwhelming favorite over the Spartans last year in the regionals. They're not a top-notch program just yet. Merrimack followed up their sweep of Maine by losing twice to UMass Lowell. You mentioned that they defeated Boston, but I see an 0-2-1 record against BC this year and an 0-1 mark against BU. Besides, when was Merrimack last relevant in Hockey East, let alone the NCAA tournament? BSU has beaten UMD 5 of the last 6. Lots of other teams can make that claim lately too. Huntsville took Notre Dame to double OT. Air Force took Minnesota down to the wire. Minnesota State swept the Zach Parise-led Sioux a few years ago too. Mercyhurts almost beat Michigan at Yost. We could go on all day if you would like, but I've forgotten what your point was. You did forget as the ending there didn't really have much to do with it. I wasn't trying to make it a Team A beat Team B and Team B... kind of thing. I was listing some games off the top of my head with the point being that BSU isn't in a great conference, but it's not garabage either. BSU is competitive vs the "big boys" now and I think they would surprise some people if they entered the WCHA. Quote
Goon Posted January 17, 2008 Posted January 17, 2008 Miami, Michigan, Notre Dame, and Michigan State look pretty decent to me. I think the top 4 teams in the CCHA are pretty good but it drops off after those teams. I think horrible is a word I use to describe the rest of the teams. Quote
Dean Posted January 17, 2008 Posted January 17, 2008 I think the top 4 teams in the CCHA are pretty good but it drops off after those teams. I think horrible is a word I use to describe the rest of the teams. ...........and yet you continue to harp about how Miami isn't any good because of their soft schedule. Quote
Hiram Posted January 17, 2008 Posted January 17, 2008 The Big Ten conference would be good and bad for college hockey I think. I think it would bring a "name-brand" type recognition to college hockey. But, schools like us would be looking in from the outside and we'd be scrambling to form a conference with the weak remainders. BIG TEN Michigan Michigan State Ohio State Wisconsin Minnesota Penn State (would be intrigued by the Big Ten name and add both men's and women's programs) Purdue (a bigger stretch, but I think a school that could get persuaded to join, they have lots of money) Notre Dame (could be enough incentive for all athletic programs to join the Big Ten) So, that's an 8-time conference with PSU and Purdue....6 without. 8 is a perfect number I think. NEW WCHA North Dakota St. Cloud Michigan Tech Duluth Denver Colorado College Anchorage Bemidji State NEW CCHA Miami Bowling Green Ferris State Alaska Northern Michigan Lake Superior Western Michigan Air Force NEW CHA Niagara Huntsville Mankato Robert Morris Nebraska-Omaha HOCKEY EAST (unchanged) Boston College Boston U. Maine Northeastern UMass UNH UMass-Lowell Vermont Providence Merrimack NEW ATLANTIC HOCKEY Sacred Heart RIT Mercyhurst Bentley Army Canisius Holy Cross AI UCONN Syracuse (is joining college hockey) Just tinkered everything. Obviously schools would be in conferences where they didn't want, and the Big Ten would be the dominant conference, but if you want 6 remotely balanced conferences, how else could you do it? And for all you people out there, I added BSU into the now much weaker WCHA. CCHA is a really weak conference now. Not that I really care about them, but what about MSU Mankato? Where do they fit in? Quote
siouxnami Posted January 17, 2008 Posted January 17, 2008 Count me in the crowd that believes that a big 10 conference will never happen, but I think that Illinois is one of the schools that could add and compete in hockey. I also think that there would be a possibility that the Big 12 could elevate their club programs as they have the resources to fund the scholarship. There are some very good fits in CO, MO, OK, and TX. Quote
MafiaMan Posted January 17, 2008 Posted January 17, 2008 Count me in the crowd that believes that a big 10 conference will never happen, but I think that Illinois is one of the schools that could add and compete in hockey. I also think that there would be a possibility that the Big 12 could elevate their club programs as they have the resources to fund the scholarship. There are some very good fits in CO, MO, OK, and TX. I find it almost ironic that you mention the Big 12 conference considering that the old Southwest Conference and the Big 8 existed before the formation of the Big 12 in 1994. Do some light reading and you'll find that the Big 12 came to be as the result of a golf game amongst AD's from various schools which eventually led to the formation of the Big 12. Only some lobbying from some VERY powerful officials, including Governor Ann Richards, got Baylor into the Big 12 and not left out in the cold. Almost overnight, the Southwest Conference became extinct. You think the Big 10 Hockey Conference is impossible? I suggest you think again. Quote
Goon Posted January 17, 2008 Posted January 17, 2008 You think the Big 10 Hockey Conference is impossible? I suggest you think again. I think the reason people think about that is there has been talk about it for like 10 years and nothing has happened. I think I remember hearing about the big ten conerence back in the mid 1990's. Quote
Hiram Posted January 17, 2008 Posted January 17, 2008 Mankato was moved to the CHA DOH!! It was early in the morning, I missed it. Quote
Cratter Posted January 17, 2008 Posted January 17, 2008 Bemidji State in the WCHA? The potential of Canadian schools in the NCAA? Whispers of a "Big Ten Hockey Conference" if BSU is in the WCHA? To all of that I can only say one thing: As it may prove to be an invaluable asset to the program if there are significant shake-ups in conference alignments down the road, thank you, thank you, Mr. Engelstad for the Ralph Engelstad Arena. Word up to that. Dean Blais had mentioned on numerous occassions that if this crazy concept of Big Ten Hockey Concept ever came to fruition. This Arena would help UND tremendously in getting into that conference. Heck, helped UND so much even if they didn't get invited to the BTHC it doesn't appear UND needs to worry too much. If they could create a pretty strong conference with Duluth, Mankato, St. Cloud, Tech, etc. UND would be the team to beat (like UM and Wisconsin now). It would be their job (UND) to try and help the entire conference become stronger. UND entering Division I in all sports will be huge if there is a chance UND wants to get invited to the BTHC. The Big Ten Hockey Conference is not a myth, especially with the formation of the Big Ten Sports Network. They will have a lot of money thanks to the rights to broadcast games and a lot of money to throw at schools to get them to form a conference with the huge return to nationally televise those hockey games on their network thus making even more money. As The Sicatoka says "follow the money." This is not a myth or far off concept but reality closing in every day. You don't think Wisconsin and Minnesota would love to play other "big name" schools all year long (UND included)? They would love to play Michigan and Michigan State every year in conference play. Ten years of talk only means one thing. It is not going away. The more talk there is the more people get to thinking about it and how to make it a reality. Dean Blais did talked about it for a reason and not because he thought it would never happen. Quote
Big A HG Posted January 17, 2008 Posted January 17, 2008 Maybe the Big Ten would be nice enough to be add us into their conference for all sports since the other ND (Notre Dame) won't...then they can have their 12 team, 2 division conference. It'd be rough at first, but we'd get recruits for the other sports, haha. Never say never! Quote
GeauxSioux Posted January 18, 2008 Posted January 18, 2008 I find it almost ironic that you mention the Big 12 conference considering that the old Southwest Conference and the Big 8 existed before the formation of the Big 12 in 1994. Do some light reading and you'll find that the Big 12 came to be as the result of a golf game amongst AD's from various schools which eventually led to the formation of the Big 12. Only some lobbying from some VERY powerful officials, including Governor Ann Richards, got Baylor into the Big 12 and not left out in the cold. Almost overnight, the Southwest Conference became extinct. You think the Big 10 Hockey Conference is impossible? I suggest you think again. Star2City provided some material a couple of years ago on the subject.> The Great Dakota Football Rebellion ?, Similar to a doomed Southwest Conference? Quote
Millsy Posted January 18, 2008 Posted January 18, 2008 One thing has been bothering me.... It is the comments that Mankato, Michigan Tech, UAA, whoever, would dominate the CHA if they were in the league. The problem I have with that is that I think it is based on the premise that they would continue to gain WCHA caliber recruits. A move by those teams to the CHA would also mean they would be bringing in recruits of CHA caliber, which some posters feel is "inferior" to the WCHA recruits. So a move by them to the CHA would "lower" them to the level of BSU, Niagara, UAH and Robert Morris. I don't think they would walk away with the league. It has also been stated that a move by BSU to the WCHA would water down the talent level. I don't think that is true either. BSU would be able to attract WCHA caliber talent because the best want to play in the WCHA. It would open up 20+ roster spots to players that go to the CCHA, HE or ECAC because all the other teams are full. Maybe I am way off base here, but it is Friday and I am at the end of an 11 day stretch at work! Quote
Upper Deck Posted January 18, 2008 Posted January 18, 2008 Another step in the BSU/WCHA process Bemidji Pioneer BSU to play a 12 game WCHA schedule beginning in 2010 - as long as there's an event center . . . Quote
andtheHomeoftheSIOUX!! Posted January 18, 2008 Posted January 18, 2008 I take it DU, CC, and AA are exempt from the scheduling alliance? 12 games I would think would mean that BSU would play each of the Minnesota schools and UND plus UW or MTU twice. That would make the most sense anyways. Quote
AZSIOUX Posted January 18, 2008 Posted January 18, 2008 I take it DU, CC, and AA are exempt from the scheduling alliance? 12 games I would think would mean that BSU would play each of the Minnesota schools and UND plus UW or MTU twice. That would make the most sense anyways. maybe but they are playing DU and CC this weekend... Quote
happy Posted January 19, 2008 Posted January 19, 2008 Word up to that. Dean Blais had mentioned on numerous occassions that if this crazy concept of Big Ten Hockey Concept ever came to fruition. This Arena would help UND tremendously in getting into that conference. Heck, helped UND so much even if they didn't get invited to the BTHC it doesn't appear UND needs to worry too much. If they could create a pretty strong conference with Duluth, Mankato, St. Cloud, Tech, etc. UND would be the team to beat (like UM and Wisconsin now). It would be their job (UND) to try and help the entire conference become stronger. UND entering Division I in all sports will be huge if there is a chance UND wants to get invited to the BTHC. The Big Ten Hockey Conference is not a myth, especially with the formation of the Big Ten Sports Network. They will have a lot of money thanks to the rights to broadcast games and a lot of money to throw at schools to get them to form a conference with the huge return to nationally televise those hockey games on their network thus making even more money. As The Sicatoka says "follow the money." This is not a myth or far off concept but reality closing in every day. You don't think Wisconsin and Minnesota would love to play other "big name" schools all year long (UND included)? They would love to play Michigan and Michigan State every year in conference play. Ten years of talk only means one thing. It is not going away. The more talk there is the more people get to thinking about it and how to make it a reality. Dean Blais did talked about it for a reason and not because he thought it would never happen. If the BTN makes money, I would think it is only a matter of time before a BTHC happens. Just think of the incentives for a school like Penn State or Illinois to add hockey if the BTN finds a way to form a BTHC. They would immediately be able to move into the big time, with televised games, playing for the Big Ten championship, a great schedule, etc. These new teams would be able to bypass many problems faced by other start up schools, and even though they would get beat in the beginning, so what, they would be playing nothing but rivals, and that is what sells tickets. let us not forget that a big selling point for the Big Ten will be how much money the WCHA FF makes every year, the Big Ten would figure that into the mix, too. Before the BTN, there was no way for a BTHC to succeed, but just as TV has completely changed the NHL, it could change NCAA hockey. Quote
franchise Posted January 19, 2008 Posted January 19, 2008 maybe but they are playing DU and CC this weekend... And they gave CC all they could handle. Sadly they let it slip away. Quote
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