ECAC Ice Hockey to Have Some New Looks in 1998-99
The nation's largest and most prestigious ice hockey conference
will have a new look for 1998-99. The Eastern College Athletic
Conference, which services seven different collegiate ice hockey leagues
and a total of 94 ice hockey institutions announced its realignment plans
for next season.
"This is the first year of what could be a sequence of three or
four years in which change will be the key word associated with ECAC Ice
Hockey. Due to the transition of a number of our ice hockey programs we
were forced to make some changes within our league alignments," ECAC Ice
Hockey Commissioner Jeff Fanter said. "Our goal at the ECAC is to provide
a home for any of our over 290 institutions that wish to offer either
men's or women's ice hockey. These current changes will allow us to
adjust with the ever changing world of college ice hockey."
The ECAC is the only collegiate conference in the nation that
sponsors ice hockey at the Division I and Division II/III level for both
men and women. There are a total of five men's leagues that in some
fashion are supervised by the ECAC, including the nationally recognized
Men's Division I League. The ECAC is currently the only conference in
America that sponsors the sport of women's ice hockey with both a Division
I and Division III league. Here is a look at how the ECAC Ice Hockey
alignments will look for the 1998-99 season.
Men's Division I
The nation's oldest Division I ice hockey conference will not see
any changes for next season. The 12-team league will begin conference
play on November 7 and conclude with a 10-team playoff. Five teams will
advance to Lake Placid for the ECAC Menšs Division I Championships March
18-20, 1999. The championships will call Lake Placid home until 2001
after the ECAC and the Olympic Regional Development Authority reached a
three-year agreement on April 4.
Women's Division I League
The ECAC Women's Division I League has a new ring to it as the
name changed from the ECAC Women's League. And, with the name change
comes a pair of new members to what was a 12-team league. The University
of Maine moved from what was known as the ECAC Women's Alliance into the
Division I League. Niagara, a first-year program, will join Maine as the
newest members to the league, a league that will now feature 14 teams, 13
of which are Division I institutions. Each team will faceoff against
every other team twice for a total of 26 conference games. The league's
top eight teams as determined by the regular season standings will advance
to the playoffs. The one-game quarterfinals will be played at the higher
seeds' home site on March 12 or 13 and the championship will be held at a
site yet to be determined on March 19-20, 1999. "The addition of Maine
and Niagara just continue to put ECAC Women's Ice Hockey at the forefront.
The conference has been the pioneer of the sport, as evidenced by the 20
or so former ECAC players that just won Olympic gold. Maine has always
had a rich collegiate ice hockey tradition. Niagara expands this league
to the West and into a an exciting new market for the ECAC," Fanter said.
Women's Division III League
There are a number of new faces, a new structure, a new schedule
and a new name to what was formerly known as the ECAC Women's Alliance.
The new ECAC Women's Division III League will feature the Alliance teams
from a season ago with the addition of five new programs in Bates,
Southern Maine, Union, Trinity and Sacred Heart. The 16-team league is
divided into four divisions, North, South, East and West. Each team will
play every other team in its division twice and every other team once for
a total of of 18 league games. The winner of each of the divisions will
receive an automatic berth into the playoffs and be seeded based on
criteria. Two more teams will be selected based on criteria for a
six-team playoff. The playoffs begin with a pair of preliminary games,
featuring the four lowest seeds, which will be played at the home site of
the higher seeds on March 3 to narrow the field to four. The semifinals
and championships will be contested at a site yet to be determined (often
the highest remaining seed) on March 6-7, 1999. "Women's ice hockey is
one the nation's fastest growing collegiate sports as evidenced by the
addition of five new teams in the Women's Division III League," Fanter
said. "We are very proud of the fact that we at the ECAC are able to
offer opportunities to these up and coming programs." The league features
a 14 varsity programs, three of which are currently or in the process of
becoming Division I institutions in Colgate, Vermont and Sacred Heart and
11 Division III institutions. There are also a pair of club teams
competing in 1998-99 with the addition of Bates and Union. Union has
plans to go varsity in 1999-2000.
Men's West
The smallest of the seven ECAC leagues will feature four teams in
1998-99. Gone are Niagara and Canisius. Mercyhurst, Elmira, Hobart and
RIT make up the West. Each team will play everyone twice and the season
will conclude with a four-team tournament at a site yet to be determined
on March 5-6, 1999. "We are well aware that this year's scenario is a
quick fix for this league. We are currently exploring further realignment
options for the future," Fanter said.
Men's East
The ECAC East will feature 18 teams in 1998-99. Last season the
league was comprised of 20 teams. AIC, Holy Cross and Connecticut have
moved into the MAAC Ice Hockey League. The new addition to the East in
1998-99 will be Skidmore College which in the past had competed in what
was known as the North/Central/South. The ECAC East is made up of 17
Division III institutions and one Division II school (St. Anselm). Every
team will play every other team once for a total of 17 league games and 10
teams will advance to the playoffs which begin with a pair of preliminary
games, featuring the four lowest seeds, which will be played at the home
site of the higher seeds on February 24 to narrow the field to eight. The
quarterfinals will take place February 27 at the home site of the higher
seed and the championships will be contested at a site yet to be
determined (often the highest remaining seed) on March 5-6, 1999. "This
league is certainly recognized as one of the top Division III conferences
in the nation. The last four national championships have been won by ECAC
East member Middlebury," Fanter said. "The addition of Skidmore allows
the East to continue to schedule with a travel partner arrangement and
only continues to strengthen the level of competition."
Men's Northeast
A new name, a new alignment and a new team. The league that was
once the three division North/Central/South is now one 18-team league
which features 14 Division III institutions and four Division II programs
(Assumption, New Hampshire College, St. Michaelšs, Stonehill). Each team
will play every other team once for a total of 17 league games. The likes
of Fairfield, Iona, Quinnipiac, Roger Williams, Bentley, Sacred Heart,
Skidmore and Villanova are gone but Lebanon Valley College is one of the
newest ECAC ice hockey programs and it will compete in what will now be
know as the Northeast. The top eight teams based on the regular season
standings will advance to the playoffs which will begin with the
quarterfinals on March 3 at the home site of the higher seeds. The
semifinals will be played on March at the home site of the highest seeds.
The Northeast championship game will be played at the home site of the
higher seed on March 10. "This new structure is a much cleaner alignment.
Teams will know just where they stand heading into the stretch run. It is
clear cut, you need to finish in the top eight to make the playoffs. Some
tough decisions had to be made in the past regarding the five at large
teams that were selected for the playoffs. This system takes those tough
decisions out of the mix. It is all decided on the ice in head-to-head
competition," Fanter said. "Lebanon Valley is a nice addition to this
league as it continues to grow geographically. The more growth we see in
the coming years may allow for further expansion with regards to the ECAC
structure with the addition of more leagues."
Men's SUNYAC
The ECAC services the SUNYAC with its weekly ECAC Ice Hockey News
Network and assigns officials for the eight-team league. It is the State
University of New York Athletic Conference that oversees the day-to-day
operations of the conference and plays host to the championship.
Men's Independents
The ECAC also features four independent programs in Army, Bentley,
Niagara and Scranton.
Men's Division I (12)
Brown
Clarkson
Colgate
Cornell
Dartmouth
Harvard
Princeton
Rensselaer
St. Lawrence
Union
Vermont
Yale
Women's Division I (14)
Boston College
Brown
Colby
Cornell
Dartmouth
Harvard
Maine
New Hampshire
Niagara
Northeastern
Princeton
Providence
St. Lawrence
Yale
Women's Division III (16)
North
Middlebury
Rensselaer
Vermont
Williams
South
Connecticut College
Sacred Heart
Trinity
Wesleyan
East
Amherst
Bates
Bowdoin
Southern Maine
West
Colgate
Hamilton
RIT
Union
Men's West (4)
Elmira
Hobart
Mercyhurst
RIT
Men's East (18)
Amherst
Babson
Bowdoin
Colby
Connecticut College
Hamilton
Massachusetts College
UMass-Boston
Middlebury
New England College
Norwich
Saint Anselm
Salem State
Skidmore
Southern Maine
Trinity
Wesleyan
Williams
Men's Northast (18)
Assumption
Curry
Fitchburg State
Framingham State
Johnson/Wales
Lebanon Valley College
UMass-Dartmouth
New Hampshire College
Nichols
Plymouth State
Salve Regina
St. Michaels
Stonehill
Suffolk
Tufts
Wentworth
Western New England College
Worcester State
Men's SUNYAC (8)
Brockport
Buffalo State
Cortland
Fredonia
Geneseo
Oswego
Plattsburgh
Potsdam
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