John Haeussler wrote...
 
>Greenie <[log in to unmask]> writes...
>>My question is: Of the coaches out there in Div 1 hockey, who puts stock in
>>the polls? For years Jack Parker has claimed he cares nothing about the
>>polls, except at the end of the year when the polls are a source of seeding
>>the tournmament. If so, wouldn't the week-to-week standing be important
>>also?
>
>I *assume* that several people jumped on this privately, but
>since I haven't seen anything on Hockey-L...the polls are NOT
>a source of seeding for any tournament that I'm aware of.  The
>only rating of any relevance is the NCAA's Rating Percentage
>Index (RPI), and its role has been downplayed for 1995-96.
>The RPI is based solely on games versus other NCAA Division
>I tourney eligible teams and is a linear combination of winning
>percentage, opponents winning percentage and opponents
>opponents winning percentage.  Skim the Hockey-L archives
>and you'll find more than you ever wanted to know/read about
>the RPI. :-)
 
True, the RPI is closely examined when the tournament seedings are made.
But isn't the tournament commitee made up of coaches and athletic directors
(I know Parker sits on the tournament-seeding committee)?
 
If so, wouldn't the "Coache's Poll" definitely have something to say about
a team's chances at getting a better spot in the tournament? Sure, if a
team is in the top 4 or even top 8 you've really got nothing to worry
about, even if you lose your conference tournament... but what about the
teams on the fringe?
 
I remember a few years ago (sorry, I'm a little foggy on the exact teams
here) when a team from the WCHA/CCHA side of the bracket (Wisconsin?) was
given the #6 East seed normally used for a ECAC/HE team (Umass-Lowell, I
believe?). I remember there was considerable controversy regarding this
selection, as the "West" team had a slightly better record, while the
"East" team was considered to have a tougher schedule, never mind that the
"West" team was given an "East" spot.
 
I don't want to spurn a discussion about this event (I'm sure most of you
remember exactly which teams were involved, all the circumstances, etc)...
but do you all think that a better standing in the polls would have helped
squeeze that "East" selection in?
 
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