Regional Sites:
East – Albany, NY
Northeast – Worcester, MA
Midwest – Allentown, PA
West – Loveland, CO
Current Top 16 in PairWise:
- North Dakota (19-3-3)
- Cornell (14-1-4)
- Minnesota State (23-4-1)
- Denver (17-4-5)
- Boston College (15-7-0)
- Penn State (17-8-1)
- Massachusetts (16-8-2)
- Clarkson (17-6-2)
- Providence (14-6-5)
- Ohio State (15-8-3)
- Arizona State (16-9-3)
- Minnesota Duluth (13-9-2)
- Northeastern (13-7-2)
- New Hampshire (13-9-2)
- Northern Michigan (14-8-4)
- UMass Lowell (13-7-5)
Current Conference Leaders:
Atlantic: American International
Big 10: Michigan State
ECAC: Clarkson
Hockey East: UMass
NCHC: North Dakota
WCHA: Minnesota State
Now we adjust the top-16 of the PairWise to accommodate potential conference champions.
- North Dakota (19-3-3)
- Cornell (14-1-4)
- Minnesota State (23-4-1)
- Denver (17-4-5)
- Boston College (15-7-0)
- Penn State (17-8-1)
- Massachusetts (16-8-2)
- Clarkson (17-6-2)
- Providence (14-6-5)
- Ohio State (15-8-3)
- Arizona State (16-9-3)
- Minnesota Duluth (13-9-2)
- Northeastern (13-7-2)
- New Hampshire (13-9-2)
- Michigan State (13-12-1)
- AIC (13-11-1)
With the 16-team field set, we can begin to put teams into their respective regionals. We will start with the No. 1 seeds.
No. 1 North Dakota is placed in the West Regional in Loveland, CO.
No. 2 Cornell is placed in the East Regional in Albany, NY.
No. 3 Minnesota State is placed in the Midwest Regional in Allentown, PA.
No. 4 Denver is placed in the Northeast Regional in Worcester, MA.
Two seeds:
No. 8 Clarkson is placed in No. 1 North Dakota’s regional, the West Regional.
No. 7 UMass is placed in No. 2 Cornell’s regional, the East Regional.
No. 6 Penn State is placed in No. 3 Minnesota State’s regional, the Midwest Regional.
No. 5 Boston College is placed in No. 4 Denver’s regional, the Northeast Regional.
Three seeds:
No. 9 Providence is placed in No. 8 Clarkson’s regional, the West Regional.
No. 10 Ohio State is placed in No. 7 UMass’s regional, the East Regional.
No. 11 Arizona State is placed in No. 6 Penn State’s’ regional, the Midwest Regional.
No. 12 Minnesota Duluth is placed in No. 5 Boston College’s regional, the Northeast regional.
Four seeds:
No. 16 AIC is placed in No. 1 North Dakota’s regional, the West Regional.
No. 15 Michigan State is placed in No. 2 Cornell’s regional, the Midwest Regional.
No. 14 UNH is placed in No. 3 Minnesota State’s regional, the East Regional.
No. 13 Northeastern is placed in No. 4 Denver’s regional, the Northeast Regional.
Giving us this initial bracket:
West
1 North Dakota vs. 4 AIC
2 Clarkson vs. 3 Providence
Northeast
1 Denver vs. 4 Northeastern
2 Boston College vs. 3 Minnesota Duluth
East
1 Cornell vs. 4 Michigan State
2 UMass vs. 3 Ohio State
Midwest
1 Minnesota State vs. 4 New Hampshire
2 Penn State vs. 3 Arizona State
Now, before we move any further, we must place host schools into their respective regionals. Penn State hosts the Midwest in Allentown, so they will stay put. The issue lies in the West Regional, with No. 1 overall seed North Dakota getting bounced in favor of host Denver. We will keep AIC matched up against North Dakota, but for now, the matchup gets moved to Worcester.
Here is how the bracket looks following this change.
West
1 Denver vs. 4 Northeastern
2 Clarkson vs. 3 Providence
Northeast
1 North Dakota vs. 4 AIC
2 Boston College vs. 3 Minnesota Duluth
East
1 Cornell vs. 4 Michigan State
2 UMass vs. 3 Ohio State
Midwest
1 Minnesota State vs. 4 New Hampshire
2 Penn State vs. 3 Arizona State
With host schools accommodated and no inter-conference matchups, we can now start moving teams to generate better attendance at each event.
*Note,* No. 16 AIC must stay matched against No. 1 North Dakota in fairness to North Dakota.
One quick change I see is to swap UNH with Michigan State, placing another Big 10 team in the Midwest and another Hockey East team in the East. Here is how the bracket looks following this change.
West
1 Denver vs. 4 Northeastern
2 Clarkson vs. 3 Providence
Northeast
1 North Dakota vs. 4 AIC
2 Boston College vs. 3 Minnesota Duluth
East
1 Cornell vs. 4 New Hampshire
2 UMass vs. 3 Ohio State
Midwest
1 Minnesota State vs. 4 Michigan State
2 Penn State vs. 3 Arizona State
It also probably makes sense to swap the Boston College vs. Minnesota Duluth matchup with Clarkson vs. Providence, getting two Eastern teams into Worcester and getting an NCHC team into Loveland. It also makes more sense to bounce the North Dakota vs. AIC matchup to Allentown as AIC’s proximity to Worcester, MA (about 50 miles) is a major disadvantage to North Dakota considering their No. 1 overall seed.
Here is how the bracket looks following these changes.
West
1 Denver vs. 4 Northeastern
2 Boston College vs. 3 Minnesota Duluth
Northeast
1 Minnesota State vs. 4 Michigan State
2 Clarkson vs. 3 Providence
East
1 Cornell vs. 4 New Hampshire
2 UMass vs. 3 Ohio State
Midwest
1 North Dakota vs. 4. AIC
2 Penn State vs. 3 Arizona State
Another potential change is to swap Northeastern with Michigan State. This does not benefit the Spartans, but it puts another Hockey East team into Worcester. We can also swap Arizona State with Minnesota Duluth as it makes more sense to have the Sun Devils in Loveland than it does across the country in Allentown.
Here is how the bracket looks now.
West
1 Denver vs. 4 Michigan State
2 Boston College vs. 3 Arizona State
Northeast
1 Minnesota State vs. 4 Northeastern
2 Clarkson vs. 3 Providence
East
1 Cornell vs. 4 New Hampshire
2 UMass vs. 3 Ohio State
Midwest
1 North Dakota vs. 4 AIC
2 Penn State vs. 3 Minnesota Duluth
Denver moving into the top-four really screws up the bracket due to the Pioneers hosting in Loveland.. I don’t see any other necessary changes, so Minnesota State and North Dakota get the short end this week.
Final bracket:
West
1 Denver vs. 4 Michigan State
2 Boston College vs. 3 Arizona State
Northeast
1 Minnesota State vs. 4 Northeastern
2 Clarkson vs. 3 Providence
East
1 Cornell vs. 4 New Hampshire
2 UMass vs. 3 Ohio State
Midwest
1 North Dakota vs. 4. AIC
2 Penn State vs. 3 Minnesota Duluth
Flanny's Thoughts 