Dave-In response to your question about the declining talent in college hockey.In one sense I believe that it is declining,but then again I don't think it is.See,in the past 4 years or so,rules have been modified to take the aggressiveness out of college hockey.I remeber when I first moved to Bowling Green,OH. and watching my first college hockey teams in 1987.I started watching the BGSU Falcons and they had some players named Rob Blake,Kevin Dahl,Nelson Emerson,and Marc Potvin.I watched a game between BGSU and MSU while a guy named Steve Gibson attended NSU.Marc Potvin got into 2 actual fist throwing fights with Gibson in that game,and I haven't seen anything like that since.In a way,it is good that they took the fighting out of college hockey,but that leaves the college players without a sense of what it will be like in the ECHL,CHL,AHL,IHL,and NHL.These guys go into these leagues without the experience of agressiveness that is needed to play at the higher levels.I think that fighting should still be in college hockey,but not tolerated as in the higher leagues(5 Minute Majors,2 minutes and a game DQ for instigating,etc.)Unless the higher leagues ban fighting as the colleges have(Game DQ and 1 game suspension for fighting),the quality of college hockey will never compare to what it once was.If fighting was still a part of college hockey,I don't think there would be a need for guys to go into the pro leagues and goon it up just to prove something.They would also be adjusted to the physical style of play and won't be driven out as quickly for not being able to hold up against the physical type of play.Anybody agree,disagree? Alex Bricker Brian Holzinger for Hobey Baker