>iAs I asked in an earlier post, what, except personal integrity, is to prevent a
>UMass/Amherst from bringing in Ray Bourque and Cam Neely for the regular season
>next year and qualifying for the NCAA's???  They would be banned from Hockey
>East playoffs (since there would now be a precident), but as long as they
>did not play them in the NCAA tourney, they're OK.
 
No they are not. There is one criteria that the NCAA committee can use
to keep Mass-Amherst out in this case--eligibility of players. I think
the real reason for the rule is so the commitee can choose to not
select a deserving team that has its star goalie injured, or half of
its team has the flu, or things like that. They can skip over a team
that would obviously get blown out in the tournament. If Mass-Amherst
cannot field a team for the NCAA tournament that is substantially the
same as the team that racked up all those wins in the regular season,
then the committee can pass them by. So, having NHL stars pile up wins
for you and then having them leave will not get you into the NCAAs.
 
But Maine has basically the same team that went 17-13-4. Patrice is
back and eligible. In fact, the team they put on the ice may have never
been better this season than right now.
 
If you want one of the best teams from the east this year, then you should
select Maine.
 
Keith