At 8:29 AM 1/4/96, Eeyore wrote:
>I don't think that the question of whether or not to include Maine in the
>poll is quite as simple as Mike Machnik makes out.  I think I've made some
>of my views on the whole subject clear, and I did include Maine on my
>ballot for this week's poll.  However, I can understand that some people
>might think that it is inappropriate for a team on suspension to be part of
>the results.  It's not just a matter of forecasting the NCAA Tournament.
 
But the suspension was self-imposed.  And it doesn't have anything to do
with the quality of the team that Maine is putting on the ice.
 
>The thinking is that part of the punishment ought to involve the denial of
>the honors that are given to success; playing within the rules is one of
>the criteria for such honors.
 
Maine has, by all accounts, played by the rules this season.  Even though
they have voluntarily withdrawn from the NCAA tournament this year, that
does not negate their performance to date.  Many people seem to feel that
one of the unfortunate side effects of Maine's past mistakes is that the
current players have to pay a price for those mistakes.  I would hope those
same people don't leave Maine off their ballots solely because of the
school's decision to forego the tourney.
 
Sure, whether or not Maine's ranking in the HOCKEY-L poll is affected by
this whole thing, it will not mean much in the grand scheme of things.  But
I still believe it is not right to judge the current team on the basis of
past transgressions by the program.  Maine is still one of the best teams
in the country.
 
IMO, the decision to withdraw from the tourney has no effect until we reach
the point of selection.  At that time, if Maine is deemed to be one of the
teams to receive a bid, they just get replaced by the 13th best team.
Until that point, they should be looked at on an equal standing with
everyone else.
 
>  I do think that if the poll is going to have a lot of validity, we all
>ought to be reading out of the same rulebook.  Otherwise, it won't be right
>by any set of standards.
 
The ironic thing is that when the HOCKEY-L poll began several years ago, it
grew out of a general dissatisfaction on the list with the other polls that
are out there.  There was a feeling that "we can do better" and do away
with the biases that are perceived to exist in the other polls.  But it
appears that this is not true...the HOCKEY-L poll suffers from the same
types of biases that exist in the other polls.  That is not necessarily
bad, but it is a fact of life that should be recognized.
 
One thing I have learned over the years is that it does not seem to matter
who you get together to vote...everyone will still have their own way of
doing things.  Perhaps some set of standards would be nice, but then why
have a poll at all - why not just let the person who sets the standards
(which would probably be biased in themselves) choose the top 15.  Rather,
I like to think of the HOCKEY-L poll as quite similar to the others in its
genre...a group of people with different viewpoints all vote differently,
and the poll is simply a composite of those viewpoints.
 
---                                                                   ---
Mike Machnik                   [log in to unmask]            *HMM* 11/13/93
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