Greg wrote:
>Ain't no way UVM gets a bye.  It's a question of which west squad,
>Michigan by the book or Minnesota by the $$$, gets E2.  My guess is that
>to understand the NCAA you need look no further than the end of their
>cash register.
 
The E2 bid will likely be decided Saturday night in Detroit.  I think everyone
would agree that CC and BU get the W1 and E1 bids, respectively.  My guess
would be that the CCHA champion, if it's Lake Superior or Michigan, would
get the W2 bid and that Minnesota would go east to take the E2 bid.  (This
sets up, fortunately or unfortunately for the WCHA, depending on your POV,
an all-WCHA semifinal between the only two teams from that conference likely
to get a bid.)  If the CCHA champion is either Michigan State or Bowling Green,
then I think Minnesota gets the W2 and probably Lake Superior goes East to get
the E2.  I don't think UVM, even with winning the ECAC tourney, can jump over
enough teams to get the E2 bid.
 
Even if the CCHA gets the expected 5 bids (provided that Harvard or Providence
or both doesn't win their conference tournament), at least 2 and possibly 3
of those teams could be headed to Albany.  And I'll bet the life savings that
one of those teams is Western Michigan.  (Which ain't much, BTW.)
 
G. M. Finniss
Michigan State University 22-7-1, 28-11-1
 
HOCKEY-L is for discussion of college ice hockey;  send information to
[log in to unmask], The College Hockey Information List.