Re: 2011-2012 UNH Wildcats
I'm a BU fan, as you know, Rover, but that has never stopped me from chiming in. The thing is, and I think the UNH fans will tell you this; it's not a fair assessment. (and I know where you're going with this) It's not like the situation at BU. We get top talent. UNH doesn't get quite as much, so you can't necessarily blame the coach. You can only "coach up" people so far (just ask Bill Belichick - it's not easy, is it?) At some point you just have to have the talent. The true test would be to give Umile BU's team and see what he does with this. Of course, you could say, "well then he gets off the hook because we will never be able to find out." Or, you could say, "But recruiting is part of the job too."
Personally, I've always used the Fenway Park analogy. Why would you build an Olympic size rink when no other schools in the country have one? It puts you at a severe disadvantage away from home. And don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that's the reason. The Red Sox hit like crazy at Fenway but it's a false indication of how good they are because of the dimensions of the park. So UNH is more free-wheeling and offensive-minded. But on the "regulation" size rink, they can't play that game.
UNH has also never gotten any post-season breaks. I can go all the way back to 1977 when they lost in the (then called) Final Four to Wisconsin on a shot that beat Cap Raeder off the faceoff (of course, that was Charlie Holt, but you get the point).And let's be honest, they should have beaten us in 2009 in Manchester. When you get that far, it's hard to "blame" anybody. What it SHOULD do is make us all understand how fortunate you have to be (as well as good) to go all the way. It's not easy, especially in hockey where every score is magnified (it's not like basketball where you get 100 shots a game).
And I haven't seen that level of animosity on this thread (unlike the Maine thread, where they've been saying "Fire Timmay" for years...)
Originally posted by Rover
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Personally, I've always used the Fenway Park analogy. Why would you build an Olympic size rink when no other schools in the country have one? It puts you at a severe disadvantage away from home. And don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that's the reason. The Red Sox hit like crazy at Fenway but it's a false indication of how good they are because of the dimensions of the park. So UNH is more free-wheeling and offensive-minded. But on the "regulation" size rink, they can't play that game.
UNH has also never gotten any post-season breaks. I can go all the way back to 1977 when they lost in the (then called) Final Four to Wisconsin on a shot that beat Cap Raeder off the faceoff (of course, that was Charlie Holt, but you get the point).And let's be honest, they should have beaten us in 2009 in Manchester. When you get that far, it's hard to "blame" anybody. What it SHOULD do is make us all understand how fortunate you have to be (as well as good) to go all the way. It's not easy, especially in hockey where every score is magnified (it's not like basketball where you get 100 shots a game).
And I haven't seen that level of animosity on this thread (unlike the Maine thread, where they've been saying "Fire Timmay" for years...)
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