While we're mulling over changes we'd like if we were the
Gods of hockey, how about changing the tournament to an 8-team
round-robin preliminary round from which two teams advance to a
best-of-three championship series? I realize that this would
take longer than the current one weekend for regionals and
one for Frozen Four. How could it be scheduled? Maybe cut a deal
with the conferences to replace their tournaments and the current
regionals with prelim. games featuring their conferences and some
good out-of-conference rivalries (e.g. Harvard-BU, RPI-BU)? Also play
some of the games mid-week at neutral campus sites? This would
minimize the expenses for distant match-ups that might not draw well.
I know that it wouldn't be easy, but I think that would yield a much
more meaningful result. If each of the eight best teams played all
of the other seven and the best two from this squared off in a
three-game series, then one off night or one bad call is much less
likely to be the determining factor. Comments, reality-checks, and
near-flames welcome.
 
     Dave Carroll, BU '73       "Wait 'til next year."
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