HOCKEY: Some Of The Latest On Big Ten Hockey Conference

Expect more and more talk about a Big Ten hockey conference in the weeks and months to come as it appears Penn State University is on the verge of adding Division I college hockey.

The speculation is becoming less wild speculation and more real talk from high-ranking officials in the world of college hockey. The Duluth News Tribune in Minnesota has already done some work to get thoughts on the possibility of the Big Ten sponsoring ice hockey and how that might impact the college hockey landscape.

The Western Collegiate Hockey Association would stand to lose Minnesota and Wisconsin while the Central Collegiate Hockey Association could lose Michigan, Michigan State and Ohio State to a Big Ten Conference for hockey.

The speculation now is that the WCHA could withstand the losses of Wisconsin and Minnesota better than the CCHA could handle the defections of Michigan, Michigan State and Ohio State.

It is true that schools like Ferris State University, Lake Superior State, Bowling Green State, Western Michigan and Northern Michigan rely heavily on contests against U-M and MSU. There's little question about the importance of those big two to the smaller CCHA schools.

I imagine, perhaps to a lesser extent, Ohio State is a big draw for Miami University and BGSU down in Ohio.

Here is an excerpt from the Duluth paper:

After adding two teams for the 2010-11 season, the Western Collegiate Hockey Association is faced with the possibility of losing two men’s programs — Minnesota and Wisconsin — to a Big Ten Conference as soon as 2014-15.

Leading to the formation of a Big Ten Conference in hockey is an upcoming announcement that Penn State is adding the varsity sport for men and women, according to a Sunday report by the website Inside College Hockey.

WCHA commissioner Bruce McLeod addressed the possible changes last weekend at league coaches meetings in Bloomington, Minn., said Minnesota coach Don Lucia on Monday. The WCHA will start 2010-11 with 12 teams with the addition of Bemidji State and Nebraska-Omaha.

“The strength of the WCHA has been the commitment of member schools, and if Minnesota and Wisconsin were to leave, the league will still be a good, strong league. It will not be a drastic change,” Lucia said. “But right now this is all speculation. Will Penn State add hockey? Will the Big Ten schools want to form their own league? Will they be interested in adding affiliate members?”

Obviously, the CCHA has already shown its interest in landing Penn State, but who knows what the Big Ten Conference is thinking. That is the major question that will dictate everything else.

I imagine there could be some call for the CCHA and WCHA to make scheduling moves that could accommodate more games involving the Big Ten schools.

Suddenly, thinking about the 2014-15 season (even though a lot of this is little more than speculation) could become scary for a lot of schools and a lot of fans of college hockey.

One wonders what happens to Notre Dame and Miami if a Big Ten Conference comes to pass.

Duluth News Tribune:
http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/event/article/id/178827/group/Sports/