At 03:30 PM 5/21/97 -0400, Chris Heisenberg wrote:
>Every year, particularly last, I engage in the "Maine is dead" thought
>process, only to be proven wrong.  Having seen the proposed rankings putting
>Maine number one in the nation, I say, with some hesitation, that it won't
>happen.  Maine has lost Cardinal, Shermerhorn, Roenick, Mansoff and Libby,
>and gained only two quality forwards (Trattnig and Kerluke). This year Maine
>drops from 16 scholarships to 14.  If Maine beats out my Wildcats this year,
>I propose we further reduce their scholarships to 12, and so forth -- Anyone
>second my motion?
 
No way is Maine a preseason #1 but I'd also contend that they are likely in
the top ten in most people's ballots.  My #1 team is North Dakota, hey
let's face it when you win the title and only lose three players you have
to be respected.  But Minnesota should also be feared.  They were young
last year and still had a great season.  UNH also is loaded.  I can't
really decide who is better for #2 Minnesota or UNH, but it is close.  It
will come down to whether someone leaves on either of those two teams.
 
On Maine's scholarships, while it plays a role I hope no one really thinks
Maine is going to suffer because of it.  The reason why I say that is last
year Maine played most of the year at 12 scholarships, even though they
were allowed 16 (two stripped in self-imposed penalties) because they lost
four scholarship players and didn't fill them right away.  They ended up
with around 14 or 15 scholarships but two of those were red-shirts and did
not dress.
 
So Maine went 15-3 over the second half of last year and ended up #9 in the
polls with around 12-13 scholarship players on the ice.  Despite having 14
scholarships this year it is realistic to believe that they can be a top
ten team, that they can compete for home-ice in Hockey East and compete for
an NCAA Tournament berth, but they will simply not have the depth to be #1.
 
---
Deron Treadwell ([log in to unmask])
 
HOCKEY-L is for discussion of college ice hockey;  send information to
[log in to unmask], The College Hockey Information List.