UNO Hockey: Mavs back off talk of switch

UNO Athletic Director Trev Alberts has a message for all those making plans for the Mavericks to join the Western Collegiate Hockey Association.

Wait a minute.

“I keep reading all these articles that we're moving to the WCHA, and that's extremely premature at this point,” Alberts said. “We've never made that announcement.”

Further still, Alberts said, the WCHA — which originally contacted the University of Nebraska at Omaha about switching from the Central Collegiate Hockey Association — appears to have backed off some in its pursuit.

“The tenor of their interest seems to have changed, for whatever reason,” Alberts said. “Their interest seems to have waned.”

Alberts said he spoke with WCHA Commissioner Bruce McLeod on Friday as a matter of routine business and got a different impression of how things were going.

“The only thing that has changed since our previous conversation is that we hired a head coach,” Alberts said.

Does that mean that UNO's hiring of Dean Blais, who twice won national championships while coaching for WCHA power North Dakota, has made the WCHA squeamish?

McLeod, who said on the day Blais was hired, June 12, that the league's coaches were excited about competing against him again, downplayed the insinuation.

“I don't know what that means,” he said, dismissing any correlation.

McLeod said league athletic directors would make a recommendation Wednesday to their faculty representatives about the league's potential expansion.

Bemidji State already has applied to join the 10-team league, and the WCHA wants to find a second program to fill out the lineup and make scheduling uniform.

McLeod said previously that UNO was the league's only target and that avenue would be examined before moving on to another school.

He said no date has been set for a formal vote. UNO has not applied to join the league.

McLeod said he was unaware of a change in interest in UNO from the WCHA.

“I'm not sure what he (Alberts) is referring to,” McLeod said. “This is just part of the process.”

When UNO started its hockey program in 1996, its original hope was to join the WCHA, but when the league didn't move quickly to admit UNO, it instead joined the CCHA.

“We're not disappointed at all in the CCHA,” Alberts said. “We've had 10 great years in the CCHA. They've done great things for us and we've built some good rivalries. Our hockey program is not afraid to take on anybody. And when Ohio State and Michigan come to town this year on back-to-back weekends (in February), it's going to be special.”

CCHA Commissioner Tom Anastos, reached by cell phone Friday afternoon, declined immediate comment.

Alberts has vowed to re-evaluate all aspects of the Mav hockey program since taking over as athletic director last month.

“We did have conversations with both leagues, and those were fruitful,” Alberts said. “All we have stated is that we were going to take a comprehensive look at how we do business with hockey. Since the WCHA approached us with interest, we listened. It was never about us seeking a new home.”

Contact the writer:

444-1027, rob.white@owh.com