Re: Attendance
Especially understandable coming from an ND fan. In Hockey East, there was no fair way to do neutral site semis an finals, but that was more of an indication that Notre Dame wasn't a good fit in HE. I think everybody knew that, and the only reason Notre Dame was there was because of the rapid conference realignment. B1G is eminently logical for Notre Dame hockey.
But doesn't everybody use home ice for the opening rounds of the conference tournament? For Hockey East, I think the Garden is fine. Attendance was scattered, but larger than it would have been at some home rinks. And as a hockey junkie with no particular team attachment, I like the idea of being able to watch both semis if I want to. But HE (without Notre Dame) is pretty centered geographically. Be interested to hear from someone in the ECAC. They've seemed to cast around unsuccessfully for a neutral site.
Good point, and nice segue
Originally posted by WeAreNDHockey
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But doesn't everybody use home ice for the opening rounds of the conference tournament? For Hockey East, I think the Garden is fine. Attendance was scattered, but larger than it would have been at some home rinks. And as a hockey junkie with no particular team attachment, I like the idea of being able to watch both semis if I want to. But HE (without Notre Dame) is pretty centered geographically. Be interested to hear from someone in the ECAC. They've seemed to cast around unsuccessfully for a neutral site.
I see lots of upside to a home ice format for higher seeds in conference tournaments, and if it helps attendance at regionals by requiring less travel in the weeks preceding for some fans, that's a win-win.
Originally posted by WeAreNDHockey
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