BU 2021-22: Albie's Great Adventure

[Friend_of_BU_Hockey]

Even though the way ColinWilsonFan engages with others on this board may leave something to be desired, I'm quite confident his sources and connections to the BU Hockey program are credible. The "great guy great recruiter wanted him to succeed but just not a good head coach..." sentiment is something I've heard from others with similar sources/connections.

The conversation defkit had at the Beanpot with a parent of a player is similar to a conversation I had with the father of a current player late in the 2019-2020 season. This father told me that based on what his son has told him, the guys on the team like Albie personally but don't respect his authority nor hockey knowledge the way he (the father) feels a HC for a program like BU's should command.

With that said, I also know of parents of other players who will go above & beyond to stick up for Albie - how much they like him, respect him, and how much their sons enjoy playing for him.

[Rogie21]

To change the subject…I was on Twitter and saw on Hockey East’s feed they’re doing this contest thingie for best plays of this past season and one of them is a play by Matt Brown and it made me wonder where things are with Matt Brown. Is he officially a Terrier or not?

Neither BU nor HockeyEastOnline have updated the roster. College Hockey Inc’s BU depth chart doesn’t include him, does include Ty Gallagher, but it still has Quercia, Deboer and Wise. Brown’s Elite Prospects page shows a 4/19/21 transfer to BU. His Twitter page shows “BU” and Heisenberg’s 2021 recruit page now includes transfers and shows him the BU column. BTW--Brown played two seasons at Lowell, so would have at least two more years as a Terrier.
https://www.eliteprospects.com/player/381804/matt-brown
https://www.collegecommitments.com/D...2&female=False

[25+years]

Pandolfo leaves the Bruins for BU. And now Jay Leach has left the HC job at Providence Bruins for the AC job at the Kraken. Sounds like there is a little unrest in the coaching ranks of the Bruins.

[Rover]

Even though the way ColinWilsonFan engages with others on this board may leave something to be desired, I'm quite confident his sources and connections to the BU Hockey program are credible. The "great guy great recruiter wanted him to succeed but just not a good head coach..." sentiment is something I've heard from others with similar sources/connections.

I too appreciate him confirming what should be a common sense analysis of the situation, which is not only is Albie in a make or break year, but the school already has his replacement lined up. All BU fans should be thrilled that the school cares enough about the program to not settle for running in place for the foreseeable future.

[Harry Cleverly]

He asked you a question. Your response was not an answer to that question. I clarified that for you. I did not demand to also know how you knew so you don't have to be all snarky to me. If you really do know that was the case, more power to you. If you are just making an educated guess, then you are just making an educated guess like anyone else here.

ColinWilsonFan did not answer my question.
He just repeated a sentiment that a lot of people have posted for a couple of years -- 'Albie is a good guy, the players like him, he is an excellent recruiter, he does not command the respect that a head coach should have.' Yada yada yada. That is pretty much Albie's rep with a large segment of the fans/alums.

He also infers that Pandolfo would have gotten the head job after Quinn if he had a degree. I called him out on it, and has not justified it.
Just Pandolfo? What about Sacco, who also has NHL head coaching experience? Why not him?

Albie was the associate head coach. He was the very favorite back then. I am not arguing that he was the right choice. Only that the job was his to lose, and he didn't lose it.
And to say that it would have gone to Pandolfo back then is just so much BS.
If he didn't have a degree, and he was not going to be considered because of it, then he never could have been the favorite.
I'm sure BU still offers classes in Logic.

[brassbonanza]

As far as the hiring decision when Quinn left, my understanding is that Pandolfo was immediately disqualified by President Brown because he did not have a degree. Therefore, Albie's perceived status as a "frontrunner" was in the context of Pandolfo never being in the running to begin with. I don't know whether that would've been different if Jay had his degree at the time. But I do know it's not a useful comparison due to the immediate exclusion for that non-coaching performance reason.

To Rover's point above - while I am happy that the program is not happy with continuous subpar seasons, I'm of the opinion that if Pandolfo was brought in as the "next coach in line in case Albie fails again" then they should've made the move now.

[Section 6, Row S]

He also infers that Pandolfo would have gotten the head job after Quinn if he had a degree. I called him out on it, and has not justified it.
Just Pandolfo? What about Sacco, who also has NHL head coaching experience? Why not him?

Albie was the associate head coach. He was the very favorite back then. I am not arguing that he was the right choice. Only that the job was his to lose, and he didn't lose it.
And to say that it would have gone to Pandolfo back then is just so much BS.
If he didn't have a degree, and he was not going to be considered because of it, then he never could have been the favorite.
I'm sure BU still offers classes in Logic.

There are a number of people on this board who seem to be close enough to the team to obtain reliable information (I’m not one of them). Understandably, they can’t reveal their sources and sometimes they can’t reveal whether they even have sources. That doesn’t necessarily make the posts inaccurate though.

For those who choose to doubt the information because it hasn’t been attributed, that’s their prerogative.
I, for one, would still like to hear it anyway.

[Harry Cleverly]

There are a number of people on this board who seem to be close enough to the team to obtain reliable information (I’m not one of them). Understandably, they can’t reveal their sources and sometimes they can’t reveal whether they even have sources. That doesn’t necessarily make the posts inaccurate though.

For those who choose to doubt the information because it hasn’t been attributed, that’s their prerogative.
I, for one, would still like to hear it anyway.

Nothing wrong with hearing it, be it inside information, gossip or just opinion. But BS should be called out.

[BU Fan 84]

Nice list ^. Counterpoint is that I think some people on here are over-valuing Hockey East competition in general. I went back and looked at SOS for the last decade (but threw out last year because of COVID). I found that almost always the top handful of SOS's did not come from HE but rather out west.

Here are the BU SOS's:
2019-20: 21st
2018-19: 17th
2017-18: 17th
2016-17: 9th
2015-16: 8th
2014-15: 18th
2013-14: 12th
2012-13: 16th
2011-12: 12th
AVG: 14th.

Pretty good but not overwhelming for what is historically one of the best handful of NCAA programs.

I still stand on my belief that you only get better by playing as good or better competition.

Yes, these are not strong schedules for BU. Maybe a good schedule for UMass Lowell or Colorado College but it isn't where BU needs to be. And Hockey East hasn't been one of the top two conferences in what .... half a decade?

[Section 6, Row S]

Nothing wrong with hearing it, be it inside information, gossip or just opinion. But BS should be called out.

And it is "BS" because ... ? Your answer to that question was, "If he didn't have a degree, and he was not going to be considered because of it, then he never could have been the favorite."

Not necessarily. Tony Granato got the job at Wisconsin, which has a rule similar to BU's, without a degree. The arrangement was that he agreed to complete the requirements for his BA within a year. BU could have done something like that for Pandolfo. And the fact that a number of articles at the time, including one from WTBU, listed him as a candidate, suggests that he could have made it happen then.

BTW - I don't think it really matters too much at this point whether or not he was a leading candidate three years ago anyway.

[brassbonanza]

And it is "BS" because ... ? Your answer to that question was, "If he didn't have a degree, and he was not going to be considered because of it, then he never could have been the favorite."

Not necessarily. Tony Granato got the job at Wisconsin, which has a rule similar to BU's, without a degree. The arrangement was that he agreed to complete the requirements for his BA within a year. BU could have done something like that for Pandolfo. And the fact that a number of articles at the time, including one from WTBU, listed him as a candidate, suggests that he could have made it happen then.

BTW - I don't think it really matters too much at this point whether or not he was a leading candidate three years ago anyway.

I've heard from multiple people that Bob Brown personally refused to hire anyone who did not have a college degree and was not open to a Granato-style plan. Pandolfo was never a candidate to begin with in 2018 for precisely this reason is what I heard. WTBU articles are speculative at best, those writers generally have little to no actual information.

[defkit]

The Pandolfo hire made me think back to how loaded that 95-96 team was on offense. As Bob Norton often said on the broadcasts of the earlier games "they have six legitimate All-American candidates": Chris O'Sullivan (coming off of his Final Four MVP), Mike Grier (who was either an All-American in that same season or the 95-96 year), Shawn Bates, Bob Lachance, Chris Drury, and Pandolfo (who would go on to finish as the runner-up to Brian Bonin for the Hobey). Three long-time NHLers, and three of the most skilled college players BU has had.

That team peaked too early, and missed out on post-season hardware (they did thump NU 12-3 I think, for the Beanpot).

[Section 6, Row S]

I've heard from multiple people that Bob Brown personally refused to hire anyone who did not have a college degree and was not open to a Granato-style plan. Pandolfo was never a candidate to begin with in 2018 for precisely this reason is what I heard. WTBU articles are speculative at best, those writers generally have little to no actual information.

It wasn’t just WTBU. A number of credible articles said so at the time. But maybe your sources are correct - I have no idea.
And that’s the point. I don’t think it’s right to “call out BS” of a fellow BU poster who seems to be sharing information that he heard just because someone else here believes it didn’t happen that way or heard differently. If it turns out that he was correct and you were incorrect, that wouldn’t make what you just said “BS.” You shared what you heard.

[ericredaxe]

It wasn’t just WTBU. A number of credible articles said so at the time.

Pandolfo confirmed it himself in a recent press conference.

From the Boston Herald:

He did, however, interview for the open head coaching job at BU in 2018 after David Quinn left. That process ended quickly for him because at the time he was a few credits shy of his degree, a requirement for the job.

“I learned that lesson,” said Pandolfo with a chuckle. “The last couple of years I was able to finish online, so it’s a good lesson that I can talk to these new college recruits that are coming about the importance of getting your degree. You never know when it comes around when you need it. It’s a good lesson.”

https://www.bostonherald.com/2021/07...pandolfo-home/

[ericredaxe]

To Rover's point above - while I am happy that the program is not happy with continuous subpar seasons, I'm of the opinion that if Pandolfo was brought in as the "next coach in line in case Albie fails again" then they should've made the move now.

Exactly. If that indeed is the case then BU should have just cut ties and made the move now. I don't at all see the logic in having someone on the staff who has any potential motivation to not see the team succeed.