Here's what Russell Jaslow wrote about Brockport's situation in his SUNYAC column for this week....
Brockport is in the playoffs. That’s for sure because Cortland and Potsdam face each other, and thus one of those teams cannot get the four points necessary to catch Brockport. The question is, can Brockport hang onto home ice?
Geneseo can pass Brockport, but if they tie, Brockport wins the tie-breaker. If the Ice Knights do get by Brockport, then the Golden Eagles have to worry about whether any of the three teams who are four points behind can catch up.
Brockport wins the tie-breaker against Potsdam. Currently, they also hold it against Cortland, but that can change depending on the scores of the respective teams’ final two games. Buffalo State would have to beat Brockport in order to have any chance to tie them, and if that would happen, Brockport would win the tie-breaker based on total wins since they would have split their two games against each other.
Thus, Brockport is looking very good for their first home ice playoff game in school history. A lot of that is due not just to their play on the ice this year, but their newfound confidence and attitude.
Brockport coach Brian Dickinson said after the one goal lost to Oswego this past Friday:
“Last year when we lost 4-3, the guys were excited by the way we played. It was almost a win for us to lose by a goal to an Oswego and have them on the ropes at the end of the game. This year I go in the locker room and there wasn’t a guy in there that isn’t upset. We felt for 50 minutes we were as good if not a little better than the number nine team in the country, and we deserved to win the hockey game as much as they did. And that’s a good sign. We understand what’s at stake.”
As for what happens if there are multiple teams tied with Brockport, well quite frankly that’s when my head hurts. There are numerous possibilities, and I’ll either leave it for those with more time or simply wait till Sunday morning.
Read Russell's complete analysis of the playoffs here:
http://www.uscho.com/news/college-hockey/id,16672
