NCHA Announces Playoff Format   With the departure of Lake Forest from the NCHA in 2009-10, the league was forced to evaluate their playoff format and come to a resolution as to how the post-season would proceed.  Recently, the league announced that indeed all teams in the league would still make the post-season, something that was in doubt at one point. "There were a few different ideas that were thrown around.  There was talk of just having the top four teams qualify, maybe the top six, but in the end it was decided that all seven teams deserved a shot at the post-season," said Yellowjacket Head Coach Dan Stauber.  "That's not to say that somewhere down the line that won't change, but right now we feel that all seven teams should make the run." In the league's infancy, just the top four teams would make the run into the post-season.  That changed in 1990's when it was decided that all teams should make it. "The top four format received a lot of consideration," Stauber said.  "Obviously there is the risk of not making it if you are outside that top four.  But there is a positive because you could essentially give everyone a week off between the end of the regular season and the beginning of the playoffs.  At that time of the year, that week off could be big for teams." This season, the top seeded team, the regular season NCHA champion, will have a bye into the league semifinals.  The second place team will host the seventh place team, number three will host number six and number four will host number five.  The three winners advance, with the first place team hosting the lowest remaining seed in the semifinals. "That top seed is big for many reasons, as everyone knows.  The team that wins the NCHA stands a good shot at making the NCAA field, there's the home-ice advantage factor as well," Stauber said.  "Now you add in that bye and a week of rest and it makes it an even bigger deal to win the league."