At 2:31 PM -0500 2/25/97, Deron Treadwell wrote:
> At 02:21 PM 2/25/97 -0500, Cathy Hart wrote:
>
> >IMHO, they picked the right guy for HE Commissioner!!
>
> I was curious why you think this?
 
A few reasons I can think of:
 
1) He has no ties with any of the HE schools.
2) He is a hockey man.
3) He has experience running a league (several of them).
4) He is well-known and liked around the game.
 
I felt that 1) and 3) were most important in a candidate, but I also think
that getting a guy who has the other two qualities is a real boon.
 
> Personally I'm a bit concerned.  Yes, I like the fact that Bertagna isn't
> tied to any HE schools, but he has always been a very strong ECAC man.  Does
> this mean that the topic of HE and ECAC recombining will come back?
 
I doubt it.  I wondered that at first but apparently he will leave the ECAC
and run HE full-time.
 
I think this move has a lot of potential.  It all depends on whether the
individual schools will give him the power to do things that will be good
for HE.
 
> Now the only way I'd support this is if there were two divisions (NORTH AND
> SOUTH for instance) and each division could run things their own way.  With
> the stringent schedule and scholarship restrictions some of the ECAC teams
> deal with, I don't want that to happen to Hockey East.
 
I cannot see that happening.  The schools in the two leagues are too
drastically different in terms of philosophy.  They would sooner hire a new
commissioner if Joe did want to make these things happen.
 
The real difference between the two leagues is the difference between the
Ivies and the HE schools.  But HE has no Ivies.
 
> Also remember, the NCAA changed its rules (no way!) so that one sport
> conferences (read:  Hockey East) no longer have voting power.  So, HE, CCHA
> and WCHA no longer have voting rights.
>
> Theoretically, if a proposal came regarding hockey, non-hockey conferences
> could decide it since only the ECAC will have voting power next season.
 
I'm not that concerned about this.  But that is because I am under the
impression that DivI schools which sponsor hockey will still have a vote.
Ideally all schools that play DivI hockey would have a vote on matters
concerning DivI hockey, but that won't happen.  At least the DivI schools
will not lose their votes (again, if I am correct).
 
I guess anything is possible re: America East, but unless it looks like a
real possibility and I know more, I can't really comment on whether that
would be a good move or not.
 
---                                                                   ---
Mike Machnik                [log in to unmask]               *HMM* 11/13/93
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