Just to weigh in on this...it's worth remembering that the sequence of
events that has led to schools like Bentley moving to D1 dates back to the
early 1980s, as Craig Roberts noted (I think only on HOCKEY-L -- HOCKEY3
readers may wish to check the archives for his message).
 
I would just add that while the situation with D2 has been a big factor,
the other one has been the desire of the D1 schools playing D2-3 hockey for
the last 15 years to have an opportunity to come together and also perhaps
compete someday for an NCAA championship.  Remember that ever since the mid
1980s, schools like Canisius, UConn, etc. that were classified as D1 by the
NCAA have been sort of on the outside looking in.  For example, after
Canisius finishes its run in the ECAC West playoffs, its season comes to an
end even if it wins the league title, while other schools like RIT can go
on to compete for the NCAA D3 championship.
 
We've known for a while that the D1 schools have wanted to form a league,
and that has happened with the MAAC -- truly a momentous event in the
history of the game.
 
And for those D2 schools that have harbored desires of moving up to D1, the
MAAC offers them a better opportunity than going Independent or trying to
join one of the four older conferences.  As Greg said, it is a chance to
step in immediately as a D1 hockey program and be competitive against other
schools that have the same type of situation.  I know I suggested back when
the MAAC was announced that this would be very attractive to other schools
and that others would follow, and now before the MAAC has even played a
single game, it has expanded by an additional two schools for its second
season (Mercyhurst and Bentley).
 
I still don't think we've seen the last of the additions.  There are a
handful of other schools that are in D2 and would fit geographically into
the MAAC, and I won't be surprised to see more make the move.
 
Bentley was rumored to be interested in the MAAC at least as long ago as a
year ago, so this was not a surprise.  As to how competitive they will be
-- well, their program has improved greatly over the last few years to the
point where they had become one of the better ECAC North-Central-South
teams, and half of the teams that will make up the MAAC in 1998-99 are
coming from that same organization.  So they have a very good chance at
being at least a middle of the pack team in the league.
 
I'm not as concerned about the possible dilution of talent as some seem to
be.  At first, I would expect most of the MAAC schools to continue to draw
on the same level of talent as they have in recent years.  You won't see
Bentley and BU competing for the same players.  But the MAAC programs will
hope to grow by continuing to prove themselves and attracting more and more
players that may someday enable them to be competitive with the established
leagues.  And as we know, many of the top players in D2-3 hockey could play
D1 and play well.  There is a pool of talent to draw on.
 
We don't know exactly what will happen, but it may not be that different
from the history of the CCHA.  Greg suggested that some programs may "fall
by the wayside", and if you look at the CCHA, that is exactly what
happened, especially in the early years.  That may not be bad -- although
it will be unfortunate for those schools that may have to someday make the
decision that the MAAC is not for them any longer.  It is part of the
natural process.  On the other hand, it could be that a sixth league would
develop out of all this.  Who knows.
 
It is true, however, that now that the MAAC has formed, Eastern schools
have many more options open to them than they did before.  One wonders if
we might someday see a Western version of the MAAC, but there are not the
same geographical advantages that the Eastern schools have.  Travel would
be more expensive as the schools would not tend to be very close.  So
currently it is better to be an Eastern school thinking of moving up than a
Western school.  Still, it leads me to wonder if a "Western MAAC" is being
discussed -- certainly we have heard the rumors of a Western league made up
partly of Western Independents and a handful of schools considering the
jump.
 
This is perhaps the most interesting and transitional time that we have
ever seen college hockey go through.  The ripple effects have already been
felt with the announcement of more teams moving up, the drastic
restructuring of the ECAC N-C-S into the ECAC Northeast, etc. and I am sure
they will continue as Mercyhurst leaves the ECAC West and other schools
make decisions.  It is getting to be difficult to keep track of all the
changes.  And I doubt anyone could really predict what the next five years
will have in store.
 
---                                                                   ---
Mike Machnik                [log in to unmask]               *HMM* 11/13/93
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