Can QC run with the big dogs? Maybe yes, maybe no. I'd expect QC's
experience to be something like UNO's. Maybe a big blowout loss. Maybe a
pretty decent game ending in a respectable loss. Maybe a very unexpected
but hard earned tie or a win by a narrow margin for QC. Hey, who knows? But
they have to start somewhere. And Orono is as good a place as any.
Actually, probably a better place than many.
 
        Shawn Walsh is very perceptive and should be applauded for thinking
outside the box and reaching out to these developing programs. Look at who
he's played in the last couple of years. UNO, Niagara, Union, and now UConn
and QC next year. Did it hurt Maine to play those teams in the past? No. He
used those games for specific team development purposes I am sure. And did
it win Maine some friends in the hockey world? You betcha. Probably a lot
of friends.
 
        Next year Walsh knows that the MAAC teams will still have fairly insular
schedules. He also knows that QC and UConn will still be at or near the top
of the MAAC, and thus those teams will have very strong W/L records and
SOS's due to their insularity if nothing else. So playing top MAAC teams
will not hurt Maine's PWR at all,  and it may even help. If only Renssalaer
had scheduled and beaten QC this year, for instance, they might well have
gone to the dance instead of UNM. (Only John Whelan could tell us for
sure.:-):-)
 
        While some folks may perceive a disconnect in QC's schedule to play Maine,
I think it makes a fair amount of sense. And in the long run it will pay a
dividend to Maine as well.
 
        -- Dick Tuthill
 
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