The Official "My Team Got Screwed!" thread of the 2022 NCAA Men's Hockey Tournament

[ticapnews]

The Official "My Team Got Screwed!" thread of the 2022 NCAA Men's Hockey Tournament

Before starting your own thread, please view this public service announcement.

Please allow this thread to serve as your place to complain about the PWR, the committee, the smoke-filled room or your misinformed views about why undeserving teams like Harvard and AIC stole your team's spot. This is also a good place to complain about your coach, the referees, the RPI formula, KRACH and the entire process.

This version of the thread even promises entertaining topics such as Joe Thornton being traded, Giada's Melons, Merrimack being kicked out of Hockey Rast, #26 Union, the playoff chances of St, Clooud, a symposium on the many hackings of Freddy Meyer and the always-popular college hockey video game. And what about airline food!?

We have the Waambulance standing by and extra tissues handy.

We also have several types of cheese to go along with whatever whine you prefer. We promise you'll get your just desevrings!

 

[ticapnews]

I think it is outrageous that the NCAA didn't extend a single invite to a WCHA team.

 

[Fighting Sioux 23]

I think it is outrageous that the NCAA didn't extend a single invite to a WCHA team.

I have a feeling that is a harbinger of things to come. ; )

 

[Patman]

I wanted to go home.

 

[RossiRules]

Ok the misgivings of the current Pairwise are both highlighted and enumerated with the glaring reality that many good Buble teams like OSU this year don't make it. Northeastern, a 25 game and HE regular season champion would have been sitting home had the debacle with Bemidgi State ended differently. I think the NCAA needs to adopted at least two or perhaps even 4 play in games to address this situation going forward, a la practices recently adopted by NCAA basketball.

 

[Patman]

Ok the misgivings of the current Pairwise are both highlighted and enumerated with the glaring reality that many good Buble teams like OSU this year don't make it. Northeastern, a 25 game and HE regular season champion would have been sitting home had the debacle with Bemidgi State ended differently. I think the NCAA needs to adopted at least two or perhaps even 4 play in games to address this situation going forward, a la practices recently adopted by NCAA basketball.

No. The NCAA basketball rules are a concession to the increased number of conferences because of the increased number of teams. There will also always be a bubble.

 

[RossiRules]

No. The NCAA basketball rules are a concession to the increased number of conferences because of the increased number of teams. There will also always be a bubble.

We are at 60 D 1 teams now. I believe that original tournament had only 8 selections thru much of it's 20th century existence, as D1 hockey programs perhaps expand I would hope your logic and mine accommodate some bubble absorb .

 

[Fighting Sioux 23]

We are at 60 D 1 teams now. I believe that original tournament had only 8 selections thru much of it's 20th century existence, as D1 hockey programs perhaps expand I would hope your logic and mine accommodate some bubble absorb .

FWIW, the NCAA Tournament has had the following # of participants in its existence:
1948-1976: 4 Teams (29 Tournaments)
1977, 1979-1980: 5 Teams (3 Tournaments)
1978: 6 Teams (1 Tournament)
1981-1988: 8 Teams (8 Tournaments)
1989-2002: 12 Teams (14 Tournaments)
2003-present: 16 Teams (This year will be the 19th Tournament with 16 teams)

I think 16 teams is plenty until we start getting closer to about 80 programs playing at the D-1 level.

 

[ticapnews]

The NCAA allows for 25% of teams to qualify for the postseason. Hockey is already above that and will be until we get to 64 D-I teams. Technically, we should only have had 14 or 15 teams in the tournament for the past decade, but we got an exception for the now-defunct CHA which only had four teams. However, that exemption was never revisited after the CHA folded.

 

[Sean Pickett]

FWIW, the NCAA Tournament has had the following # of participants in its existence:
1948-1976: 4 Teams (29 Tournaments)
1977, 1979-1980: 5 Teams (3 Tournaments)
1978: 6 Teams (1 Tournament)
1981-1988: 8 Teams (8 Tournaments)
1989-2002: 12 Teams (14 Tournaments)
2003-present: 16 Teams (This year will be the 19th Tournament with 16 teams)

While the your list is correct, back in 1960 the Eastern Selection Committee was unable to select 2 teams and mandated 2 playoff games to select the 2 eastern teams. At the time the two games were considered and called NCAA eastern playoffs. BU defeated Ivy champion Dartmouth and Tri-State champion SLU defeated BC to make the Frozen Four.

It was the second time the Eastern Selection Committee had been unable to select 2 teams, as they had wanted 2 playoff games in 1952 with BU, BC, Yale and SLU. However, BC refused and got BU to go along by offering to play the Terriers in football and the committee selected SLU and Yale. The multiple leagues and strong independents causing the Eastern Selection Committee trouble picking just two teams led them to request permission from the NCAA to have an eastern playoff. This was granted and lead to the eight team ECAC tournament. However, the NCAA mandated that only the tournament champion would be granted an auto bid and the committee still had to select the second team.

Also, as the ECAC was created solely to have an eastern playoff to help the selection committee there was no set league schedule and teams were allowed to schedule and play any whoever they wanted. Then as the season wound down the selection committee picked and seeded the eight teams that would be in the ECAC Tournament.

Sean

 

[Fighting Sioux 23]

While the your list is correct, back in 1960 the Eastern Selection Committee was unable to select 2 teams and mandated 2 playoff games to select the 2 eastern teams. At the time the two games were considered and called NCAA eastern playoffs. BU defeated Ivy champion Dartmouth and Tri-State champion SLU defeated BC to make the Frozen Four.

It was the second time the Eastern Selection Committee had been unable to select 2 teams, as they had wanted 2 playoff games in 1952 with BU, BC, Yale and SLU. However, BC refused and got BU to go along by offering to play the Terriers in football and the committee selected SLU and Yale. The multiple leagues and strong independents causing the Eastern Selection Committee trouble picking just two teams led them to request permission from the NCAA to have an eastern playoff. This was granted and lead to the eight team ECAC tournament. However, the NCAA mandated that only the tournament champion would be granted an auto bid and the committee still had to select the second team.

Also, as the ECAC was created solely to have an eastern playoff to help the selection committee there was no set league schedule and teams were allowed to schedule and play any whoever they wanted. Then as the season wound down the selection committee picked and seeded the eight teams that would be in the ECAC Tournament.

Sean

The WCHA had similar issues (heck, Minnesota refused to schedule Denver for about 15 years), which is one of the reasons why their conference tournament for many seasons only played for "Co-Champions," who were then selected for the NCAA Tournament from the west. That is how arguably the worst NCAA Champion in history (the 1965-1966 Michigan State Spartans) made the tournament. They upset MacNaughton Cup Champion Michigan Tech in the "eastern final" to get a bid. Denver was the other "co-champion" and the top-3 WCHA teams missed out on the NCAA Tournament.

 

[Patman]

We are at 60 D 1 teams now. I believe that original tournament had only 8 selections thru much of it's 20th century existence, as D1 hockey programs perhaps expand I would hope your logic and mine accommodate some bubble absorb .

the current field size was set for 60. as its been mentioned in the past, we are OVER allocated bids. reality is we should be more at 14 bids and not 16.

edit: This is also why i had a conditional problem with womens expansion justifying on mens expansion. Because mens is an exceptional case already. Granted this is quibbling over 1 seed on the womens side.

 

[Jon]

PC had 22 wins and when UMASS beat them a week ago, everyone was just "meh. It's over."
I can complain more if you want, but PC has been the last team in via Pairwise multiple times between 2014 and 2019 so it's disingenuous to complain now.

If UML hadn't made it, the Lowell Sun would have another column complaining about computers so I feel like we missed something.

 

[UncleRay]

Ok the misgivings of the current Pairwise are both highlighted and enumerated with the glaring reality that many good Buble teams like OSU this year don't make it. Northeastern, a 25 game and HE regular season champion would have been sitting home had the debacle with Bemidgi State ended differently. I think the NCAA needs to adopted at least two or perhaps even 4 play in games to address this situation going forward, a la practices recently adopted by NCAA basketball.

I didn't know Michael was a big college hockey fan, let alone that he has teams.

 

[ticapnews]

If UML hadn't made it, the Lowell Sun would have another column complaining about computers so I feel like we missed something.

The perfect storm would have been Lowell beating UMass on Friday, then losing to UConn on Saturday, coupled with wins by Harvard and Bemidji State. Then Lowell would have missed the tournament by finishing .0002 RPI behind...UMass.

 

[Scarlet]

I didn't know Michael was a big college hockey fan, let alone that he has teams.

He's from Canada after all!

 

[Jon]

The perfect storm would have been Lowell beating UMass on Friday, then losing to UConn on Saturday, coupled with wins by Harvard and Bemidji State. Then Lowell would have missed the tournament by finishing .0002 RPI behind...UMass.

I'm not sure we can get more chaos than the MSU/Bemidji game, but ooh. That would have been fun for everyone except Lowell.

 

[ticapnews]

I'm not sure we can get more chaos than the MSU/Bemidji game, but ooh. That would have been fun for everyone except Lowell.

Had Benji won, the cherry on top of the CCHA debacle would have come Monday morning when a lawyer representing Northeastern would have gone to federal court to seek an injunction against the NCAA.

 

[jjmc85]

^On what grounds could Northeastern had successfully sued?

from the USCHO FAQ:

A: Starting with the 2000-01 season, the committee elected to revert to the practice of awarding only one automatic bid to each conference. A conference has the choice of how to award its automatic bid; all have elected to award it to their postseason tournament champion.

I’m not sure what options the conferences have in making these choices. Is it simply between tournament champ and regular season champ? If not, could they make whatever choice they want? Could the CCHA choose to award to BSU each season forever? Could they award it to the team that loses the final? Could it be awarded to the team highest in the pairwise that didn’t get an at large? What would have happened to the CCHA autobid if St. Thomas (not eligible for NCAAs) had won? If another team was leaving after the season for a different conference, could they choose to exclude that team from the autobid like the CAA (NU’s all sport conference) seems to be doing for teams leaving?

Depending on restrictions of choice in awarding the autobid, I’m not sure what grounds NU would have in court.

 

[ticapnews]

^On what grounds could Northeastern had successfully sued?

from the USCHO FAQ:


I’m not sure what options the conferences have in making these choices. Is it simply between tournament champ and regular season champ? If not, could they make whatever choice they want? Could the CCHA choose to award to BSU each season forever? Could they award it to the team that loses the final? Could it be awarded to the team highest in the pairwise that didn’t get an at large? What would have happened to the CCHA autobid if St. Thomas (not eligible for NCAAs) had won? If another team was leaving after the season for a different conference, could they choose to exclude that team from the autobid like the CAA (NU’s all sport conference) seems to be doing for teams leaving?

Depending on restrictions of choice in awarding the autobid, I’m not sure what grounds NU would have in court.

Northeastern could have sued (and probably won) because the CCHA and Don Lucia broke NCAA rules in reviewing the goal after the game had finished. Rule 82.1 states "Officials’ duties and powers continue during intermissions and until all players have left the ice and entered the dressing room at the conclusion of the game." The game was over. The goal was reviewed, considered a good goal and the Bemidji players left the ice. Mankato was presented the trophy. It wasn't until a video angle that was not available to the referees during the game was brought to the attention of conference officials that the goal was reviewed again. The game did not resume until almost an hour after the game had finished and the trophy had been awarded. It is possible a judge would have ruled in favor of Northeastern to end the game after the original goal and award the automatic invitation to Minnesota State. We'll never know because Mankato eventually scored and won the game (again) but had the Beavers scored...