Irish hockey '12-'13: Why would you not wanna go there?

[WeAreNDHockey]

Re: Irish hockey '12-'13: Why would you not wanna go there?

Is there another team in the NCAA that rode into two seasons with such high expectations only to fail in the most miserable ways? I suppose Lucia's teams in 2009, 10, and 11 come close, but lets face it, national championship seasons are a pretty good cushion if the fall is as long and as hard as they experienced. And they stormed back in 2012, winning the WCHA and making the Frozen Four and are going strong right now with no signs of falling apart.

Minnesota was picked to finish 2nd, 4th and 6th in 08/09, 09/10 and 10/11. They finished worse than that in 2 of the 3 seasons, but in 2010 and 2011 it's hard to say a lot was expected coming into the season.

I made a similar point to JJfP a couple of days ago about Boston College. Sure they stumbled a bit after winning NCAA titles in 2001 and 2008. BUT THEY WON TITLES. Changes need to be made if this team continues to flounder. Pooley's special teams have been a huge disappointment too many nights and are a cesspool of inconsistency. I'd consider starting there.

[IrishHockeyFan]

Re: Irish hockey '12-'13: Why would you not wanna go there?

We are to a point now when the margin for error is zero. Yet this team seems to be nothing anymore if not 60 minutes of error after error.

Is there another team in the NCAA that rode into two seasons with such high expectations only to fail in the most miserable ways? I suppose Lucia's teams in 2009, 10, and 11 come close, but lets face it, national championship seasons are a pretty good cushion if the fall is as long and as hard as they experienced. And they stormed back in 2012, winning the WCHA and making the Frozen Four and are going strong right now with no signs of falling apart.

This team stormed out of the gates two straight years, and two straight years once teams figured out how to beat them, they were toast. Burnt toast. It's almost as if as soon as there were enough game examples the flaws were so many, and so easily seen even mediocre teams with mediocre coaches are beating the hell out of Notre Dame. And that's not meant as a swipe at any of the teams we are losing to. But the combined total of NCAA championships earned by any of the last 5 coaches who have managed to outcoach ours is zero. The number of NHL draft picks TOTAL on those 5 teams? 10.

The bloom is no longer just off the rose around the Notre Dame hockey program. The flowers are wilted and the vine appears to be in need of some serious pruning.

[25 years and counting]

Re: Irish hockey '12-'13: Why would you not wanna go there?

Solid team effort tonight all around. Our selfish teams players took care to make sure of negating a number of OSU penalty kills. Johns made sure to jump into a rush while the team was shorthanded because OSU had not yet had a power play odd man rush in the second period and a minute had already elapsed on the clcok. And a nice job by Summerhays to let in goals on consecutive shots in the second after Notre Dame coughed up the deficit with two unfortunate goals in under a minute. Pooley's penalty killing unit clicked like it hadn't all season. OSU had a startling total of 11 power play goals on the season and his special teamers managed to give them 4 more on the night. But only 3 were on the major, so that was an area of concern. Jackson and his staff of crackerjack coaches know more than I do, but I'd dress Nick Larson tomorrow just in case we need another body in the penalty box, because you can never have too many grinders out there taking stupid penalties. There are only 11 games left to give away the season. It's going to take all hands on deck.

Ya ! What he said

[25 years and counting]

Re: Irish hockey '12-'13: Why would you not wanna go there?

Creativity is for art class. This is a team sport where the team is the most important project. I don't know of one successful coach who lets his team be "creative." That's the definition of chaos, not victory.

"Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expect different results"

Albert Einstein

[WeAreNDHockey]

Re: Irish hockey '12-'13: Why would you not wanna go there?

Solid team effort tonight all around. Our selfish teams players took care to make sure of negating a number of OSU penalty kills. Johns made sure to jump into a rush while the team was shorthanded because OSU had not yet had a power play odd man rush in the second period and a minute had already elapsed on the clcok. And a nice job by Summerhays to let in goals on consecutive shots in the second after Notre Dame coughed up the deficit with two unfortunate goals in under a minute. Pooley's penalty killing unit clicked like it hadn't all season. OSU had a startling total of 11 power play goals on the season and his special teamers managed to give them 4 more on the night. But only 3 were on the major, so that was an area of concern. Jackson and his staff of crackerjack coaches know more than I do, but I'd dress Nick Larson tomorrow just in case we need another body in the penalty box, because you can never have too many grinders out there taking stupid penalties. There are only 11 games left to give away the season. It's going to take all hands on deck.

[JDUBBS1280]

Creativity is for art class. This is a team sport where the team is the most important project. I don't know of one successful coach who lets his team be "creative." That's the definition of chaos, not victory.

Herb Brooks

[Jeff_Jackson_for_Pres.]

Re: Irish hockey '12-'13: Why would you not wanna go there?

Creativity is for art class. This is a team sport where the team is the most important project. I don't know of one successful coach who lets his team be "creative." That's the definition of chaos, not victory.

[IrishHockeyFan]

Re: Irish hockey '12-'13: Why would you not wanna go there?

" Everything is the system, if you don't play the "Mans" system, you don't play. Just X's & O's on the coaches chaulk board, no more creativity, no more fire in the belly, just go out there and exocute and don't get caught out of position."

Not judging, just saying

But benching Larson had nothing to do with systems or rigid ideas on positioning or anything else of the sort. Just the fact he took another stupid penalty that negated a potential Irish PP, something he's made a habit of for much of his time in an Irish uniform. Too many coaches -- and especially too many coaches with a bunch of high draft picks -- are unwilling to do this. There are a number of players this year and last that I would have nailed to the bench and then placed in the stands in suits and ties the following night for selfish play and horribly ill-timed penalties. Including some of our coveted high round draft picks. It's admittedly a fine line one has to walk. You can't treat them as if this is the military and merely questioning an order is verboten. No one will want to play in that environment, especially a decade into the 21st century. But you can't allow selfish or unstructured play to the point where someone is definitely doing something that is in their own best interests and not the team's.

[25 years and counting]

Re: Irish hockey '12-'13: Why would you not wanna go there?

Interesting comments about Nick Larson in the Tribune article..

" Everything is the system, if you don't play the "Mans" system, you don't play. Just X's & O's on the coaches chaulk board, no more creativity, no more fire in the belly, just go out there and exocute and don't get caught out of position."

Not judging, just saying

[IrishHockeyFan]

Re: Irish hockey '12-'13: Why would you not wanna go there?

Interesting comments about Nick Larson in the Tribune article.

Brady Hjelle, the aforementioned brick wall, might be the one goaltender where the hot goalie excuse would actually apply. Northern had some success against him a couple of weeks back (6 goals on 52 shots), but he bounced back pretty well against Lake State (3 goals against on 67 shots). But the Lakers have the 8th ranked offense in the CCHA compared to our number 1 offense.

Last Saturday was a nice start to digging out of the hole they decided to jump into. Whether or not that mattered will be seen this weekend. There seems to be enough of a cushion in games and points that we're not going to finish worse than 7th. A guess is that each weekend series won will equate to a spot in the standings secured, at the least. Of course looking ahead with this team has often proven to be a fruitless exercise in recent seasons. So how about just this far ahead: Notre Dame needs to win this weekend's series.

[Jeff_Jackson_for_Pres.]

Re: Irish hockey '12-'13: Why would you not wanna go there?

So I'm worried about this weekend. OSU's goalie is the proverbial brick wall. Notre Dame can't seem to beat brick walls. Brady Hjelle's save % is record-breaking (especially this late into the season) at .956 in league play. His GA is pretty unbelievable too at 1.28 in the CCHA. That's over 15 games. More than half the season for the league. Steven Summerhays has good numbers in the league also (.927, 1.76 over 16 games), but he has looked soft lately. I want bricks, not mud.

OSU is a pretty young team led by Ryan Dzingel with 23 points. ND is still led by Anders Lee, also with 23 points. Our top 4 guys have a combined 79 points. Their top 4 have 70. But numbers 5-8 for us have 57 total points while their next 4 guys have only 32.

OSU has scored 10 goals on special teams, but they've given up 7 in CCHA play. ND has 18 and has given up 10 in league play. OSU is a half-a-goal better than their opponents in league play. Notre Dame score nearly a goal-and-a-quarter more than their league opponents.

All of this begs the question: Why the hell have we lost 5 of the last 7 league games? Why did we slip out of first into 3rd?

Whether you think you can or you think you can't--you're right.

[IrishHockeyFan]

Re: Irish hockey '12-'13: Why would you not wanna go there?

Contemplating the positives last night, I came up with a fairly lengthy list.

1. Coach Jackson having the courage to change up the lines...during the game.
2. The fact that #1 worked. Quite well.
3. Notre Dame getting scoring from not only their primary and secondary lines, but also their tertiary and quaternary lines.
4. Kevin Nugent getting the first star of the game.
5. Finally scoring a PPG.
6. The team not deflating after giving up the lead.
7. Winning.

Good points all. Of course as badly as a win was needed, maybe #7 was actually #1!

Boy is this a team of extremes.

I posted this, and then I really began to think about it. We've won 9 games by 3 or more goals so far this season. Which if my count is correct that is the same number as MU and WMU combined. In addition, 6 of those 9 came against teams we also LOST to, sometimes the previous night. Like last weekend. I'm guessing there are some other teams out there (other than in the CCHA) that have won as many or more games in blowout fashion, but I'm also guessing they have not had the ups and downs we have had.

The talent level and potential is for big wins. Focus and effort that matches that talent and potential is what it will take.

[Jeff_Jackson_for_Pres.]

Re: Irish hockey '12-'13: Why would you not wanna go there?

Contemplating the positives last night, I came up with a fairly lengthy list.

1. Coach Jackson having the courage to change up the lines...during the game.
2. The fact that #1 worked. Quite well.
3. Notre Dame getting scoring from not only their primary and secondary lines, but also their tertiary and quaternary lines.
4. Kevin Nugent getting the first star of the game.
5. Finally scoring a PPG.
6. The team not deflating after giving up the lead.
7. Winning.

[IrishHockeyFan]

Re: Irish hockey '12-'13: Why would you not wanna go there?

Boy is this a team of extremes. When they compete and play smart, focused hockey they are one tough customer. And when they don't, they can't buy a win.

There is a fine line between panic and desperation. You harness the panic and turn it to your advantage, you get a desperate and dangerous team. Commit to playing for the guy next to you on the bench. Don't do it for your friends. Don't do it for your classmates. Don't do it for people on a message board. Play like you are desperate to not let down the guy next to you on the bench.

Aside from a couple of selfish penalties we saw that last night. And look at the result. A team that can be three goals better than most opponents.

Right now they need to commit to each other that for the rest of the season, this is how they are going to play. The time for leadership and accountability is here, and there is little margin for error. I don't know if they are cured, but at least they made an appointment with the doctor.

[Jeff_Jackson_for_Pres.]

Re: Irish hockey '12-'13: Why would you not wanna go there?

I went by the Compton early this afternoon and I saw all these young babes in skintight short dresses wearing spiked heels................what gives??
Would that really work?

Given the result tonight, I think you just answered your own question!

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you

The Nuge!

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