Grand Forks Herald
Arizona State writes letter applying for NCHC membership
Arizona State athletic director Ray Anderson wrote a letter to NCHC commissioner Josh Fenton outlining the positives and potential of the second-year program, saying that the school will pay the NCHC’s $20,000 application fee by mid-September.
Click here to read the letter..
Anderson also laid out plans to pay the rest of the $500,000 entry fee in installments of $100,000, should it be accepted.
Anderson’s letter stated that Arizona State plans to have a new facility in place by the start of the 2018-19 season, which is when the Sun Devils hope to enter the NCHC. The letter didn’t state any specifics about arena plans, though. Arizona State’s current facility, Oceanside Ice Arena, is not a viable option to NCHC members.
The NCHC presidents are expected to decide on potential expansion before the end of the year.
Minnesota State-Mankato, currently in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association, also has formally applied for membership in the NCHC.
The NCHC currently has eight teams — defending national champion North Dakota, St. Cloud State, Minnesota Duluth, Denver, Colorado College, Omaha, Miami and Western Michigan.
ASU will make a great addition to the NCHC. Big school, big market, big brand, nice road trip destination. If the league needs to add another school to bring the league’s team count to 10, I would much prefer it be Bowling Green, a large D-I school from a moderate-sized market (Toledo) and a helpful fellow MAC travel partner for Western Michigan and Miami.
ASU will make a great addition to the NCHC. Big school, big market, big brand, nice road trip destination. If the league needs to add another school to bring the league’s team count to 10, I would much prefer it be Bowling Green, a large D-I school from a moderate-sized market (Toledo) and a helpful fellow MAC travel partner for Western Michigan and Miami.