When Cooney Weiland told the writers and coaches at this week's hockey luncheon that a new college league would add greatly to the local prestige of the sport, he was merely reviving a familiar tune.

A similar proposal rose feebly and died rapidly some years back. Few people know where it came from and no one remembers why it died, so a great deal of support and enthusiasm, if no action, has recently been bestowed upon the similar suggestions of Weiland and others.

The idea is really a simple and relatively practical one. It consists merely of skimming the cream form the Pentagonal League and the New England League, tossing in a few strong independents, and forming a more evenly-balanced loop of top teams. The point is to dispose of sextets of the calibre of M.I.T., Tufts, American International, and others which, over a long period of years, have consistently been defeated by phenomenal scores and have settled to the bottom of the New England circuit.

The Harvard coach even went so far as to suggest that a second loop be formed of the poor relations, with a possible playoff game between the weaker and stronger leagues.

Three teams from each present ice loop seem to be naturals for the new strong league. Harvard, Brown, Dartmouth, B.C., B.U., and Northeastern all play each other twice a season at present. Yale now plays each of these six at least once. And in an informal ballot at the luncheon for the eastern representative at the Denver N.C.A.A. championships, the only other schools to receive any mention were Middlebury and Clarkson. It was proposed that out of this group a good eight or nine team circuit could be formed.

Welland denied yesterday that the suggestion had anything to do with the recent minor squabble over the selection of teams for the Denver playoffs. Last year B.C. and B.U. were sent, with no representative from the Pentagonal League. This season it seemed to be tacitly agreed that one team from each loop would be chosen, bringing a storm of rebellion from those who wanted to send the Terriers and Eagles again, if these should prove the two strongest sextets.

At any rate, Weiland hastened to admit yesterday that although all coaches concerned seemed agreeable, the matter was still in the talking stage. It was talked to death once. It may very well be again.