Bracketology, Week 5
By Fetch
Is this week 5? I have no idea. Maybe it’s week 6. In any event, this week’s bracket was fairly static. Our four #1 seeds stay the same, but Northeastern creeps ever closer to that 4th #1 spot. The one interesting question this week is who on Earth would want to go to Bridgeport? Yale has to because they are the host and BU right now is pretty much a lock. The other two seeds in that regional are going to have a tough time indeed.
On a regionalization note: thankfully the NCAA has tabled that for a year, and we won’t have to worry about it for the rest of the year. Quite frankly, the thought of a BU-Northeastern, Minnesota-Denver, Michigan-Miami, Notre Dame-Vermont Elite 8 made me mad. I want to see inter-conference matchups, not the same old same old.
Minneapolis
1. Michigan vs. 4. Minnesota
2. Denver vs. 3. North Dakota
Grand Rapids
1. Notre Dame vs. 4. Air Force
2. Miami vs. 3. Princeton
Bridgeport
1. BU vs. 4. Niagara
2. Yale vs. 3. Cornell
Manchester
1. Vermont vs. 4. Wisconsin
2. Northeastern vs. 3. New Hampshire
Gone this week is Minnesota-Duluth. Their numbers are very good, but I just don’t see them as a top 16 team. Or top 14 seeing as Air Force and Niagara are below the top 16 in the PairWise. RIT is a very legitimate threat to Air Force in Atlantic Hockey, and look out for Mercyhurst, who leads the country in scoring. With a couple good showings in a row they could end up in our bracket.
The Minneapolis region is the same as last week, and I think is the toughest regional. Minnesota at home is a tough matchup for Michigan, and both Denver and North Dakota have shown they can beat anybody. Bridgeport also looks very tough, with three legitimate Frozen Four teams in that region. And don’t sleep on Wisconsin in Manchester. They don’t have a Jordan Pearce in net, but if you’re looking for a 4 seed to go on a Notre Dame-like run, they’re your team.
Our projected Frozen Four this week: Michigan, Notre Dame, Yale, Wisconsin
Edit: So I threw Princeton in there twice and forgot Northeastern, thanks Justin for pointing that out.