ppudge

February 19th, 2018 at 7:51 AM ^

Great weekend and great news with the Pairwise. Assuming we sweep ASU, it gives us some breathing room in the Big Ten tourney. I imagine that if we win our first round series (after sweeping ASU) we’d definitely be in.

saveferris

February 19th, 2018 at 7:52 AM ^

On top of sweeping ASU this weekend, I think we also need to be pulling for Penn State to take one of two against the Gophers to ensure we lock up 3rd place in the Big Ten and home ice for the first round of the Big Ten tourney.

It will be nice to have playoff hockey return to Yost.

Pepto Bismol

February 19th, 2018 at 8:33 AM ^

The top 4 seeds get home ice. Michigan has already locked that up.  Well, 2, 3 & 4 anyway. ND gets a bye.

The remaining 6 teams play a 3-game series.  Those 3 winners + Notre Dame will play a single elimination final four.

saveferris

February 19th, 2018 at 9:20 AM ^

ND getting the 1st round bye was the part I was missing, thanks for the correction. 

Still, if we come in at 3rd, we'd wind up in the bottom half of the tourney, delaying a possible rematch with the Irish until the Finals.  Makes sense to pull for Penn State to take at least a point from Minnesota this weekend and lock us up that 3 seed.

stephenrjking

February 19th, 2018 at 12:02 PM ^

I hear what you're saying, but I've seen enough hockey to know that there are some matchups that just aren't good.

Besides, the odds for winning five games against one team don't matter. All that matter is the odds to win one game in Columbus.

Which, btw, should be three games, but whatever.

FWIW I have an entirely selfish reason for being ok with Minnesota jumping Michigan (they're not missing the tournament, they have a great RPI). The slight possibility that Michigan could wind up playing for a conference title in Minneapolis, which means an opportunity to watch in person. 

Though the way the team is playing I no longer consider the probability of them playing in my area in April to be non-zero. So if I have to wait till then, I'm cool with that.

Alton

February 19th, 2018 at 12:08 PM ^

If #3 and #4 beat #1 and #2 in the semis, I would much rather have that Big Ten Tournament Championship game in Yost than in Mariucci.

Oh, that could be an old-time Yost hockey playoff atmosphere--Minnesota at Michigan, one game for the conference tournament championship (and possibly a 2-seed in the NCAA Regionals on the line as well).

Alton

February 19th, 2018 at 12:11 PM ^

Sure, Ohio State could drop a best-of-three to Michigan State.  That would be great.  But that's not the way to bet.

Yes, there are advantages and disadvantages to each line in the bracket (except #1).  I think that Michigan's probability of winning the tournament might be a little better from the #4 line than the #3 line.  Not much, just a little.  Of course, there are scenarios (as I point out above) where the #3 line would be much, much better than the #4.

Indy Pete - Go Blue

February 19th, 2018 at 7:57 AM ^

This weekend was a reminder why we all cheer so hard for our Michigan Wolverines. To see them put it together and win these marquee games against rival teams is what makes it all so much fun. And also, it is incredible what a difference a coach can make. Red is a living legend, and kudos to him for seeing that it was time to pass the torch. Mel appears to be worth his weight in gold. I know that Warde does not get that much love around here, but he continues to retain our best coaches and bring in other great coaches. He had incredible success at Connecticut, and the Big Ten champion count in all of our sports must be as high as ever this year. We, indeed, are entering a renaissance of Michigan athletic excellence. Let’s enjoy it with gratitude and go blue!

Yo_Blue

February 19th, 2018 at 9:13 AM ^

Ideally, we end up in third.  OSU, the #2 seed loses to the #7 seed and we get another home series.  That's probably a stretch since OSU would need to lose a three game series to MSU in Columbus, but miracles can happen.

tlo2485

February 19th, 2018 at 10:52 AM ^

We still need to sweep ASU to stay safely in heading to the BTT. Depending on other results that would likely keep us at 11 or maybe even drop us a spot. Other comparable teams have better opportunities for quality wins. 

Without entering other teams results, a sweep moves us up to 9th.Win and tie keeps us at 11, Split drops us to 14. Add in other results and we sweep and we likely land at 11-12.

chatster

February 19th, 2018 at 12:27 PM ^

The season’s winding down with only four eastern teams ranked in the top 16 of the PairWise rankings – Cornell (tied at 2 with Notre Dame), Clarkson (7), Providence (tied at 8 with Minnesota and Minnesota-Duluth) and Northeastern. Allowing one spot in the NCAA’s for a team from Atlantic Hockey (their top team is Mercyhurst at 26). LINK
 
Unless there are a couple of eastern bid stealers by winning the Hockey East and ECAC tournaments, this year’s NCAA Tournament regionals in Worcester and Bridgeport might have some serious attendance issues.
 
On an unrelated note, a reminder that fans can vote for the 2018 Senior CLASS Award to be given at the Frozen Four, and Michigan’s Sam Piazza is among the ten finalists. LINK