What's new
By:
USCHO Fan Forum

This is a sample guest message. Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

  • The USCHO Fan Forum has migrated to a new plaform, xenForo. Most of the function of the forum should work in familiar ways. Please note that you can switch between light and dark modes by clicking on the gear icon in the upper right of the main menu bar. We are hoping that this new platform will prove to be faster and more reliable. Please feel free to explore its features.

CCHA teams will join WCHA

Re: CCHA teams will join WCHA

Thank you Big 10, for ****ing up all of college hockey. Hilarious that some on here from the Big 10 are asking The National to take on UAH. Why won't the Big 10 take UAH? Basically, no one has any room to talk. The Big 10 did what we all knew they were going to do. They made it all about the money. And to survive, the former CCHA and WCHA members had to scramble and do what was best for themselves. The Big 10 started the whole "dog eat dog" scenario. All of the former CCHA teams and WCHA teams now have an uncertain future, except for the Big 10 teams of course.

Welcome to the future. Think Snake Pliskin and New York City or Los Angeles ;)
 
Re: CCHA teams will join WCHA

Why is it so unreasonable for Big 10 teams to want to form a conference that meshes with all of their other sports? How is it their fault that other teams feel like they can't survive without them?

I do think a league with RIT, Air Force, UAH, BGSU, Niagara, Canisius, RoMo, and Mercyhurst would be pretty nice overall. Too bad it doesn't look likely to happen.


Powers &8^]
 
Re: CCHA teams will join WCHA

barnesnohio said:
Thank you Big 10, for ****ing up all of college hockey. Hilarious that some on here from the Big 10 are asking The National to take on UAH. Why won't the Big 10 take UAH? Basically, no one has any room to talk. The Big 10 did what we all knew they were going to do. They made it all about the money. And to survive, the former CCHA and WCHA members had to scramble and do what was best for themselves. The Big 10 started the whole "dog eat dog" scenario. All of the former CCHA teams and WCHA teams now have an uncertain future, except for the Big 10 teams of course.

Welcome to the future. Think Snake Pliskin and New York City or Los Angeles ;)
Click to expand...

So the Big Ten should accept a non-Big Ten member when the Big Ten Hockey Conference was created for Big Ten members to play other Big Ten members?
(and $$$, does anybody doubt that? I don't see why it's even an argument.)
 
Re: CCHA teams will join WCHA

The paper today referred to the WCHA inviting the "leftover" CCHA teams. It continues to be the Island of Misfit Toys.
 
Re: CCHA teams will join WCHA

I personally don't think this is screwing up college hockey at all. The Big 10 was inevitable, and at the announcement of Penn State, we pretty much knew this was gonna happen. It'll make things a lot more convenient for Big 10 members.

As for the NCHC, I'll let the rest of you guys debate on that...
 
Re: CCHA teams will join WCHA

The Big 10 gets no excuses. If people on here crying about the NCHC or the WCHA expect them to act in the best interests of college hockey instead of their own, then they're being unrealistic or hypocritical. This is the new world. College football is leading the way. Money is king, rivalries and tradition be ****ed (unless it brings money in). And the Big 10 is at the vanguard, where the biggest colleges with the most money will dominate.

So to those whining and moaning about the NCHC or the WCHA now, spare me the preaching, you can thank the Big 10.
 
Re: CCHA teams will join WCHA

Oh grow up. Quit pretending like each school doesn't owe it to themselves to do what's in the best interest of their program.

It's a tough enough sport to keep on the black without people like you acting like they have to throw away their best option for the benefit of programs that struggle to stand on their own two feet.
 
Re: CCHA teams will join WCHA

I get it . Schools should not look out whats best for there programs but must care about "what good for college hockey".
 
Re: CCHA teams will join WCHA

I honestly dont see the problem at all. The CCHA was a poorly run league anyway. Most teams playing in old crappy arenas (while the WCHA playing in newer arenas) and basically existed for the uofm and Michigan state. If anything it was the welfare program of the league that created this situtation.
 
Re: CCHA teams will join WCHA

bigmrg74 said:
I thought it was Army when they jumped to the Atlantic??
Click to expand...

MinnesotaNorthStar said:
Army didn't "jump" to the Atlantic, Air Force did...

Did it really get asked why the B1G won't take UAH? The SEC has a better chance at starting a hockey conference...
Click to expand...

Army never wanted to be in the CHA (they only played 2 games vs each team the one year they were affiliate members) anyway. From what I've been told, they signed on before the CHA was an official conference (if you remember, the CHA started as a "scheduling alliance" with the independent teams - until they realized that by calling it a conference, they could qualify for an AQ), and had no intention to stick around once the MAAC was solidified. No one holds ill will to Army because they were very up front about the fact they had no desire to be in the CHA.

Air Force, on the other hand, was a founding member, had worked to keep the conference together and still bolted (when the conf. was relatively stable at 6 teams) for greener pastures. I mean, had AFA not left, the conf. would been only down to 5 teams when Wayne State dropped their program - not 4. Five isn't ideal, but at least those 5 are all still playing hockey (for now anyway)...
 
Re: CCHA teams will join WCHA

I am going to be curious to see how long that so called Superleague lasts.....I bet UMD, UNO come crawling back to the WCHA down the road....those schools will be over their heads being asked to fly around the country almost every week.
 
Re: CCHA teams will join WCHA

RamboWildcat said:
I am going to be curious to see how long that so called Superleague lasts.....I bet UMD, UNO come crawling back to the WCHA down the road....those schools will be over their heads being asked to fly around the country almost every week.
Click to expand...

They might want to come back, and the WCHA might want them back, but now there won't be room. A 13 or 14 team league makes even less sense than the merger mess they have now.

BTW, why is the WCHA asking LSSU to upgrade their rink? I visited NMU and LSSU last season and LSSU's rink is almost a cookie cutter copy of NMU's building. If NMU is fine I don't see anything wrong with LSSU. I've never been to Ferris so I can't comment on what their building might need.

Ryan J
 
Last edited:
Re: CCHA teams will join WCHA

JohnsonsJerseys said:
BTW, why is the WCHA asking LSSU to upgrade their rink? I visited NMU and LSSU last season and LSSU's rink is almost a cookie cutter copy of NMU's building. If NMU is fine I don't see anything wrong with LSSU. I've never been to Ferris so I can't comment on what their building might need.

Ryan J
Click to expand...

I don't know if I'd go so far as to say "carbon copy" of the BEC, but it's not awful either. My first guess is seating capacity. The WCHA used to have a hard and fast rule that a new program had to have a rink able to hold 4,000 fans (not seats, mid you, just have a capacity of 4,000+). NMU's rink, while having fewer than 4,000 seats (~3,800) has had games where attendance is above 4,000 because of standing room areas. The Abel has ~ 3,300 as its capacity and significantly less standing room available.

Now, for LSSU, committing to improving the rink shouldn't be too much of a stretch, since they already plan on renovating the entire athletic complex - and IIRC, the locker room portion was already underway. edit - here's links to a couple pics I snapped last year when I was there:

https://picasaweb.google.com/moosenb/LSSU?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCJrK0IbCrfW9wAE&feat=directlink

My impression was that it was a large room with those temporary bleachers set up around the ice in several areas and the more "permanent" on the side with the suites.

FSU, on the other hand, will be the smallest rink in the WCHA by nearly 1,000 seats (~2,500 capacity). I too have not been there, but from talking to people I know that have, it's pretty rough (as is BGSU) compared to what (even the remnants of) the WCHA offers. No idea what they'll plan in the way of renovating...
 
Last edited:
Re: CCHA teams will join WCHA

I think that Notre Dame is still dictating the pace of further decisions...

Right now, we have:
ECAC: unchanged
Hockey East: unchanged
Atlantic Hockey: unchanged
Big Ten: Mich, Mich St, Ohio St, Minn, Wisc, Penn St
NCHC (6): NoDak, CC, Denver, Miami, Duluth, Omaha
WCHA (9): St. Cloud, Mankato, Bemidji, Fairbanks, Anchorage, Mich Tech, Lake State, Ferris, Northern Mich

Undecided: Notre Dame, Western Mich, Bowling Green, Huntsville

I'm going to assume that no conference wants an odd number of teams, because that creates scheduling nightmares.

I see three possible alignments:

1. Western Mich and NoDame to NCHC (8 teams), Bowling Green to WCHA (10 teams), Huntsville stays independent/folds

2. NoDame goes independent, Western and Bowling Green to NCHC (8 teams), Huntsville to WCHA (10 teams)

3. NoDame goes to Hockey East, Hockey East grabs a 12th team from Atlantic Hockey (Connecticut?) or maybe ECAC, Western and Bowling Green to NCHC (8 teams), Huntsville suddenly becomes desirable to both the WCHA and Atlantic Hockey/ECAC (whichever loses a team to Hockey East), since both want to avoid an odd number

Notre Dame is the most powerful of the 4 "undecideds," and probably assumed that it could take its time and make a decision on its own schedule. Other teams would fall into place around it in one of the patterns above.

The WCHA has left Western Mich and Bowling Green 30 days to decide. Does this force Notre Dame's hand?

Western would rather be in the NCHC. But the NCHC isn't going to take Western without an 8th team. And the NCHC isn't going to offer the 8th slot to Bowling Green as long as Notre Dame is still a possibility. So nobody's going into the NCHC until Notre Dame decides.

On the other hand, do BG and Western want to commit to the WCHA when the NCHC is still a possibility? No, so they're not going to commit to the WCHA yet, ultimatum be ****ed.

They can ignore the deadline because the WCHA is still at 9 teams, which is undesirable, so they're not going to say no to a 10th team if this drags out more than 30 days. And BG is the only likely 10th team, because Western is likely going to end up the NCHC one way or the other. So the deadline is ultimately worthless.

I really don't see NoDame going to Hockey East or remaining independent, so I think we end up with Western and NoDame in the NCHC, BG in the WCHA, and Huntsville is screwed.

If NoDame surprises me and doesn't go to the NCHC, can I really see the NCHC inviting Western and BG? Yes. That would make the NCHC primarily a division I-in-other-sports conference (CC and Dultuh being the exceptions, but both big-time in hockey), while the WCHA would have no division I-in-other-sports schools. It's a stable arrangement with schools in conferences with generally similar overall budgets and outlooks on athletics.
 
Re: CCHA teams will join WCHA

moose97 said:
I don't know if I'd go so far as to say "carbon copy" of the BEC, but it's not awful either. My first guess is seating capacity. The WCHA used to have a hard and fast rule that a new program had to have a rink able to hold 4,000 fans (not seats, mid you, just have a capacity of 4,000+). NMU's rink, while having fewer than 4,000 seats (~3,800) has had games where attendance is above 4,000 because of standing room areas. The Abel has ~ 3,300 as its capacity and significantly less standing room available.

Now, for LSSU, committing to improving the rink shouldn't be too much of a stretch, since they already plan on renovating the entire athletic complex - and IIRC, the locker room portion was already underway. edit - here's links to a couple pics I snapped last year when I was there:

https://picasaweb.google.com/moosenb/LSSU?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCJrK0IbCrfW9wAE&feat=directlink

My impression was that it was a large room with those temporary bleachers set up around the ice in several areas and the more "permanent" on the side with the suites.

FSU, on the other hand, will be the smallest rink in the WCHA by nearly 1,000 seats (~2,500 capacity). I too have not been there, but from talking to people I know that have, it's pretty rough (as is BGSU) compared to what (even the remnants of) the WCHA offers. No idea what they'll plan in the way of renovating...
Click to expand...
With most of the larger schools leaving the WCHA, perhaps seating capacity isn't as much of an issue and other improvements are desired more.
 
Re: CCHA teams will join WCHA

MichFan said:
I'm going to assume that no conference wants an odd number of teams, because that creates scheduling nightmares.
Click to expand...

Well, not in the HEA. They did just fine with 9 for a long time. The fact they don't play two game weekend series all the time helps to balance out a potential for an odd-numbered conference.

MichFan said:
I see three possible alignments:

...
Click to expand...

Pretty fair analyses of the potential options.

MichFan said:
If NoDame surprises me and doesn't go to the NCHC, can I really see the NCHC inviting Western and BG? Yes. That would make the NCHC primarily a division I-in-other-sports conference (CC and Dultuh being the exceptions, but both big-time in hockey), while the WCHA would have no division I-in-other-sports schools. It's a stable arrangement with schools in conferences with generally similar overall budgets and outlooks on athletics.
Click to expand...

I still fail to see how UMD is more "big-time" than SCSU, or even BSU... Because they built a new rink last year? BSU did too, and SCSU is starting massive renovations this summer. Because they won the Nat'l title last year? Last I checked, UMD finished in the bottom half of the WCHA more often (6 times) than they did in the top half (4) over the last decade - and that trend continues if you look back 20 years - 11 bottom half finishes, 6 top half and 3 5th's in a 9 team WCHA. How exactly is that "big-time"? UMD really hit the jackpot with their rink opening and winning their last 4 games of the season (assuming that the NCHC pans out)...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top