Monday, February 07, 2011

We Are - Penn State Hockey! Edit Why I am not impressed...


Yawn! If the hockey pundits think that Penn State University is just going to march into college hockey and start winning titles I think they are delusional. Minnesota is an established hockey program and they are having a hell of a time right now in the WCHA, they will be lucky if they get home ice and make the Final Five, they probably are going to miss the NCAA tourney again. Last time I checked Minnesota has all the advantages of a premiere hockey program. Big Ten School Michigan State is floundering this season and sitting in the bottom of the CCHA standings in 10th place. If some think they can just throw money at a big name coach and expect a winning program they are misinformed. I would be surprised if Barry Melrose would know where Penn State is located.

Edit: Some apparently have mistaken satire for hate. Forgive me if I am not colored impressed with the big announcement about PSU going division I in college hockey. While I don’t begrudge PSU wanting to add hockey more the merrier, I am sick and tired of this fawning over PSU the college hockey media and pundits the schools big announcement. They fawn over a school that isn’t division I yet but could give a "EF" about an established school looking for a conference so their program won't fold, they can't hang on forever as an independent.

Going forward, the WCHA is set up and will survive even without the Big Ten Schools Wisconsin and Minnesota. That theory was proven already with Minnesota missing the Final Five all together last season, however, the Big Ten Hockey Conference could have a very catastrophic affect on the not so stable CCHA who some schools are hanging on by a thread, cue BGSU. I am looking at the big picture for the rest of college hockey not just 6 schools that perceive themselves as being elite. Or I should say their athletic directors perceive their schools as being elite. Most of these teams aren’t even a power in BCS football anymore, except maybe OSU which has had trouble getting anyone to show up for their hockey games, even when they make the NCAA tourney.

Why am I not impressed; what pissed me off is how the CCHA wanted nothing to do with UAH a season ago and basically told them to go take a flying ____, however when PSU made their big announcement that they were going Division I in hockey, the commissioner of the CCHA Tom Anastos was all but falling all over himself all of a sudden to extend an invitation to PSU to join the CCHA. Why because he knows what is head for his conference minus MSU and Michigan.

I also think it’s funny that a conference commissioner would sacrifice an established school like UAH to invite a program that has no history other than being an ACHA club hockey school. Yeah that rubs me the wrong way and yeah I can see come college hockey fans might not be that happy. Does that make me a hater, absolutely not!