Yo HerrDave, I wouldn't put salt to Blizzard's words. You always have this option: to go against them.
You've made good, no, great models, and I've been glad to use your resources. So what if Blizz owns your old models and character names once you publish content?
You're a creative person, no doubt. Change the names. Tweak the design. You can do better in the future than with these lower poly creations.
Hell, I wouldn't put it past you to create a new way to make high resolution models with insanely low file sizes.
I'd say finish your projects. Use it for your profile. They can't deny you that. This is just a stepping stone for you.
After this, leave Blizz where they're at: in the past. You're the future now.
You're a damn good modeller, could definitely put that too good use. Will you stick around on HIVE as a community member?