In article <[log in to unmask]>, [log in to unmask] says:
>
>Now for my comments.... I'd like to know who votes in this poll, is it
>coaches or people like us?
 
I believe it's officially called the WMEB Coaches Poll, right? If so,
that's a hint for you.
 
>I may be at Maine, and a Maine fan, but
>I am always objective in my vote for Hockey-L, and by no means is Maine a
>#1 team, but they derserve more credit in my opinion then this poll gives
>them.
 
Hold on there. Let's not get carried away. First, it's just a poll. Polls
mean nothing, especially this early in the season. Gee, wasn't it a year
ago when Maine was ranged somewhere in the top five? :-)
 
But it's a poll. It means nothing. What matters is what Maine and
everyone else is doing come March. You know, the regular season really
doesn't mean that much, even if the standings determine the seedings
in the league playoffs.
 
This past summer I got the privilege of coaching a farm league
baseball team, kids ages 7 through 12, after four years as an
assistant. Anyway, we weren't that good during the regular season.
We finished third in our division and sixth in the league, with a
5-8 record. The kids were disappointed as we headed into the
playoffs, a single elimination affair. But we were exactly where I
wanted us to be!
 
I have to admit, my kids played better than I expected. We trounced
the third best team in the league. We trounced the first place team
in the league, and we won, then lost to the second best team in the
league in the championship game (one of those Keystone Cop umpiring
crewscalling the last out of the game for us, then taking the
other coach's word that the ball was dropped....)
 
The moral of the story isn't that we lost the championship game,
it's that we peaked at the right time to get that far. Almost
anything can happen when every team makes its league's playoffs.
 
Hell, Merrimack could put on a great run in the Hockey East tourney
and knock off the top seeds and get "lucky" in a regional!
 
I'm pleased Maine's playing this well. But there's a looooooong
road ahead. Everyone's got to take it one game at a time. Never
mind this weekend's series: Focus on Friday and pay no attention
to the rest of the season.
 
_____________________________________________________________________
Ryan Robbins               "Nothing in fine print is ever good news."
University of Maine                                  -- Andy Rooney
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