September 24, 2008
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CHA Announces Tournament Locale; Will Still Play for NCAA Bid
CHN Staff Report
College Hockey America will hold its conference tournament in Bemidji, Minn., this season — and, more importantly, the tournament still has relevance in the sport as a whole.
The conference, which has often been on the brink of extinction — and never moreso than following the folding of Wayne State's program after last season — has received approval from the NCAA Championships and Competition Cabinet for an automatic bid to this year's NCAA tournament.
Typically, a conference must have six member schools in order to qualify for an automatic bid, according to NCAA by-laws. A rule was passed recently that allowed the CHA to qualify with only five — but the departure of Wayne State dropped the CHA's membership to four.
Nonetheless, a waiver has been granted to the league, and will be reviewed on a year-to-year basis.
The league, which enters its 10th season this fall, will play its 2009 conference tournament at Bemidji State's home arena — the John S. Glas Fieldhouse — March 13-14. This will be the second time the CHA post-season tournament has been held in the state of Minnesota; the 2005 tournament took place at the IRA Civic Center in Grand Rapids, Minn.
"We are excited to return to the state of Minnesota, one of the true homes of hockey in this country," said Ed McLaughlin, athletic director at Niagara and interim commissioner of the CHA. He replaced the retired Bob Peters last spring. "We know that Bemidji State will do a fantastic job of running the tournament and giving the coaches and student-athletes a first-class experience."
The College Hockey America men's league is comprised of Alabama-Huntsville, Bemidji State, Niagara and Robert Morris. All but Robert Morris have on automatic NCAA bids in the past.
