Deron, I would like to say thanks for all of the work you've done for this
list.  It is my number one source of Black Bear Hockey information.
 
I'd like to make a few comments about your post.  I'm on an Ohio State list
that is very active with anywhere from a dozen to 150 messages a day.  It is
interesting but about 70 % of the messages are from a about 15 or so people
even though there are several hundred on the list.  Most just "lurk" to
glean any information about Ohio State football or other sports.  It is
interesting to watch as people make their first post.  It is usually
accompanied with a "this is my first post but I've been reading this list
for x number of months".  There is a fear of making that first posting.  I
would guess you have the same problem on ME-HOCKEY.   However, everyone trys
to avoid getting personal. On the OSU list, the people that post on a
regular basis know a lot about each other an there is a lot of friendly
banter.  It gets personal in a friendly, joking way between cyber-friends.
It is amazing but through the list, people have developed friendships and
now get together for tailgate parties not only for home games but at away
games including the Rose Bowl.
 
I'm not sure how many are on this list but I would guess you have a similar
situation, a few people posting and a much larger group "lurking".  I would
be willing to bet that there is a much larger population of Maine Hockey
Fans out there with computers that would love to be on the list if they knew
it existed.  To get them interested, I think it is important to search
outside of the normal hockey lists.  Every University of Maine student has
access to the net and if they are interested in the Black Bears, they should
 (but probably don't ) know about this list.   There probably are other
groups such as the alumni association, the campus newspaper and Maine chat
groups that could be used to inform people about the list.
 
I think the lack of activity is to be expected over the summer and I would
guess that things will pick up with Midnight Madness coming up this weekend
and with the Bangor Deadly News and the TV stations starting to discuss
Maine hockey.  Hopefully, the BDN will be able to write a few articles
without dredging up the problems of the past few years.
 
One of my problems is I  have questions and not information.  The BDN's
article on Wednesday gave me more questions than answers.  For example, how
good are the two red shirt freshmen Garrow and Tate?  Will they be ready to
contribute this season?  I thought there were only three incoming freshmen
this season.  I was surprised to read about the Turgeon, Lundback twins,
Jaaskelainen, and DiBattista.  Where are they from, how big are they, what
are their strengths and weaknesses, will they play or be redshirted, etc.?
Are they walk-ons or on partial scholarships?
 
I see where Brendan Walsh has appealed to the NCAA to be eligible this
season...is there any chance it will be granted?   Based on what I know
about the NCAA, I doubt it will happen.
 
Once again, great job Deron.
 
Bob Svec
 
GO BLACK BEARS!!