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WCHA armchair expansion

C

College Hockey Weekend

New member
I talked about this last night on my blog but I didn't get any feedback on this:
Do you see the WCHA going after Alaska and Air Force if/when Minnesota and Wisconsin bolt for the Big 10? Here's my logic behind it:
  • Neither team is that good of a fit geographically in their current conference and would be a good fit geographically for the WCHA.
  • Even though it's next to impossible to replace what the Gophers and Badgers bring to the table, Air Force would bring a very loyal following a la UND to the league while Alaska would finally be able to renew their longstanding rivalry with Alaska Anchorage and have it be intra-conference.
 
Re: WCHA armchair expansion

College Hockey Weekend said:
I talked about this last night on my blog but I didn't get any feedback on this:
Do you see the WCHA going after Alaska and Air Force if/when Minnesota and Wisconsin bolt for the Big 10? Here's my logic behind it:
  • Neither team is that good of a fit geographically in their current conference and would be a good fit geographically for the WCHA.
  • Even though it's next to impossible to replace what the Gophers and Badgers bring to the table, Air Force would bring a very loyal following a la UND to the league while Alaska would finally be able to renew their longstanding rivalry with Alaska Anchorage and have it be intra-conference.
Click to expand...

I don't think they will go after Alaska for the same reasons that the two Alaska schools were originally requested to join separate leagues. Regarding Air Force, I think it would take a few more high caliber seasons for them to be considered, but I would not put it outside the realm of possibility. Of course there's also the Army argument when considering Air Force. I think we would see the WCHA go back down to 10 teams.
 
Re: WCHA armchair expansion

The fact that teams recieve up to two additional games for making a trip to Alaska incentivizes keeping the two Alaskan programs in separate conferences, in order to (1) share the burden of travel among as many schools as possible and (2) share the benefit of the extra games among as many schools as possible. When they joined their current conferences after the Great West collapsed, I think the powers that be at western hockey schools understood this. I'm not sure how much people remember these facts when they comment on the situation, since just this week Rick Comley mentioned he thought the Alaska schools should be in 1 conference during his (likely final) weekly press conference.

Also, the Alaska schools are such outliers that claiming they are a better geographic fit in the WCHA than the CCHA is basically a semantic argument. Sure, technically Fairbanks is closer to more WCHA cities than CCHA cities, but the distances to all are so great and the flights are so long, that there isn't a significant functional difference.

When there are some programs in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, etc., then we might see a conference worth moving both Alaska schools to. Until then, keep them apart. It just makes more sense.
 
Re: WCHA armchair expansion

I'd be more interested to see how this "super conference" shapes up.

Air Force would make geographic sense. I bet being in AHA creates a lot of long distance travel.
 
Re: WCHA armchair expansion

Biddco said:
I'd be more interested to see how this "super conference" shapes up.
Click to expand...
Here's how I see it shaping up:
Michigan
Michigan State
Ohio State
Minnesota
Penn State
Wisconsin

I could see Notre Dame make the jump as well as they have the happy medium; being attached to the Big 10 name while maintaining their cash cow with NBC for football.
 
Re: WCHA armchair expansion

Biddco said:
I'd be more interested to see how this "super conference" shapes up.

Air Force would make geographic sense. I bet being in AHA creates a lot of long distance travel.
Click to expand...

The superconference is dumb and just wishful thinking on the part of non-Big 10 schools.

The WCHA will go after Notre Dame and Miami. Air Force? Blecch. We already diluted our conference with Buttmidji, let's not bring its caliber down any further.
 
Re: WCHA armchair expansion

Runninwiththedogs said:
The superconference is dumb and just wishful thinking on the part of non-Big 10 schools.

The WCHA will go after Notre Dame and Miami. Air Force? Blecch. We already diluted our conference with Buttmidji, let's not bring its caliber down any further.
Click to expand...

There was a thread on here that people had heard disheartening things about the possibility of the super conference. I don't think logistically there will be a super conference. What would happen to the autobid? Just one? If so not worth it.

I would personally love to have Miami and Notre Dame join the WCHA, but not at the cost of the CCHA.
 
Re: WCHA armchair expansion

College Hockey Weekend said:
Air Force would bring a very loyal following a la UND to the league
Click to expand...

:eek:

North Dakota - average attendance: 11,768
Air Force - average attendance: 2,716 (and would have the smallest rink in the WCHA by a large margin *)

But that's okay - I can see how they're comparable...


* and I'll bet Bemidji State would throw a fit if the WCHA let AFA in without a new rink. BSU was told they needed a new rink to get in, and now you want to let AFA in with a rink essentially the same as the old John Glas? When the WCHA supposedly has a firm bylaw about teams having a building that holds 4,000 spectators?
 
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Re: WCHA armchair expansion

part of Air Force's small attendance is the small arena. most games are sell outs. I'd LOVE to see AF in the WCHA, but don't see them making the jump without Army.
 
Re: WCHA armchair expansion

huskyfan said:
part of Air Force's small attendance is the small arena. most games are sell outs. I'd LOVE to see AF in the WCHA, but don't see them making the jump without Army.
Click to expand...

And I will be the first to admit the WCHA would back out for this reason only. I don't see them adding Army, it's a geographical outlier. At least with AF you're in the same town as CC and an hour south of DU.
 
Re: WCHA armchair expansion

I could see Notre Dame trying to get into the WCHA as they wouldn't want to be in the CCHA without MSU, Michigan, and tOSU. The only way Notre Dame will play in the Big 10 Hockey is if they joined the Big 10 in all sports.
 
Re: WCHA armchair expansion

I don't think AFA would be interested in the WCHA in any form. Travel is a much lower consideration for them than competitiveness. They have seen success in Atlantic Hockey that they wouldn't realize in a full scholarship conference. Atlantic Hockey ramping up scholarships or a western limited or non-scholarship conference are they only things that will drive a geography driven change of conference for AFA.
 
Re: WCHA armchair expansion

thebrain said:
I could see Notre Dame trying to get into the WCHA as they wouldn't want to be in the CCHA without MSU, Michigan, and tOSU. The only way Notre Dame will play in the Big 10 Hockey is if they joined the Big 10 in all sports.
Click to expand...

Without Minnesota and Wisconsin, why would Notre Dame turn up its nose at the CCHA for the WCHA remnants?
 
Re: WCHA armchair expansion

thebrain said:
I could see Notre Dame trying to get into the WCHA as they wouldn't want to be in the CCHA without MSU, Michigan, and tOSU. The only way Notre Dame will play in the Big 10 Hockey is if they joined the Big 10 in all sports.
Click to expand...

Indeed. It might sound lovely to be in the B10 conference as a non-B10 school, but once in I think that school's administration & AD would have a heck of a time trying to get equal treatment in the conference. And there's always the chance that, if other B10 schools were to join D1 hockey, the non-B10 school would be shown the door.
 
Re: WCHA armchair expansion

Runninwiththedogs said:
Indeed. It might sound lovely to be in the B10 conference as a non-B10 school, but once in I think that school's administration & AD would have a heck of a time trying to get equal treatment in the conference. And there's always the chance that, if other B10 schools were to join D1 hockey, the non-B10 school would be shown the door.
Click to expand...

Given that scenario, I think ND becomes the hot commodity between the CCHA trying to stop their bleeding and the WCHA trying to get some name recognition to replace the Gophers and Badgers.
 
Re: WCHA armchair expansion

Rhett said:
Without Minnesota and Wisconsin, why would Notre Dame turn up its nose at the CCHA for the WCHA remnants?
Click to expand...

College Hockey Weekend said:
Given that scenario, I think ND becomes the hot commodity between the CCHA trying to stop their bleeding and the WCHA trying to get some name recognition to replace the Gophers and Badgers.
Click to expand...

Would you rather play in a conference with Ferris State, Lake Superior State, Northern Michigan, Western Michigan, Alaska, Miami, and Bowling Green, or in a conference with North Dakota, Denver, Colorado College, Minnesota-Duluth, St. Cloud State, Nebraska-Omaha, Bemidji State, MSUMankato, Alaska-Anchorage, and Michigan Tech?

This, of course, would be in there were no other major conference changes.
 
Re: WCHA armchair expansion

Runninwiththedogs said:
The superconference is dumb and just wishful thinking on the part of non-Big 10 schools.

The WCHA will go after Notre Dame and Miami. Air Force? Blecch. We already diluted our conference with Buttmidji, let's not bring its caliber down any further.
Click to expand...

If Miami left and was a premier cause of the CCHA folding and the end of the WMU and BG hockey programs, they're going to want to skip the next dozen years worth of Mid-American Conference meetings and plan on not getting any favors in conference scheduling.
 
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