I realize that nobody cares about the basketball NIT's, but a similar
on-campus tournament for college hockey would be an interesting forum for
emerging teams (e.g. MAAC) to try to prove that they could play with some
of the 'bubble' teams from established D1 conferences that are unable to
get NCAA bids.
 
  As the number of D1 teams continues to grow while the number making the
NCAA tournament remains the same, the need for such a secondary tournament
will increase.
 
  The are plenty of good teams that don't make the NCAA's.
 
Assuming the current top 12 PWR teams (excluding Quinnipiac) make the
NCAA's, such an NIT could still include:
8 Quinnipiac 23 17- 4- 2 0.7826 4 0.5543 9 18
14 Rensselaer 32 20-10- 2 0.6562 8 0.5333 14 12
15 Ohio State 37 19-14- 4 0.5676 19 0.5267 16 12
16 Princeton 29 18-10- 1 0.6379 12 0.5326 15 11
17 Colgate 32 17-11- 4 0.5938 16 0.5215 17 8
18 Connecticut 23 14- 7- 2 0.6522 9 0.5208 18 8
20 Providence 34 18-15- 1 0.5441 20 0.5129 20 6
 
  Of course, there will certainly be an upset or two in the conference
tourneys, perhaps making other bubble teams that are currently in the top
12 PWR to miss the NCAA tourney and be eligible for an NIT.
 
 Young teams that made a late season charge or aren't quite ready for the
NCAA's would still have a chance to end the season on an up note (e.g.
Wisconsin).
 
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