Last night, following the Wisconsin-UAA game, WIBA radio ran three
taped interviews on the Alaska sitation.
 
The first interview was with CC Coach Don Lucia. Lucia was the coach at
Alaska-Fairbanks until taking the Tigers job this year.  He thinks
Fairbanks belongs in the WCHA (not the CCHA). Some of his other
points:
    - one trip to Alaska per semester isn't really a big burden on
      the other teams
 
    - It is easier for CC to get to Alaska than the Upper Peninsula
      of Michigan. The same probably applies to Denver, maybe
      North Dakota.
 
    - Doing a two-weekend trip and playing both Alaska schools in
      one trip is a BAD idea.
 
    - Going to travel partners and not playing fri-sat series may
      be good for the WCHA. Playing 32 league games means the teams
      beat up on each other, and don't get the exposure to other
      teams.  He gave the example of Maine, who plays a good number
      of non-Hockey East teams each year, and learns from it.
 
    - Mankato State and Fairbanks would make 12 teams in the WCHA,
      leading to a balanced schedule
 
    - The coaches have to take the lead in doing what is best for
      College Hockey. The Athletic Directors will follow (in this
      case).
 
The second interview was with Rick Comley, Northern Michigan
coach. He feels strongly that Fairbanks should be in the CCHA,
not the WCHA. His points:
    - one trip a year is enough. It is just too hard on the players,
      who are also students. Their trip from Marquette to Anchorage
      was 17 hours, the plane is always full, so they don't get to
      stretch or move around or anything (but he said that wasn't
      why they lost their Friday night game in Anchorage).
 
    - Anchorage is a great team to have in the WCHA
 
    - Staying in Alaska for a week to play both Alaska schools would
      be terrible.
 
    - He is strongly opposed to Fairbanks joining the WCHA.
 
The final interview was with Wisconsin coach Jeff Sauer. He said:
    - The only way for the Alaska programs to survive is to
      join a league, and the WCHA is a natural.
 
    - Right now, the situation with UAA is a "win-win" situation.
 
        - Anchorage is playing better competition in the WCHA than
          their independant schedule, and playing "for something". It
          has raised the level of their game, and they are very
          comeptitive in the league.
 
        - Anchorage pays for 25 tickets for each visiting team, so it
          costs Wisconsin less to go to Anchorage than Denver -- only
          room and board.
 
        - The 2 games in Alaska don't count against the game limit, so
          (almost) every WCHA team gets 2 more games. This year, it
          allowed Wisconsin to both play in the WCHA-CCHA thing (whatever
          it is called) and host the Badger Hockey Showdown in Milwaukee.
 
    - Trying to play both Alaska teams in one trip would be bad.  Playing
      2 weekend games and midweek would be very bad in a league sitation,
      and 2 weekends would be too long a trip for the players.
 
    - The Alaska schools have traditionally scheduled long road trips
      during their winter break, but he doesn't know if that will work
      in the long term.
 
    (Sauer did not mention UAF much at all, and wasn't asked
    specifically about their joining the WCHA).
 
I hope I have done justice to each coach's comments.
 
        --david
 
 
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david parter                                         [log in to unmask]
university of wisconsin -- madison          voice: 608-262-0608/262-2389
computer sciences department                           fax: 608-262-9777