On Mar 17, 13:32, Larry Weintraub wrote:
>I'm intersted in a history of the final five, in particular, what the
>performance of play-in game participants has been.  How many have made the
>finals, and how many have won?  (I believe the answer to the last question
>is zero.  Is this incorrect?)
 
I looked this up a couple weeks ago.  The WCHA has had the Final Five since the
1993 playoffs, and in that time, no team that played in the play-in game has
won the championship.  Two play-in participants have made it to the final game:
 Northern Michigan in 1993 (lost to Minnesota 5-3) and Michigan Tech in 1996
(lost to Minnesota 7-2).
 
*But*... the CCHA had something similar from 1993-95, with different results.
 In '93 and '94, the CCHA had twelve teams in the playoffs, with a Final Six
(two play-in games), and in '95 they had a Final Five.  Twice in those three
years, a play-in game participant won the championship, and both times it was
Lake Superior (1993 and 1995).
 
--
Disclaimer -- Unless otherwise noted, all opinions expressed above are
              strictly those of:
 
Bill Fenwick
Cornell '86 and '95                                             DJF  5/27/94
LET'S GO RED!!                                                  JCF  12/2/97
"I'm going to watch the football game here on the telly."
"Oh, but I just heard the end of that game on the radio and--"
"That's fine, love, but don't tell me about it, just let me watch it, please."
"But I know the score of the game."
"That's fine, but just don't tell me."
"But I know who won!"
"Look, JUST DON'T TELL ME!"
"Oh, all right, watch your old game.  But you won't see any goals!"
-- Benny Hill
 
HOCKEY-L is for discussion of college ice hockey;  send information to
[log in to unmask], The College Hockey Information List.