2019 Frozen Four

[ARM]

Re: 2019 Frozen Four

I can't think of a single game where they just disappeared.

Senior Day, because Oden was the only one dressed and he didn't play any of the seniors on the fourth line plus.

[Still Eeyore]

Re: 2019 Frozen Four

Senior Day, because Oden was the only one dressed and he didn't play any of the seniors on the fourth line plus.

I was trying to forget that one.

[Timothy A]

Re: 2019 Frozen Four

With slow motion, I saw it just like you. Definitely the goalie's stick, then Shelton's shoulder, and just inside the post. Between that and the two earlier posts for Clarkson, it was Bucky's night. They were the better team all night, but they also got those bounce to make the final score slightly more slanted than it was.

MJ loves to talk about puck luck, they got some there.

Why was the ice so bad? Too warm outside? The benches on both sides of the rink is SO yuck. What real hockey rink has that?

I think the NC$$ should do what they do for baseball and just have the FF at the same location every year....Ridder. You know you will have great ice, modern locker rooms, big city amenities, and at least one of MN or UW there every year, so they will get butts in the seats. Eastern team don't attend well, that is a fact, so why shoot yourself in the foot? Would the place have been full if one of the matchups was BU/BC last night? The next 3 years are Agganis (BU or BC?), Erie Insurance Arena (guessing Mercyhurst? 8.5 hr drive from WI) and Pegula (10.5 hrs). I guess I won't be attending the frozen 4 anytime soon the nc$$ isn't interested in getting butts in the seats. At least the B7 has the rights for 1 more year, so it gets on cable.

[MAHOCKEY FAN]

Re: 2019 Frozen Four

MJ loves to talk about puck luck, they got some there.

Why was the ice so bad? Too warm outside? The benches on both sides of the rink is SO yuck. What real hockey rink has that?

I think the NC$$ should do what they do for baseball and just have the FF at the same location every year....Ridder. You know you will have great ice, modern locker rooms, big city amenities, and at least one of MN or UW there every year, so they will get butts in the seats. Eastern team don't attend well, that is a fact, so why shoot yourself in the foot? Would the place have been full if one of the matchups was BU/BC last night? The next 3 years are Agganis (BU or BC?), Erie Insurance Arena (guessing Mercyhurst? 8.5 hr drive from WI) and Pegula (10.5 hrs). I guess I won't be attending the frozen 4 anytime soon the nc$$ isn't interested in getting butts in the seats. At least the B7 has the rights for 1 more year, so it gets on cable.

Agganis is BU (but the girls play at Walter Brown!)

[Lindsay]

MJ loves to talk about puck luck, they got some there.

Why was the ice so bad? Too warm outside? The benches on both sides of the rink is SO yuck. What real hockey rink has that?

I think the NC$$ should do what they do for baseball and just have the FF at the same location every year....Ridder. You know you will have great ice, modern locker rooms, big city amenities, and at least one of MN or UW there every year, so they will get butts in the seats. Eastern team don't attend well, that is a fact, so why shoot yourself in the foot? Would the place have been full if one of the matchups was BU/BC last night? The next 3 years are Agganis (BU or BC?), Erie Insurance Arena (guessing Mercyhurst? 8.5 hr drive from WI) and Pegula (10.5 hrs). I guess I won't be attending the frozen 4 anytime soon the nc$$ isn't interested in getting butts in the seats. At least the B7 has the rights for 1 more year, so it gets on cable.

Ugh. I am seeing this argument so much. Ridiculous that only Minnesota should host the Frozen Four. Just incredibly elitist. Minnesota is already so spoiled with all they get to host... an NCAA quarter final and 2 NW games just last week.

Any city that applies, has a rink that meets the specs, should be considered. If you look at the stats for last night’s game it says 3200 people attended. Maybe that’s tickets sold, and not attended. Either way not a bad number.

[Still Eeyore]

Re: 2019 Frozen Four

Any city that applies, has a rink that meets the specs, should be considered. If you look at the stats for last night’s game it says 3200 people attended. Maybe that’s tickets sold, and not attended. Either way not a bad number.

If there were a third that many people at either game, I'd be surprised. And one of the upcoming sites, State College PA, is just really difficult to get to. The local airport is going to be overwhelmed by an event this size.

[thirdtime's . . .]

Re: 2019 Frozen Four

If there were a third that many people at either game, I'd be surprised. And one of the upcoming sites, State College PA, is just really difficult to get to. The local airport is going to be overwhelmed by an event this size.

Eastern elites turn out for crew . . . and occasionally bowling. And you’re right, the best way to find your way to State College is to have been born there. But Agganis is a fine rink, and you'll find the BC band a little less annoying, and even comical, holding their noses while playing on that end of Comm Ave.

[Lindsay]

And one of the upcoming sites, State College PA, is just really difficult to get to.

Really difficult to get to, for Minnesotans. I guess it’s all about perspective. Boston is expensive, Minnesota is cold, State College difficult to get to for some people, Erie is just right....and I await the day Ohio State finally builds a rink and hosts. Surely one day? That would also be fun.

Minnesota has definitely earned the right to host on a regular basis, but I like spreading it around, too.

[ARM]

Re: 2019 Frozen Four

Ridiculous that only Minnesota should host the Frozen Four. Just incredibly elitist.

I don't think that Minnesota (the program) wants to host every year. In the stretch from 2010 thru 2018, I think it was too much for Ridder to be the site four times. I'm sure that when they applied to host in those four-year blocks, they thought they might get one, but were instead awarded two. I think that AMSOIL in Duluth should stay in the rotation, but I'm not even sure that they will bid in the aftermath of Shannon Miller. For other Western destinations, Mankato could work, but I think the conclusion of most would be, "If we're going to do this, wouldn't it be easier to just stay in Minneapolis?" Bemidji has a perfect building for it, but it is difficult to travel there for most, and the locals didn't turn out to support the WCHA tourney when it was there, so I don't know if they would for a FF.

I think that the biggest reason why there were so many FFs in the West for a stretch was that Eastern locations didn't bid. That seems better now. I liked UNH a lot. Agganis was fine as a destination (even though someone's Lakers ruined that trip for me! ) It looks like Hamden will continue to be in the mix, but it would be nice if they could figure out the ice and get tickets into the hands of people who will attend. Who bought them? Scalpers? When I looked online a month or so ago, there were very few tickets available, but it doesn't seem to translate into people to watch two Midwest teams and two from upstate New York.

Even for Minnesota players, it is nice to have a variety of possible experiences to pursue, not just one or two sites. While playing on your home rink in a FF is special, it should be no more than a chance to do it once in a career. Maybe Wisconsin should bid to host somewhere like Milwaukee or Chicago. If the Badgers could host at Kohl Center, it would rock if the building was full, but they'd have to make it. Even 3,000 people in there to watch BC play Clarkson would feel like it was empty.

[FiveHoleFrenzy]

Re: 2019 Frozen Four

Minnesota has definitely earned the right to host on a regular basis, but I like spreading it around, too.

It should be spread around...It is just a disservice to those playing the games when the most important thing that the games depend on is substandard.

[pgb-ohio]

Re: 2019 Frozen Four

Why was the ice so bad? Too warm outside?

If the ice was really as bad as people are saying, then QU shouldn't host again until this is fully addressed. At the same time, if the culprit is the "need" for on-ice tournament logos, then this is another case of the NCAA needing to modify its hosting requirements. Good ice is so much more important than any marketing value gained by the logos.

The benches on both sides of the rink is SO yuck. What real hockey rink has that?

Can't share that emotion. Sure, it's irregular. But within reason, building quirks can be part of the fun.

Doesn't Cheel Arena at Clarkson have that set-up? That's a nice rink in my book. I'm struggling to recall from last week's webcast, but I think each team's penalty box was on the same side of the ice as their bench. If accurate, that really eliminates any inequity.

I think the NC$$ should do what they do for baseball and just have the FF at the same location every year....Ridder. You know you will have great ice, modern locker rooms, big city amenities, and at least one of MN or UW there every year, so they will get butts in the seats. Eastern team don't attend well, that is a fact, so why shoot yourself in the foot?

The Men's Tournament had a permanent site in the 1950's -- Colorado Springs. Now that's well before my time. But I can imagine that the teams thought it was pretty cool to go out to the U.S. Winter Olympics Training Site at the Broadmoor. But the problem with that is obvious. The location precluded a significant percentage of the fans from attending on any sort of regular basis. By the 1960's Men's Hockey figured out that rotating the site was more advantageous. Women's Hockey can learn from that history. No need to prove the point again.

Would the place have been full if one of the matchups was BU/BC last night? The next 3 years are Agganis (BU or BC?), Erie Insurance Arena (guessing Mercyhurst? 8.5 hr drive from WI) and Pegula (10.5 hrs). I guess I won't be attending the frozen 4 anytime soon the nc$$ isn't interested in getting butts in the seats.

Agreed, attendance matters. The track record on attendance is a factor that should be taken into account. But last time Mercyhurst hosted the tournament in Erie, attendance was perfectly fine. Don't know how BU or PSU will do, but I believe those locations are worth a try.

You can call 8.5 hours of driving a hardship if you want. I call it a day's drive.

I get that Madison to Boston is a very long haul. But any claim that Boston shouldn't get an opportunity to host a hockey tournament because of its "remote" location is just silly. If flying is an option, break down and splurge once every few years. If not, then it's just your turn to take a year off.

At least the B7 has the rights for 1 more year, so it gets on cable.

Strongly agree with this one. Really enjoy having the games on my regular TV. Hope that contract can be renewed.

Ugh. I am seeing this argument so much. Ridiculous that only Minnesota should host the Frozen Four. Just incredibly elitist. Minnesota is already so spoiled with all they get to host... an NCAA quarter final and 2 NW games just last week.

Any city that applies, has a rink that meets the specs, should be considered...

I suspect that this subject will be will be revisited at length in the off-season. If so, you can count on my support.

[joecct]

Re: 2019 Frozen Four

Potsdam could host. Now that would be a remote location.

[Still Eeyore]

Re: 2019 Frozen Four

Really difficult to get to, for Minnesotans.

State College is hard to get to from anywhere except a few CHA schools and Cornell/Colgate. It's a pain from Boston. Admittedly, the folks at Clarkson chose to go somewhere that's difficult to get to from anywhere, so that's on them. My sister is on the faculty at Penn State, and all of my trips to visit have been borderline disastrous. (There can't be an airport in the world that's worse to be stuck at for a 14 hour flight delay than State College, topped by then being bused to Philadelphia when they finally gave up on getting a plane there.)

[joecct]

Re: 2019 Frozen Four

Penn State is an easy 3.5 hr drive from me (and Vic).

Clarkson is an enjoyable 8.5 hr drive for me (and Vic).

Boston is a pain in the arse 7 hr drive from me (and Vic).

[Still Eeyore]

Re: 2019 Frozen Four

I liked UNH a lot.

The problem with Durham is that there was literally nowhere within walking distance of the arena that was still serving food when the Friday semifinals were over. (This deficiency was later confirmed for me by a non-hockey friend who is a UNH alum.) It was probably fine for those who were staying in Manchester and drove back after the games, but those of us who prefer to find a place within walking distance and avoid driving were just out of luck.