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

[TalonsUpPuckDown]

Congrats to our very own mbenecke for going 7-of-8 on picks and picking up 21 points for the win this week. The only match he missed was the Tommies upset of Tech. But a doff of the cap goes to mikeeddy19 who was the only contestant to correctly call that upset.

The bonus was tough this week as only one contestant picked up points. There were 247 shot attempts by both teams in the Mankato/ASU series. Congrats to beaverhockeyfan whose 8 bonus points now vaults them over manurespreader and into the lead for the Sauer. Here's how the leaderboard looks (includes the season bonus):

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Contestant        Bonus   Season Bonus    Total Bonus
beaverhockeyfan     32           3             35
Manurespreader      26           1             27
Critical Thinker    23           3             26
Hockey John         20           4             24
CoHockeyMom         24           0             24

Edit: Turns out there were two contestants picking up bonus points as LGRH gets 6. I misread the results when putting together the writeup. Good news is all of the standings were/are accurate. All the systems were correct; the defect was in the user compatible liveware.

There are multiple options for picking up bonus points this week. In addition to picking away team SOGs, we'll spice up the picks by awarding double points for a Laker upset win over the Mavs. That's 6 points for a Laker win, 4 points for an OT/SO win, or 2 points for an OT/SO loss.

In the Battle for the Beagan, Icd80 went 6-for-8 on picks this week and has now taken over the lead from Critical Thinker by .003 percentage points. Only one point separates these two contestants. This is a tough award to win and the race is coming down to a handful of contestants:

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Contestant       Points %
Icd80              .661
Critical Thinker   .658
BGSURICK           .643
mbenecke           .641
ClassyC            .636

REMINDER THAT THERE IS A THURSDAY GAME THIS WEEK. Don't procrastinate in getting those picks turned in as every point is crucial for playoff seeding.

Week 16 picks
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[TalonsUpPuckDown]

Two contestants were late additions last weekend that I did not pick up. Here are the updated standings;

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RankContestant (W/L/SOW/SOL)       Points  Bonus   Total  Points % Games  Team/Goal Bonus
 1  Critical Thinker (68-38-11-7)   233      23     256     .658    124     MNST/9 : 3
 2  Icd80 (69-37-9-9)               234      18     252     .661    124     MNST/8 : 4
 3  Manurespreader (63-43-9-9)      216      26     242     .610    124      NMU/8 : 1
 3  ClassyC (66-40-9-9)             225      17     242     .636    124      NMU/9 : 0
 5  LGRH (64-42-10-8)               220      18     238     .621    124
 6  beaverhockeyfan (58-48-11-7)    203      32     235     .573    124     MNST/9 : 3
 7  mbenecke (66-40-11-7)           227      5      232     .641    124     MNST/9 : 3
 8  Bronco Hockey Fan (66-40-8-10)  224      4      228     .633    124     MNST/8 : 4
 9  TalonsUpPuckDown (66-40-7-11)   223      4      227     .630    124     MNST/8 : 4
 9  Hockey John (60-46-9-9)         207      20     227     .585    124     MNST/8 : 4
 11 MTUHuskyGold (61-40-9-8)        209      17     226     .622    118
 11 BGSURICK (63-38-10-7)           216      10     226     .643    118
 13 mikeeddy19 (61-45-10-8)         211      14     225     .596    124     NMU/11 : 0
 14 SweeneyHawksHockey (63-43-8-10  215      9      224     .607    124      MTU/8 : 1
 14 potternmu (59-39-10-6)          203      21     224     .627    114      NMU/9 : 0
 16 CoHockeyMom (57-44-11-6)        199      24     223     .592    118      NMU/9 : 0
 17 Soulbeaver (60-46-9-9)          207      13     220     .585    124     MNST/8 : 4
 18 giwan (61-40-9-8)               209      10     219     .622    118     MNST/8 : 4
 19 puckdude40 (58-45-8-9)          199      18     217     .582    120      NMU/8 : 1
 20 iwearpurple (62-44-9-9)         213      3      216     .602    124     MNST/10 : 3
 21 John J. MacInnes (61-45-10-8)   211      4      215     .596    124     MNST/9 : 3
 22 SectionP (57-49-8-10)           197      15     212     .556    124      BG/7 : 5
 23 <3_Blizzard (57-36-9-8)         197      14     211     .631    110      NMU/9 : 0
 24 Tommiealum93 (60-46-7-11)       205      0      205     .579    124     MNST/9 : 3
 25 Atanarjuat (54-47-11-6)         190      11     201     .565    118    MNST/151 : 3
 26 GoNanooks (53-40-9-8)           185      15     200     .593    110      MTU/9 : 0
 26 Footballguy51 (55-51-7-11)      190      10     200     .537    124     MNST/8 : 4
 28 Ha Ha Clinton Dix (43-37-6-10)  151      0      151     .559     96      FSU/8 : 1
 29 jpfalcon09 (25-22-6-3)           90      0       90     .600     56      MTU/8 : 1

[TalonsUpPuckDown]

It was a big week for Critical Thinker who took home the weekly honors with 26 points. Going 7-for-8 on picks (missing only the Tommies knocking off BG on Thursday) plus 8 bonus points not only provides a bit of a cushion for first in the standings but also let's him reclaim first in the Battle for the Beagan with a blazing .669 pick percentage. Stick taps go out to Footballguy51 who also went 7-for-8 on picks. Also, don't forget CoHockeyMom and Tommiealum93 who were the only two contestants to pick the Tommies to win over BG on Thursday (I won't call that an upset) and Atanarjuat, BGSURICK, and SectionP who felt something in the college hockey universe the rest of us didn't and picked up an extra bonus point for the Lakers OT loss to Mankato.

Now, onto the bonus. Congratulations to Icd80 who correctly picked 198 away team SOGs this week and picks up 10 bonus points. Here is how the rest of the bonus scoring played out (includes both the SOG bonus and Laker bonus)

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Contestant        Bonus
Icd80               10
Critical Thinker     8
TalonsUpPuckDown     8
GoNanooks            6
ClassyC              4
Footballguy51        3
Atanarjuat           1
BGSURICK             1
CoHockeyMom          1
SectionP             1

There was a slight shakeup in the race for the Sauer with Critical Thinker and Icd80 making their claim for bonus glory, however, beaverhockeyfan still clings to a 1-point lead.

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Contestant        Bonus    Season Bonus    Total Bonus
beaverhockeyfan     32            3             35
Critical Thinker    31            3             34
Icd80               28            4             32
Manurespreader      26            1             27
CoHockeyMom         25            0             25

As mentioned above, Critical Thinker has reclaimed the top spot in the Battle for the Beagan

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Contestant          Points %
Critical Thinker      .669
Icd80                 .653
ClassyC               .648
BGSURICK              .644
mbenecke              .643
<3_Blizzard           .638

No bonus this week, though I'll officially add everyone's yearly bonus to the standings for this upcoming week so it'll feel like a bonus week.

Week 17 picks
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[TalonsUpPuckDown]

The week 17 winners who were 7-for-8 on picks this week are <3_Blizzard, Atanarjuat, mbenecke, and TUPD. There was not a lot of movement at the top of the leaderboard. Critical Thinker maintains a lead over Icd80 with ClassyC close behind. These same three contestants are also locked in a dogfight in the Battle for the Beagan with .008 pick percentage separating first and third.

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Contestant        Pick %
Critical Thinker   .669
ClassyC            .664
Icd80              .661
mbenecke           .659
<3_Blizzard        .657
potternmu          .652

The leaderboard now reflects the yearly bonus. In the race for the Sauer, beaverhockeyfan maintains a one point lead over Critical Thinker and a two point lead over Icd80. The bonus will be in play throughout the rest of the season.

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Contestant        Bonus
beaverhockeyfan     38
Critical Thinker    37
Icd80               36
Manurespreader      28
Hockey John         28

Week 18 picks
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[TalonsUpPuckDown]

The week 18 winner is Atanarjuat who posted a high score of 22 points. Very nicely done! Icd80 inches closer to Critical Thinker who remains in first place. This was a tough week for picks as up was down and left was right in the CCHA this weekend. It turns out 5 contestants whiffed on half of the picks this week. No need to provide a list, you know who you are.

Not much movement in the Battle for the Beagan. Critical Thinker maintains a lead of 4 points over Icd80 and 5 points over mbenecke and <3_Blizzard.

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Contestant          Pick %
Critical Thinker     .660
Icd80                .651
mbenecke             .648
<3_Blizzard          .648

There were 247 home team SOGs over the weekend with mikeeddy19 picking up 9 bonus points. Only four contestants picked up bonus points this week so we can conclude the bonus for this week was a toughie. Here's the breakdown

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Contestant    Bonus
mikeeddy19      9
Atanarjuat      8
puckdude40      6
Tommiealum93    3

While there was no movement at the top of the leaderboard in the race for the Sauer, both Atanarjuat and puckdude40 have moved within striking distance. There are three weeks left with 30 bonus points available. This could be quite a finish.

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Contestant         Bonus
beaverhockeyfan     38
Critical Thinker    37
Icd80               36
Manurespreader      28
Hockey John         28
SectionP            26
puckdude40          26
Atanarjuat          26

As mentioned there are only three weeks left in the season. I find it hard to believe it's coming to an end. Next week we will start our annual bracketology series where contestants will see how they match up for the upcoming playoffs. The best way to improve your seeding is to get those picks in!

Week 19 picks
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[TalonsUpPuckDown]

Bump. Missing some regulars. For those who haven't submitted picks for a bit, feel free to jump back in as the playoffs are right around the corner. Here's a bit of bracketology to whet your appetite:

[mbenecke]

<3_Blizzard, YOU'RE NEXT!

*Goldberg's music intensifies*

[TalonsUpPuckDown]

Congratulations to our sole week 19 winner, MTUHuskyGold, who led the field with 23 big points. As far as picking...well...WOW!!! This was a tough week. First off, major shout out to our own Hockey John who was the only contestant to correctly pick Bowling Green's win over Tech Friday night. Now that's what I call living ones values! Well done, sir. As for Friday night, seven (7) contestants were successful with the anti-picking approach and were shut out. However, three recovered nicely by being perfect on Saturday for a well-earned 50% on the weekend. However (again), one contestant stood out above all others going 100% 0-fer on picks this week. I won't name names, but his screen name rhymes with chuckrude. If only he'd flipped the bit, turned a negative sign into a positive, circled False instead of True -- what might have been.

The MacNaughton appears to be a two-person race between longtime leader Critical Thinker and Icd80 who are now separated by only two points. ClassyC lurks in third but making up 15 points with 2 weeks remaining is a tall order. Another mid-week Bracketology bump is forthcoming. If you don't like who you're matched up against the answer is easy: either win big or tank.

Moving on to the bonus, there were 35 goals scored this weekend. It turns out this was an easy bonus question as every contestant picked up bonus points. For some of you, this may have saved your bacon (see first paragraph about how bad the picking was this week). Two contestants rose to the challenge and picked up all 10 bonus points. Stick taps to Bronco Hockey Fan and GIWAN for their perfect bonus picking. Here's how the bonus played out for the rest of the field:

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Contestant           Bonus
Bronco Hockey Fan      10
giwan                  10
Atanarjuat              9
GoNanooks               9
SectionP                9
SweeneyHawksHockey      9
beaverhockeyfan         8
ClassyC                 8
Footballguy51           8
Icd80                   8
MTUHuskyGold            8
potternmu               8
Soulbeaver              8
TalonsUpPuckDown        8
<3_Blizzard             7
John J. MacInnes        7
LGRH                    7
iwearpurple             6
puckdude40              6
Hockey John             5
mbenecke                5
Critical Thinker        4
mikeeddy19              4
BGSURICK                3
Tommiealum93            3

There was not much of a shakeup in the Race for the Sauer. beaverhockeyfan now has a 2-point lead over Icd80 and 5 points over Critical Thinker.

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Contestant            Bonus
beaverhockeyfan         46
Icd80                   44
Critical Thinker        41
SectionP                35
Atanarjuat              35

There was a big shakeup in the leaderboard in the Battle for the Beagan. With a solid 4-for-6 on picks this week, <3_Blizzard now leads by .002 percentage points over Critical Thinker and .005 over mbenecke. That translates into a 1 point lead. This race is wide open!

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Contestant            Pick %
<3_Blizzard            .649
Critical Thinker       .647
mbenecke               .642

There are two weeks left in the season with a big, bonus bonanza available in week 20. If you're planning to make a move, now would be a good time to do so.

Week 20 picks
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[TalonsUpPuckDown]

Looks like there may be 5 first round byes this year.

[TalonsUpPuckDown]

Congratulations to our co-winners GoNanooks and potternmu who each crossed the week 20 goal line with 24 points each. To say this was a wild week was an understatement. You either knocked it out of the park or you never got up to bat. Throw on top of that Northern's annihilation of Ferris. More on that later. First, stick taps to GoNnooks who went 5-for-6 on picking this week. Also, stick taps to giwan, manurespreader, mbenecke, and MTUHuskyGold who were a perfect 3-for-3 on Friday night while 3 contestants went 0-fer on Friday.

Icd80 had just enough mojo this week to knock Critical Thinker from his longtime perch atop the leaderboard -- a spot he has held since week 7! Just one point separates these gladiators from pick 'em immortality. ClassyC lurks 8 points back so while I hesitate to make this a 2-horse race, it'll take a strong week to make up 8 points. Let's see how this plays out!

The bonus paid out handsomely for the field. Every contestant picked up at least 5 bonus points. There were 3 one-goal games, no shutouts, one OT, and no shootouts. While no contestants were perfect on the bonus, 6 contestants picked up 9 points. Here's the breakdown:

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Contestant                1-Goal Shutout   Tied  Shootout Total
BGSURICK                    3       2       2       2       9
Icd80                       3       2       2       2       9
LGRH                        3       2       2       2       9
potternmu                   3       2       2       2       9
puckdude40                  4       1       2       2       9
SweeneyHawksHockey          3       2       2       2       9
Bronco Hockey Fan           3       1       2       2       8
CoHockeyMom                 2       2       2       2       8
giwan                       3       2       1       2       8
GoNanooks                   3       1       2       2       8
John J. MacInnes            3       1       2       2       8
mbenecke                    4       2       1       1       8
MTUHuskyGold                3       2       2       1       8
SectionP                    3       1       2       2       8
Tommiealum93                3       2       1       2       8
beaverhockeyfan             3       1       2       1       7
Critical Thinker            2       2       1       2       7
Footballguy51               2       2       1       2       7
Hockey John                 3       1       2       1       7
Manurespreader              3       1       1       2       7
TalonsUpPuckDown            3       1       2       1       7
Atanarjuat                  3       1       1       1       6
ClassyC                     3       1       1       1       6
iwearpurple                 3       0       1       2       6
mikeeddy19                  3       1       1       1       6
Soulbeaver                  2       2       1       1       6
<3_Blizzard                 4       0       1       0       5

Now on to the yearly bonus and Northern's shellacking of Ferris. I didn't expect to have to unwind/rewind the calculations so suffice it to say that most of the field lost points and a few contestants hit home runs. The new mark to hit is NMU/9. There are now four contestants picking up the maximum 5 points: ClassyC, potternmu, CoHockeyMom, and <3_Blizzard. Note the standings and the Sauer reflect the change in the yearly bonus. Speaking of the Sauer, beaverhockeyfan now has a 3 point lead over potternmu with puckdude40 and Icd80 4 points back.

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Contestant          Bonus
beaverhockeyfan       51
potternmu             48
puckdude40            47
Icd80                 47
Critical Thinker      46

There is a shakeup in the leaderboard in the Battle for the Beagan with mbenecke making a late surge to claim the top spot. Critical Thinker and Icd80 are close behind but this hardware will come down to the wire.

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Contestant        Points %
mbenecke            .647
Critical Thinker    .638
Icd80               .636
<3_Blizzard         .633

I'll post a bracketology bump mid-week.

This is it folks. The last week of the CCHA regular season is upon us. Insert your favorite sports metaphor here.

Week 21 picks
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[Critical Thinker]

[TalonsUpPuckDown]

Here's your mid-week bracketology update. There are five first round byes this year. Critical Thinker looks to have one bye sewn up (with dreams of the MacNaughton dancing in his head) while I go mano-a-mano with mbenecke for the last spot.

[mbenecke]

Here's your mid-week bracketology update. There are five first round byes this year. Critical Thinker looks to have one bye sewn up (with dreams of the MacNaughton dancing in his head) while I go mano-a-mano with mbenecke for the last spot.

Good luck, sir!

And may the best Falcon win! One of the fine folks has to win it this year. Let’s do it!

[TalonsUpPuckDown]

First things first -- Week 21. Congratulations to potternmu who was the sole winner of the last week of the regular season with a high score of 20 points. Once again, the CCHA did not disappoint with 10 contestants (including yours truly) going 0-fer on Friday night. Stick taps to SectionP who was 4-for-4 Friday night. When you throw Saturday into the mix, 11 contestants failed to post double digit scores out of a possible 33 points. This has to be one of the worst weekly performances by the field since I've been running these contests. Blech is the word that comes to mind. Now on to the hardware

Icd80 is the 2022-23 CCHA Pick 'Em champion and winner of the MacNaughton Cup! Icd80 had a decent showing of 11 points this week which was just enough to fend off a huge charge by ClassyC whos bid for pick 'em glory fell short by a mere 3 points. Our longtime leader, Critical Thinker, finished in third place, 5 points out of the running. Where have I seen a February swoon before? Rounding out the scoreboard, mbenecke picks up the last first round bye along with LGRH who finishes in fourth.

Now on to the bonus. Congratulations to ClassyC who wins bonus honors this week with 5 bonus points. There were 27 away team goals and 16 home team goals scored this weekend so 15 contestants picked up at least 1 bonus point:

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Contestant         Away   Home   Total
ClassyC              5      0      5
Bronco Hockey Fan    4      0      4
potternmu            4      0      4
SectionP             0      4      4
LGRH                 3      0      3
SweeneyHawksHockey   3      0      3
beaverhockeyfan      2      0      2
BGSURICK             2      0      2
MTUHuskyGold         2      0      2
<3_Blizzard          0      1      1
Footballguy51        1      0      1
Icd80                0      1      1
mikeeddy19           1      0      1
puckdude40           1      0      1
TalonsUpPuckDown     0      1      1

As for the bonus hardware, Congratulations to beaverhockeyfan who wins the Jeff Sauer Trophy for the most bonus points this season by 4 points over potternmu and Icd80. Congratulations BHF!

Last by not least, the Battle for the Beagan was close heading into the last few weeks of the season, but one contestant stood on his head and ran away with the hardware down the stretch. Congratulations to mbenecke who wins the Bill Beagan award for the highest pick percentage! BGSURICK, Icd80, and ClassyC round out the action.

Whew. That was a lot to get through. If you're still with me, you have a lot of stamina. Now on to the playoffs!

We do a mano-a-mano playoff spread so weekly picks will NOT be available until Friday -- no cheating off your neighbor, you gotta earn it on your own. Five contestants receive a first round bye. All contestants should fill out all games this week (even if you have a bye) as it makes it easier on the Pick 'Em staff. Reminder that ties go the higher seed. The first round will consist of Friday's games, the second round will be the Saturday games. Good luck!!

Playoff Picks – First and Second Rounds

[footballguy51]

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.