Charlie Shub asks the following excellent question that I feel is
deserving of an answer here on HOCKEY-L.
 
Charlie asked me, paraphrased: "Having seen Maine, do you feel that
they are the best team in the country?"
 
First, I am becoming increasingly wary of labeling any team "the
best".  The real "best" team is the one that wins the NC$$
championship.  But it doesn't matter how you win it, as long as you
win it.  And it doesn't matter how you win the games that get you to
the NC$$ tournament, only that you win them.
 
But my short answer: no and yes.
 
I say no because they don't have the most talent, and they seem to be
oh so beatable.
 
I say yes because everybody says they are beatable, but no one has
proved it yet.
 
What is the better team: one that is 10-3-0 and has blown out
opponents in most of its wins, or one that is unbeaten at 11-0-5 and
has won most of its games by close scores?
 
That is really what we are asking here.  It's up to each person to
decide for him or herself.
 
Myself, I think you have to strongly consider the fact that in
whatever type of game Maine finds itself, they *find a way to win* (or
at least not to lose).  Winning games is the goal...it doesn't matter
whether it's by 1 or 6.
 
So IMO, is Maine the best?  Yes.  Until someone proves they can be
beaten, it looks more and more like they cannot.  They have as strong
a claim to that designation as anyone else, perhaps more.
 
I'll just add that for people looking at the score of Maine's tie with
Merrimack...if you have been paying attention, you know I have been
saying that Merrimack is a much better team than its record shows.
Maine folks who saw this game know this.  And Merrimack has to be
considered one of the teams to watch in the second half...especially
when their two top defensemen return.  Just a handful of goals
separate Merrimack from being a team with a record close to Maine's.
Take that with a grain of salt if you wish, but I feel justified in
saying that Merrimack is a team that is about as tough as any of the
other teams Maine has faced so far...Maine had to work as hard to earn
this tie as they did to win or tie any of their other games.
---                                                                   ---
Mike Machnik                                            [log in to unmask]
Cabletron Systems, Inc.                                    *HMM* 11/13/93