Bracketology: Feb. 26, 2008

[USCHO Newsbot]

There are still seven WCHA teams in the field, but this week Jayson Moy has a different set of problems in lining up the brackets.

Read more at uscho.com ... (http://www.uscho.com/news/id,15328/BracketologyFeb262008.html)

[kdilks]

Just one comment about what's listed on the side with the CCHA and Northern Michigan possibly becoming a TUC: Northern Michigan becoming a TUC wouldn't help Michigan that much at all. Michigan's current TUC winning percentage is exactly their winning percentage against Northern (75%), so it can't help them that much in that category. In the COP category, they would marginally gain on Michigan State and Notre Dame, but lose ground to Miami.

[drogio]

I'm sorry, but if the comitted uses this PWR by the book like the last few years it's going to be a travesty. How can someone in their right mind select an up and down Wisconsin team over a 12-2 Princeton team at this point?

Soon the anomoly that is Michigan Tech (5 games below .500!!) will drop out of this picture and hopefully a team like Union or Niagara will take their place in the top 25...M.Tech's presence in this picture is giving WCHA teams more wins in the TUC...while the lack of a Niagara and/or Union is not giving the East enough credit.

[First Time, Long Time]

I'm sorry, but if the comitted uses this PWR by the book like the last few years it's going to be a travesty. How can someone in their right mind select an up and down Wisconsin team over a 12-2 Princeton team at this point?

Soon the anomoly that is Michigan Tech (5 games below .500!!) will drop out of this picture and hopefully a team like Union or Niagara will take their place in the top 25...M.Tech's presence in this picture is giving WCHA teams more wins in the TUC...while the lack of a Niagara and/or Union is not giving the East enough credit.


It's not as though it's being done on purpose, it's a math formula and the numbers don't lie.

[jjarcham]

The reason Princeton is not in is because they do not play anyone good and when they do they lose. Example is their loss to Minnesota St. Have them schedule more games against the Hockey East, CCHA or the WCHA and then you can yap about their 12-2 record as of late. If you made a case for BU, a team that actually plays and wins against top teams, I would have no argument on that. It is all about the non-conference record for the league and the ECAC is one of the worst. That is your answer.

Sioux Fan

[craigmcg]

I'm sorry, but if the comitted uses this PWR by the book like the last few years it's going to be a travesty. How can someone in their right mind select an up and down Wisconsin team over a 12-2 Princeton team at this point?

Princeton has a great chance to move off the bubble this weekend in Potsdam : -)

[manurespreader]

To say Michigan Tech is an anomoly is misinformed and just ignorant.
They soundly beat number three at the time MSU, went double ot with michigan before losing, 1-0, beat number 1 at the time North Dakota, beat number 1 at the time CC. I don't think anyone in the east has done that.

And to claim Princeton is better than Wisconsin?! That's laughable. Princeton might be making wonderful strides toward being respectable, but they are not there yet.

[nbetweennownthen]

The fact that Wisconsin even would get into the tournament is a joke. The only .500 team that should EVER make it in is if somehow a CHA team that is gawd-awful wins their tournament. I understand the WCHA argument, but if that regional is in Grand Forks, Minneapolis, etc. and not Madison, there's not a chance UW gets in.

[GB Puck Fan]

The fact that Wisconsin even would get into the tournament is a joke. The only .500 team that should EVER make it in is if somehow a CHA team that is gawd-awful wins their tournament. I understand the WCHA argument, but if that regional is in Grand Forks, Minneapolis, etc. and not Madison, there's not a chance UW gets in.

They don't pick the host schools for the tournament automatically. If numbers work out that way, they get it. It's a numbers process - they don't pick teams to help attendance.

In fact, the last two times there were regionals in Wisconsin (Michigan Tech hosting in GB a few years ago and Wisconsin hosting at Madison in 99), the host school didn't make it either time.

So much for that theory.

[Happy]

I'm sorry, but if the comitted uses this PWR by the book like the last few years it's going to be a travesty. How can someone in their right mind select an up and down Wisconsin team over a 12-2 Princeton team at this point?

Soon the anomoly that is Michigan Tech (5 games below .500!!) will drop out of this picture and hopefully a team like Union or Niagara will take their place in the top 25...M.Tech's presence in this picture is giving WCHA teams more wins in the TUC...while the lack of a Niagara and/or Union is not giving the East enough credit.



Wisconsin would probably have a 13-1 record with Princeton's schedule, that's why.



It would be very interesting how the brackets are done, because the committee will once again do whatever it can to not let an all wcha FF happen.

[FadeToBlack&Gold]

Soon the anomoly that is Michigan Tech (5 games below .500!!) will drop out of this picture and hopefully a team like Union or Niagara will take their place in the top 25...M.Tech's presence in this picture is giving WCHA teams more wins in the TUC...while the lack of a Niagara and/or Union is not giving the East enough credit.

Anomaly, huh? Let's have Princeton play the fifth toughest schedule in the country instead of the 31st and see how well they do. :rolleyes:

So far, you guys have been blasted by Mankato and soundly swept by Notre Dame, neither of whom are set to finish at or near the top of their respective conferences.

[Freddie]

Wisconsin in firmly on the bubble. They're in now because the numbers say so, but if any of the big four tournaments are won by somebody outside the top 16, Wisconsin's tourney bid is toast. Bracketology is fun to play with, but it means nothing untill all the conference tournamants are done.

[kdilks]

It would be very interesting how the brackets are done, because the committee will once again do whatever it can to not let an all wcha FF happen.

Because the committee had so much to do with only 3 WCHA teams making the tournament last year.

Or the year before that, when HE's four teams were concentrated in two regionals just like the WCHA.

Or the year before that, when the 5 WCHA teams got put into all 4 regionals.

Technically in 2004 the distribution was 2-2-0-1, but I'm sure you would've complained about a WCHA team getting sent to the Northeast when they could've been playing closer to home.

Or the year before that, when again the 5 WCHA teams got put into all 4 regionals.

What exactly are you complaining about again?

[kdilks]

To say Michigan Tech is an anomoly is misinformed and just ignorant.
They soundly beat number three at the time MSU, went double ot with michigan before losing, 1-0, beat number 1 at the time North Dakota, beat number 1 at the time CC. I don't think anyone in the east has done that.

I think it would be also misinformed and ignorant to not point out that Michigan was down 4 players because of the WJC that game, and that Providence managed to beat MSU about as badly as Tech did that weekend.

[Prominnesotafan]

What pairwise rankings is correct? Jayson Moy or the one from the drop down under rankings? According to the drop down, Minnesota is 13th and Wisconsin is tied for 14th. That would put the Gophers in and Wisconsin out?;)

[manurespreader]

I think it would be also misinformed and ignorant to not point out that Michigan was down 4 players because of the WJC that game, and that Providence managed to beat MSU about as badly as Tech did that weekend.

Spoken like a true Wolverine fan.

[manurespreader]

What pairwise rankings is correct? Jayson Moy or the one from the drop down under rankings? According to the drop down, Minnesota is 13th and Wisconsin is tied for 14th. That would put the Gophers in and Wisconsin out?;)

It's not really important at the moment, things will change 5 times till the real one comes out, and both are on the bubble.(I think Moy is right as the drop down has one score wrong) Most likely Minnesota will be in, unless they lose in the WCHA playoffs. Wisconsin has a difficult schedule, Minnesota doesn't. But stating the obvious,any number of teams, if they get hot, could replace them both. That's why college hockey is so much fun.

[uwmark]

What pairwise rankings is correct? Jayson Moy or the one from the drop down under rankings? According to the drop down, Minnesota is 13th and Wisconsin is tied for 14th. That would put the Gophers in and Wisconsin out?;)

Pairwise has already changed. Neb-Omaha beat Minny St. Tuesday night which scrambled things a bit. There is ALOT of hockey to be played yet.

[Gibber]

If you made a case for BU, a team that actually plays and wins against top teams

For what its worth, BU has beaten ZERO teams that would currently make the NCAA tournament right now (0-3-1 vs. BC and 0-3-0 vs. UNH and 0-2-0 vs Michigan)

[FadeToBlack&Gold]

I think it would be also misinformed and ignorant to not point out that Michigan was down 4 players because of the WJC that game, and that Providence managed to beat MSU about as badly as Tech did that weekend.

Providence was a better team than the 6-0 loss to the Wolverines makes it seem. It was pretty clear that Sims had a bad game, plus Sauer played outstanding all weekend.

Regardless of how many players Michigan was down to the WJC, they still had more heralded players out on the ice than Tech did, and both teams executed their game plans extremely well. That game was a goaltending battle that ended with a fortunate bounce.

Even if you don't consider results, Tech has still played good teams for much of the year - CC, NoDak, Michigan, and Michigan State are all Top 10 teams, Duluth, Mankato, and Wisconsin are solid opponents as well, and Denver is coming into town this weekend. With our tough schedule and average talent level, it's no wonder we have the record that we do. Hence, why I challenge that Princeton's record probably wouldn't look as good if they could play our schedule instead of theirs.