The New WCHA IV (2013-14): Unlocked and Cocked

[Squarebanks]

I think that's as bad of an idea as any. I think that one of the UP schools is the best choice, given that 30% of the league is there — Marquette has the lowest travel burden of the entire league. That said, Mankato is probably the best choice given its proximity to MSP.

GFM

It won't be at a UP school. It'll be (or should be, IMO) in a big city with easy travel connections to all league schools. Minneapolis, Detroit, or Chicago seem like the most obvious solutions.

Denver worked for the oWCHA for all those reasons.

 

[fairbanks hockey puck]

Re: The New WCHA IV (2013-14): Unlocked and Cocked

so $$100 per game for radio....five games possible with phone line(s) as added an expense in Grand Rapids.....$1500 for TV per game..BUT looks like the WCHA has a TV deal set for the Final Five with details to be announced Friday..FOX regional channels???available$$$to$$$ local affiliates...and it looks like no pass available for America One for the first round and still up in the air as far as streaming for the Final Five???? confusing as heck...

 

[fairbanks hockey puck]

Re: The New WCHA IV (2013-14): Unlocked and Cocked

Last weekends games were tape delayed in Anchorage on GCI because of high school basketball....Saturdays game could have gone live in Fairbanks because the game was sold out, but like Friday was also tape delayed in Fairbanks...

 

[AKSWF]

Re: The New WCHA IV (2013-14): Unlocked and Cocked

I can't believe that more has not been made of the fact that the WCHA almost made the UAF v UAA playoff series a mandatory first round match up by conference rule because we were all so broke. They ultimately decided not to and then low and behold... baaazing we get a UAF v UAA first round match up anyway. Shocker.

Where are the conspiracy theory folks when you need them? UAF scores 42 goals in 7 previous games, including 7 the previous night, and then when all they needed was one more win they score ONE goal?? Really??... That one game controlled the entire league standings and the WCHA had hours to plan the outcome... Do you think it was by accident that the two AK schools faced off on the last weekend of the season... C'mon people, nobody smells a rat here? Wake up and smell the locker room... We've been duped by The Little Red Man and his oversized "W"! Didn't anyone catch that the nWCHA featured color is red? Clearly the WCHA is now a communist organization which forces its agenda on us fans with an iron fist. Don't think for one second we don't see what is going on here...

Ryan J

You sir, I like you.

 

[aparch]

The final 2 weeks? I'm pretty sure the final five won't be on AmericaOne.

No, but it will likely be on FS-Detroit Plus with a simulcast on FS-North.

Wings are at Wild at 1pm Saturday, and the only bouncyball conflict are the Pistons, but they're on the West coast.

B1G Championship is on the B1G Network, and the NCHC is on CBSSportsnet (CBSCS).

 

[mtu_huskies]

Re: The New WCHA IV (2013-14): Unlocked and Cocked

And we all need to write and complain about this... It's nuts.

Who are you emailing? I agree it's nuts to not includes these games for the people that paid the $100+ before the season not knowing at all what America One would offer as far as quality of product.

No, but it will likely be on FS-Detroit Plus with a simulcast on FS-North.

Wings are at Wild at 1pm Saturday, and the only bouncyball conflict are the Pistons, but they're on the West coast.

B1G Championship is on the B1G Network, and the NCHC is on CBSSportsnet (CBSCS).

Only looking at TV listings for Friday 3/21 it's has WCHA games on FS North, FS Detroit Plus and FCS Central.

 

[UAHStatman]

Re: The New WCHA IV (2013-14): Unlocked and Cocked

Only looking at TV listings for Friday 3/21 it's has WCHA games on FS North, FS Detroit Plus and FCS Central.

Specifically for FCS Central, the first semifinal will be live 2 ET, but the second semi will be tape-delayed until 10:30 ET (boo). The championship is live at 7 ET on 3/22.

 

[Freddie]

Re: The New WCHA IV (2013-14): Unlocked and Cocked

At least during the regular season, it would seem to me that the Alaska travel situation could be handled much better on a conference-wide basis, as opposed to each individual team making their own arrangements. Why couldn't the conference make a sponsorship deal with airline-x to provide a reasonable group rate for travel to Anchorage/Fairbanks via Detroit or Minneapolis if tickets are booked in one mass deal as soon as the schedule is written. Passing those expenses back to the individual schools would simply be an exercise in simple accounting, and each individual school would remain responsible for their bus transportation to and from Detroit/Minneapolis.

Perhaps I's over-simplifying this, but there's certainly got to be a better way.

 

[davyd83]

Re: The New WCHA IV (2013-14): Unlocked and Cocked

At least during the regular season, it would seem to me that the Alaska travel situation could be handled much better on a conference-wide basis, as opposed to each individual team making their own arrangements. Why couldn't the conference make a sponsorship deal with airline-x to provide a reasonable group rate for travel to Anchorage/Fairbanks via Detroit or Minneapolis if tickets are booked in one mass deal as soon as the schedule is written. Passing those expenses back to the individual schools would simply be an exercise in simple accounting, and each individual school would remain responsible for their bus transportation to and from Detroit/Minneapolis.

Perhaps I's over-simplifying this, but there's certainly got to be a better way.

That works alright if you're only 3 hours from Detroit or Minneapolis. But if you're 8 hours and have to take an extra day on each end of the trip to bus to Detroit or Minneapolis, it becomes much more difficult.

 

[bigblue_dl]

Re: The New WCHA IV (2013-14): Unlocked and Cocked

That works alright if you're only 3 hours from Detroit or Minneapolis. But if you're 8 hours and have to take an extra day on each end of the trip to bus to Detroit or Minneapolis, it becomes much more difficult.

No it still works the same. Scheduling that part of the trip is the school's responsibility, just like was mentioned in the original post. Each school schedules that as works best for them. Maybe one decides to fly into MSP, then catch the WCHA plane to Fairbanks, maybe another busses. No matter who books that Detroit-Anchorage, MSP-Fairbanks, etc trip, you're taking the same **** plane, book them together and save money.

 

[Shirtless Guy]

Re: The New WCHA IV (2013-14): Unlocked and Cocked

No it still works the same. Scheduling that part of the trip is the school's responsibility, just like was mentioned in the original post. Each school schedules that as works best for them. Maybe one decides to fly into MSP, then catch the WCHA plane to Fairbanks, maybe another busses. No matter who books that Detroit-Anchorage, MSP-Fairbanks, etc trip, you're taking the same **** plane, book them together and save money.

Yeah, especially if the UAA/UA_ pays for those flights...so NMU could choose to fly to detroit/msp to catch their flight to Alaska and only have to pay for the part of getting to Detroit/Minneapolis...seems to me it would work great.

 

[Seawolf Fan]

Re: The New WCHA IV (2013-14): Unlocked and Cocked

Short's Travel Management handles all the NCAA travel arrangements.
If the consolidation idea was carried a step (albeit a big step) further the NCAA could have some real clout on ticket prices.
How many carriers are there? United, American (U.S. Air), Delta, do you want to include Alaska Air with the heavy weights?
Granted not all carriers serve all destinations year round however when you consider all the other sports perhaps several contracts with several carriers.
Scheduling nightmare? That's what computers straighten out.
Perhaps not as grandiose as this but something better than what we have.

 

[RaceBoarder]

Re: The New WCHA IV (2013-14): Unlocked and Cocked

Are we in a set bracket or do we re-seed once we get to Grand Rapids?

 

[davyd83]

Are we in a set bracket or do we re-seed once we get to Grand Rapids?

Re-seed

 

[davyd83]

No it still works the same. Scheduling that part of the trip is the school's responsibility, just like was mentioned in the original post. Each school schedules that as works best for them. Maybe one decides to fly into MSP, then catch the WCHA plane to Fairbanks, maybe another busses. No matter who books that Detroit-Anchorage, MSP-Fairbanks, etc trip, you're taking the same **** plane, book them together and save money.

So if the league this year had tickets booked from MSP and from DTW to ANC or SEA with tickets then booked to FAI & ANC, what happens now when no one needs those tickets. Even if you book the much higher priced refundable fares, there is still a great financial component.

As for an airline sponsorship, I'd be willing to be that idea has been approached many times by both the WCHA & CCHA. What exactly would the airlines have to gain from such an investment that their current national and regional packages don't give them? Check out the number of Delta Airline ads running with the Red Wings or Wild, and those programs have hundreds of thousands of listeners and viewers.

One other note, I can all but guarantee that all of these options have been explored.

 

[Squarebanks]

So if the league this year had tickets booked from MSP and from DTW to ANC or SEA with tickets then booked to FAI & ANC, what happens now when no one needs those tickets. Even if you book the much higher priced refundable fares, there is still a great financial component.

As for an airline sponsorship, I'd be willing to be that idea has been approached many times by both the WCHA & CCHA. What exactly would the airlines have to gain from such an investment that their current national and regional packages don't give them? Check out the number of Delta Airline ads running with the Red Wings or Wild, and those programs have hundreds of thousands of listeners and viewers.

One other note, I can all but guarantee that all of these options have been explored.

Alaska Airlines already sponsors both Alaska schools.

 

[Jimjamesak]

Alaska Airlines already sponsors both Alaska schools.

And we have our own planes!

 

[davyd83]

Alaska Airlines already sponsors both Alaska schools.

So what would the benefit be for Delta or American to sponsor the rest of the league? Or American? While working in the minors in the city Delta called home until moving to Atlanta, we attempted to gain Delta as and advertising sponsor. They politely declined, feeling small/medium market sports sponsorship was not a worthwhile use of their marketing dollars.

 

[Squarebanks]

So what would the benefit be for Delta or American to sponsor the rest of the league? Or American? While working in the minors in the city Delta called home until moving to Atlanta, we attempted to gain Delta as and advertising sponsor. They politely declined, feeling small/medium market sports sponsorship was not a worthwhile use of their marketing dollars.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe the purpose of seeking airline sponsorship is to alleviate the travel concerns to Alaska. So having said that, American has one flight three months out of the year to AK so they're out. Delta has a skeleton ANC schedule in the winter, and doesn't fly to FAI in the summer.

If the league wants an airline sponsorship, they'd do better reaching out to Alaska Airlines. Why? Alaska is a niche carrier that has, far and away, the most flights to/from Anchorage and Fairbanks. And, Alaska flies to major L48 airports in the WCHA footprint: Minneapolis, Chicago, Detroit, and Atlanta. They already fly every WCHA team in/out of FAI. They would likely be the most agreeable to some sort of agreement with the WCHA.

 

[Jimjamesak]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe the purpose of seeking airline sponsorship is to alleviate the travel concerns to Alaska. So having said that, American has one flight three months out of the year to AK so they're out. Delta has a skeleton ANC schedule in the winter, and doesn't fly to FAI in the summer.

If the league wants an airline sponsorship, they'd do better reaching out to Alaska Airlines. Why? Alaska is a niche carrier that has, far and away, the most flights to/from Anchorage and Fairbanks. And, Alaska flies to major L48 airports in the WCHA footprint: Minneapolis, Chicago, Detroit, and Atlanta. They already fly every WCHA team in/out of FAI. They would likely be the most agreeable to some sort of agreement with the WCHA.

The other big factor is that AS has codeshare agreements with Delta and American.

It'd be interesting to see if they'd be warm to it though.