Greg Ambrose wrote, in part:
> There has been a lot of talk on this board and over on USCHO about potential
> seedings but, if I were a betting man, I would wager that teams with big
> followings - Maine, UNH, BC, Cornell - will stay East regardless.  The NC$$
> cannot permit anything else or they will take a financial bath.

I think that Ian McCaw and his Committee have made some good decisions
and some potentially very bad decisions.  Leading the very bad is what I
believe a very real chance that 2 of the 4 teams you mention could go
west.  Jayson Moy's USCHO article on "Bracketology" of 10 March
standings shows why UNH would go west if the tournament were bracketed
today!

IMHO, using "bands" as they have will result in a "fair" tournament with
a real chance of a financial problem.  The NCAA is fortunate that it
appears 3 of the 4 host schools will be selected for the tournament,
ensuring decent revenue.

Finally, the NCAA must realize that few Eastern folks will buy tickets
(BU fans excepted), before the brackets are announced on 23 March (ESPN
at 5:30 ET).  Providence must really realize this, as I can't even
figure out how to buy tix for there online!  I will comment that $50 for
3 regional games seems like a fair price ($44 groups is a super price!) :-)

cheers, wayne
--
Wayne T. Smith -- [log in to unmask] -- Old Town Landing, ME