Michigan Tech 2013-2014: Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Realignment

[purpleinnebraska]

Re: Michigan Tech 2013-2014: Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Realignment

What a joke. I doubt I'll even waste my time driving 2 hours to Mankato now.

Come on, man. We need the revenue.

[mtu_huskies]

Re: Michigan Tech 2013-2014: Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Realignment

I wish Mel would've gotten asked about the lineup. Why not put in some different Dmen after Fridays struggles.


Mel Pearson show summary for 2-17:
Frustrating weekend, Mel didn't see coming, knew UAF had was good, surprised at how they beat us
Have seen UAF while at MI, they have 2/3 great seniors, was concerned about weekend, we've had some success, easy to get comfortable, can think things are going to come easy
As much as coaches stress we have to be prepared, we weren't ready from drop of puck
We can be off by a second/inch, you can see we were getting beat to puck, part is hunger/desire and anticipation, we were a little bit off
Did not sense this during week, thought we were ready, can be easier to be dialed in on road, UAF left for Houghton on Monday, they played with desperation
Have to be careful with how long you practice, been practicing since Sept, no travel so have more opportunity for practice, UAF looked more fresh
They play a different game on Olympic sheet, we've seen all their games, watched tape of recent games but it was on Olympic sheet, they made some changes from when we were at UAF, changed neutral zone play


On Friday, 7-3 loss:
Breakdowns on UAF goal, PPG, we tried to outnumber them in corner
Pheonix made some big saves and we played better until that penalty, got put on our heels a bit
D. Johnstone ties it at 1, good PPG, has come on these last few weeks, even score after not playing well, wanted to get regrouped heading into 2nd
They come out and score quick on 2nd, not a great play, redirected, Dmen had trouble all weekend picking up UAF sticks, just lift UAF stick and it wouldn't be redirected
We could never get the lead, couldn't sustain momentum
B. Hietila goal, UAF still up 3-2, great patience by Kero, Kero skated well all weekend, used his speed, Sturos drove net, Hietila had open net
Thought game turning in our favor at this point, but UAF PPG, Kunik gets two whacks at it, we were trying for puck too, should've just checked UAF guy, way too easy, disappointing
UAF breakaway goal shortly after that, 5-2 UAF, poor play overall, that was the weekend, set stage for rest of Friday, gave UAF confidence
J. Johnstone redirect, final score 7-3, shots 40-27, UAF 2-2 on PP, Tech 1-3 on PP
Goaltending: can't blame Phoenix on Friday 5 goals, breakaway, redirect, PPGs, we didn't give him much help
Phillips in 3rd to spark team, overall, can't blame Pheonix, worst defensive effort in Mel's time at MTU, it was all players, out of sorts on blueline
Coaches take responsibility, if they weren't ready to play, or didn't get info they need, real tough weekend on blueline
For whatever reason, we were out of sync, have never seen us that bad, these Dmen have played so well against good teams, they can do it, just a weekend you don't want to have, really flat/out of sync, harder you try the worse you get, didn't play with each other well
Dmen trying to do everything, not taking care of your area, and playing your game
We were too aggressive on PK, we were on wrong side of puck

On Saturday, 7-2 loss:
Overall, we were more prepared to play, we did play a little bit better, but penalties and getting behind got us in trouble
UAF goal, they got puck to the net, they were hungry around the net, we have to do a better job, really surprised at how we played in that area this weekend
Gould 5 min major, we had a few good scoring opportunities before that, Petan with 2 of them, UAF critical save at critical time
The major was tough, late in 1st, trying to get back in game, have to be careful near the boards
Their player laying down prior to that, was hit was a shot, gets up to get a puck in the corner, Gould gives him a shove, UAF guys go down again, but then back out on PP
UAF guy needs to get up if he's not hurt, may have been down from the previous blocked shot, so you kick the player out of the game, refs have to make sure it's a good call
Dirk - Gould tried to go above the waist to get position, it wasn't a vicious
UAF with 5 seconds left in 1st period, did not like goal, Kunik great pass, but through 2 Tech sticks, we weren't picking up sticks
Down 2-0 after 1, facing adversity, still have 3 mins to kill of major, wearing down PK, down a man, makes it difficult
Good PK start 2nd, made a few adjustment at intermission, it helped us, next goal would be huge, but UAF goes up 3-0
UAF got confidence from Friday win, and now up 3-0, we did not handle pressure of the weekend well, we haven't been in a situation like this, late in year, battling for home ice, Tech hasn't been here for 20ish years, did not handle pressure well
UAF has been here, they were in NCAA tourney 3-4 years ago, can tell everything they did seemed to go right for them, credit to our guys for battling
Kero makes it 5-1, PPG, faceoff win, good goal to get some momentum, didn't get many shots through in this series,
Hietila in 3rd, 6-2, tip off Leibinger shot
UAF PPG 7-2, not a redirect, we sagged in, good shot bad goal, hard for Jamie to go in 3rd
Tough game and tough loss, have to put it behind us, we are .500 in league, tied for 4th, 2 point out of 3rd
Mel looks at positives, tough weekend, have to put it behind us, did not perform well, but we can do something this upcoming weekend
We have been pretty good on PK, but not this weekend, gave up 5, basically 6 PPG with one shortly after a penalty expired
We brought some individuals in on Saturday, talked to them 1 on 1, we will regroup today, show tape, will do a few different things in practice to encourage Dmen to do things with sticks
We have played well defensively all year, just very disappointing/frustrating, part of it is all talk of home ice, may have gotten ahead of ourselves, not focusing/concentrating on taking care of task at hand
Maybe can get away with that against poor teams, not many poor teams in this league


Around the WCHA:
They talked about other results in league
Another big factor in this league is how many times you get to play UAH, maybe extra points for playing them 4 times, Mel thinks they'll beat someone down the road
One game can move you to 3rd place to out of playoffs
We have 4 games left, 3 wins out of 4 gets home ice, possibly 2 out of 4 depending on tie breakers, 29/30 points will be cutoff, but who knows with this league
Tiebreakers only head to head if you play 4 times, example Tech/BG tie would be head to head record, Tech/UAA would be conference wins - doesn't make sense it's an unbalanced schedule, UAA played UAH 4 times, Tech 2 times, not sure how else to do it though
Seeding will come down to tie breakers
We're only league where teams don't make playoffs, Mel think we have to re-evaluate that, unfortunately one team will finish 9th, not much difference, we don't have a balanced schedule, will never have balanced schedule with this many teams
It'll go down to the last game played in Alaska, wont know till middle of the night of the last weekend

On NMU series:
Will be a dogfight, we are 3 pts ahead, they have 2 games in hand
Huge weekend, put all our energy in before the bye, put playoff implications on top of rivalry, both teams hungry
It's great for fans, a lot at stake, NMU has UAH at end of year, they got them for 4 games

Blueline luncheon at noon Friday, class trumps Blueline so some Seniors may miss, but its senior night Friday night, encourage fans to come out and pay tribute to our seniors

Questions for Mel, dj@themix93.com

Can you talk about different in changes in Landscape in college hockey from 80s to today?
It's a whole different game on the ice. There's so much video, a lot more defensive game overall.
Recruiting is way different. Everyone is recruiting everywhere. Back in 80s, you'd go to BCHL to recruit, and maybe see 1 other school in rink, now there could be 15 guys there recruiting on a given tonight, even schools out east.
Earlier commitments, Maine got an 8th grader not long ago. Verbal commitments, back then you wouldn't have committed until senior year.
More parity now, players are leaving earlier to turn pro, some are 1 and done and see decommitments for major junior, some bigger programs hit on both ends, so more parity.
Same for us losing JJ. Bigger programs can afford to lose a player like JJ, tough for us. But that adds to parity.

A fan was disappointed we didn't hear you during postgame show Saturday?
Mel apologizes, we had a situation we had to take care of. Didn't think it was appropriate to come up. Win/Lose Mel doesn't mind talking about it. Fans deserve that, deserve to hear from Mel.

Emailer also, half joking question, will Mel skate the team hard on Monday?
First reaction, frustrated/mad/angry. Want to skate the heck out of them, but rewatching the game, take emotion out, have to do what's best for our team, sometimes a kick/sometimes a pat on the back.
We had individuals play/hard and well, only as strong as weakest link. A few weren't strong, will not skate team real hard, have to look at some things, need to be prepared for Friday.


Does coach have advice for young hockey players trying to be the best they can be?
Enjoy the game, have fun at the rink. Work hard/compete, be a good teammate. Be coachable, understand what coaches are telling you. If there's outside free ice, go enjoy that. Hockey is becoming so structured, go have some fun.

How was compete level of team for someone not at games?
Part of it compete level. But part is preparation, and being a little off. A lot of it is mental, not physical. Explain it like 2 kids in sandbox, 1 toy in middle. 1 kid wants it more and will do whatever they can. We were in sandbox, UAF wanted it more. We'll lose some 50/50 battles but need to win more battles than not, not as hungry mentally.
They came in like a wounded animal, which can be dangerous, we found that out.

[bose301s]

Re: Michigan Tech 2013-2014: Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Realignment

I wonder what the situation he had to take care of on Saturday was, hopefully nothing too serious.

[Pink Pony]

I wonder what the situation he had to take care of on Saturday was, hopefully nothing too serious.

Remember Bob Mancini and Kyle Fergeson it wasn't peanut butter and jelly.

[UpNorthHockey]

Re: Michigan Tech 2013-2014: Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Realignment

I wonder what the situation he had to take care of on Saturday was, hopefully nothing too serious.

I wouldn't doubt there were some sparks in the locker room after the game, but I would bet it was between the players and not directed at the coaches.
Unexpected routs tend to bring out the worst in teams. It's those times that the head coach is most needed in the room.

[Pink Pony]

I wouldn't doubt there were some sparks in the locker room after the game, but I would bet it was between the players and not directed at the coaches.
Unexpected routs tend to bring out the worst in teams. It's those times that the head coach is most needed in the room.

Scary hope the situation is resolved.

[mtu_huskies]

Re: Michigan Tech 2013-2014: Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Realignment

The team can't "turn the corner" any faster than the culture of losing can be changed into one of winning. None of the players on this team were alive when Tech was consistently winning or at least competitive in every game. All they've ever seen is losing. That goes for most all the fans too. They have no connection or anchor to the glory days other than their head coach and that link is tenuous at best. Give the current group high praise for trying to break the link with the near (30 years) past and if successful, they will be history makers. But the team alone can't do it. There needs to be some seriously creative thinking in the office even if that means new thinkers.

What changes are need that we need creative thinking?

In my mind, Mel is right, UAF has players that have played in big games this late in the season and they got in the NCAA a couple years back. We have not, the experience of these important games late in the season will help, but not having ties back to the days when Tech was winning has no impact on the results last weekend.

[eye4talent]

Re: Michigan Tech 2013-2014: Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Realignment

Seeing it in writing makes me a little uneasy.

http://uahhockey.com/blog/2014/02/18...-race-week-22/

[gfmorris]

Re: Michigan Tech 2013-2014: Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Realignment

Seeing it in writing makes me a little uneasy.

http://uahhockey.com/blog/2014/02/18...-race-week-22/

If I'd picked straight up with the model, Tech is 8th. I just don't see Tech picking up any points in Mankato. I'm on the record as calling Tech my "second team", as if you can really have that in a ten-team, one- or two-bid league. But I just have to go with what I think is true. I'd love to be wrong.

GFM

[eye4talent]

Re: Michigan Tech 2013-2014: Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Realignment

If I'd picked straight up with the model, Tech is 8th. I just don't see Tech picking up any points in Mankato. I'm on the record as calling Tech my "second team", as if you can really have that in a ten-team, one- or two-bid league. But I just have to go with what I think is true. I'd love to be wrong.

GFM

i've no reason to doubt you. this program has been underachieving for the last 30 years. i'm making the long trek North to watch them take on Northern this weekend.

[Burnt Orange Husky]

Re: Michigan Tech 2013-2014: Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Realignment

Seeing it in writing makes me a little uneasy.
http://uahhockey.com/blog/2014/02/18...-race-week-22/

If the Huskies can't win two games out of the next four, they don't deserve to be in the playoffs. Hopefully, Mel has some strong recruits coming onboard next year. I'm pretty sure this isn't how Mel expected the season to turn out.

[Shirtless Guy]

Re: Michigan Tech 2013-2014: Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Realignment

If the Huskies can't win two games out of the next four, they don't deserve to be in the playoffs. Hopefully, Mel has some strong recruits coming onboard next year. I'm pretty sure this isn't how Mel expected the season to turn out.

I know he has some strong recruits...You've got:
Joel L'Esperance who is top 5 in goals in the USHL. I can't remember the last time a Tech recruit was that high on the leaderboard in the USHL. Players like that usually end up at one of the power schools. Alex Gillies and Mason Blacklock are top 5 in scoring per game in BCHL (their totals are little lower than top 5 because of missed games for WJAC and injury). Those are 3 guys that we should expect to jump in and fight for ice time and add scoring. All 3 have a great chance of being drafted with Gillies being the highest rated player currently in BCHL, according to central scouting.

On the blueline, we have Dane Birks (drafted by Pit) and Joe Schuldt coming in. Birks should add offense and Schuldt will add a physical stay at home d-man.

[JohnsonsJerseys]

Re: Michigan Tech 2013-2014: Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Realignment

Seeing it in writing makes me a little uneasy.

Unbelievable parity being predicted. Of course if Tech finishes 9th we'll all think the season was a failure. However if you write it as "Tech finished three points out of third place" it sounds so much better yet won't sit any better with fans. If 3rd - 9th actually finishes with a three point spread I have to imagine it would be the closest finish in the history of the league.

Ryan J

[gfmorris]

Re: Michigan Tech 2013-2014: Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Realignment

Unbelievable parity being predicted. Of course if Tech finishes 9th we'll all think the season was a failure. However if you write it as "Tech finished three points out of third place" it sounds so much better yet won't sit any better with fans. If 3rd - 9th actually finishes with a three point spread I have to imagine it would be the closest finish in the history of the league.

Ryan J

It's really pretty bonkers. I'm trying to come up with a reason why and failing.

GFM

[Shirtless Guy]

Re: Michigan Tech 2013-2014: Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Realignment

It's really pretty bonkers. I'm trying to come up with a reason why and failing.

GFM

a reason why it's bonkers? Because your team is having such a horrible season and no one else is? Only 2 teams are really rising to the top as well.