CCHA Pick 'Em 2022-23 - The Last Augie-Free Edition

[TalonsUpPuckDown]

I went down one place in the standings and I'm facing the commissioner himself. TUPD got a bye this round as well and just doesn't realize it.

Now watch, I'll go out and kill it this week.

I figure I'm good for a field goal and safety this week. No TDs in my future.

I wish the AZZ crew was spread out a little more among the regions. Too many head-to-head matchups for us in the first round.

[TalonsUpPuckDown]

Folks, I propose the AZZ contingent of the Pick 'Em contest hold a little side contest like we did last year. The contestant who ends up with the most points at the end of the playoffs is the winner. So if you get knocked out of the playoffs, keep submitting entries. I'll tally the results separately and report them here.

Good luck!

[mbenecke]

Folks, I propose the AZZ contingent of the Pick 'Em contest hold a little side contest like we did last year. The contestant who ends up with the most points at the end of the playoffs is the winner. So if you get knocked out of the playoffs, keep submitting entries. I'll tally the results separately and report them here.

Good luck!

What do we win? A season-long skybox next year, at a $10k value?

[footballguy51]

Folks, I propose the AZZ contingent of the Pick 'Em contest hold a little side contest like we did last year. The contestant who ends up with the most points at the end of the playoffs is the winner. So if you get knocked out of the playoffs, keep submitting entries. I'll tally the results separately and report them here.

Good luck!

What do we win? A season-long skybox next year, at a $10k value?

I'll keep playing. I'll finish higher than 26th simply due to a lower participation number.

Bring on football! I can pick those games.

[TalonsUpPuckDown]

I've been doing writeups over on USCHO, figured this year I'd start posting them here. Here's yesterday's:

Playoff Picks – First and Second Rounds

(1) Icd80 vs. BYE – Our 2022-23 MacNaughton Cup champion was tough to beat down the stretch averaging a whopping .642 pick percent over the last 5 weeks of the season (for reference, .641 was enough to win the Beagan) along with 18 bonus points. Finishing with 300 points and 47 bonus points over the course of the season along with ten top-5 weekly finishes and 2 weekly wins makes Icd80 a contestant you don’t want to mess with.

(16) Hockey John vs. (17) BGSURICK – A couple of AZZers go head-to-head in this first round matchup of players from the middle of the pack. Hockey John found himself in the top 10 throughout the first 16 weeks of the season then seemed to lose some mojo with a below average performance in the last week of the season. His .571 pick percentage skews towards the third quartile of the field and his 33 bonus points are towards the middle, but five top-5 weekly finishes show that he can easily get back on track. BGSURICK came in second in the Battle for the Beagan with a .631 pick percentage with 25 bonus points. Had he entered all 21 weeks we’d be looking at a top-10 seed. The only weakness to his game is besting the field as he has only two top-3 finishes with no weekly wins. Who do you like here? Winner gets Icd80.

(9) Bronco Hockey Fan vs. (24) CoHockeyMom – A standard bell curve describes Bronco Hockey Fan’s campaign this year. Starting out strong, cooling off in the middle (.591 pick %), coming on strong at the end (.627 pick %). While picking is solid, the 22 bonus points is bottom quartile. However, four top-5 finishes shows the potential. On other side of the coin stands rookie CoHockeyMom who also brings 4 top-5 finishes along with sharing first place in week 2 to the table. While the pick percentage is .589, the bonus play is strong with 38 points. This matchup will come down to the strength of Bronco Hockey Fan’s picking vs. CoHockeyMom’s bonus play.

(8) MTUHuskyGold vs. (25) Tommiealum93 – Eight top-5 finishes and two weekly wins highlight MTUHuskyGold’s 2022-23 campaign. What’s more important is those top-5 finishes came towards the last part of the season meaning the momentum could be a factor. Only a median of 35 bonus points could trip up this contestant. If there were a season award for homer picking, Tommiealum93 would be in contention. Picking the Tommies early dug this contestant a hole that was difficult to climb out of, however, as Rico’s boys stepped up their game over the course of the season, so too did Tommiealum93’s scores. The 16 bonus points for the season has to be concerning but if St. Thomas catches fire in the playoffs this matchup could be a lot closer that it would seem at first glance.

[TalonsUpPuckDown]

Next we’ll do a deep dive into the Houghton bracket. But first, here is a link to the form:

Playoff Picks – First and Second Rounds

(2) ClassyC vs. BYE – What can you say about our second place finisher and top seed in the bracket besides WOW! ClassyC took the Pick ‘Em world by storm in their inaugural year with 3 first place finishes, 2 second place finishes, and 1 third place finish. Starting in week 3, ClassyC spent the remaining 19 weeks in either 1st, 2nd, or 3rd. A pick percentage of .628 allowed for a strong run for the Beagan and 40 bonus points kept pace with the field in the running for the Sauer. With this balanced attack one has to consider ClassyC a strong candidate for the Mason Cup. As an aside, it seemed that every week the Pick ‘Em staff was writing something about this contestant. What a year!

(15) beaverhockeyfan vs. (18) GoNanooks – As the Jeff Sauer winner, beaverhockeyfan started the season in the doldrums, caught fire at the start of the second half, then seemed to lose that fire in the belly down the stretch despite the 3 second place weekly finishes. While a .538 pick percentage is bottom quartile, 51 bonus points(!) was more than enough to place in the middle of the field. GoNanooks finished the season with a slightly better .585 pick percentage and a more than respectable 40 bonus points. If you add GoNanooks’ one weekly win into the numbers, you find these contestants are eerily similar across the board. This matchup is basically even…a true Pick ‘Em pick ‘em. And what awaits the winner??? A date with ClassyC

(10) SweeneyHawksHockey vs. (23) SectionP – As the most prodigious pick ‘em player on the USCHO boards, SweeneyHawksHockey’s 10th place finish has to feel disappointing as this contestant is historically in the hunt for a #1 seed. The first half of the season was solid; no worse than top 7 in the standings each week. However, the second half was a struggle; falling out of the top 10 and finishing with a rather pedestrian .601 pick percentage (3rd quartile) and 31 bonus points and no weekly wins or second place finishes. The other side of this matchup finds SectionP in the rather uncharacteristic position of also having never gotten any mojo going. Two second place finishes and a solid 37 bonus points was offset by a disheartening .523 pick percentage. It’s safe to say that whichever contestant can recapture their lost glory not only will win the matchup but could be a formidable opponent the rest of the way.

(7) TalonsUpPuckDown vs. (26) Footballguy51 – As last year’s Mason Cup and Bill Beagan trophy winner, I have inside knowledge that TUPD had his sights set on winning more hardware this year. However, a disastrous week 3 put him well off the pace with the next 11 weeks spent in pick ‘em purgatory well outside the top 10. After finally kicking it into gear and with a first round bye within his grasp, he again crapped the bed during the final week of the regular season and now finds himself up against fellow AZZer Footballguy51. While one may look askance at Footballguy51’s .521 pick percentage and 30 bonus points, don’t forget his week 10 pick 6 when he took it to the house and won the week with his gutsy Ferris-to-sweep-the-Mavs-in-Mankato double play bonus pick. And though he spent the season towards the back of the pack, his devil may care approach to picking hockey games is more than enough to offset his opponents .620 pick percentage and measly 29 bonus points. Draft Kings lists this one as a potential upset.

[TalonsUpPuckDown]

Next up is the Marquette bracket. But first, the link:

Playoff Picks – First and Second Rounds

(3) Critical Thinker vs. BYE – Critical Thinker held the pole position in the race for the MacNaughton Cup for 15 of 21 weeks but was not in the lead the only week it mattered. Finishing 3rd with a first round bye has to be a small consolation for a contestant who also contended most of the year for the Beagan with a .626 pick percentage (at one point it was a white hot .672!) and 44 bonus points including a week 7 10-point sweep.

(14) giwan vs. (19) puckdude40 – Our 2021-22 MacNaughton Cup champion, giwan, started out on pace to challenge for a repeat but seemed to lose stride during the middle of the season. A respectable .611 pick percentage is slightly above average but the 29 bonus points is only good enough for the third quartile. On the other side of the ledger is puckdude40 who killed it with 44 bonus points but left something on the table with a .535 pick percentage which kept him bouncing around the bottom half of the field for most of the season. Can giwan recapture last years’ mojo? Will puckdude40 maintain his pace with the bonus? This is another very close matchup that will come down to the wire.

(11) manurespreader vs. (22) <3_Blizzard – manurespreader started the season in the doldrums, caught fire (rising as high as third in the standings), then seemed to fade down the stretch. While a .609 pick percentage and 37 bonus points may be smack dab in the middle of the pack, two first-place finishes and 6 top-5 finishes show the potential for a hot streak when it matters most. The other side of the faceoff circle finds <3_Blizzard who brings a killer .620 pick percentage to the table along with a respectable 32 bonus points. So what happened? Despite the solid performance, missing 25 games has an impact on seeding so this matchup is a heck of a lot closer that it first appears. And based on the line from Draft Kings, it would not be surprising to see <3_Blizzard storming to an upset!

(6) potternmu vs. (27) iwearpurple – One point. That’s it. Only one point separated potternmu from being the 5th seed and a first round bye. Folks, this is currently the hottest player in the field going from 15th position in week 19 to tied for 5th in week 21. Finishing second in the Battle for the Beagan with 47 bonus points is impressive; however, what’s more impressive is that 21 of those bonus points came during the final three weeks of the season! Throw a top-5 pick percentage of .628 into the mix and you got yourself a player looking to make a deep run in the playoffs. Standing in the way is iwearpurple who never seemed to catch fire with the bonus finishing with a disappointing 16 points. On the picking side of the ledger, .577 is third quartile. BUT…iwearpurple missed 8 games which presents a huge upside in this match. While Draft Kings leans towards the higher seed, we could be looking at massive upset here.

[TalonsUpPuckDown]

Last up is the BG bracket. But first, the link:

Playoff Picks – First and Second Rounds

(4) LGRH vs. BYE – For 21 weeks our final number 1 seed was never outside of the top 10 in the standings – a remarkable feat. LGRH finished the year with a .618 pick percentage and 39 bonus points which may not be as spectacular as other contestants. However, LGRH possesses one of the most balanced attacks of any contestant – there are no holes to exploit. While there were no weekly wins, the consistency of 16 top-10 finishes sums up a strong campaign.

(5) mbenecke vs. BYE – The last bye goes to mbenecke, our 2022-23 Bill Began champion who posted a blistering .641 pick percentage along with nine top-5 finishes and 2 weekly wins. The path to the last bye was a bit of a roller coaster with mbenecke wallowing near the bottom of the field through the first 12 weeks before finally catching fire. The only weakness is his bonus play. Twenty bonus points (bottom quartile) may leave the door open for an upset in later rounds.

(12) mikeeddy19 vs. (21) Soulbeaver – mikeeddy19 spent the first half of the season chasing down the MacNaughton Cup (including having a share of the lead in week 4) then slipped out of contention the second half. While he finished the season with a .582 pick percentage and a weekly win, during his hot streak he was picking at a .633 pace and when you add in 37 bonus points you see the opportunity for him to reignite his performance is out there. Standing in his way is Soulbeaver who struggled with consistency, bouncing around the leaderboard week-to-week. 28 bonus points and a .533 pick percentage may indicate an off year, but Soulbeaver also had a weekly win and 3 top-5 finishes so once again, the potential is there. This match is a tough call.

(13) John J. MacInnis vs. (22) Atanarjuat – In our last matchup, John J. MacInnes brings a .605 pick percentage and 21 bonus points to the table along with 5 top-5 weekly finishes. Aside from a stellar week 9 which saw him move into the top-10 in the standings, “the coach” has stayed in the mid-teens through the balance of the season. His opponent, last year’s Mason Cup runner up, is no stranger to playing the playoff underdog. Last year as the 25 seed, Atanarjuat beat the number 8, 9, 16, and 5 seeds in a Cinderella run that ended just short of a Pick ‘Em storybook ending. Is there a repeat on tap for this year? A .557 pick percentage with 35 bonus points and a weekly win matches strength against weakness in this head-to-head contest. But these numbers don’t account for that intangible which can be the difference between winning and losing…heart. Does the 2022-23 Atanarjuat spoiler run start here? Does John J. MacInnes put an end to the story before it’s written? Stick around and find out!

[mbenecke]

Hey man, don't give away the key to beating me!

For real though, I'm just glad to be in the BG bracket. Glad I have "home ice" this weekend.

[TalonsUpPuckDown]

Hey man, don't give away the key to beating me!

For real though, I'm just glad to be in the BG bracket. Glad I have "home ice" this weekend.

I have this feeling Footballguy is gonna f'in drill me right into the ground tomorrow. He has Rico/Ferris while I have Tech/BG but his bonus picks are better than mine. I've already started composing the UPDATE ALERT! commentary in my head.

[footballguy51]

Hey man, don't give away the key to beating me!

For real though, I'm just glad to be in the BG bracket. Glad I have "home ice" this weekend.

I have this feeling Footballguy is gonna f'in drill me right into the ground tomorrow. He has Rico/Ferris while I have Tech/BG but his bonus picks are better than mine. I've already started composing the UPDATE ALERT! commentary in my head.

Live and die by the bonus. We'll see if it works, but it probably won't.

[TalonsUpPuckDown]

All contestants entries are in. Here's a link. Nothing to do now but drop the puck and watch the scoreboard. Good luck!

View response details

[TalonsUpPuckDown]

The first round of the playoffs is in the books. Let's look at each bracket and see how everybody did.

There were no upsets in the Mankato bracket. Hockey John bested BGSURICK 12-10 and will square off against Icd80 who is warming up from a first round bye. Bronco Hockey Fan took care of CoHockeyMom 15-10, and MTUHuskyGold held off Tommiealum93 10-8.

In the Houghton bracket, giwan took out GoNanooks 12-7 and will now face ClassyC who beat the BYE 12-0. UPSET ALERT! Congratulations to SectionP who held off SweeneyHawksHockey 9-7 in what turned out to be the lowest scoring first round match. SectionP will now have the chance to continue the upset run when they face TUPD who barely outlasted Footballguy51 11-9.

UPSET ALERT in the Marquette bracket! puckdude40 held on to upset beaverhockeyfan 10-8 and will now face off against Critical Thinker who destroyed BYE with 16 points and would have posted the highest point total had it counted EDIT: Critical Thinker was nearly perfect on the evening missing only the shutout bonus...WOW! Looks like Critical Thinker may be back on track after losing his grasp on the MacNaughton Cup down the stretch. manurespreader quieted <3_Blizzard 15-10 and will face off against potternmu who held off iwearpurple 13-11.

UPSET ALERT in the BG bracket where it looks like Atanarjuat is back to playoff form taking out John J. MacInnes by a score of 14-12 which happens to be the first round's highest scoring match. There were 13 other playoff contestants that scored fewer points than John J. MacInnes. Ouch. Can Atanarjuat keep the run going? They'll face off against LGRH who posted 10 points coming off the bye. mikeeddy19 took out Soulbeaver by the largest margin in the first round, 14-7 and will square off against mbenecke who is coming off the last bye.

Round 2 is now on the clock. Check back tomorrow for updated results.

As for our side contest, here's the rankings after the first round:

Code: Select all

Contestant          Score
Critical Thinker      16
Hockey John           12
BGSURICK              10
mbenecke              11
TalonsUpPuckDown      11
Footballguy51          9

[footballguy51]

You shared the link to the response details but it’s locked. I was curious how bad my picks were. Apparently not terrible overall, but not good enough.

[TalonsUpPuckDown]

You shared the link to the response details but it’s locked. I was curious how bad my picks were. Apparently not terrible overall, but not good enough.

Should be unlocked now.