REA not getting a regional...

I was hoping that UND would get a regional in 2010 or 2011 but it would appear that NCAA is moving away from campus sites after all of the whining that has taken place by coaches, fans and college administrators the last few years.

So if we are going to neutral sites why does Minnesota get a regional in their back yard? Seriously, someone needs to tell Hockey Committee Chairman Joel Maturi, who I might add is from the University of Minnesota, that the Xcell energy center in St. Paul, Minnesota is not a neutral site. The Xcel energy center is 7 miles from the campus of the University of Minnesota. You are going to be hosting a game in your back yard. I can see fans unhappy with that one as well. Fort Wayne is a horrible selection for a NCAA hockey regional can we say empty building, so it will be a neutral site.

Midwest and West Regionals Awarded Through 2011.
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (Aug. 28) — The NCAA Ice Hockey Committee has set the sites for the NCAA Championships all the way through 2011 with the announcement of the West and Midwest Regionals for 2010 and 2011.

In 2010, Notre Dame will host the Midwest regional from March 27-28 at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum in Fort Wayne, Ind. and the West regional will be hosted by Minnestoa at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn. from March 26-27.

Michigan Tech will host the Midwest regional at the ReschCenter in Green Bay, Wis. from March 26-27, 2011 and the CCHA will host the West regional at Scottrade Center in St. Louis on March 25-26, 2011.

Of the four sites only the Resch Center has held a regional before, with Wisconsin coming out of this regional en route to the championship in 2006.

But both the Xcel Center and the Scottrade Center have hosted the Frozen Four. The Xcel Center hosted the Frozen Four in 2002 with Minnesota winning and will host it again in 2011. In 2006 Scottrade Center hosted the Frozen Four with Michigan State taking the title.

This will be the first time the NCAA Ice Hockey Championships will have a regional in the state of Indiana.

“We focused on selecting sites that have NHL size ice sheets and are in neutral buildings,” said Ice Hockey Committee Chairman Joel Maturi, the AD of Minnesota. “We really feel that each of these buildings will showcase college hockey, give our student-athletes a tremendous experience and help take our championship to another level.”

The announcements round of the sites for all of the regionals and Frozen Fours until 2011.

Previously the 2010 and 2011 East and Northeast regional sites were awarded. The 2010 East regional will be held at the Times Union Center in Albany, N.Y. and will behosted by ECAC Hockey and Rensselaer from March 26-27 and the Northeast regional will be held at DCU Center in Worcester, Mass. and will be hosted by Holy Cross from March 27-28.

The 2011 East regional will be held at the Bridgeport Arena at Harbor Yard in Bridgeport, Conn. and be hosted by Yale and Fairfield on March 25-26 and the Northeast regional will be held at the Verizon Wireless Center in Manchester, N.H.and be hosted by New Hampshire on March 26-27.

Next year the Frozen Four will be in Washington, D.C.’s Verizon Center, the 2010 Frozen Four will be at Ford Field in Detroit, Mich., the 2011 Frozen Four at the Xcel Center in St. Paul, Minn. and the 2012 Frozen Four will be at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa, Fla.