Bracketology: We believed that Omaha, Massachusetts, may present issues for the area. Wait till this week to find out.
Once again, we have one of the most recent iterations of the Men’s Division I College Hockey Tournament bracketology.
at the previous few weeks, we have voiced our sadness at the possibility of eligibility concerns arising if Springfield, MA, in the Massachusetts area, or Sioux Falls, SD, in the host area, qualify for the tournament. This might result in serious problems.
Now that both teams are playing, Omaha is locked in, which may make seeding difficult.
But this has gotten much more tricky (and none of these teams are going anywhere) because of the abundance of NCHC teams in this region and the existence of worthy Big Ten Conference teams as current seeds.
The largest error to date will be this bracketology.
Let us begin by simply ranking the teams from 1 to 16:
First, Boston College
8. Minnesota
9. Wisconsin
16. State of Bemidji
2. The University of Boston
7. The Quinnipiac
10. Michigan
15. RIT
3. Dakota
6. The Maine
11. Omaha
14. The College of Colorado
4. Denver
5. The University of Michigan
12. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
13. Michigan’s West
Let’s examine the problems with the inter-conference contests before I start defining areas. Denver and Western Michigan, North Dakota and Colorado College, and Minnesota and Wisconsin shouldn’t compete in the first round. Although the NCHC committee has made great efforts to guarantee that the player with the highest seed receives a full 16th seed in previous years, I believe that we should hold off on making the easiest transition for the time being due to the bending to accommodate NCHC teams. So let’s replace Western Michigan with RIT and Bemidji with CC.
Thus, we are left with:
First, Boston College
8. Minnesota
9. Wisconsin
14. The College of Colorado
2. The University of Boston
7. The Quinnipiac
10. Michigan
13. Michigan’s West
3. Dakota
Maine 6. Omaha 11. RIT 15.
4. Denver
5. The University of Michigan
12. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
16. State of Bemidji
be it justifiable that #4 Bemidji State, the lowest seed, be drawn to the #1 seed, Denver? Perhaps not. But since I don’t believe any of these top-seeded teams have an easy game, I have no problem with things remaining as they are.
Now that the problem has been resolved, let’s define the regions (yes, I am aware that Minnesota and Wisconsin still have a potentially disastrous B1G clash coming up).
Omaha will host the game in Sioux Falls, while UMass will play in Springfield.
1. Boston College; 8. Minnesota; 9. Wisconsin; Providence, RI
14. The College of Colorado
Maryland Heights, Missouri: 2. University of Boston
7. The Quinnipiac
10. Michigan
13. Michigan’s West
3. North Dakota; 6. Maine; 11. Omaha; 15. RIT, Sioux Falls, SD
Springfield, Massachusetts: 4.
5. The University of Michigan
12. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
16. State of Bemidji
Is this bracket technically sound? Indeed. Does that make sense? Not totally.
Why do we want Denver to play in Springfield and Boston University, the #2 overall seed, to play in St. Louis? If these teams are switched, Denver and Western Michigan will play each other in an interconference matchup in the first round.
To be quite honest, here is the outcome of the exercise that has been approved by NCHC guidelines:
Considering the following criteria:
In instances where a conference qualifies five or more teams for the championship, the committee has the authority to safeguard the bracket’s integrity by modifying the pairing mechanism in the initial round, thereby prioritizing the avoidance of intra-conference matchups, thus ensuring a fair competition.
Thus, I’m replacing Denver with BU and setting up Denver and Western Michigan in an interconference NCHC first-round clash.
1. Boston College; 6. Maine; 9. Wisconsin; Providence, RI
14. The College of Colorado
Denver: 4. Maryland Heights, MO; Quinnipiac: 7.
10. Michigan
13. Michigan’s West
North Dakota: 3. Sioux Falls, SD; Minnesota: 8.
11. Omaha 15. RIT
2. Boston University, Springfield, Massachusetts
5. The University of Michigan
12. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
16. State of Bemidji
In the five years I’ve written this column, this is by far the most unusual bracket I’ve created. However, I still don’t feel bad about it. It’s a small building, even though its presence in the St. Louis region might not be that great. Everywhere else will be packed, and we’re still steering clear of the majority of interconference games.
And there we are.
Before the five Saturday championship games, we’ll be back on Friday night with another episode of the show. Of course, on Saturday night, when every conference championship game has concluded, we’ll unveil our final picks.
