More hockey realignment?

[TruDomGopher]

That shirt was no accident. Do have any idea how much that cost me?

 

[kingdobbs]

I've been on the record here as saying that the whole ice hockey upgrade at UConn never made any sense to me except with respect to someone in the B1G offices telling them to do it.

Right idea.

Wrong conference.

It's LONG been a vision of the Hockey East commissioner to have all the New England state Us playing in Hockey East. Or at least the ones who have had hockey teams at one time or another (while UConn's team has only been playing D-I formally since the late 90s, and only scholarship in the last few years, the team's history goes back to the 1960s). It's why UVM signed on twenty-five years after the formation of Hockey East (initially sticking with the ECAC due to closer geographic and rivalry ties with the teams remaining, notably Clarkson, St. Lawrence, Rensselaer and Dartmouth); it's why UMass-Amherst found a home with the league when the team restarted in 1994 after a fifteen year hiatus.

In that respect, the ball has always been in UConn's court, if we are to mix sporting metaphors. A seat was more or less waiting for them should they have made the commitment. Commissioner Bertagna had intimated this in the past.

With Notre Dame joining the league, Hockey East wasn't going to stand at 11 forever. The seat "waiting for them" wasn't going to be waiting forever at that point.

Hockey East pushed them to do it.

 

[upstater]

Right idea.

Wrong conference.

It's LONG been a vision of the Hockey East commissioner to have all the New England state Us playing in Hockey East. Or at least the ones who have had hockey teams at one time or another (while UConn's team has only been playing D-I formally since the late 90s, and only scholarship in the last few years, the team's history goes back to the 1960s). It's why UVM signed on twenty-five years after the formation of Hockey East (initially sticking with the ECAC due to closer geographic and rivalry ties with the teams remaining, notably Clarkson, St. Lawrence, Rensselaer and Dartmouth); it's why UMass-Amherst found a home with the league when the team restarted in 1994 after a fifteen year hiatus.

In that respect, the ball has always been in UConn's court, if we are to mix sporting metaphors. A seat was more or less waiting for them should they have made the commitment. Commissioner Bertagna had intimated this in the past.

With Notre Dame joining the league, Hockey East wasn't going to stand at 11 forever. The seat "waiting for them" wasn't going to be waiting forever at that point.

Hockey East pushed them to do it.

This doesn't address what I wrote.

UConn moved to a conference and saw it's yearly revenue drop precipitously (not only in the $8 million a year less to schools, but because of lower ticket sales, etc.)

It then added a sport that requires 20 or so scholarships (and thus double on the women's side), a sport that requires a decently paid coach, and support staff, a sport that requires an entire new arena that will have heavy upkeep and indeed will only be used intermittently.

Basketball and football needed to be UConn's priorities. Not a dime to spare for anything else, given its place in the AAC. It really doesn't matter what HE wanted and desired or didn't desire. The decision had to be about UConn's longterm future.

 

[kingdobbs]

I'm sa

This doesn't address what I wrote.

UConn moved to a conference and saw it's yearly revenue drop precipitously (not only in the $8 million a year less to schools, but because of lower ticket sales, etc.)

It then added a sport that requires 20 or so scholarships (and thus double on the women's side), a sport that requires a decently paid coach, and support staff, a sport that requires an entire new arena that will have heavy upkeep and indeed will only be used intermittently.

Basketball and football needed to be UConn's priorities. Not a dime to spare for anything else, given its place in the AAC. It really doesn't matter what HE wanted and desired or didn't desire. The decision had to be about UConn's longterm future.

It did address what you wrote.

You said it was the B1G's word that got UConn interested in upgrading hockey in spite of the other pressures.

I'm saying it had nothing to do with any contact the university may or may not have had with the B1G. It had everything to do with projections that UConn hockey could be a revenue neutral, if not a revenue producing, sport if they upgraded and got involved with Hockey East (who was willing to give them a spot in the league). Meaning that whatever money they aren't getting from the AAC is irrelevant.

 

[brasssbonanzaa]

That shirt was no accident. Do have any idea how much that cost me?

It absolutely was. I know plenty of people extraordinarily well connected within BU, there are no rumblings whatsoever about interest from the B1G right now.

 

[dayooper]

It absolutely was. I know plenty of people extraordinarily well connected within BU, there are no rumblings whatsoever about interest from the B1G right now.

Is there any interest from their side?

 

[brasssbonanzaa]

Is there any interest from their side?

I haven't asked specifically, but from everything I know the answer would be no, unless this was a dual invite with BC. There is no incentive for BU to leave Hockey East without BC. We have a national TV contract as well as one with NESN. We're in a recruiting hotbed already that isn't going anywhere and recruit well out of the USNTDP and Canada, so getting kids from the Midwest isn't a necessity. Plus, assuming ASU would be team 7, would BU want to join a league watered down with two upstart programs, an Ohio State team that has virtually no support and isn't very good, as well as Michigan State going through a lengthy down period? And we already play them frequently as it is. We had the Michigans and Wisconsin on our schedule this year and last, we just reupped with Michigan for a couple more and have another one with Wisconsin next year, and it wouldn't shock me to see Minnesota back soon since it's been 10+ years since a RS matchup with them. The move, unless it were coupled with BC, wouldn't make a whole lot of sense for us.

Not to mention, look at the B1G tournament attendance numbers from this past weekend - Hockey East doubled them at the Garden without two of the top three attendance teams (BC and Maine) being present. Minnesota and Michigan in Detroit couldn't muster a number that would've sold out Michigan's home rink! BU and Lowell, a team with a relatively small following, drew 13K+. Sub out Lowell for Maine or BC and that number goes up. The semifinal games and play-in games in Detroit this past weekend were downright embarrassing from an attendance perspective. Ohio State brought literally zero fans up to the tournament. Michigan couldn't get more than 6K to show up a few miles down the road in Detroit for a conference championship game against Minnesota. They draw 18-20K for regular season games against Michigan State there!

B1G hockey looks good only from a TV revenue perspective. Make no mistake, the programs and the fans themselves unequivocally hate the new setups they're in. The more I read and hear about the current state of B1G hockey, the clearer it is to me that if they're going to add ASU and want a hockey-only 8th it will assuredly be North Dakota. Existing rivalries, better TV matchups, more casual fan interest, and an enormous nation-wide fanbase. Sioux fans are literally everywhere.

 

[TruDomGopher]

I don't know much about hockey, but I understand Hockey East would be tough to crack.

Could someone that's familiar with hockey in your part of the world answer a question: How difficult would it be for Syracuse to add men's hockey? Do they have the facilities in place?

On my list of possible traveling partners for UConn to the B1G, I can't help but think that 'Cuse might be on the short list if certain other more mid-Atlantic schools prove, shall we say, unavailable and I'm curious what there situation would be viz a viz a hockey startup.

 

[huskymedic]

Could someone that's familiar with hockey in your part of the world answer a question: How difficult would it be for Syracuse to add men's hockey? Do they have the facilities in place?

Time and a lot of money... they are only a club level team. On campus rink is small. Guess they could play at the War Memorial downtown - it seats ? 7k (know it has a new name but it will always be the War Memorial to me). Women are already D1.

 

[brasssbonanzaa]

It's always baffled me how SU doesn't have a hockey program. I don't know if they have the will to upgrade now, but if they did, the door to Hockey East would not be open very far. If ND leaves, the popular choice to replace them is QU. Not a chance HE goes beyond 12 teams, much less for a startup program 300 miles away from everyone else.

 

[TruDomGopher]

Huh--what the heck, thought I'd share this. After UM, I spent some time at Iowa's Writers Workshop. I put out some feelers and just found out that the scuttlebutt is Iowa is in for B1G hockey. ASAP. (No timeline given.) Don't know what to make of it--just a rumor from someone that doesn't care about or follow sports--but he seems to think it's true.

 

[upstater]

I'm sa


It did address what you wrote.

You said it was the B1G's word that got UConn interested in upgrading hockey in spite of the other pressures.

I'm saying it had nothing to do with any contact the university may or may not have had with the B1G. It had everything to do with projections that UConn hockey could be a revenue neutral, if not a revenue producing, sport if they upgraded and got involved with Hockey East (who was willing to give them a spot in the league). Meaning that whatever money they aren't getting from the AAC is irrelevant.

I didn't say it was the B1G's word. I said upgrade made absolutely no sense financially in the context of the AAC unless the B1G had something to do with it.

In other words, joining HE is irrelevant to the fact that UConn's bottom line is now bad and getting worse. HE doesn't help the bottom line at all.

 

[Kolumbo]

I don't know much about hockey, but I understand Hockey East would be tough to crack.

Could someone that's familiar with hockey in your part of the world answer a question: How difficult would it be for Syracuse to add men's hockey? Do they have the facilities in place?

On my list of possible traveling partners for UConn to the B1G, I can't help but think that 'Cuse might be on the short list if certain other more mid-Atlantic schools prove, shall we say, unavailable and I'm curious what there situation would be viz a viz a hockey startup.

Syracuse has lacrosse but no baseball. What else does Syracuse have? It lost its AAU credentials and it is in hot water right now with the NCAA, not that this matters much. I just hope Syracuse goes the way of BC.

 

[Sea Goat]

Syracuse has lacrosse but no baseball. What else does Syracuse have? It lost its AAU credentials and it is in hot water right now with the NCAA, not that this matters much. I just hope Syracuse goes the way of BC.

Big difference is that Syracuse is not close to BC academically. If BC wants to concede mediocre status in athletics, it can fall back on its academic reputation and do just fine. Syracuse can't. Syracuse is struggling to justify charging the same as BC for a school that is a second choice to UConn.

 

[Kolumbo]

Big difference is that Syracuse is not close to BC academically. If BC wants to concede mediocre status in athletics, it can fall back on its academic reputation and do just fine. Syracuse can't. Syracuse is struggling to justify charging the same as BC for a school that is a second choice to UConn.

Yeah but Syracuse has a grad school called "espn."

 

[TruDomGopher]

Found this. Interesting--kind of sounds like Pac12 is looking down the road at developing hockey conference wide.

http://tempeinmotion.com/2015/03/un...alm-as-landscape-ever-changing-foxsports-com/

 

[DarthGrumpy]

Found this. Interesting--kind of sounds like Pac12 is looking down the road at developing hockey conference wide.

http://tempeinmotion.com/2015/03/unfrozen-college-hockey-waters-never-truly-calm-as-landscape-ever-changing-foxsports-com/

Could this put the PAC in direction competition with the planned AHL pacific division?

 

[DarthGrumpy]

Syracuse has lacrosse but no baseball. What else does Syracuse have? It lost its AAU credentials and it is in hot water right now with the NCAA, not that this matters much. I just hope Syracuse goes the way of BC.

Looks like Syracuse dumped baseball a long time ago ('72) in a time before big time college sports and facilities. Looked like it was just too damn hard to have a baseball team that begins its season in March when the snow usually isn't gone until late April half the time. I know of 1 graduating class from Syracuse that had to deal with snow on graduation day in May.

 

[brasssbonanzaa]

Found this. Interesting--kind of sounds like Pac12 is looking down the road at developing hockey conference wide.

http://tempeinmotion.com/2015/03/un...alm-as-landscape-ever-changing-foxsports-com/

When ASU first announced there were lots of unsourced reports that several Pac 12 schools would be closely watching ASU's progression to see if it's feasible for them to add a program as well. The big hurdle for all of them will be cost. They'd need an already established venue or someone with a lot of money to donate and make it possible. The likely candidates I see are the LA schools, Colorado, Oregon, and perhaps one or two in the Bay Area.

 

[DarthGrumpy]

When ASU first announced there were lots of unsourced reports that several Pac 12 schools would be closely watching ASU's progression to see if it's feasible for them to add a program as well. The big hurdle for all of them will be cost. They'd need an already established venue or someone with a lot of money to donate and make it possible. The likely candidates I see are the LA schools, Colorado, Oregon, and perhaps one or two in the Bay Area.

if the P12 is serious, I can definitely see Stanford (is there a sport that they do not sponsor) offer it at Oregon (Nike money and no local hockey team). Ditto for U Washington on hockey, less the Nike money. Agree with Colorado, too; but, their Athletic Department looks to need help first. What about Utah?

 

[B1GOSU]

Which team will be added as a sport affiliate first..............

Arizona State in Men's Ice Hockey or Johns Hopkins in Women's Lacrosse?

 

[Adios]

I am calling it. ASU and ND to the NCHC and QU to the HE.

 

[Adios]

I forgot. RIT to the ECAC.

 

[brasssbonanzaa]

I am calling it. ASU and ND to the NCHC and QU to the HE.

50/50 chance that it's this, or ASU/UND to B1G, ND to NCHC, QU to HE. Trading ND for QU would be a-OK with me.

 

[Fishy]

It's always baffled me how SU doesn't have a hockey program.

It's on their radar, even if only faintly right now.

I believe they eventually will upgrade from the club level.