The Weirdest, Wildest Wockey Pool Yet?

Over the years, we’ve had some strange goings-on in the Wockey Pool.  There have been ridiculous comebacks, remarkable goals, and irredeemable feats of stupidity.  But this year, has been one for the ages.

Of the four teams who have made it to the Frozen Four, three have earned that right for the first time, the other will be making their first appearance since 1952, and none have ever won a national championship.  For only the second time since 1993, we are guaranteed to see a program win it’s first title.  Once, when I asked two-time Wockey Champion Kevin Jewett what his secret was, he told me he just picked teams that had a history of doing well.  That tactic is the complete opposite of what you wanted to take this year (and fortunately for Jewett, he didn’t listen to his own advice--more on that in a bit).

For fans of Quinnipiac, Massachusetts-Lowell, Yale, and my alum, St. Cloud State, it feels like we’re in a dream from which we’ve yet to wake up.  Sure, we may overreact a bit (after all, we don’t really know how to act in situations like this).  On the other hand, it’s not like we take it to this extreme.  

And while the TV ratings are sure to take a hit -- hearing “Quinnipiac!  Massachusetts-Lowell! Up next in the NCAA hockey championship game on ESPN!” may cause non-college hockey fans to tune to the nearest WNBA preseason game -- it’s fun for any sports fan see an underdog do well--let alone four of them.

For the Wockey Pool, it creates some baffling situations that can really only be found in a place as wacky as Wockey.  Only four Wockeyites remain in contention to become Wockey Champion, and just like the NCAA, we’ll crown a new champion for the first time.  We’ll review each of the eight scenarios below, but first a reminder of what’s at stake.

For the Wockey Champion, 50% of the overall pot (approx. $800) and this spectacular Champion’s mug.  Payouts for the remaining places are as follows:

2nd - 20% (approx. $320)

3rd - 15% (approx. $240)

4th - 10% (approx. $160)

5th - 5%  (approx. $80)

If Quinnipiac beats Massachusetts-Lowell:  This is certainly the most convoluted scenario.  Jason Kuss, he of the five bracket entries, would win in a landslide with 60 points.  Joe Zielinski would finish in second with 45.  Jason Sturm, despite picking Minnesota to win it all, would get every other pick correct and somehow finish in third.  For fourth and fifth, there would be a six-way tie that would come down to either the first tiebreaker (total goals scored in the Frozen Four) or second tiebreaker (total goals scored in the tournament--in the event of it still being a tie, the money would be split evenly between the tied contestants).  Those involved in the tie are one of Chris Goodman’s ten brackets, Mary Cotie, Kevin Jewett (he went against his convictions and picked Quinnipiac!), Brian Jesse, Jon Brinckerhoff, and last year’s near-champion Matt Laaksonen.

If Quinnipiac beats Yale:  The points would change, but the order of the top three finishers (1. Kuss, 2. Zielinski, 3. Sturm) would remain the same.  Once again, we would go to a tiebreaker for fourth and fifth place, but it would only be a five-way tie between Cotie, Jewett, Jesse, Brinckerhoff, and Laaksonen with Goodman missing the cut.  

If St. Cloud State beats Yale:  First off, if St. Cloud State wins at all, I am throwing a huge party and everyone is invited.  Of course, since my bracket was busted long ago, I’ll need some help from the Wockey Champion to help pay for said party.

In this scenario, Brian Ringham--yes, the man who had my two young daughters draw brackets out of a hat for him, would be the winner.  In this case, two-year-old Madeleine would have been the one to draw the victorious bracket, and she would immediately become favored over her older sister, Grace, by Brian and I.  Grace, however, would still be the preferred niece of their Uncle Chris, the weeping Husky fan from the earlier video link, and Matt Kilby who would finish tied for second place thanks to Madeleine’s paper-selecting skills.  Another tiebreaker would determine who would finish fourth and fifth between Laaksonen, Jody Norstedt, and Joe Swerdfiger (who would be in this position despite picking Mass-Lowell to win it all).

If St. Cloud State beats Mass-Lowell:  This is where it gets really weird.  Despite picking the River Hawks of Lowell to be victorious, Swerdfiger would be your Wockey Champion.  Kuss would finish in second place despite having selected Quinnipiac as his winner.  Ringham (who actually “chose” St. Cloud to win) would finish in a tie for third with...Kuss.  That’s right.  In the first of numerous scenarios in which this could occur, Jason Kuss would become the first Wockeyite ever to have multiple brackets finish in the money.  On a related note, none of Erik Pederson’s eight brackets can possibly earn him any winnings.  I told you this was a crazy year.  Finishing tied for fifth thus requiring a tiebreaker would be Chris Walker and Kilby.

If Yale beats St. Cloud State:  This would be the most unlikely and lowest-scoring scenario of all seeing as nobody selected Yale to win, and the only Wockeyite who had them going to the title game, Tim Evanson, did so poorly in the rest of his bracket that he can’t win money even if they do make it there.  In this bizarre scenario, Swerdfiger wins with a paltry 37 points, Kuss and Sturm finish tied for second, Kuss’s other bracket gets him fourth place, and Dan Glumac would finish fifth.

If Yale beats Quinnipiac:  With top overall seed Quinnipiac being far and away the most popular remaining choice to win the NCAA title (16 selections overall), even having them reach the title game and losing would shake up the top of the standings.  In this scenario, Kuss and Sturm would finish tied with 43 points marking the first time in Wockey history a tiebreaker would be needed to determine the Wockey Champion.  Chris Walker would end up third while a three-way tie between Zielinski, Goodman, and last year’s fourth-place finisher Erich Manwarren would have to be broken.

If Mass-Lowell beats Quinnipiac:  This is the lone scenario in which Goodman, he of the $100 bracket spending spree, could become Wockey Champion.  Kuss, despite selecting Quinnipiac to win, would finish second.  Swerdfiger would end up third and a tie would need to be broken between Kuss and last year’s third-place finisher, Glenn Perez, to determine fourth and fifth place.

If Mass-Lowell beats St. Cloud State:  This is the third scenario in which Joe Swerdfiger would be your Wockey Champion.  Kuss would end up second.  Goodman and Perez would have to break a tie to see who finishes third, and another Kuss bracket, again despite picking Quinnipiac to win it all, would finish fifth.

Feel free take the time to re-read that entire section, consider the tangled myriad of possibilities, and then have this happen.

It should also be noted, that in any of the above scenarios, I won’t win money for the sixth consecutive year, and Elena Luoto Meister still won’t earn any points.

So as you can see, the Wockey Pool is far from over.  Despite there not being any brand names to watch in the Frozen Four, it should be an outstanding tournament with lots riding on the line for the seventeen Wockeyites who can still place in the money and especially for the four who still hope to be called Wockey Champion.

The Frozen Four begins in Pittsburgh on Thursday April 11th when Yale and Mass-Lowell face off at 4:30 CT.  I’ll be back shortly before the tournament resumes.  In the meantime, help drum up interest for next year’s pool by sharing the Wockey Pool with all of your uninitiated family members and friends.  If they’re not interested in Wockeying after the crazy weekend we just had, I’m not sure what would get them excited.  Except maybe this.

Until next Thursday, Wockey on!

Your Middling, Diddling, Piddling Wockey Commish,

Alex