Fun With Numbers '14-'15: USCHO Posters Poll, Pairwise What-Ifs, and Other Goodies

[CrazyDave]

Re: Fun With Numbers '14-'15: USCHO Posters Poll, Pairwise What-Ifs, and Other Goodie

Huh - that recently. Didn't realize that they were that good in the not too distant past.

Two words: Zuzana Tomcikova

[TonyTheTiger20]

Two words: Zuzana Tomcikova

Are those words or did you just slap your keyboard a few times?

[CrazyDave]

Re: Fun With Numbers '14-'15: USCHO Posters Poll, Pairwise What-Ifs, and Other Goodie

Are those words or did you just slap your keyboard a few times?

Actually, her consonant-to-vowel ratio is unusually low for people born in that region of Europe.

[Dust Bucket]

Re: Fun With Numbers '14-'15: USCHO Posters Poll, Pairwise What-Ifs, and Other Goodie

I will admit I am new to this forum as well as the College game so I hope somebody can explain the following to me in regards to BC:
1. How is BC ranked #1 when they haven't beat a quality opponent (or anyone from the WCHA) in the last 2 years?
2. Why doesn't BC travel to play an occasional WCHA team?
3. Why is attendance so low at BC home games?
Not trying to be a smart axx, just trying to understand the arrogance of BC.

[vicb]

Re: Fun With Numbers '14-'15: USCHO Posters Poll, Pairwise What-Ifs, and Other Goodie

I will admit I am new to this forum as well as the College game so I hope somebody can explain the following to me in regards to BC:
1. How is BC ranked #1 when they haven't beat a quality opponent (or anyone from the WCHA) in the last 2 years?
2. Why doesn't BC travel to play an occasional WCHA team?
3. Why is attendance so low at BC home games?
Not trying to be a smart axx, just trying to understand the arrogance of BC.

And I am not trying to be a smart axx but why do you get your panties in such a bunch over the fact that BC has been voted by every person so far as the #1 team right now InTheirHumbleOpinion (ITHO) no matter who they are a fan of. All of us realize they have not played the most difficult of schedules but the way they have been winning games over the cup cakes to me is worthy of the #1 position. Why is it arrogance that they don't travel to play an occasion WCHA team? Why hasn't Wisco traveled to ECAC arena's? Afterall an ECAC team is the defending National Champ. What arrogance !!! As far as attendance, other than Minny and Wisco, why is attendance so low in most NC$$ arenas during womens home games? The only thing that matters is at the end of the season some team is gonna be skating around Minn'ys area holding up the NC$$ Trophy. Complaining about BC as #1 right now. Get over it.

[ARM]

Re: Fun With Numbers '14-'15: USCHO Posters Poll, Pairwise What-Ifs, and Other Goodie

3. Why is attendance so low at BC home games?

People are scared of the lunatic who bellows, "Let's go Eagles!" nonstop throughout the game. Even though he spends most of his time at Disneyland these days, other folks have been traumatized and they don't dare return.

[rangersrule]

Re: Fun With Numbers '14-'15: USCHO Posters Poll, Pairwise What-Ifs, and Other Goodie

Actually the defending champs--Clarkson come to Madison this season at the end of January... Which means next year the Badgers will travel to Clarkson.. Expect another big crowd in Madison for this match up!

[Eeyore]

Re: Fun With Numbers '14-'15: USCHO Posters Poll, Pairwise What-Ifs, and Other Goodie

Even though he spends most of his time at Disneyland these days . . .

And apparently can't even handle the teacups.

[wwhyte]

Re: Fun With Numbers '14-'15: USCHO Posters Poll, Pairwise What-Ifs, and Other Goodie

I will admit I am new to this forum as well as the College game so I hope somebody can explain the following to me in regards to BC:
1. How is BC ranked #1 when they haven't beat a quality opponent (or anyone from the WCHA) in the last 2 years?
2. Why doesn't BC travel to play an occasional WCHA team?
3. Why is attendance so low at BC home games?
Not trying to be a smart axx, just trying to understand the arrogance of BC.

These are all reasonable questions (except the bit about arrogance -- BC itself isn't arrogant, and fans of successful programs are arrogant no matter where they come from).

On 1, to answer the narrow "How?" question, the ranking is done by polling people involved in women's hockey, so what we're seeing is the aggregate of a number of different people's impressions. I don't know if anyone polled has seen both Minnesota and BC play live this year -- in fact, I don't know if anyone at all has seen both Minnesota and BC play live this year, except possibly Brian Durocher. So the #1 rating is a bit of a guess. But everyone polled has voted BC #1, no matter where they're from. Jim Plumer's Vermont split with NoDak and Bemidji, and he said after Vermont's first BC game that BC are the best team he's seen in Div 1 hockey. People take various things into account such as what they've seen of the play, as archived games or highlight reels, or what they've heard of the team's performance. Arlan and Candace, neither of them Hockey East homers, have been very complimentary about BC's speed, depth and flair in the Wednesday Women columns. Without having seen them play a really good team it's hard to be sure, but clearly you can believe BC are the best in the country without being crazy.

The RPI ranking is supposed to take account of strength of schedule -- it weights the opponents' win % almost as highly as the team's win % -- and under that, BC is also rated #1. You can argue that the calculation should take quality into account more, but that's what we've got, officially.

(I personally have BC ranked #2, because even though I'm a BC fan I'm even more of an Excel nerd, and if you look at OPWP as a predictor of WP it turns out that Minnesota are outperforming their predicted WP more than BC are, even with a lower absolute WP. (If you rank purely by how much teams are outperforming their SOS, I have a current top ten of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Boston College, St. Lawrence, Quinnipiac, Clarkson, Bemidji State, Boston University, Cornell, Princeton, Minnesota-Duluth). )

On the quality opponents: BC was very short on quality wins last year, though they did split a road series with Cornell and went 4-1-0 with BU. The year before they beat Harvard twice and Cornell once, lost to Mercyhurst in Erie, went 1-1-1 with the BU team that made the national final, and gave Minnesota the second-toughest game of its perfect season. This season it's not bad: Cornell, Harvard (possibly x2 with Beanpot), Quinnipiac, a very solid Princeton, and 3x BU and Vermont teams who could both show up to play (and who can both argue to be considered in the same breath as NoDak and Bemidji, if not UMD). But I agree, it would be good to see them play more Western teams. BU seem to be better, having taken on Minnesota this year and Wisconsin this year. I enjoy the curbstompings BC deals out, but the best game they played last season was a 1-1 tie against Harvard and I'd love to see them take on more, tougher opposition.

(You can ask the question the other way round, too. Wisco's OOC games are Lindenwood (?), UNH (??? -- they come all the way out East and only play UNH?), and Clarkson. Minnesota's are the slightly more respectable Penn State, BU, Princeton (though again, if you're coming out East, why play a series against Princeton instead of taking on Quinnipiac?). UMD is Connecticut, Lindenwood, and Cornell. If WCHA teams are so good, why are they scared to come and play the proper Eastern teams and prove it?)

Why is attendance so low? I wish it wasn't. I don't think it demonstrates anything about the quality of the team, but I wish these great players had more fans. A problem is that in Boston there are so many other sports options to consume -- very successful pro teams from the big four sports and soccer, a lot of teams from medium sized colleges rather than one big one, a hockey culture that's strong but not dominant the way it is in Minnesota, even a women's pro team to go and watch instead. I do my bit to encourage people to the games, but it's an uphill struggle. Why don't you come out east and come to one sometime?

[vicb]

Re: Fun With Numbers '14-'15: USCHO Posters Poll, Pairwise What-Ifs, and Other Goodie

Actually the defending champs--Clarkson come to Madison this season at the end of January... Which means next year the Badgers will travel to Clarkson.. Expect another big crowd in Madison for this match up!

I hope that is the arrangement. I would love to be at these games but it is a little far from Maryland to Wisco especially in the winter. I may spring some cash loose and watch the games over the internet. I would be pleasently surprised if Clarkson won either game. LGT LGT LGT

[TonyTheTiger20]

I will admit I am new to this forum as well as the College game so I hope somebody can explain the following to me in regards to BC:
1. How is BC ranked #1 when they haven't beat a quality opponent (or anyone from the WCHA) in the last 2 years?
2. Why doesn't BC travel to play an occasional WCHA team?
3. Why is attendance so low at BC home games?
Not trying to be a smart axx, just trying to understand the arrogance of BC.

Welcome!

[vicb]

Re: Fun With Numbers '14-'15: USCHO Posters Poll, Pairwise What-Ifs, and Other Goodie

These are all reasonable questions......Why don't you come out east and come to one sometime?

Your response was excellent.

[ARM]

Re: Fun With Numbers '14-'15: USCHO Posters Poll, Pairwise What-Ifs, and Other Goodie

The year before they beat Harvard twice and Cornell once, lost to Mercyhurst in Erie, went 1-1-1 with the BU team that made the national final, and gave Minnesota the second-toughest game of its perfect season.

Technically, Bemidji State gave Minnesota a tougher game, because it a) held a lead later in the game, b) took the game deeper into OT, and c) came within 72 seconds of ending perfection. I'll grant you that BC was a much better team than anyone Minnesota played other than UND.

Minnesota's are the slightly more respectable Penn State, BU, Princeton (though again, if you're coming out East, why play a series against Princeton instead of taking on Quinnipiac?).

At the time the schedules are set up, it is tough to predict which Eastern teams will be the better ones. Minnesota is also completing the second half of a series it set up with SLU this year, and at the time that was scheduled, the Saints were in the midst of their ECAC Championship season. Also, how tough do you want WCHA teams to make their schedules? They already play a tougher schedule, and get little reward for it under the current system. They can get more mileage by playing Penn State and hoping that the Nittany Lions can upset a few teams (like Quinnipiac).

UMD is Connecticut, Lindenwood, and Cornell. If WCHA teams are so good, why are they scared to come and play the proper Eastern teams and prove it?

I'm sure UMD has to go to Cornell at some point to pay that back. Will Cornell still be a power? Who knows. UMD did recently play a home and road series with BC, and both ends were splits, so I'm not sure that home/away is the ultimate in deciding who played tough games and who didn't.

[Bhikukhu]

I hope that is the arrangement. I would love to be at these games but it is a little far from Maryland to Wisco especially in the winter. I may spring some cash loose and watch the games over the internet. I would be pleasently surprised if Clarkson won either game. LGT LGT LGT

Clarkson has started streaming all their home games for free. You don't have to pay for a pass to America One anymore

[Royale with Cheese]

Re: Fun With Numbers '14-'15: USCHO Posters Poll, Pairwise What-Ifs, and Other Goodie

Clarkson has started streaming all their home games for free. You don't have to pay for a pass to America One anymore

By far the best quality stream we have seen thus far to boot, maybe they see this as a way to win over parents from the great white north. Watch your kids games in HD for free, wish everyone would jump on that band wagon. In truth I dont even care about paying 10 bucks a month or game but one blurry camera with no announcers or clock...