Three Stars: January 14-20

3. Tess Weaver enjoying ice time at Penn State
(Daily American)

Oh hey, feature story on Tess Weaver to lead things off. I actually didn't know it existed until I went to assemble this post because it didn't get pushed through to my phone for some reason, so that was a nice surprise.

2. Ice Hockey Recap: Of Facepalms and Philadelphia
(Black Shoe Diaries)

One reason I love IcersGuy recaps: he always makes some connection that I miss. Here's the latest one:

What we learned from tonight is that Taylor Holstrom and Justin Kirchhevel like to play in the city of Brotherly Love. Both players tallied goals in the Winter Classic game against Neumann last season, and they would both light the lamp against Vermont in this game.

Didn't even think to check on that. Clearly, my mind has lost its keen edge. And clearly, TBS runs way too many Big Bang Theory commercials.

1. UAH Hockey Accepts Invite to Join WCHA
(uahchargers.com)

I normally reserve the top three slots for items directly connected to Penn State, but this is a worthy exception. Congratulations to all associated with Charger hockey on what is widely viewed as a program-saving outcome.

Worth mentioning: The PSU/Big Ten-triggered realignment still hasn't killed anyone. And it played a huge role in UAH's new lease. Chew on that, haters.

Best of the Rest

@e_scheid39 (1, 2)
(Twitter)

Know who my least favorite PSU recruit is? Eric Scheid.

Homophobic slurs? F reading and school? What a fine representative of our academic institution we've pulled. Someone inform this joke that he's not at Alaska-Anchorage anymore. We're better than this, period.

NCAA rules overhaul alters recruiting picture for college hockey coaches
(USCHO)

While not necessarily something that drastically affects the lives of you and I, for those charged with recruiting college hockey players, life has gotten a little easier. The NCAA has removed some recruiting restrictions, notably ones related to methods of communication and the number of coaches on the road at one time.

The changes come as part of a drive toward “reducing the volume of unenforceable and inconsequential rules that fail to support the NCAA’s enduring values,” according to the proposals.

College Hockey News also observed that the rules will be more restrictive in at least one way, as coaches are now prevented from scouting opponents in person unless their team is participating in the same event.

Why would "Rocky" not go to the school that offers the best chance for games in Philly?

Hard knocks pay off for Joe Gambardella in United States Hockey League
(silive.com)

Falls product Muto to attend NU
(Niagara Gazette)

Sticking with a recruiting theme, here are a couple who got away. One is Joe Gambardella, a teammate of PSU signee Zach Saar. He's headed to Lowell, which is really unfortunate, because...

Take the week after Christmas, when Gambardella, the leading scorer for the United States Hockey League's Des Moines Buccaneers, was hit in the face with a deflected puck. The disc struck him under his half-shield, broke his left cheek, sinus and orbital bones and caused a deep cut that required 22 stitches. After getting sewn back together, Gambardella went back out and finished the game.

"The way I like to look at it is, it's like a 'Rocky' story," Gambardella said of his rise in hockey world. He waited a beat, and delivered the punch line.

"And now," he cracked, "I look like Rocky."

The other is Jared Muto, who plays for Sioux Falls in the USHL and claimed a PSU offer but will attend Niagara.

“Location was a big thing for me,” Muto said. “I’ve been doing the whole traveling, dorming thing in the USHL, so I’m looking forward to moving back home. … My dad’s side of the family has never seen me play. We’re all really excited that I’m coming back.”

Never went to an Icers game.

As athletics boosters' bucks roll in, questions arise
(Philadelphia Inquirer)

An interesting both-sides-of-the-coin look at huge-money college athletics boosters, including T. Boone Pickens, Phil Knight, Kevin Plank and our very own Terry Pegula. Well, it's probably interesting, it lost me with the lede...

Just 28 months ago, ice hockey was a successful but obscure club sport at Penn State. Its players shared ice time with broomball teams and its arena held slightly more than 1,000 fans, which hardly mattered since few ever came to hockey games.

Frank Fitzpatrick: No Frank Seravalli, that's for sure.

Penn State Hockey Gear
(PSU Sports Blog by Lions Pride)

Penn State hockey gear? Penn State hockey gear.

Into the woods: After getting lost, I built a cabin
(Broad Street Hockey)

Finally, shoutout to Geoffrey Detweiler of BSH, who is hanging up his Ctrl key and retiring from doing the site's link posts. His reasons are well respected in this corner, especially in the midst of all the #HockeyIsBack ridiculousness (hockey never left, the NHL did), and worth a read.

Why am I linking it? Because BSH is literally the number three source of all-time pageviews for this site, due mostly to Detweiler. Thanks bud. And try not to go too crazy keeping up with the perpetual circus that is Chelsea FC.

Three Stars: October 3-9

3. Women's game a perfect fit for PSU's Brandwene
(Pennsylvania Puck)

I think one key thing that distinguishes a good women's coach from a great one is this: the great ones consider themselves of the women's game, even though all (of the male ones) started in the men's game. They're not simply men's coaches who need a paycheck and are doing time until something "better" opens up - coaching women is who they are and what they do. Guess which one Josh Brandwene is.

“As my coaching style changed and evolved over what’s now 20 years as a head coach, I discovered (the women’s game) was an exact match for who I am as a person and a coach now. It was just a great fit.

“It was natural as far as who I am as a person and as a communicator. It just worked. It’s a hard thing to quantify, but it was absolutely the right fit for me and that has sort of helped serve as a springboard to where I am and why I’m such a really good fit for the institution here and for coaching the women’s program here.”

2. Design committee looking into designs for Pegula Ice Arena
(The Daily Collegian)

The brass visited the shiny new Compton Family Ice Arena at Notre Dame to get some inspiration for possible tweaks to the Pegula Ice Arena design. But one interesting story here: someone finally asked a very obvious question, concerning the fate of the Ice Pavilion.

“There’s lots of different ideas about turning [the Ice Pavilion] into everything from a high-performance training area that would be kind of a joint venture between athletics and kinesiology and making it into recreational space,” [Joe] Battista said. “There is always the option of keeping it as an indoor roller hockey, indoor soccer facility.”

The decision on what to do with the Ice Pavilion will be up to Penn State Director of Athletics Tim Curley and Mark Bodenschatz, the associate athletic director for facilities and operations, Battista said.

Do the second one, the roller hockey, indoor soccer thing. Please.

1. Sneak Peek: Pegula Ice Arena
(Onward State)

Eric Weiss from Onward State has ambitiously put together all of the known renderings of Pegula Ice Arena. While there's nothing there unseen to devoted TYT readers (note his source), it has the added advantage of analysis by someone who actually knows something about architecture - like, say, an architecture major from PSU's outstanding program.

Best of the Rest

M2: Penn State 5, Lindenwood (M1) 7
(Thank You Terry)

Yes, I just linked myself.

But more importantly, I linked the Ice Lions who, at 5-2-0, really seem to have a new spirit about them under Josh Hand's direction. New website, new effort at media relations, new UStream channel with game broadcasts, and hey, the product on the ice isn't too shabby either - as mighty Lindenwood can now attest.

Sandwiching that effort at the D2 showcase this past weekend was a 3-2 overtime win over DePaul on Friday and a disappointing 6-5 loss to SIU-Edwardsville on Sunday in a possible letdown situation. Still, this has the look of a program ready to take the next step after barely missing nationals last year. They'll keep after that goal next weekend with engagements at Monmouth (October 21), at Rider (October 22) and at St. Joseph's (October 23).

@Billy_Downey
(TwitPic)

Did the Icers have to shower after the Lebanon Valley College game before heading up to Paternoville?

Mercyhurst 'looking to start again' after offseason losses
(USCHO)

I shouldn't enjoy Rick Gotkin's continued shock over losing Taylor Holstrom and Nate Jensen to Penn State as much as I do. But it probably means that we got a couple pretty good players.

2013 regional sites announced
(ncaa.com)

East: Providence, RI; Northeast: Manchester, NH; Midwest: Toledo, OH; West: Grand Rapids, MI. Book your hotels now. Actually, don't, we won't be playing there (unless you want to go and represent PSU regardless, of course). But we could play in the NCAA tournament - in theoretical land, anyway - and that's pretty exciting in and of itself.

The Frozen Four for the first PSU varsity season was previously announced in favor of Pittsburgh, PA and the Consol Energy Center.

10 Questions: Hockey Coach Guy Gadowsky
(Onward State)

It's a little frustrating when those who cover hockey on a part-time basis score a big interview...then ask the same questions everyone else asks. I swear I've read each of those answers about 30 times from different outlets. Granted, I'm not typical in that department. And please don't take this as me complaining about attention. There ain't no bad publicity.

@ShawneyJ
(Twitter)

Part of my routine involves searching for "Penn State hockey" on Twitter (thanks to the legendary Teddy Hume for that advice). Most of the time, I learn nothing except what's going on with the PSU field hockey team. But sometimes, I see Icers getting shouted out by Olympic gold medal gymnasts. Well done boys.

@MattBHeck
(Twitter)

Then again, once in a while, I find something like this. Not unexpectedly, Mr. Heck is a North Dakota loyalist - more or less the one school that hasn't been all "hey, welcome to the club" and seems to hate us for some unexplained reason.

BGSU Hockey To Join WCHA Beginning In 2013-14

(bgsufalcons.com)

Notre Dame Hockey Program To Join Hockey East Beginning In 2013-14

(und.com)

Are we finally close to the end of all of this? Bowling Green dropped the idea of starting their own conference with some Atlantic Hockey schools and Buffalo and has accepted their standing WCHA invitation. Notre Dame has officially announced for Hockey East. So, in 2013, we have...

Big Ten (6): Penn State, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Ohio State, Wisconsin.

NCHC (8): Colorado College, Denver, Miami, Minnesota-Duluth, Nebraska-Omaha, North Dakota, St. Cloud State, Western Michigan.

Hockey East (11): Boston College, Boston University, Maine, Massachusetts, Massachusetts-Lowell, Merrimack, New Hampshire, Northeastern, Notre Dame, Providence, Vermont.

WCHA (9): Alaska, Alaska-Anchorage, Bemidji State, Bowling Green, Ferris State, Lake Superior State, Michigan Tech, Minnesota State, Northern Michigan.

ECAC (12): Brown, Clarkson, Colgate, Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, Princeton, Quinnipiac, RPI, St. Lawrence, Union, Yale.

Atlantic Hockey (12): Air Force, American International, Army, Bentley, Canisius, Connecticut, Holy Cross, Mercyhurst, Niagara, Robert Morris, RIT, Sacred Heart.

Still completely screwed (1): Alabama-Huntsville.

X-Factors (2): Buffalo, Minnesota State-Moorhead

There's a pretty logical conclusion to all of this (which of course means it will play out some other way). Hockey East poaches from the ECAC (many think RPI) to get to 12. The ECAC then hits Atlantic Hockey (many think RIT) to get back to 12 themselves. Atlantic Hockey and the WCHA get stuck with odd numbers as the two weakest conferences. But that's not entirely a bad thing, because it leaves the door open for the two x-factors to grab an open slot in those conferences. Unless UAH gets an invite to one, which unfortunately doesn't seem all that likely.

What's Next for College Hockey?
(College Hockey News)

At the risk of linking something redundant with what I just said, this one had to go in for its mention of...wait for it...Rhode Island (!) as a potential Hockey East team (they admit it's not a realistic scenario, but still).

How Notre Dame Won Realignment
(The United States of Hockey)

Of course, Notre Dame joining Hockey East ended up as almost secondary news at its own press conference to this: NBC Sports will be broadcasting ND home games starting in 2013. That's how the Irish are declared winners here, a conclusion with which I don't fully agree, in part because I think the Big Ten Network's digital platform (which, if it's anything like basketball, will include all member teams' games not on TV...even the away ones) is being sold short. NBC Sports will undoubtedly develop that end of things in time, but they haven't as of yet. Notre Dame won big without a doubt. But I think the Big Ten schools won just as big.

Really though, I think we need to go a couple years deep before we can accurately identify winners and losers. The NCHC looks pretty bad at the moment, but they may come off as geniuses if Notre Dame's better-than-everyone-else-in-the-conference deal ends up being a giant wedge, a la Texas and the Big 12 in those other college sports. The luster will come off of the golden dome pretty quickly if nobody watches (a legitimate question to ask: is Notre Dame or Notre Dame football the true "national brand?"). However, until the NCHC produces their own major TV deal, they'll have to answer the following question: what, exactly, was the point of your conference?

CHA moves forward despite step back
(USCHO)

Speaking of conference realignment, here's a nice look at our women's conference - including where it's been, where it is now, and where it might be going in the future.

Three Stars: August 29-September 4

3. Penn State Women's Ice Hockey - Gina Kearns Interview
(YouTube)

My first offseason of doing this blog wasn't really worthy of the dread I felt in approaching it. Conference realignment, recruiting and a general overreaction to the smallest, most inconseqential detail kept me pretty occupied. Until this week, which was a pretty decent facsimilie of what I had feared.

So, in addition to this post being shorter than usual, I decided to go a little unconventional and give all three slots to the GoPSUSports interviews with the women's coaching staff. First up is Kearns, a particularly savvy hire in light of the fact that she's been there before, as a player on Boston University's first women's team.

2. Penn State Women's Ice Hockey - Mo Stroemel Interview
(YouTube)

Stroemel is truly one of the unsung heroes in Penn State hockey, so it's pretty satisfying to watch him get a short song (haha get it?) as he talks a little about where he's been recruiting, the changes going from club to varsity and what this all means to him personally.

1. Penn State Women's Ice Hockey - Josh Brandwene Interview
(YouTube)

Brandwene is a lot like Guy Gadowsky in that you can't listen to him talk without being excited about the program he coaches. One thing that crossed my mind while watching this: was he considered for the Icers job when Joe Battista stepped aside? That would've thrown quite a wrench into the course of history, like if Marty McFly bagged his mom.

Best of the Rest

Family Time
(View From the Booth)

Steve Penstone chronicles a golf trip to Ireland and Scotland by several former Icers (including current Icer Rich O'Brien's father Rick). Someday I'll get to the bottom of hockey's inextricable connection with golf.

Letter From Coach Hand
(psuicelions.com)

The ACHA Division 2 Ice Lions finally have a website worthy of the program, and Josh Hand helps to introduce it with a little bit of a personal mission statement. Especially when considering the possibility of familar faces on the roster, the Ice Lions will be getting a boost in recognition from this corner this season.

Cataruzolo Joins Harvard as Director of Hockey Operations
(ecachockey.com)

Bill Downey's replacement carries a nice track record from his time at NCAA Division III Trinity College.

[David] Cataruzolo guided Trinity to a high level of success over 14 years, including the last four as head coach. He led the Bantams to a 58-39-8 overall record, four consecutive postseason bids and an NCAA Division III quarterfinal appearance in 2008. Prior to taking over as head coach, he served six seasons as associate head coach and three more as recruiting coordinator and graduate fellow.

Since joining the men’s hockey staff in 1998, Cataruzolo helped Trinity qualify for 11 consecutive New England Small College Athletic Conference Tournaments, two league titles, three trips to the NCAA Division III tournament and an NCAA semifinal appearance in 2005. Three Trinity players were named to the American Hockey Coaches Association Division III All-America team in Cataruzolo’s final six years in Hartford.

NHL watches as colleges wage war with Canadian junior hockey
(The Sporting News)

The latest "best piece ever written on the NCAA-CHL war" takes a particular focus on the allegations of under-the-table payments to potential major junior prospects using the NHL's money.

New blog title under consideration: "Skip Prince is a Boss."

An Open Letter From the USHL
(The Pipeline Show)

Count USHL President/Commissioner Skip Prince among those who is tired of taking shots from up north and elected to give a few back. This one's a must-read, no excuses, and I don't say that very often.

Linkorama
(Western College Hockey Blog)

Chris Dilks at WCHB does the same sort of link dump post that I'm doing right now, except his is way better and more focused. For this one, he gathered all the principals in the NCAA/USHL/CHL battle royale this week, in case you're interested in more reading on the issue.

WCHA is sport's 'caretaker'
(PucKato)

Minnesota State writer Shane Frederick observes that even though the conference realignment is, for the most part, settled, some vital questions are still hanging out there.

Three Stars: August 22-28

3. Cerutti injured during first Icers practice
(The Daily Collegian)

It's pretty exciting to have updates on the Icers again, as opposed to the standard summer fare of recruiting and conference realignment. Well, unless it's someone tweaking their MCL.

Cerutti's situation is complicated by the fact that he's probably a week away from taking the ice and two more away from contract - and tryouts are this week. What, exactly, does that mean? While Guy Gadowsky has said that everyone's starting from zero with him, I don't believe for a second that the plug will be pulled on the leading returning goal scorer because of an injury.

2. Goalie Excited for New Journey
(Lions 247)

If you rely on Twitter for your news, you probably missed this one, since it came out right in the middle of last Tuesday's earthquake. Which is a shame, because this one deserved more spotlight based on P.J. Musico's commitment story alone.

“I got a call around 10:00 Pacific time [from Guy Gadowsky], so it was pretty late over on the east coast,” said Musico.

After speaking with the Penn State head man over the past few weeks, Gadowsky cut right to the chase on that particular night, leading to this exchange between the two.

“So do you want to do this?” asked Gadowsky.

“What?”

“Do you want to play for Penn State?”

“Absolutely!”

The netminder continued to speak with Gadowsky for a bit longer, and when they finished the call Musico was a bit taken aback.

“When I got off the phone I just looked at one of my friends and said to him, ‘I think I just committed.’” Musico joked. “Its almost like I blacked out because I was so excited.”

1. Penn State Icers Hockey Season Ticket Application
(Penn State Hockey)

Get to it.

Best of the Rest

Former Cobber Named Assistant Hockey Coach at Penn State
(cobbersportsinformation.areavoices.com)

Josh Hand's alma mater tosses out some recognition...wait, "Cobbers?"

Source: Winter Classic announcement delayed
(CSNPhilly.com)

...which is sort of a problem when you're trying to take advantage of the situation by playing Neumann University at Citizens Bank Park. Figure it out, guys.

The Dunk is wooing collegiate tourneys
(Providence Journal)

The Dunkin Donuts Center, home to the AHL's Providence Bruins (but not the Providence College pucksters) is bidding for the 2014 season-opening Ice Breaker tournament, and...

[Rhode Island Convention Center chairman Jim] Bennett said that if the Ice Breaker is awarded to The Dunk, other schools under consideration besides host PC will be Boston University, Wisconsin, Notre Dame, Penn State and Michigan, where Bennett’s son, Mac, will be a sophomore defenseman this season.

Bennett went on to add that BU would definitely join PC as a participant, and as mentioned, he has a connection with Michigan. Notre Dame and Wisconsin wouldn't be in their third season as an NCAA program. So yeah, PSU might be a longshot for one of the last two spots, but here's hoping. I've said before that I think we'd be well-served by maintaining a strong eastern presence, and this is one way to do it.

Penn State coaches make headlines
(The Daily Collegian)

In a summer review of PSU's coaching changes, Josh Brandwene got a few words.

Brandwene, a former Penn State Icer, was announced as the first head coach of the Penn State women’s ice hockey team on June 1. With strong ties to Penn State, Brandwene is ready to get to work building the program.

“This is just so the right fit for me in every way,” Brandwene said in June. “I’m thrilled to be here, I’m looking forward to the challenge."

Maine lands another recruit
(Maine Hockey Journal)

One thing that's kind of nice about college hockey recruiting: unless you're ridiculously plugged in, you generally don't know about the ones you lose until after the fact. This would be one example of that. Canadian center (or centre to him) B.J. Salerno is Maine-bound in 2013 or 2014, spurning Penn State, along with North Dakota and Bowling Green.

Mike Sisti picked up a new neighbor behind the bench this week.

MacKenzie resigns at NU
(Niagara Gazette)

Collins hired as new Mercyhurst women’s assistant
(USCHO)

A pair of coaching moves in College Hockey America this week - former Canadian National Team member Delaney Collins joins Mike Sisti's staff, while Chris MacKenzie has resigned at Niagara, leaving Josh Sciba to serve as interim coach. The extra spot on the Lakers' coaching staff was created when former assistant Paul Colontino left in June to become the head coach at Robert Morris, yet another CHA team.

Remaining CCHA teams will move to WCHA
(College Hockey News)

The "leftover" CCHA and WCHA schools met for a second time this week, and in short order the remaining CCHA schools (other than Notre Dame, which is a "remaining CCHA school" in name only) were invited to join the WCHA. Alaska, Lake Superior State and Ferris State have already accepted, while Bowling Green and Western Michigan are keeping their options open for the time being.

I'll save the full editorial for some other time, but I think it's now pretty fair to call the conference shakeup a horrible development if you're a small school, in spite of all the tired rhetoric from those external to the problem (particularly in the Big Ten and NCHC). Their drumbeat of "there will be more NCAA bids for small schools" kind of blew up on them with this news, so now they're latching on to things like "the Upper Peninsula schools are back together." Please. Anyone familiar with college football and basketball can see what's coming. Hockey's been (mostly) immune to it without big television money, but with the entry of Big Ten Network, NBC Sports, etc. class stratification is coming. This season, there will be 45 programs that can call themselves "major conference." In 2013, that number will be between 35 and 37. And the gaps within that 35-37 will be larger as well.

Bottom line, here's what we're looking at in 2013-2014 right now.

Big Ten: Penn State, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Ohio State, Wisconsin.
NCHC: Colorado College, Denver, Minnesota-Duluth, Nebraska-Omaha, North Dakota, Miami.
WCHA: Alaska, Alaska-Anchorage, Bemidji State, Ferris State, Lake Superior State, Michigan Tech, Minnesota State, Northern Michigan, St. Cloud State.
Free Agents: Alabama-Huntsville, Bowling Green, Notre Dame, Western Michigan.
Atlantic Hockey, ECAC, Hockey East: Status quo. Try harder if you need me to list all of them.

Notre Dame will choose between the NCHC and Hockey East at some point hopefully soon. BG's and WMU's directions depend largely on the Irish. UAH...well, let's not talk about that.

Quick bonus link. In an interview, Bowling Green AD Greg Christopher and coach Chris Bergeron had some pointed comments related to how this whole situation played out.

Bergeron:

"My reaction today is, 'It is what it is.' College hockey is a small world, and I think it has been fractured. College hockey has prided itself on its personal relationships, and I think they have been affected. Make no mistake about this: At a time where adding a team might add to college hockey, adding a team [Penn State] has fractured us to the core. It is a tight-knit group, and I think there has been some damage done to that."

Christopher:

"I think history will tell us if there has been any damage. Some people [in the sport] have been great and have been above-board, and other have been a little disingenuous, and that's as far as I will go with that."

NCHC headquarters to be housed in Colorado Springs
(fightingsioux.com)

Stunningly, it's not in Grand Forks, ND.

"I Like Pegula" Tee
(store716.com)

Sabres fans are crazy, in a good way. Has there ever been a t-shirt honoring a sports franchise owner (strictly in an ownership role...Mario Lemieux the player doesn't count)? Well, Buffalo can give you about 100 of them, including this one, which also conveniently matches PSU's color scheme.

Three Stars: August 1-7

3. Hey Hockey Valley, Get Ready to 'Roar into the Future!'
(statecollege.com)

Joe Battista gets his pump on with glowing words about Guy Gadowsky, Josh Brandwene, the four assistants on their respective staffs, Bill Downey, the new men's hockey SID and pretty much anyone else he could fit into a column of reasonable length. He's thrilled to get to the future, and why shouldn't he be with the people we have around both programs?

Clearly though, Battista's not an avid reader. If this blog leaves one lasting contribution to Penn State hockey, let it be the torpedoing of the 1946 myth.

One more thing: here's a challenge. Find someone saying something bad about Gadowsky on the internet. I bet you can't, and that says a lot in this day and age. My Google Alert (which sends Google hits to my email and has certainly helped with a post or two) reads "Guy Gadowsky," not "Guy Gadowsky + rad + bodacious" and I have yet to see anything.

My, how things have changed since the early 90s.

The closest thing has been a Twitter argument where the other side believed Mark Johnson would've been a better hire. And it's not like the other side said anything bad about Gadowsky, so...doesn't count.

2. Q&A: Men's hockey coach ready to start // Hockey gift endows goaltender, names coach's office // Former Icer Brandwene picked to lead women's ice hockey
(Nittany Lion Club Newsletter)

Admittedly, I didn't get around to reading the summer issue of the NLC Newsletter until this week, so it came as a little bit of a shock when I found three topical articles contained within. They probably don't include much you haven't read before (particularly the last two, on the John and Karen Davis donation and the Josh Brandwene hire, which borrow heavily from the original press releases), but hey, let me know if you find something that covers tons of new ground in August.

1. 2011 season preview: Looking at the CHA (Part 1 of 2)
(examiner.com)

Part 2 was promised "tomorrow," and "tomorrow" was last Wednesday, so you'll just have to survive on Part 1 for now. Anyway, get to know (half of) our future women's conference a year earlier than you need to. You'll thank me later. And actually, it may come in handy before the 2012-2013 season, since the Lady Icers open this season's ambitious schedule September 23rd at Robert Morris.

Best of the Rest

Well-rounded forward chooses PSU
(Lions 247)

Your money quote, from subject of the article Kenny Brooks:

“At first we’re all going to be young guys, so we all are going to have to work hard. But by the time I leave, I expect us to be competing with all of the top schools in the Big Ten and nationally as well. Hopefully we will be from the start, you can never really tell, and with the great coaching staff in place you never know what they can do.”

Winter Classic week full of possibilities
(Camden Courier-Post)

Fresh non-committal words concerning the in-negotiation outdoor game January 4th against NCAA Division III Neumann University, summarized nicely by:

Flyers president Peter Luukko, the driving force behind Philadelphia's bid for the Winter Classic, confirmed Tuesday night that games featuring the American Hockey League's Adirondack Phantoms and Penn State University men's hockey team are in the works.

"Those are both very good possibilities,' " Luukko said, adding, "There is a cost associated with keeping (the rink) up a couple days."

I'm equally excited for the idea of Holland Oates performing at the Winter Classic. As long as Peter Gabriel is there too (It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia reference).

Compton Family Ice Arena
(und.com)

Notre Dame's page containing all things related to their in-progress facility. Including a live look at the construction. Not bad, guys.

Huskies add to coaching staff
(St. Cloud Times)

Another week, another unemployed former Head Coach Candidate finds work. This time, it's former Wayne State women's boss Jim Fetter, who rudely had his program cancelled out from under him in May.

CCHA, WCHA talk merger
(Bowling Green Sentinel-Tribune)

Remember that thing everyone assumed wouldn't happen? Yeah, well it might.

Even with this news, it's still pretty easy to see the finish line:

• Notre Dame will pick a conference - most likely the NCHC or Hockey East - by August 15th (reinforced in the article). Western Michigan will beg to be allowed to join, citing the Andy Murray hire and undoubtedly a Powerpoint presentation.
• The CCHA and WCHA schools not locked into the Big Ten, the NCHC or wherever ND and WMU go will merge into one conference.
• Or they won't. The WCHA, which has already poached Northern Michigan from the CCHA and is eyeing Alaska as well, would be good to go with at least six teams, possibly adding potential new program Minnesota State-Moorhead later, should MSUM get paid.
• The CCHA would need to add the Four for 18 club (Mercyhurst, Canisius, Niagara, Robert Morris) from Atlantic Hockey to survive without a merger. Yeah, I just made that up. Fear me.
• In non-merger scenario, AHA would still have eight teams and wouldn't need to do anything.
• Alabama-Huntsville remains completely screwed.

Versus Nears Deal to Televise College Hockey
(College Hockey News)

Apparently, Western Michigan is the only entity waiting on Notre Dame.

The Versus package will not be a national deal, per se. It was not negotiated with College Hockey Inc. or the Hockey Commissioners Association. That is impossible given all of the deals conferences have separate Regional Sports Networks (RSNs) and teams have with other local channels.

But Versus is intending to reach agreement with all five current Division I leagues to air games on Friday or Saturday nights. Some of those deals have already been finalized. Versus is expected to make an announcement of its broadcast package once all of the deals have been completed.

Oh Pegula
(sabrenoise.com)

Yes, someone really wrote a poem about Terry Pegula. I didn't make it very far before I got embarrassed for the guy (the author, not Pegula) and stopped.

Who's the loser in the middle not wearing a cartoon animal costume?

Rescheduling of 'Furry' convention in Pittsburgh points to Penguins hosting 2012 NHL Draft
(The Hockey News)

THN's Ryan Kennedy observed that the rescheduling of an event at Pittsburgh's convention center might mean that the 2012 NHL Entry Draft is coming to the Consol Energy Center. As exciting as the idea of the first Penn State draft pick possibly hearing his name called in Pennsylvania is, for now the more interesting story is what was moved.

The city required the use of its convention center, which had already been booked for June 21 to 24 by Anthrocon, an annual gathering of Furries.

"Furries?"

Anthrocon...is for people who enjoy dressing up in mascot-style costumes, emulating animals.

Oh, okay. Well, at least Anthrocon was bumped up instead of back. So your teddy bear collection is presumably safe from overanxious plushophiles (not that far of a reach, people).

2011 Junior Evaluation Camp Central
(usahockey.com)

I'm not going to go huge on the World Junior Championships until actual Penn Staters are involved. For now, the essential knowledge is that 28 current or committed college players are presently among the 44 total at the USA Hockey Junior Evaluation Camp as they attempt to make the USA U20 team for the 2012 WJC tournament - held December 26, 2011 through January 5, 2012. The Big Ten is represented by Jon Merrill (Michigan), Nick Bjugstad and Justin Holl (Minnesota) and Mike Mersch (Wisconsin). Also of note: PSU coaching finalist Scott Sandelin is an assistant on the WJC team. Follow along with the camp and related exhibition games (all of which runs through the 13th) at the link.

Three Stars: July 18-24

3. College Township looks at traffic impact of planned Penn State ice arena
(Centre Daily Times)

You know that fun part of arena planning that involves sketches and imagination? This is the opposite of that. A traffic impact study for the Pegula Ice Arena is underway, and the College Township Planning Commission will discuss it on August 16th, after it's completed. But just as a heads up, there might be new turning lanes in the area of the arena.

2. Lions Add 2013 Defenseman
(Lions 247)

The Whalers fan in me desperately wants to find a way to drop "Varley Valapski" in a post somehow. Guess I just did.

1. @tommyolczyk
(Twitter)

BRIERE!

TSA agent just mistook me for Danny Briere. #shouldhavegonewithit #compliment #thanks #iwish.

Other than changing things up from the usual "recruiting, recruiting, other" pattern, I wanted to use this occasion to point out how much the new players have elevated Penn State hockey's tweet game. Olczyk, Steve Edgeworth, P.J. Musico and Josh Daley in particular are clutch follows. Thanks, gentlemen. #beauties

Best of the Rest

Lions Add Some Fire Power
(Fight On State)

Did I give FOS a demotion for their apparent unawareness of Jonathan Milley until last week's Lions 247 piece? Nah, I just didn't want to put a picture of him at the top two weeks in a row. Beyond that, newer recruits get tiebreaker advantages.

An early glimpse at incoming freshman commit Zach Hyman
(The Michigan Daily)

This isn't included as a what-might-have-been as much as for its insight into Guy Gadowsky's recruiting methods.

Former Princeton hockey coach Guy Gadowsky told Zach Hyman to go be "The Man."

At the young age of 15, Hyman committed to play for Gadowsky and the Tigers. With already two years of experience in the Ontario Junior Hockey League, that still wasn’t enough for the college stage — Gadowsky wanted Hyman to play one more year in the OJHL.

According to Gadowsky, once Hyman became "The Man" in the OJHL, he’d learn what it felt like to be the best and translate that feeling into being an impact player as a Princeton Tiger during his freshman campaign.

Hyman, of course, did as Gadowsky asked and was heavily criticized for playing beneath his abilities. Then he decommitted from Princeton when Gadowsky left, ending up at Michigan.

As we've figured out by now, Gadowsky likes players who have proven to be "the man," even if it means staying in junior a year past the comfort zone of most. Winning players bring a winning culture with them - and it worked at former doormat Princeton, so why not at new program Penn State?

...then it got a lot less tough. Then it got a little tougher, but not as tough as it was originally.

Northern Michigan to Rejoin WCHA Family
(WCHA.com)

Your conference alignment segment of this week's post begins with another conference that's official and effective for 2013-2014. As of that season, the dub is now up to a membership of Alaska-Anchorage, Bemidji State, Michigan Tech, Minnesota State, NMU and St. Cloud State.

Huskies are left with only questions
(St. Cloud Times)

Kurtz led PSU from 1974-76.

I feel like St. Cloud State is one of the big losers of the conference shifting - a competitive program in a top conference that's now in the hockey equivalent of the MAC. They might end up needing an autobid to make the NCAA tournament after taking an at-large slot six times in the last thirteen years. In the aftermath, a former PSU coach and faculty member (who, by the way, has made recent trips to State College) was not spared from criticism.

SCSU also is paying athletic director Morris Kurtz nearly $130,000 to stay around for a lame-duck year before his June 2012 retirement. What exactly is his role with the hockey program now? Does he even have one?

WCHA commish has no guarantees for MSU Moorhead
(The Dickinson Press)

“It is really tough to make a commitment … and if I could tell Moorhead in three years you’ll be in the WCHA I would, but in these circumstances, I cannot even come close to that,” [WCHA commissioner Bruce] McLeod said. “I cannot make promises, but at the same time I’d love to encourage that the Fargo-Moorhead area is really fine.”

Nothing to see here, I suppose. But it's pretty clear that school and conference need each other right now.

Another view: Thinking of history and the conference realignment
(USCHO)

Of course, I realize this is not about storied teams and traditions, but about money. If you don’t think this is the case, then consider this — a three time NCAA Champion [Lake Superior State] is being (kind of) replaced by a school (Penn State) that up to this point has had nothing more than a club team. I cannot be the only one that finds this astounding.

Flexible definitions of "storied" aside, I think people need to wake up to the fact that winning a national championship doesn't grant your program some sort of immunity, or even respect, until the end of days. Northern Michigan realizes that, and is trying to position themselves as well as they're able in the present reality. RPI does too. Evolve or die - it's true in life, and after a period of complacency-inspiring status quo, it's true in college hockey too. LSSU has done very little evolving since losing Jeff Jackson to the newly-formed U.S. National Team Development Program in 1996.

CCHA, Atlantic Schools To Meet, Weigh Options
(College Hockey News)

Speaking of, four Atlantic Hockey programs are using the upheaval to grow.

CCHA officials will meet within the next two weeks with representatives of four Atlantic Hockey schools about a potential change in conferences in 2013-14.

Robert Morris, Niagara, Mercyhurst and Canisius are all actively exploring the possibility of switching from Atlantic Hockey to the CCHA. It is believed that the four would leave as a group, or not at all, though that is not set in stone.

Depending on when Notre Dame decides to move, this could be the one that brings this all to an uneasy detente. AHA would still be viable with eight teams, and the WCHA and CCHA both would have added enough to survive.

Canisius coach Dave Smith may be looking to grow his program through a move to the CCHA - and none other than The Namesake may be helping him by financing another college hockey rink.

Like how I snuck a bonus link in the caption?

Serious discussions have been ongoing about [Terry] Pegula backing (see: major donation) a movement toward a new on-campus events center. It would serve as a home for Canisius and the Buffalo Junior Sabres, a practice rink for the Sabres and be available to youth teams. There's talk it could also become a basketball venue and a place for graduation ceremonies that are now held at UB.

Just as this whole thing might be hurting St. Cloud State, it might be helping the former Icers rival.

Alberts says 'The National' will raise Mav profile
(Omaha World Herald)

I already have an anti-NCHC bias, in part because I really think Big Ten-NCHC in hockey will be a lot like Big Ten-SEC in football in due time. Hopefully minus the part where the Big Ten is pretty vastly inferior to the other side. So to get their side of things in here and make it somewhat palatable, I took an article from my favorite NCHC school, Nebraska-Omaha (and yes, Trev Alberts is the AD there if you didn't know that).

To be honest though, I hate conference chest beating, and I hate it even more when schools and fans identify themselves as a member of a conference seemingly ahead of all else (PSU administration is guilty of this on occasion). In the grand scheme of things, I couldn't care less about the Big Ten. I didn't go to school at "Big Ten," I went to Penn State.

Minnesota Gophers Hockey: Creating A New Tournament Tradition
(SB Nation)

...so let's segue into to talking about another Big Ten team just because they're in the Big Ten! The Gophers and their in-state soon-to-be-former conference rivals are looking to possibly start an in-season tournament at the Xcel Energy Center - like a State of Hockey Beanpot by all accounts. Sounds great to me, it could be huge if given time to grow into the deep hockey culture there.

Timeline: College hockey conferences through the years
(USCHO)

In case you're lost.

Versus may be interested in college hockey TV package
(Schenectady Daily Gazette)

While most have heard by now that Versus is looking to get into the college hockey business (in all likelihood via a deal with whichever conference Notre Dame ultimately joins), it's somewhat of a surprise that they may look to take the plunge as soon as this season.

Numerous sources have indicated that Versus is discussing the possibility of televising regular-season college hockey games, beginning in January. What conferences would be involved, or what night the games would be shown (either Friday or Saturday) is unclear right now. Versus, part of the NBC Sports Group, is the cable home of the NHL. A few months ago, the NBC Sports Group signed a 10-year deal to keep the NHL on NBC and Versus.

Skating through the past
(The Temple News)

A look at the history of Temple hockey, which dates back to 1940. Penn State, as we now know, dealt the Owls a pair of losses in their inaugural season. Today, Temple is a fierce rival of PSU's ACHA Division 2 Ice Lions.

Brian Slugocki has been a key figure throughout the reorganization of Arizona hockey. Now, he and his mates finally have a new coach.

Sean Hogan Returns to the ACHA as Head Coach of the University of Arizona
(ACHAHockey.org)

A while back, I wrote about the state of affairs in a former PSU nemesis' program. And despite the accusations from some (possibly people affiliated with former coach Leo Golembiewski) that the coup out west was a case of hockey parents run amok, it's a story with a happy ending. Sean Hogan takes over the newly-rechristened Wildcat program after a year as Jeff Blashill's video coach at Western Michigan. Icers fans may remember him as the guy who led Oakland to the ACHA D2 national title in 2006, then moved the team up to D1 and won another in 2007 - a championship made possible by an upset of Penn State in the final.

Best wishes to Arizona Wildcat hockey as they move forward with a fresh start.

Arvanitis Named Head Coach
(OUHockey.com)

Speaking of coaching changes, one of our opponents this season made one as well, promoting Peter Arvanitis from his assistant position. The former Oklahoma City Blazer has been with the Sooners for two non-consecutive seasons, 2005-2006 and last year. For what it's worth, OU has also acknowledged cancellation of the January 5th game with the Icers in Norman, one minor step towards finalizing the game at Citizens Bank Park on the 4th.

I'll close by saying that I like how Oklahoma registered "OUHockey.com" before Ohio. Sucks to suck, fake OU.

Three Stars: June 27-July 3

3. Ten returnees highlight Muskegon Lumberjacks' 2011-2012 roster
(MLive.com)

PSU commit Mark Yanis is officially back with his USHL club for this coming season. Here's the Yanis mention:

On defense, three players return from a year ago - Carter Foguth, Travis Walsh and Mark Yanis.

"Our back line has great depth," [head coach Kevin] Patrick said. "And we have a good mix of styles from stay-at-home defensemen to guys who can move the puck."

2. Vernon-Burlington Trade
(VipersDiehardFan Blog)

Meanwhile, Luke Juha is officially a Vernon Viper. And my interview with him apparently hits pretty far up on the Google results. Double awesome.

Vipers add elite prospects
(Vernon Morning Star)

The BCHL squad is reloading in an effort to recapture the RBC Cup. That effort includes not only Juha but also Adam Tambellini, of those Tambellinis (Steve's son, Michigan alum Jeff's brother).

1. Ready To Roar In Pennsylvania
(The Hockey News)

Maybe I'm giving it too much credit in 2011, but I still consider The Hockey News to be the publication of record when it comes to Canada's national sport (no, not lacrosse, the other one). So when they give Penn State a full page, naturally I'm going to abuse my subscriber login to take a snapshot of said page from the digital edition of the magazine and upload it to Google Docs for all of you to see.

The article's not going to contain anything new to those of you who have been following PSU closely all along, although it does have quotes from Guy Gadowsky and Brandon Russo for your perusal. Agent Murray Kuntz stops by to give two of his clients (Penguins superstars Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin) credit for every player coming out of Pennsylvania, and Brandon Saad mentions that even if PSU had an NCAA program last year, he would've played in the OHL. I take that one with a grain of salt though - it's PR 101 to always choose the real option that you actually took over a hypothetical in those types of situations.

Best of the Rest

Talking Hockey - Round Two
(View From The Booth)

I've always liked Paul Kelly, and with this interview, we can officially add him to that list of fortunate people who have no off button.

PSU Icers 2010-2011
(YouTube)



Indeed, all we do is win. Except in that game with the pink jerseys.

Brandwene names Stroemel, Kearns to coaching staff
(Daily Collegian)

The Collegian comes off of hiatus with a strong effort that includes original quotes from both women's assistants.

Listing by College
(Chris Heisenberg's 2012 List)

Remember a few weeks ago, when I told you about Doug Leaverton, a defenseman seeking a transfer out of Colorado College and who had Penn State and Ohio State in his sights? Well, apparently, after an excruciating deliberation, Leaverton has elected to go to...Bentley. Wait, what?

Now, I don't want to come off like a snob here, but there's only one reason to choose Bentley over PSU and OSU: PSU and OSU didn't want you. That's just the harsh reality, and I see a silver lining in it. As nice as having a veteran d-man with WCHA experience may have sounded superficially, the fact that we're not willing to take one just for the sake of having one tells me a) recruiting is going well, b) we're not interested in patchwork solutions and c) we're building a team with a specific concept in mind. Or d) I'm reading waaaay too much into things. Your choice.

American draftees hail from non-traditional places
(NHL.com)

The link says it all:

Of the first 21 U.S. born players selected in this year's draft, only one was born in the traditional power states of Minnesota, Michigan and Massachusetts. That would be Connor Murphy, Phoenix's first round pick at No. 20. Murphy was born in Boston.

Pennsylvania had the largest representation with four players being selected from the Keystone State. The Pennsylvania bunch is led by J.T. Miller, a Pittsburgh native, who was selected at No. 15 by the New York Rangers.

Three players hail from New York while there are two players drafted each from Illinois, California, Connecticut, Missouri and Texas. In addition, there is one player from Alaska, Arizona and Ohio among the first 21 U.S. born players selected.

Then again, we don't actually recruit PA, so...

Stuart Percy's living the dream.

Dream come true for Percys
(Toronto Sun)

Of course, plenty of draftees hailed from traditional places and weren't American too. One, Stuart Percy, is a former teammate of Juha's and also a first-round selection of his hometown Maple Leafs.

Tsunami Watch: WCHA
(Without a Peer)

Another typically-excellent WaP breakdown of the ways in which PSU ruined college hockey effected long-overdue change in the college hockey conference structure.

UND weighs hockey league options
(Grand Forks Herald)

Meanwhile, at some point after that WaP post was written, the preferred college hockey program of Nazi sympathizers is starting to make like they're going to follow that tsunami with some heavy explosives.

UND is having formal discussions about pulling out of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association and joining several other schools in creating a new power hockey league, multiple sources have told the Herald.

The move would blow up two of college hockey’s major conferences and vastly change the landscape of the sport for the 2013-14 season.

The new league is not a done deal, but sources say that the talks have progressed beyond preliminary stages.

“Several institutions have been looking at the college hockey landscape and different possibilities that might be out there,” said UND athletic director Brian Faison, who declined to name other institutions. “At the end of the day, we have to do what’s in the best interest of UND hockey and that’s what we’re going to do. It’s an emotional decision. It’s a business decision.”

As much as I just want to unload on this idea, I do think it's kind of cute that NoDak's trying to imitate us.

The Compton Family Ice Arena is coming to South Bend this fall.

Exclusive Tour June 29, 2011: Compton Family Ice Arena
(Facebook)

I've been watching the construction of Notre Dame's new facility pretty closely, part because I'm an arena geek, part because I know Pegula Ice Arena will take a cue or two from it and part because I know PIA is next in the queue. If you haven't been paying attention, here's a photo gallery where you can get caught up.

The Obligatory Big Ten Opinion Piece

"Death, taxes, opinion on Big Ten hockey" pretty accurately lists the three sure things in life, at least when it comes to college hockey enthusiasts since September 17th (and really, before that as well). So in my editorial meeting last week, I said "Hey, we should be the 7,997th news article or blog post on the Big Ten's potentially sponsoring hockey. Maybe they'll give us free Frozen Four tickets for life!" What follows are the fruits of that faulty logic.

The quick background: with Penn State now in the fold, there are six Big Ten member institutions that sponsor NCAA Division I hockey. Minnesota and Wisconsin currently play in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA), while Michigan, Michigan State and Ohio State are in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA). Since six is both the minimum number of schools in a conference to secure an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament and the minimum number of schools needed for the Big Ten to sponsor a sport...I think you've figured it out by now, so on we go.

Oh, one more thing that's important to know for this post: the CCHA has 11 teams, since former member Nebraska-Omaha defected to the WCHA this season. The CCHA rejected an application from Alabama-Huntsville to fill that slot, and commissioner Tom Anastos is on record as being interested in Penn State. Here's a mindless blog post from someone not happy about that. Sorry for being more attractive to a conference than a branch campus about 17 billion miles removed from anyone else with a program. Our bad.

To be perfectly clear, Big Ten hockey is probably going to happen. Among the latest evidence comes from WCHA commissioner Bruce McLeod, via USCHO poster mksioux on October 18th.

Bruce McLeod was on TV during the Friday night North Dakota-Bemidji State game. He said that [Big Ten commissioner] Jim Delany has personally told him that he fully expects to start a full-fledged BTHC by '14 or '15. McLeod said he has proposed a scheduling alliance whereby Minnesota and Wisconsin would play eight games per year against WCHA teams on a rotating basis (presumably one two-game series against four teams). If agreed upon, for example, that would mean each WCHA school would play Minnesota every 2.5 years and would get them at home once every 5 years.

In Colorado Springs, home to both Colorado College (WCHA) and the Air Force Academy (Atlantic Hockey), the freakout is in full swing. It even seems to be a foregone conclusion in ECAC Hockey, where they aren't directly affected, but are still worried about ripple effects.

********************

Here are a few reasons why I don't think it's the best idea ever, for Penn State or for college hockey.

1. That conference is HARD. Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota and Michigan State among the most storied programs in college hockey history. Toss in the Bostons U and C, North Dakota and Denver, and that's probably your top eight. Ohio State isn't quite on that level, but they're not a meatbag either with four NCAA tournament appearances in the last decade. So what's a start-up program to do? When will Penn State break out of sixth place with four Goliaths and a mostly regular-sized but pretty fat guy lying on top? Where are the conference wins going to come from?

Don't get me wrong, I firmly believe that Penn State will have everything in place to be successful at the highest levels, and banners don't put on skates and play. But the growing process would be greatly facilitated with a few Bowling Greens and Western Michigans to climb over first in the standings, as would be the case in taking that 12th slot in the CCHA. Success breeds success, and small successes lead to large ones.

2. At best, it's neutral for college hockey as a whole. At worst, it damages it. This much is clear: nobody seems to agree on the effects of removing the Big Ten schools from the CCHA and WCHA. Will small programs like Michigan Tech and Lake Superior State, which depend on the larger programs for revenue in several ways, die off? Will they reach some sort of agreement to play the big schools out of conferences (including home games) and mitigate the issues? Is everyone overstating things? If you have any idea, you're lying. Here's what I feel like I do know: it's not going to be a positive.

There's been some thought that Penn State is the beginning of a tidal wave of schools adding NCAA hockey programs, and that any programs we may lose will be replaced. Based on what? The tremendous number of major conference programs we've added in the last 15-20 years (whoops, wrong list)? The fact that every school has a sugar daddy with $88 million lying around, dying to build an adequate facility and endow scholarships? The expansion of athletic programs generally in these robust economic times, especially in the south and west (wait, scratch that one)? I'm just not buying it. We need to protect the schools that have already invested in the sport from uncertainty.

3. Why not stash Penn State in the CCHA? Seriously, why not? There could then be a scheduling agreement where the Big Ten schools all play each other regardless of conference lines, then a Big Ten championship is awarded to the team with the best record. The Ivy League already does this, and I have yet to see a compelling argument against this setup. Everybody wins this way, except Alabama-Huntsville, who is counting on the Big Ten shakeup to lead to a conference home.

Here's a Penn State-driven reason for promoting the CCHA: better scheduling. That's usually a pro-Big Ten argument (familiar schools to Penn Staters leads to more interest), but I'm turning that one around. Michigan, Michigan State and Ohio State are already in the CCHA. So is Notre Dame, which has far more drawing power to the non-hockey fan than Minnesota or Wisconsin. And if you are a hockey fan? Then you'll recognize that CCHA member Miami is one of the best programs in the country too, and you'll get excited for those games. And hey, you can still bring in the Gophers and Badgers via the Ivy League setup. Add it all together and you have quality and name recognition to burn without an overwhelming conference schedule.

********************

I'm getting towards the end of the post and haven't even mentioned the Big Ten Network yet. There's a reason for that - I think it's an overrated factor in all of this. First of all, the lack of Big Ten hockey doesn't keep them from broadcasting games, they have in fact aired several hockey games involving the Big Ten schools, usually when they play each other, but sometimes when they play other schools as well. Yes, the rights issues are a concern, as Big Ten Network is at the bottom of the pecking order. But at the same time, when the defection of several power schools is at hand, I think the WCHA and CCHA can figure out a way to give Big Ten Network what they want, to give a little and get a lot. You do have a middleman in that situation, the opposite of what makes Big Ten Network successful, but how much money are we really talking about here? Which leads to...

Secondly, as much as we all love hockey, it's still a niche sport. The ratings still suck. And I'm supposed to believe that the powers that be will move heaven and earth to get a game of the week on Big Ten Network's Friday night schedule? Please. From a ratings and revenue standpoint, they'd be better off replaying one of their passel of horrible studio shows five times.

So what do Delany and Wisconsin AD Barry Alvarez see that I don't?