Wisconsin Recruiting Vol. XXVI: Make him an offer he can't refuse

[Chuck Schwartz]

Re: Wisconsin Recruiting Vol. XXVI: Make him an offer he can't refuse

Given the other holes they need to fill, it's not hard to understand why they might not have put a lot of resources into Baker at this point. Given what they already have committed for that time frame and the players still available, it wasn't a must-have. You certainly would have liked a talented kid like that, but there are other needs at the moment.

Good for Tarek, he'll be a solid player.

[Gurtholfin]

Re: Wisconsin Recruiting Vol. XXVI: Make him an offer he can't refuse

Are you referring to Phil Kessel? Because that ended pretty well. Amanda on the other hand...

I don't think it ended well in all facets.

Us winning a title and him (them) not is of course wonderful.

The acrimony that is still noticeable in these parts is nothing to be proud of - and to be fair, I still exhibit some myself although in general, I hope he has success in the NHL and certainly will be rooting hard for him in the Olympics.

Time passing & hindsight along with maturity & understanding that comes with being a parent of a child who wants to make his own decisions has taught me that the decision wasn't as black and white as I thought back then.

I'll still hold out that he could have chosen any other school though...

[Hammy]

Re: Wisconsin Recruiting Vol. XXVI: Make him an offer he can't refuse

Given the other holes they need to fill, it's not hard to understand why they might not have put a lot of resources into Baker at this point. Given what they already have committed for that time frame and the players still available, it wasn't a must-have. You certainly would have liked a talented kid like that, but there are other needs at the moment.

Good for Tarek, he'll be a solid player.

Probably selling him a bit short. The word I am hearing around pro scouting circles is he is projected to be better than a few of the kids you mentioned as priorities for UW.

[Chuck Schwartz]

Probably selling him a bit short. The word I am hearing around pro scouting circles is he is projected to be better than a few of the kids you mentioned as priorities for UW.

Maybe. Not really interested in how they project as professionals, however. I've watched each a few times and have my own opinions.

[Hammy]

Re: Wisconsin Recruiting Vol. XXVI: Make him an offer he can't refuse

Didn't say anything about professional projection. Just said the scouts were professionals that have been doing it for a long time. I feel I have to make it clear on what level of scout they are because there are so many wannabes these days that call themselves a "scout" simply because they write for a blog or a website.

[WiscDC]

Re: Wisconsin Recruiting Vol. XXVI: Make him an offer he can't refuse

I don't think it ended well in all facets.

Us winning a title and him (them) not is of course wonderful.

The acrimony that is still noticeable in these parts is nothing to be proud of - and to be fair, I still exhibit some myself although in general, I hope he has success in the NHL and certainly will be rooting hard for him in the Olympics.

Time passing & hindsight along with maturity & understanding that comes with being a parent of a child who wants to make his own decisions has taught me that the decision wasn't as black and white as I thought back then.

I'll still hold out that he could have chosen any other school though...

I'll admit that my distaste of the whole (Phil) Kessel thing is very weak, as I learned about it well after the fact, already knowing that the Badgers won the national championship that year. Also, I don't have a great idea of what was going on before that 2005-06 season, other than it made the Kohl Center fans boo him when he touched the puck. It's all history that I've had to learn, as opposed to watching him on Team USA. I've seen that video of his first goal at the Kohl Center, and it does fire up the "I hate the Gophers" part of my brain.

Honestly, I kind of like that there were enough people paying close attention to Wisconsin hockey recruiting that there were audible boos before he even scored.

[Gurtholfin]

Re: Wisconsin Recruiting Vol. XXVI: Make him an offer he can't refuse

Didn't say anything about professional projection. Just said the scouts were professionals that have been doing it for a long time. I feel I have to make it clear on what level of scout they are because there are so many wannabes these days that call themselves a "scout" simply because they write for a blog or a website.

You don't play very nice...

[Hammy]

Re: Wisconsin Recruiting Vol. XXVI: Make him an offer he can't refuse

You don't play very nice...

I wasn't aiming that at him. Just a general statement.

[Gurtholfin]

Re: Wisconsin Recruiting Vol. XXVI: Make him an offer he can't refuse

I'll admit that my distaste of the whole (Phil) Kessel thing is very weak, as I learned about it well after the fact, already knowing that the Badgers won the national championship that year. Also, I don't have a great idea of what was going on before that 2005-06 season, other than it made the Kohl Center fans boo him when he touched the puck. It's all history that I've had to learn, as opposed to watching him on Team USA. I've seen that video of his first goal at the Kohl Center, and it does fire up the "I hate the Gophers" part of my brain.

Honestly, I kind of like that there were enough people paying close attention to Wisconsin hockey recruiting that there were audible boos before he even scored.

It was totally different. There was a ton of press about his choice long before he made it and he was touted as the most gifted player to ever come out of the Madison area. He was groomed and coached by former Badgers while growing up. Etc, etc, etc...

It was a shock as most of those supposedly in the know stated that he'd make the "right choice."


Felt like a huge betrayal at the time, but again, he had his reasons, has to live with them and seems to be doing fine for himself other than incurring John Scott's wrath.


Let me ask this to my fellow Badger fans. If you had an offensively gifted player that was being recruited by the top D-1 programs, would you really want him to go with Eaves over all other choices?

If you lived in Madison, would you want your kid to stay here - where he grew up - or would you want him to experience something new?

If UW made you feel like you needed them more than they needed your boy, would that tick you off?

Take your fandom out of the equation (if you can) and think about it.

[goldy_331]

Re: Wisconsin Recruiting Vol. XXVI: Make him an offer he can't refuse

Let me ask this to my fellow Badger fans. If you had an offensively gifted player that was being recruited by the top D-1 programs, would you really want him to go with Eaves over all other choices?

That's why I'm still baffled by Besse's choice.

[milzie]

Re: Wisconsin Recruiting Vol. XXVI: Make him an offer he can't refuse

I'll admit that my distaste of the whole (Phil) Kessel thing is very weak, as I learned about it well after the fact, already knowing that the Badgers won the national championship that year. Also, I don't have a great idea of what was going on before that 2005-06 season, other than it made the Kohl Center fans boo him when he touched the puck. It's all history that I've had to learn, as opposed to watching him on Team USA. I've seen that video of his first goal at the Kohl Center, and it does fire up the "I hate the Gophers" part of my brain.

Honestly, I kind of like that there were enough people paying close attention to Wisconsin hockey recruiting that there were audible boos before he even scored.

A little more history on this topic. Here's how Phil's season ended...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jnRfpcc3LZA

[Gurtholfin]

Re: Wisconsin Recruiting Vol. XXVI: Make him an offer he can't refuse

Oh boy, here we go...

[4four4]

Re: Wisconsin Recruiting Vol. XXVI: Make him an offer he can't refuse

Are you referring to Phil Kessel? Because that ended pretty well. Amanda on the other hand...

...became a Gopher legend.

[4four4]

Re: Wisconsin Recruiting Vol. XXVI: Make him an offer he can't refuse

Verona's Tarek Baker commits to Minnesota. Badgers came late to the party on this one.

Late to the party? How is it even possible? I am under the impression this kid is an elite player.

[Gurtholfin]

Re: Wisconsin Recruiting Vol. XXVI: Make him an offer he can't refuse

I am under the impression this kid is an elite player.

He is, and has been.

I remember when he went to a USA Hockey eval. camp a couple of years ago and heard that he was the top rated kid at his position for his birth year.

Maybe someone else can confirm this and I'm not sure if that was just at that camp or if it was nationwide.

Heard it from the gossiping dads.


If it's true that he's playing for Janesville though, I gotta think that's a step back as they're small time. I looked on their website and he's not listed. I thought he was still with the NTDP, but to be honest, his name hasn't come up (before the last 12 hours) in quite a while so I lost track.