More Realignment Coming: Notre Dame to B1G

[RichH]

That didn't take long: All the college hockey news outlets are reporting that Notre Dame is bolting Hockey East for the Big Ten. Of all the mayhem the Penn State addition sparked a few years ago, Notre Dame joining HEA made the least sense.

A recurring "joke" this season has been "when will Quinnipiac leave for Hockey East?" and now the golden (Dome) opportunity presents itself. I can't think their stock would be any higher for such a move if HEA is interested. If they go, joining the schools that more closely match their persona, that leaves another opening in the ECAC landscape. I'd really love for RIT to join, but it sounded like Holy Cross was campaigning hard when the decision was made to name QU as the Vermont replacement. Who else? Army? Sacred Heart? Niagara?

Geographically this mixes things up with the league travel partnerships yet again.  Cornell/Colgate would be the most likely to be split up with RIT coming in. Put us with RIT and Colgate with Princeton? Putting us with Princeton pairs all the Ivies. If it's Holy Cross as a new ECAC member that's very central: Either a drop-in replacement for QU, or  a HC-Dartmouth / Harvard-Brown / Y-P juggling.

Eh, cart-before-the-horse.

[KeithK]

Hockey East has played with an uneven number of teams before (many, many seasons in that state) and has shown a willingness to do that rather than scramble to "even-up".  So it's no guarantee that the Derrticks would be invited to jump.  That said, I agree that it's a pretty logical move.

[Trotsky]

The Skating Deerticks are HE incarnate: no academics, all hype.  Don't wait for their pull; push.  Then grab RIT; they're perfect.

[BearLover]

Would love to never see this team again.

[jtwcornell91]

Geographically this mixes things up with the league travel partnerships yet again.  Cornell/Colgate would be the most likely to be split up with RIT coming in. Put us with RIT and Colgate with Princeton?

The obvious (to me) pairings would be RIT-Cornell, Colgate-Union, RPI-Princeton and leave the rest the same.  A bit unfortunate to split up the Capital District teams, but no worse than having Yale and Quinnipiac in separate partnerships now.  Princeton-RPI is not so bad since you can take 287 to the Thruway.  (Certainly better than the Columbia-Cornell travel partnership in the Ivies.)

[Scersk '97]

Geographically this mixes things up with the league travel partnerships yet again.  Cornell/Colgate would be the most likely to be split up with RIT coming in. Put us with RIT and Colgate with Princeton?

The obvious (to me) pairings would be RIT-Cornell, Colgate-Union, RPI-Princeton and leave the rest the same.  A bit unfortunate to split up the Capital District teams, but no worse than having Yale and Quinnipiac in separate partnerships now.  Princeton-RPI is not so bad since you can take 287 to the Thruway.  (Certainly better than the Columbia-Cornell travel partnership in the Ivies.)

Being travel partners with Princeton was no doubt part of the "sandwich" Quinnipiac was handed as a condition of joining the league. The transfer of that "sandwich" to us would be as troubling as it is inevitable, but I could see a couple of advantages:

• Opponents could be affected by the long travel distance between the two campuses.
• We would be more likely to start the season or front-load the season with games against other Ivies. (Some years the first week, some years the second week, and some years two weeks in a row.)
• The travel distance makes weekend travel-partner series unlikely. That's OK with me: I'd prefer to see us have a bit more flexibility for OOC scheduling. With Princeton's wacky academic calendar, a Tuesday game here or there would probably work fine.
• Who knows when Princeton will put together another good stretch? Seems to happen about once very ten years or so; indeed, Princeton's been more often mediocre than Brown and Dartmouth in the modern ECAC.

Personally, I can't wait for Quinnipiac to go. And I agree with the emerging consensus: RIT would be the perfect fit.

[KGR11]

Geographically this mixes things up with the league travel partnerships yet again.  Cornell/Colgate would be the most likely to be split up with RIT coming in. Put us with RIT and Colgate with Princeton?

The obvious (to me) pairings would be RIT-Cornell, Colgate-Union, RPI-Princeton and leave the rest the same.  A bit unfortunate to split up the Capital District teams, but no worse than having Yale and Quinnipiac in separate partnerships now.  Princeton-RPI is not so bad since you can take 287 to the Thruway.  (Certainly better than the Columbia-Cornell travel partnership in the Ivies.)

RPI is over 3 hours from Princeton. I bet they would just go with Yale which is around 2.5 hours from Princeton.
My prediction for Q is out and RIT is in with travel times.

Cornell-RIT: 1 hours 50 minutes
Colgate-Union: 1 hours 55 minutes
RPI-Dartmouth: 2 hours 30 minutes
Harvard-Brown: 1 hour
Yale-Princeton: 2 hours 30 minutes
Clarkson-St. Lawrence: 15 minutes (no change)

[jtwcornell91]

Geographically this mixes things up with the league travel partnerships yet again.  Cornell/Colgate would be the most likely to be split up with RIT coming in. Put us with RIT and Colgate with Princeton?

The obvious (to me) pairings would be RIT-Cornell, Colgate-Union, RPI-Princeton and leave the rest the same.  A bit unfortunate to split up the Capital District teams, but no worse than having Yale and Quinnipiac in separate partnerships now.  Princeton-RPI is not so bad since you can take 287 to the Thruway.  (Certainly better than the Columbia-Cornell travel partnership in the Ivies.)

Being travel partners with Princeton was no doubt part of the "sandwich" Quinnipiac was handed as a condition of joining the league. The transfer of that "sandwich" to us would be as troubling as it is inevitable,

So you think they'd pair RIT with Colgate and us with Princeton?  I'd have to assume they'd keep the two westernmost schools together.  Google tells be Princeton to RPI is only 3:15.

[upprdeck]

you could also look at the RIT side of the equation why would they want to jump?  they are d3 im everything else, what do they benefit from a harder conference by far to win?

[Trotsky]

you could also look at the RIT side of the equation why would they want to jump?  they are d3 im everything else, what do they benefit from a harder conference by far to win?

1. Join the conference with the Ivies.
2.
3. PROFIT!!!

[jtwcornell91]

you could also look at the RIT side of the equation why would they want to jump?  they are d3 im everything else, what do they benefit from a harder conference by far to win?

RIT recently moved into the Liberty League, which is where Clarkson, RPI, Union and SLU play in most sports, and just opened a 6000-seat arena.  RIT is a much better fit for the ECAC than AHA at this point.  RIT definitely sees its hockey program on an upward path, and moving to the "big time" would fit in with that, even if it means giving up a shot at an easy autobid.  Moving to the ECAC would also get rid of the need to travel to Colorado Springs every year.

[andyw2100]

Being travel partners with Princeton was no doubt part of the "sandwich" Quinnipiac was handed as a condition of joining the league. The transfer of that "sandwich" to us would be as troubling as it is inevitable, but I could see a couple of advantages:

• Who knows when Princeton will put together another good stretch? Seems to happen about once very ten years or so; indeed, Princeton's been more often mediocre than Brown and Dartmouth in the modern ECAC.

How is having a weak travelling partner an advantage? Isn't it better to have a strong travelling partner, so the teams we're playing on Saturday night had a tough game on Friday night?

[upprdeck]

its great to say it but since this is a money driven thing show me where going to ecac actually makes them more money.  they also dont go to air force every year since the conf doesnt travel to all the teams every year.

they have a new arena that doesnt come close to selling out and going to the ecac isnt likely to help that since no ecac teams outside of cornell actually travel.

also its a 4300 seat arena not 6K.

[Trotsky]

they have a new arena that doesnt come close to selling out and going to the ecac isnt likely to help that since no ecac teams outside of cornell actually travel.

From the ECAC perspective:

Cornell obviously would fill the rink.  Clarkson and RPI might also travel well to RIT.  Union, SLU and Colgate would, if only they were bigger, which means they're either a wash or a gain when they have peaks.  

I would ask rather whether anybody with a large traveling contingent would travel less to RIT than to Q?  I can't think of anybody.

From the perspective of longterm ECAC growth, Go West, young man.  RIT is a steppingstone to Buffalo (Niagara, Canisius) and from there on to Pennsylvania (Mercyhurst, Robert Morris).

Finally it would piss Princeton off, and that is reason enough.

From the RIT perspective:

Who travels to them now who they'd lose?

[upprdeck]

clarkson brings the band. colgate travels some times. no one else comes to lynah so why would they go to a traditionless RIT?

they get no away crowds now at RIT , but getting a couple hundred out of town fans is not really driving any income.  perhaps playing in a better league gets more townies to show but thats only if they trend upward which most RIT alums are leary of..

already talked with many RIT alums and havent found one yet who thinks its a good idea.