>  >> The CHA was thrown together at the last moment last year. There was going
>to be an Independent Hockey Alliance and then it became a conference.

This is true. It means that the conference probably started the
season behind the MAAC. But during the last season, it has moved
ahead of the MAAC.

>The MAAC schools for the most part are academically compatible with
>Army (as were the ECAC schools).

They were also very compatible in hockey terms.

 From http://www.uscho.com/news/maac/preview0127.html

"According to Army coach Rob Riley, the MAAC was inviting for a host
of different reasons. Besides the competitive strength and obvious
growth, Riley was not shy to talk about possible postseason
implications that joining the MAAC could offer.

With an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament looming large for the
MAAC next season, Army and Riley realize that the MAAC may be the
best ticket to the dance. Riley also noted that, with 2,746-seat Tate
Rink in his back yard, the possibility of hosting the MAAC
championships in the near future is also imminent."

Travel times and academics are both good reasons to switch, but I
doubt Army would jumped as eagerly if the MAAC wasn't its easiest
path to an NCAA berth.

>As for the CHA vs. MAAC- take last year's
>Niagara team out of the mix and the conferences are equal.

If we're leaving Niagara out of the CHA when doing comparisons, then take
Quinnipiac out of the MAAC.

>I would suggest
>that the MAAC schools would be only too happy to play any of the Big
>4 (which they have) whenever.

Uh huh. Is that why MAAC schools scheduled five non-conference games
against each other? Or why they are screwed Findlay?

Let's look at the numbers:

First, the MAAC:
AIC - 4 CHA, 1 MAAC (5)
Army - 2 ECAC, 1 HEA, 2 CHA (5)
Bentley - 3 MAAC (3)
Canisius - 4 CHA, 1 ECAC or CCHA (5)
UConn - 1 ECAC, 4 HEA, 3 CHA (8)
Fairfield - 2 CHA, 2 MAAC (4)
Holy Cross - 3 ECAC, 2 HEA, 1 CHA, 1 MAAC (7)
Iona - 2 CCHA, 1 HEA, 4 CHA (7)
Mercyhurst - 1 CCHA, 4 ECAC, 1 CHA (7)
Quinnipiac - 1 WCHA, 5 ECAC, 1 CHA, 1 MAAC (8)
Sacred Heart - 2 ECAC, 2 MAAC (4)

Totals: WCHA - 1, CCHA - 3, ECAC - 17, HEA - 8, CHA - 22, MAAC - 5.
(One game in a tournament will be against either the ECAC or CCHA.)
Of the 57 non-conference games, 50.8% are against Big-4 teams.

Four of the teams (AIC, Bentley, Canisius, Fairfield) do not play any
Big-4 teams. Bentley doesn't play any NC games outside of the MAAC.
Quinnipiac leads the other way with six games, Mercyhurst and
Holy Cross each have five.

Now for the CHA:
Air Force - 2 WCHA, 8 MAAC, 4 Others, 1 HEA or CCHA (15).
Ala.-Huntsville - 4 WCHA, 4 CCHA, 3 MAAC, 1 HEA or CCHA (12).
Bemidji State - 11 WCHA, 3 CCHA, 1 WCHA or CCHA (15).
Findlay - 5 CCHA, 1 Other (6).
Niagara - 8 CCHA, 4 ECAC, 3 HEA, 1 MAAC.
Wayne State - 3 CCHA, 10 MAAC.

Totals: WCHA - 17, CCHA - 23, ECAC - 4, HEA - 3, Others 5, MAAC - 22.
(Two tournament games will be against either the CCHA or ECAC. One
tournament game will be against either the WCHA or ECAC.)
Of the 77 non-conference games, 64.9% are against Big-4 teams.

Every team plays at least two games against the Big-4. Wayne State,
in its first year as a full Division I team, plays three games.

This makes it clear, in my mind, that the MAAC has not been as
willing to play the established conferences as the CHA has.

>Overtime I think we'll wind up with the Big 3 (CCHA,
>WCHA, HE) & the smaller three.

I have yet to see any evidence of this. One win does not a trend make.
"The better team does not always win" - B. Morrison (1998)

John
--
--
   John Edwards - Carleton (Ont) '96, Manitoba '00 - [log in to unmask]
                Carleton U. Football - Undefeated since 1998
The opinions expressed are mine alone, because everybody else says I'm weird.