MSU Spartan off-season - the grand flame-out

[BlimpGuy]

Re: MSU Spartan off-season - the grand flame-out

I could see him and Grant with "A"s in 2011-2012.

How about Forfar?

[Pirateasaurus]

Re: MSU Spartan off-season - the grand flame-out

Something of note over at the Red Cedar Message Board...

The script hockey logo appears to be gone for next season.

What does he mean by "wordmark"? Maybe there is script but it's just in a different style now. I hope i am not bummed out about these new jerseys. Too bad we can't just go back to the cursive "Michigan State".

[owslachief]

Re: MSU Spartan off-season - the grand flame-out

How about Forfar?

Another good choice. Just having a conversation with some of these guys - especially our freshmen and sophs. - they seem like poised, smart and level-headed individuals and can bring different leadership qualities to wearing the 'A'.

[Nevergoodenough]

Re: MSU Spartan off-season - the grand flame-out

I would go and say that for C's and A's options:
Seniors:
Tropp
Rowe
Gazely

Juniors:
Crandell
Nill

Sophomores:
Krug
Grant

Of course, it's in the players hands (pretty much) so time will tell us who they think are leaders.

[Nevergoodenough]

Re: MSU Spartan off-season - the grand flame-out

At one point Refrew was being discussed at a possible coach for Western. It appears that has fizzled, or am I reading that incorrectly?

[owslachief]

Re: MSU Spartan off-season - the grand flame-out

At one point Refrew was being discussed at a possible coach for Western. It appears that has fizzled, or am I reading that incorrectly?

As far as I know, Renfrew was never seriously considered for Western, and has not been part of the list of candidates interviewed so far. It is widely believed he is RC's natural successor.

IMHO, he will will weary of waiting to get his head-coaching start and jump ship sooner or later. If Comley finishes out his current contract, Renfrew would be 44 years old.

[gomsuman]

Re: MSU Spartan off-season - the grand flame-out

captins i wouldn't be surprised if Tropp got the C, Rowe with an A, and wither Krug or Gazely with an A. Also just my thought.. nobody has mentioned Palmisano as a possibility of getting an A. Again just a thought... after what i have seem i am not a huge fan of him...

[Gomer]

Re: MSU Spartan off-season - the grand flame-out

Jeff Lerg now 1-0 as a pro =)

http://tdevils.wordpress.com/

*****http://tdevils.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/lerg3.jpg******

[owslachief]

Re: MSU Spartan off-season - the grand flame-out

Did you notice the goalie mask?

[Nevergoodenough]

Re: MSU Spartan off-season - the grand flame-out

Did you notice the goalie mask?

I did, and that looks sweet. (Not really a good match with the sweater, but still a good looking lid...) The catcher and blocker look familiar too.

[owslachief]

Re: MSU Spartan off-season - the grand flame-out

Yeah, leave it to you or Gomer to come up with a snappy MAC fanbase comeback. The effort at Munn personified the pathetic fan interest. Then again, Lloyd Comley used the "youth" excuse.

The fanbase, I am starting to think, is responding to what has now been three consecutive seasons of relative mediocrity. Do you think I like having to sell my finals tickets for the second time in three years? Um, no.

It begins to look like MSU caught lightning in a bottle in 2007 and doesn't know how to find it again. What's the answer? I don't know, and I'm starting to wonder if Comley doesn't either.

Good luck to the remaining teams the rest of the way. May the best team win, and may they win cleanly.

You've got to wonder what other creative ways the people who pretend to market MSU hockey can shoot themselves in the foot. And just in time for their playoff weekend with Michigan.

For the 09/10 campaign, the gimmick was to NOT give season ticket holders their playoff seats (for the first time in eons). Just let them have first crack at purchasing them

Nice job, Hollis.

[STATEdude3]

Re: MSU Spartan off-season - the grand flame-out

I have been so focused on hosting people for the Frozen Four I did not get a chance to finish collecting my thoughts on the end of the season. I will warn you that this is going to be a VERY long message. here ya go...


Freshman Class: The freshman class looked to have a lot of promise in the first couple months of the year. I think in the week following the GLI the coaching staff started to do too much changing of lines and messing with lineups and that may have affected the mental makeup of some of the young guys. Guys like Hayes and Golembiewski were not "great" but they did provide solid minutes, and then all of a sudden they disappeared.

Tory Krug is going to be a special player at MSU. I think he could wear the A next year, and really be a Dryamond Green type of catalyst for the hockey program. We saw glimpses of what can be for Derek Grant. I think he had his hot streak early in the year, and we may have expected him to keep up a pace that is just not possible for a freshman. Grassi and Josepher developed very nicely on the blueline. I get nervous when they get caught up together on the same side of the ice, but positional play improves with experience.

Sophomore Class: I am so torn about this class that it drives me crazy. I want to expect great things from this class, but I just don't see them developing. I really hope guys like Perlini and Nill get stronger over the summer. This class showed flashes of brilliance with the puck in open ice, but not much strength on the stick or toughness in the corners.

Junior Class: This class was exactly what we expected, and what we needed this year. This class failed us tremendously in 08-09 but lead by a refocused Corey Tropp and the leadership of Jeff Petry, they did not disappoint. But now they have to step up like seniors do.

With Petry gone we need to see AJ Sturges actually step up and play. I understand there have been some things going on that prevented him from seeing the ice, but it's time to change that. He should be healthy and we are going to be severely undersized on the blueline without him.

Andrew Rowe had a great season and did more than I think was expected of him. I think putting him on a line with Grant and Leveille is important to keeping his stat line up. Andrew Rowe is the most consistent player on our roster going into next season and he will be the x-factor for success.

Departing Seniors: First, what can you say about Nick Sucharski? He is a quiet kid that always left his best effort on the ice. He has been one of my favorite Spartans since exploding against Maine in the 2007 Frozen Four. I hope he has success in the future.

Jay Sprague was a fundamental part of the development of Nick Sucharski. The two worked great together during the 2007 season and I hoped it would be a great tag team for the future. It really sucks that injuries took the toll that they did, but it was great to see him come back late in the year and have one last chance to wear the Green and White.

The hardest job in all of sports is being a full time backup goaltender. Athletes are competitors by nature, and I'm sure it wasn't easy for Bobby to ride the pine for 4 years. But that shows his character and commitment to being part of a program. I'm glad we got to have him around.

Justin Johnston: I'm not sure what to say...I've said all I need to about the situation that occurred on senior night. All I will say is thanks for your time in East Lansing.

COACHING:Everyone on here knows I have been a major supporter of Coach Comley. When he came in I warned everyone that he was not going to have us winning 30 games a season. However I did expect to compete for the CCHA title each season. I am pleased with the way he worked with a young team this season, however I am not satisfied with the way things ended.

Good coaching means developing young talent and grooming players during the year so they are playing at their best at the end of the season. In the Comley system we generally see the team play slow to start the season and finish strong. For some reason it happened the other way around this year.

We have now gone 3 years without making it to The Joe in the CCHA playoffs. That puts us on par with WMU. I don't expect to win the tournament each year, but we have got to stop losing playoff games at home. I am not ready to join the "Fire Comley" camp quite yet, but I will say that we need to make a run at the CCHA playoff title this year AND we absolutely must make the NCAA tournament. It has been 30 years since we missed the NCAA tournament 2 years in a row. If it goes 3 years then that is far too long.

The Fans:I was generally pleased with the renewed interest in MSU hockey after the winter break this year. The promotions, though not highly advertized were fairly successful. It was nice to see the corners fill in, and I was happy that I had some people in Section O with me for the first time in a few years!

The students, lead by aallenpollreisz were good. I would like to a group of students carry his passion into next season and work to help make Munn a more formidable environment. Those of us that were at Munn in the 80's and 90's know exactly how loud it can be in there--but back then it all started with the students.

I hope the athletic department gets their head out of their asses. Back in the day hockey mattered because basketball and football were stagnant. However now the hockey program has to fight for attention. There is no reason however for them to ignore the program as they have. I admire Mark Hollis for his great work accross the board. But the glaring problem is the complete lack of regard for the hockey program. It is unacceptable that a program with our tradition and potential is completely forgotten by the administration.

Overall:This program is loaded with quality players who carry themselves well in the community. Our 28 man hockey roster did more community service hours than the 100 man football roster. These are good kids, but we need to develop them into good hockey players. The coaches and strength and conditioning staff needs to build an effective summer program that builds strength and toughness. We were badly beat in the corners this season.

Next season I expect us to finish in the top 3 in the CCHA, make it to The Joe and make the NCAA tournament. Anything less than that and I will be very disappointed. From 2006 to 2008 we were one of only 3 programs that went to the Regional Finals 3 years in a row. We are not that far removed from success. However it feels much more gloomy right now. I feel like we are in a critical point in Spartan Hockey history, and we need everyone to step up and do their part.

I will do my part as a fan and be in my seat come October.

[gomsuman]

Re: MSU Spartan off-season - the grand flame-out

well...on the notes of statedude3... the athletic department better not ignore and underclass the hockey team next year, it was ridiculous. Just because basketball and football are doing well hockey has been kicked to the curb (so to speak). Also the student section/ fans need to do a little more in helping out. The atmosphere in the arena is a big deal even thought it may not seem like it. When it is quite the players understand what is going on. And player wise what about Dean Chelios, not to take away from any other players(freshman, sophmore, junior, or seniors) who all did a great job this year. But in the games that we really needed it Chelios played good. Ex-Michgan at the joe. And i think with a couple more years he could become a above-average if not dominant player because he was willing to take and give out hits and could handle the puck. we'll just my opinion but all in all we can't just be happy with a good start, we HAVE to finish next season well.

[STATEdude3]

Re: MSU Spartan off-season - the grand flame-out

Part of the reason we always play so well against Michigan at Munn is because of the energy in thw building. As soon as that matchup materialized I predicted we would lose.It is really sad how apathetic people have become to a program that is only a couple years off of great success.

[gomsuman]

Re: MSU Spartan off-season - the grand flame-out

i know it was really sad...