What is the status of Mankato State's attempts to step up to Div. I?  I
was under the impression that they had a new rink and wanted to join the
CCHA.
 
Also, I'd appreciate the insights of my esteemed Hockey-L colleagues on
this one.  I had a wonderful discussion with a coworker who played hockey
(plus basketball and, believe it or not, football) here at UAF, then known
as *the* University of Alaska, back in the early 50's.  Seems that they did
a lot of traveling as there was not an abundance of opponents locally.
Hmm, this sounds vaguely familiar...
 
At any rate, we are both season ticket holders and get to see a lot of
Nanook hockey.  In our discussion, he echoed my sentiments that it
seems as if conference affiliation is putting more and more of a squeeze
on schools to reduce non-conference games.  For instance, our friends
down at UAA play only two non-WCHA games a year, with those two being a
home-and-home series with us at the beginning of the season.  They made
us something of an ultimatum that it was opening weekend or never, as
they have no flexibility within their conference schedule.
 
I recall a similar discussion not long ago stemming from the 34 game
limit, etc.  And while this may not be the best time to take shots at
conference games (what with these playoffs and all...) I thought I'd
check your collective barometer readings on the subject.  Here's my idea:
 
Instead of playing each conference team 3 or 4 times per season (CCHA,
WHCA and I'm not too sure abouth the eastern schools) why not play a
season schedule like the football, or better yet basketball teams?  They
play up to 40% of their games out of the conference.  IMHO, fewer
conference games means more intense conference games.  More
non-conference games can help establish new regional rivalries.  The Big 8
basketball and football teams come to mind.  Even though the Huskers and
Sooners only play football once a year and basketball twice a year, their
meetings are always instense and exciting for fans and players alike.  At
the same time the OU/Texas game has been a fan favorite for years but
would not be possible under a more restrictive Big 8 schedule.
 
AS for scheduling, I personally think there is not much validity in the
11th commandment which states "Thou shalt play each conference opponent
in both home and away games each season."  As next season will show for
UAF, alternate year home/away series is perfectly acceptable.
 
Here's the $64,000 question:  What do you folks think?  Would you like to
see more conference games or more non-conference games?  Some might argue
that the ECAC or the CCHA is too big to allow for non-conference
scheduling.  As with the SEC, who wants a conference so big one team
can't make the rounds in a signle season?  One idea might be to revive
the fifth conference idea again, with a realignment to allow for 8-school
conferences.  Hey, its a lot easier for tournament scheduling...
 
Enough already!  So as to reserve bandwith for tourney discussions, you
are encouraged to respond directly.  I'll tabulate the concensus of
opinion and report back to the list.
 
Oh, one more thing.  I am absolutely *thrilled* with UAF's full entry
into the CCHA, as well as UAA's affiliation with the WCHA.  These are
great selling points for both programs and Alaska hockey from the top
down to the little guys.  Do not mistake my musings for dissatisfaction
with conference affilation on the whole...
 
Mark Sonnier
UAF '90, '96