karma turning with NCAA hockey hosting rules?
About as intimate as a fart.
March 18th, 2015 at 10:33 PM ^
March 19th, 2015 at 10:54 AM ^
Or a few years later when Michigan goes up 5 - 1 on NoDak midway through the second, TJ Hensick has a meltdown, and Michigan loses. Grrr.
March 18th, 2015 at 10:20 PM ^
March 18th, 2015 at 10:23 PM ^
It was dumb when they got rid of the weekend home series, and so any correction to that injustice is welcome. Teams earn home ice all season; let them enjoy it.
March 18th, 2015 at 10:25 PM ^
#3 Michigan hosting #6 Wisconsin
#4 Penn State hosting #5 Ohio State
The second weekend (last weekend) would've been
#1 Minnesota hosting lowest ranked winner from week 1
#2 MSU hosting highest ranked winner from week 1
This weekend would've been the championship round hosted by the highest ranked team remaining.
Then the NCAA tournament (if we are now going to 3 weekends) would see the top 8 seeds host a best of 3 week 1 where you rank the teams 1-16 and you have 1vs16,2vs15,3vs14,etc.
the second week you re-seed and have the top remaining team host lowest remaining team (like the NHL playoffs) for another best of 3 series.
Then you rotate the Frozen Four between 5 locations; Minnesota, Detroit, Boston, New York, Denver
March 18th, 2015 at 10:27 PM ^
March 19th, 2015 at 12:15 AM ^
I agree that we need to get rid of the "neutral" sites (actually non-neutral but pre-determined). What I disagree with is that they should re-seed. Those seeds are nothing more than guesses as is, so if a #15 beats #2 the first weekend, it would be pretty unfair to make them play #1 the second weekend. Every other NCAA tournament in every sport uses a bracket instead of re-seeding, and I don't see any good reason to make the hockey tournament different.
Also, as somebody who goes to the frozen four every year, I disagree very strongly with your suggestion of a rotation. I can't think of a good reason to exclude places like Chicago or Pittsburgh or even Tampa Bay (they were a great host last time) from the chance to have a frozen four. What would be the point of a rotation?
One thing not discussed in the article is that they need to change the frozen four from its current Thursday-Saturday format to a Saturday-Monday setup. There is no reason they should be playing a national semifinal at 4 in the afternoon on a workday. That just screams "minor sport."
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I want there to be a chance of great crowds.
March 19th, 2015 at 10:26 AM ^
The Frozen Four was in both Pittsburgh and Tampa Bay in the last 5 years; both were reasonably successful. Why exclude them? Why not experiment a little? If it doesn't work, don't go back. If it does, why not try again (like they are with Tampa Bay)?
Also, Albany? I was at 2 regionals and a frozen four at that arena. No thanks, ever again. Too big for a regional, too small for a frozen four. Also, it's another 1-concourse arena (like Joe Louis)--it is simply outdated.
to get better attendance. so people don't have to travel 500-1000+ miles to see the FF.
I'm sure tampa was a great time, but why not timbuktu? I'm sure they have a fine arena and would be a good host.
March 19th, 2015 at 10:37 AM ^
Basketball (men's and women's) and Women's Volleyball could re-seed after the first rounds & before the regionals, but they don't. They could re-seed after the regionals and before the final four, but they don't.
Lacrosse could re-seed after the first round or after the quarterfinals, but they don't.
Soccer could re-seed after every single round, but they don't.
Baseball and Softball could re-seed after the regionals, or after the super-regionals, but they don't.
Field hockey and Tennis could re-seed after the regionals, but they don't.
I think sticking with brackets, like every single NCAA team tournament in every division, would be best. People like brackets, and the PWR system simply isn't good enough to justify using it for every round.
Every sport is different from every other sport (soccer doesn't use a puck! Field Hockey doesn't play on ice! Baseball doesn't allow unlimited substitution!)
That doesn't justify a departure from the use of a bracket, though. It really doesn't have anything to do with it, if you think about it.
March 19th, 2015 at 10:52 AM ^
You know how the #15 team could make it better for themselves? Take matters into their own hands and win some more games in the regular season!
Sorry, but re-seeding is stupid and life isn't fair.
March 19th, 2015 at 11:45 AM ^
The only ones that don't want to change are the east coast teams.
March 18th, 2015 at 11:19 PM ^
Anything would be better than the current system. Anything. You could have 'em play outdoors in the middle of the Mongol Horde and it would still be like "dat time travel tho".
March 19th, 2015 at 12:23 AM ^
But...if they change the system, the arenas might have people in them who care about the outcome of the game! Wouldn't that be just awful?
March 18th, 2015 at 11:54 PM ^
wouldn't time travel have to be involved if we're considering "having 'em play outdoors in the middle of the Mongol Horde"?
But yeah, the current system wasn't at all well thought out. Typical of the NCAA over the last couple decades, regardless of the sport.
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March 19th, 2015 at 12:28 AM ^
Your #1 seeds are 'rewarded' by being shipped to the nearest empty arena neutral site to play a game of coin flip. Anything to give the top seeds a bit of an advantage is fine in my book
Home sites would actually make regional games a watchable environment
March 19th, 2015 at 12:36 AM ^
I know this is coming from North Dakota's representative on the hockey committee, but I have to wonder if some of this is coming from ESPN. Any TV producer would tell you that there is nothing that makes a neutral sports fan turn the channel more quickly than the sight of large swaths of empty seats.
Large, enthusiastic crowds are great television. Home regionals would mean better ratings for ESPN and also probably better TV coverage for the sport.
March 19th, 2015 at 10:48 AM ^
I don't know... some of these off campus reginoals really suck. I'm looking at you Ft Wayne!!!
The only decent regional I've been to off campus was in Denver. They averaged 18K for the three games at the Pepsi Center.
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I now see that this guy isn't saying a 1 seed would host but just campus sites. I would be largely against that (for your reasoning), but 100% in favor of giving the 1 seeds hosting rights for regionals.
(And I think you mean #2 seeded NoDak and #4 seeded Denver in consecutive years)
Michigan got probably the toughest draw in the tournament both of those seasons as a reward for hosting the regional. The 2002-03 Wolverines were easily a 2 seed in any other Regional but got stuck as a 3 seed in the Midwest against Maine and CC. That game against Maine was a dogfight, an absolute slugfest, while Colorado College got to coast past Wayne State. That CC team was bigger, better, and well-rested. MIchigan just out-skated them that day and I've never heard Yost that loud. Still Top 3 in greatest sporting environments I've ever been party to.
March 19th, 2015 at 10:46 AM ^
I've never heard Yost that loudWhich is why the NCAA came out and said they would move games off campus. I live in Colorado and people to this day still bitch about Michigan's home ice advantage.