At 01:01 PM 03-27-01 -0600, Eric Burton wrote:
>Heck the MAAC shouldn't have recieved
>a bid at all, however, we pretty much dealt with it.

What, do they not spend enough money on hockey programs for your tastes?
Not enough players drafted by the pros? Rinks too small?

What do you have against the MAAC? Did some Quinnipiac fraternity kill your
favorite horse, sleep with your underage daughter and ruin your parade?

I'll assume you're not in favor of the CHA ever having a shot at the
tournament either. What are you afriad of, that an "unworthy" team like
Niagara might beat a "worthy" team like UNH in the tournament?

Hey, maybe we should just cut out bids from the ECAC, too. Oh yeah, and
let's put in a clause that keeps team from Nebraska and Alaska out of the
tournament, even if they win their league.

Mercyhurst turned out a fantastic showing against Michigan, in fact doing
much better than the #3-rated PWR team in the country did the next day.

To me, the joy of the tournament is not that it is a process by which the
best team in the country is determined; rather, I enjoy the fact that it is
a competition in which the playing surface is leveled amongst all teams
involved, where once the seedings are laid out, it really doesn't matter
what their PWR is or what league they represent.

I too am getting tired of seeing all the same teams wind up in the frozen
four; at least last year we had SLU, and back in Boston saw Ohio State take
a crack.

Obviously a move to a 16-team field wouldn't mean a definite change in the
makeup of the frozen four. However, we'd at least have a better chance of
seeing a new attendee for a change, and for those in attendance at the
regionals themselves, a wider variety.

Dare I even suggest it, but if the NCAA is going to play the strict numbers
game in not allowing more than 12 teams at this stage then perhaps it is
time for the NCAA to open the tournament eligibility up to a few more teams.


greenie