The BTHC teams would beat up each other, but I think it'd make them better come tourney time.  The WCHA beats up each other, but playing so many big games should toughen them up, IMO.  And teams like Minnesota can still schedule annual nonconference games with rivals like North Dakota.  If they started out as a six team league, they could play a smaller league schedule and have more nonconference games.

I don't think Bowling Green is going anywhere.  Earlier this summer after all the rumors of their demise, they got $4 million for arena renovations ($2.5 million coming from the university) and were looking into a fundraising campaign to endow scholarships.  I don't think the university would shell out that kind dough if they were going to shut it down.

Mercyhurst would definitely be a better fit into the CCHA than UAH.  They've had success in the lower level leagues.  Getting a boost from 12 to 18 scholarships and give them some time and we'll see how they can do against better opponents.  I'm not expecting them to compete with the Miamis and Michigans, however they certainly have the potential to be more than bottom dwellers.  But the bigggest concern still remains to be their attendance and facilities.  Their last two home games drew 461 and 413 fans respectively.  That's not good no matter how you try to spin it.

As for the BTHC, it should be noted that the Lansing State Journal just had an article the other day talking about how next year will be the last year for the College Hockey Showcase.  Yes, you read that right, 2010 is the last year of the event.  According to MSU head coach Rick Comley, “Wisconsin did not want to extend the Showcase. They want to get Ohio State involved and they prefer a Big Ten Conference.”

Comley said he's not in favor of a Big Ten conference at this point and would rather reduce the number of CCHA games each season and face Minnesota and Wisconsin twice.

IIRC from the summer talks, Minnesota was strongly again the formation of a Big Ten league and Ohio State was in favor of it.  Michigan is unknown.

I think if you take Wisconsin and Minnesota out of the WCHA, you still have a strong conference.  Denver, Colorado College, North Dakota, and the rest of the Minnesota schools, it's still very competitive.

The CCHA would take a bigger hit with Miami and Notre Dame remaining as the big two and the rest of the league more traditional “middle of the pack” teams.  There's also the possibility that one of the potential scenarios of the summer talks plays out, which would start a BTHC and invite either Miami or Notre Dame to join as a sixth team (so they can get an auto bid).  I think if that happens, it'd be devastating for the CCHA.  No offense to the other teams in the league, but none of them have had the sustained success as the U-M, MSU, Miami, and Notre Dame, and removing three of the four top teams is huge.  There are teams I think have the potential to step up to fill the void, but whether or not they can do so on a national level would remain to be seen.

Don't forget there's also the potential for conference reshuffling, too.  Wisconsin AD Barry Alvarez was strongly in favor of regionalizing college hockey, so you could possibly put both Alaska schools in the WCHA and move a team over to the CCHA, etc… to balance things out.

I would still like the formation of a BTHC simply because it opens up the rest of the conferences for future expansion.  Some fans always talk about what college hockey can do to grow, but once you bring up a BTHC they freak out.  Well, right now all the conferences are pretty much at their maximum comfort level in number of teams, so it's kind of hard to grow the sport when it's totally stagnant because there's no room to grow.  Plus, a BTHC is strong enough to survive in the long run, unlike the CHA, which was iffy to begin with and is now folding.

Post edited 5:53 pm – November 26, 2009 by MHNet
Post edited 5:54 pm – November 26, 2009 by MHNet

Suppose I'll start a topic on this since new info came to light.

A few months ago it was revealed that there were high level talks over the summer regarding the formation of a Big Ten Hockey Conference.  While nothing came of it yet, there are still other issues going on.

One article that slipped through the cracks a few weeks ago was about Mercyhurst exploring the possibility of applying for the CCHA.  Here is the link.

According to the article, CCHA commissioner Tom Anastos said the league has no plans at the moment to add a 12th team for 2010-11.  However, beyond that is anyone's guess.

Mercyhurst athletic director Joe Kimball confirms they have had a few talks with CCHA officials doing exploratory work.

“Right now, this is just a thought,” Kimball said. “We're just thinking out loud and asking some questions and kind of sniffing around a little bit to see what the CCHA is all about.”

“We don't know if the CCHA wants to expand to 12 teams or if they want to stay at 11,” Kimball said.

“My job right now is to find out as much as I can about the league, and that's why I am waiting to have additional talks with Tom Anastos, so we can get a better idea of whether this would be a good move for us not only as a hockey program, but as a college.”

With Nebraska-Omaha departing the CCHA after this season, plus the uncertainty over a BTHC actually forming, the conference has options on what it wants to do moving forward.  Alabama-Huntsville was already denied this past offseason and it does not appear they will be joining in the future, probably due to their proximity to the rest of the conference.

I supported the CCHA's denial, much to the dismay of some fans, and still do.  In light of this, their fans started out this season chest thumping at those who didn't want them after beating Notre Dame then sweeping Air Force, however they have since gone on an eight game losing streak and are 3-9-0, and the past two seasons they've had five and six wins respectively.

Proximity and quality, I don't think they fit what the league is looking for.  Just because UNO is the same distance as UAH doesn't mean the CCHA should add them.  The CCHA expanding to UNO in the first place was taking a chance going outside the region and it seems now that UNO is departing they want to keep things within the region.  And if you recall from the BTHC discussion, Wisconsin athletic director Barry Alvarez said he was in strong favor of regionalizing college hockey and I'm sure these days with stricter budgets and higher costs, more teams are in favor of that, too, to keep expenses down.

However, Mercyhurst, located in Erie, PA, is just 270 miles from Ann Arbor, as opposed to Huntsville, which is approximately 650 miles.  Northern Michigan University, the furthest in-state opponent, is a 435 mile drive from Ann Arbor.  The Lakers are off to a rocky start this season at 4-9-1, but if you look at their team history, they have only had a losing record two times since joining Division I hockey in 2000-01 and have averaged close to 20 wins per season.  You might remember them most from nearly knocking Michigan out of the first round of the NCAA tournament in 2001.

One advantage for their team joining the CCHA is the ability to add more scholarship players.  According to the article, the Atlantic Hockey Association puts a cap on 12 scholarship players, so the league is at a bit of a disadvantage right off the bat.

The major issues that I think will potentially keep them out of the CCHA are their venue and attendance.  Their arena has a capacity of just 1,300 fans, and looking at a few box scores from last season, they averaged about 500 fans per game.  That just isn't going to cut it.

That aside, what are your thoughts of Mercyhurst possibly applying for the CCHA, and any other college hockey conference reshuffling or starting the BTHC?