Consolation Coverage

[kpryan88]

I remember a day when EVERY tourney game was televised, including consolation games. Why is it that now with all of the technology at hand, there is absolutely ZERO consolation coverage? Even the “we cover every STA game” MSBN is not streaming an audio feed for the game. What gives?

[Joe2015]

I remember a day when EVERY tourney game was televised, including consolation games. Why is it that now with all of the technology at hand, there is absolutely ZERO consolation coverage? Even the “we cover every STA game” MSBN is not streaming an audio feed for the game. What gives?

Im assuming that was when it was a one class system

Really no reason to send a second crew to Mariucci for those games especially when they over-lap with the games at the X. And quite frankily, the audience would be pretty light. Just not worth it from the network perspective.

As for radio, you would think somebody would have coverage

[ryguyMN]

The demand just isn't there to justify the expense of setting up a stream to broadcast the game.

[hockey59]

The demand just isn't there to justify the expense of setting up a stream to broadcast the game.

That was in the one class tourney days, With 2 classes, you lose, your not covered anymore, not even the AA 3rd place game,

[kpryan88]

True, I’m not savvy enough to know the cost of setting up a stream at Mariucci, but I’m pretty sure SOH was there last week. Even mshsl.org took away live stats from mariucci this year. Seems every year they make it harder to know what’s happening in the conso bracket.

[Schotzy]

At least those teams have games to play. You lose in Wisconsin, you are done. No consolation games, not even a 3rd place game. Of course this is comparing apples to oranges, but you get the idea.

[Joe2015]

At least those teams have games to play. You lose in Wisconsin, you are done. No consolation games, not even a 3rd place game. Of course this is comparing apples to oranges, but you get the idea.

Yeah and thats not just hockey: Wisconsin doesnt have a consolation/3rd place bracket in any sport

[7TIMECHAMPS]

I would rather they televise the consolation games than the A tournament. Other than the championship. Would’ve liked to see Hill STA and STMA LN.

[kpryan88]

I would rather they televise the consolation games than the A tournament. Other than the championship. Would’ve liked to see Hill STA and STMA LN.

HM & STA are tied at 1 after 1.

[Joe2015]

I would rather they televise the consolation games than the A tournament. Other than the championship. Would’ve liked to see Hill STA and STMA LN.

I think you in the minority there: unless you have an allegiance to one of the schools, nobody cares about the consolation games

[backcheck9]

I would rather they televise the consolation games than the A tournament. Other than the championship. Would’ve liked to see Hill STA and STMA LN.

I'm with you 7time. I'd rather watch all the AA games before any A games. It's the only tournament that matters to me.

[kpryan88]

I would rather they televise the consolation games than the A tournament. Other than the championship. Would’ve liked to see Hill STA and STMA LN.

I'm with you 7time. I'd rather watch all the AA games before any A games. It's the only tournament that matters to me.

HM is winning 4-1 after 2

[Stang5280]

I would rather they televise the consolation games than the A tournament. Other than the championship. Would’ve liked to see Hill STA and STMA LN.

I'm with you 7time. I'd rather watch all the AA games before any A games. It's the only tournament that matters to me.

While you guys are busy turning your noses up at A hockey, you are missing an excellent game between Mahtomedi and Orono. This is far more entertaining and higher stakes then the AA consolation games. These teams might be better than all of the AA losers except for STA as well.

(Edit: make that you just missed a 5-4 Orono OT win!)

[Joe2015]

I would rather they televise the consolation games than the A tournament. Other than the championship. Would’ve liked to see Hill STA and STMA LN.

I'm with you 7time. I'd rather watch all the AA games before any A games. It's the only tournament that matters to me.

While you guys are busy turning your noses up at A hockey, you are missing an excellent game between Mahtomedi and Orono. This is far more entertaining and higher stakes then the AA consolation games. These teams might be better than all of the AA losers except for STA as well.

(Edit: make that you just missed a 5-4 Orono OT win!)

Well said Stang: that game was amazing. Much more entertaining than watching teams that are out of contention for the title.

[kniven]

The demand just isn't there to justify the expense of setting up a stream to broadcast the game.

I could stream it with just my iPhone.

[kniven]

I would rather they televise the consolation games than the A tournament. Other than the championship. Would’ve liked to see Hill STA and STMA LN.

I'm with you 7time. I'd rather watch all the AA games before any A games. It's the only tournament that matters to me.

Sadly agree. I much prefer AA over A hockey. I don’t plan to watch or listen until AA starts at 6. Single = not many care except for the small towns that are in the tournament.

[Schotzy]

I take it all in. It is all good hockey. Is there a difference in play? Sure. But there are some amazing kids in these A teams. You are missing a future star in Blake Biondi from Hermantown. The swings in the Mahtomedi-Orono game was the kind of stuff this tournament is all about. The emotion for those teams is no different, and the fans feel no less about it.....there just may be fewer of them. So what?

Go ahead and turn your snot-noses up at the A tourney, but the majority of us are going to enjoy every moment of it, knowing full-well that it will continue to be an event for the entire state.

[backcheck9]

I didn't see anyone putting down the level of play or how competitive/emotional the games can be between the teams playing. Good for those of you that enjoy A hockey. It's just a preference for me. I'm not ripping it. I pay attention to the scores to see how teams are doing. I just don't go out of my way to watch it. If that means I'm missing out....oh well. Excuse me for now, I need a kleenex to wipe the snot from my nose!
Enjoy the tournament!

[Schotzy]

I didn't see anyone putting down the level of play or how competitive/emotional the games can be between the teams playing. Good for those of you that enjoy A hockey. It's just a preference for me. I'm not ripping it. I pay attention to the scores to see how teams are doing. I just don't go out of my way to watch it. If that means I'm missing out....oh well. Excuse me for now, I need a kleenex to wipe the snot from my nose!
Enjoy the tournament!

You make me laugh. Make sure to grab two.

[7TIMECHAMPS]

I would rather they televise the consolation games than the A tournament. Other than the championship. Would’ve liked to see Hill STA and STMA LN.

I'm with you 7time. I'd rather watch all the AA games before any A games. It's the only tournament that matters to me.

While you guys are busy turning your noses up at A hockey, you are missing an excellent game between Mahtomedi and Orono. This is far more entertaining and higher stakes then the AA consolation games. These teams might be better than all of the AA losers except for STA as well.

(Edit: make that you just missed a 5-4 Orono OT win!)

I wasn't turning my nose at A hockey either. Just stating a preference. It is better hockey in my opinion. That simple. I could have watched what 5-6 D1 players in the HM-STA game? And there is one in the A tournament I want to say?(Biondi) I just like better hockey even if it is for consolation. I will still watch the A games, but if I could trade for AA consolation I would do it.

[Puckguy19]

I'm with you 7time. I'd rather watch all the AA games before any A games. It's the only tournament that matters to me.

While you guys are busy turning your noses up at A hockey, you are missing an excellent game between Mahtomedi and Orono. This is far more entertaining and higher stakes then the AA consolation games. These teams might be better than all of the AA losers except for STA as well.

(Edit: make that you just missed a 5-4 Orono OT win!)

I wasn't turning my nose at A hockey either. Just stating a preference. It is better hockey in my opinion. That simple. I could have watched what 5-6 D1 players in the HM-STA game? And there is one in the A tournament I want to say?(Biondi) I just like better hockey even if it is for consolation. I will still watch the A games, but if I could trade for AA consolation I would do it.

I don't see it happening, but can agree it would be exciting to see at least some action from Mariucci.

With two classes, it is a struggle as to how 45tv showcases the best games, and usually top talent. Not sure a win or go home is the best case scenario, but there is something lost in having the consolation games played at the U. Would like to see back to back Championship games on Saturday, 4:00 & 7:00 but that messes with the ticket structure.

[Stang5280]

I'm with you 7time. I'd rather watch all the AA games before any A games. It's the only tournament that matters to me.

While you guys are busy turning your noses up at A hockey, you are missing an excellent game between Mahtomedi and Orono. This is far more entertaining and higher stakes then the AA consolation games. These teams might be better than all of the AA losers except for STA as well.

(Edit: make that you just missed a 5-4 Orono OT win!)

I wasn't turning my nose at A hockey either. Just stating a preference. It is better hockey in my opinion. That simple. I could have watched what 5-6 D1 players in the HM-STA game? And there is one in the A tournament I want to say?(Biondi) I just like better hockey even if it is for consolation. I will still watch the A games, but if I could trade for AA consolation I would do it.

You know how you can see 12 D1 players on the ice at once? Watch an actual D1 game. More talent on the ice doesn’t necessarily make for more entertaining hockey. If that were the case we’d all just ignore HS hockey and focus on the NHL.

I do understand your point of view to a certain extent, especially since you follow an AA program, but it is somewhat demeaning to Class A hockey to say that its tournament doesn’t deserve to be televised until the final. And for those of us who do follow A hockey, we would have just been robbed of the chance to see two epic semifinal games today.

[7TIMECHAMPS]

While you guys are busy turning your noses up at A hockey, you are missing an excellent game between Mahtomedi and Orono. This is far more entertaining and higher stakes then the AA consolation games. These teams might be better than all of the AA losers except for STA as well.

(Edit: make that you just missed a 5-4 Orono OT win!)

I wasn't turning my nose at A hockey either. Just stating a preference. It is better hockey in my opinion. That simple. I could have watched what 5-6 D1 players in the HM-STA game? And there is one in the A tournament I want to say?(Biondi) I just like better hockey even if it is for consolation. I will still watch the A games, but if I could trade for AA consolation I would do it.

You know how you can see 12 D1 players on the ice at once? Watch an actual D1 game. More talent on the ice doesn’t necessarily make for more entertaining hockey. If that were the case we’d all just ignore HS hockey and focus on the NHL.

I do understand your point of view to a certain extent, especially since you follow an AA program, but it is somewhat demeaning to Class A hockey to say that its tournament doesn’t deserve to be televised until the final. And for those of us who do follow A hockey, we would have just been robbed of the chance to see two epic semifinal games today.

Sorry but more talent does mean more entertaining games the vast majority of the time. That is the reason that more people follow the NHL than college and why more people follow college than high school. I’ll give you a bit of an extreme example(not saying the gap is this large in any way just an example). I would rather watch a regular season high school game than watch the bantam B state championship. Just better hockey. Nothing personal. If my program (Roseau) goes to A and goes to state I will still go down and watch and have a blast doing so. That doesn’t mean as a fan with no team in the tournament that I would rather watch A than AA.......And I will add one more point here. When you say that the teams in the A semi finals are better than the unseeded teams in the AA field I feel like you are taking something away from a team like STMA that had to beat two very high end teams in Brainerd and Moorhead just to get down to St Paul. I have seen most of the teams in the tournament and that is just not true or fair to those teams. And I think for the most part pagestat ranking would back me up on that.

[goldy313]

Sometimes in A hockey there is something that draws me in before Saturday, Luverne for example. Mostly though I would rather watch, and do the AA consolation games vs. The A semifinals. Heck, I might go there Saturday as well.....East vs TRF and StMA vs STA intrigues me more than the A title game this year. No, the John Marshall boys basketball game will get me tomorrow afternoon.

But to each their own, support who you want, the kids will appreciate it.

[Stang5280]

Sorry but more talent does mean more entertaining games the vast majority of the time. That is the reason that more people follow the NHL than college and why more people follow college than high school. I’ll give you a bit of an extreme example(not saying the gap is this large in any way just an example). I would rather watch a regular season high school game than watch the bantam B state championship. Just better hockey. Nothing personal. If my program (Roseau) goes to A and goes to state I will still go down and watch and have a blast doing so. That doesn’t mean as a fan with no team in the tournament that I would rather watch A than AA.......And I will add one more point here. When you say that the teams in the A semi finals are better than the unseeded teams in the AA field I feel like you are taking something away from a team like STMA that had to beat two very high end teams in Brainerd and Moorhead just to get down to St Paul. I have seen most of the teams in the tournament and that is just not true or fair to those teams. And I think for the most part pagestat ranking would back me up on that.

I won’t belabor this since we obviously won’t see eye to eye on this subject, and there are strong opinions on both sides. But I do want to take a moment to explain my statements better.

1. Regarding the comparison to college and NHL hockey, as hardcore high school fans we are all outside of the norm in that we are choosing to watch hockey that is objectively worse than those higher levels of play. Why do we love the state tournament? For the most part it comes down to the pageantry, traditions, and the drama of needing to win a single game to move on. Once that last part of the equation is removed, I am less interested in the games. That’s why I would much rather watch the A semifinals over the AA consolation games.

2. The statement regarding the A semifinalists being better than the AA consolation teams may have been a bit of hyperbole on my part, but certainly not a ridiculous statement, either. During the regular season Mahtomedi tied and beat HM (though lost twice to STA, once badly), Orono lost to Minnetonka 5-2, and Hermantown lost to Minnetonka 5-3 and STMA 4-3. (And Minnetonka just crushed HM and Centennial.) I would say that the teams are roughly equal in quality based on those results, and there certainly isn’t a major difference between them. (And this is a somewhat down year for Class A.)

Anyway, I hope that we all are enjoying the championship hockey today at both levels, as that is the most important part.