Excellent Interview with Don Lucia

[The Rube]

Re: Excellent Interview with Don Lucia

I see your point PS, but without some significant qualitative research it's a bit difficult in my view to second guess the motives of nearly every player on the Gophers that openly admit playing for the Gophers was one of their primary goals growing up in Minnesota. Based on iteration, the dream of playing for the Minnesota Golden Gophers hockey team is still quite strong among young hockey players throughout the State. The CBA has taken the edge off a bit though, with obviously some of the players over recent years coming in with more realistic aspirations of making it to the pros.

What also hurts is that there are (in recent history) 4 of 5 MN D1 teams that have been competitive. If a player can't be a "star" or top-liner at MN, they'll just go to another MN (key part there) school, still represent the state, and maybe get more noticed, because they are better than the players that surround them.

Example:

1. Player goes to MN, starts off 3rd line or so, may make it to top line and do okay, maybe great.

2. Player goes to BSU, tUMD, SCSU, MSU-M, and shines right away on the top line or two, NHL notices after a year or two, boom.

[HarleyMC]

Re: Excellent Interview with Don Lucia

I think its fair to say that the culture of Minnesota hockey has changed a bit, somewhat.

Gopher Hockey once represented the pinnacle of desire for the high end Minnesota High School player, with maybe an Olympic team or a pro career as icing on the cake after a Gophers' career. Sure, some Gophers left early and some made the pros, but being a Gopher really represented the top of the Minnesota development system - grow up, play hockey in your town, be the high school star, then play for the Gophers and see what happens.

In recent years, The Gophers' success at producing NHL players has changed the goalposts. High end prospects growing up in Minnesota now view the the NHL as the end game much like a Canadian prospect does. The Gophers are now much more of stepping stone than an end in itself. Few Gopher players go from HS to the Gophers in wide-eyed admiration for the opportunity to play for their home state - they now play HS, then play junior somehere else, and they see hockey as a business and by the time they arrive on campus at the U, the agents and NHL are waiting for them. These guys are thinking about paychecks and payoffs and the Maroon and Gold are mostly a stepping stone for that.

I think the other WCHA programs don't have as strong of a home state pride factor vortex, and they have been viewed as pro stepping stones for a longer time, and were faster adjusting to this reality.

I see your point PS, but without some significant qualitative research it's a bit difficult in my view to second guess the motives of nearly every player on the Gophers that openly admit playing for the Gophers was one of their primary goals growing up in Minnesota. Based on iteration, the dream of playing for the Minnesota Golden Gophers hockey team is still quite strong among young hockey players throughout the State. The CBA has taken the edge off a bit though, with obviously some of the players over recent years coming in with more realistic aspirations of making it to the pros.

[Bakunin]

Re: Excellent Interview with Don Lucia

BS.

A very succinct description of your posts.

[Dirty]

Re: Excellent Interview with Don Lucia

Hey, hey, hey....you know **** well you can't count Dirty.

I do too count! I matter! Don't tell me I don't matter!

[ScoobyDoo]

Re: Excellent Interview with Don Lucia

BS.

I've added more substantive discussion to this thread than half the Gopher posters have. Sorry I'm not tiptoeing around all these babies and their egos.

[cg_siouxfan]

Re: Excellent Interview with Don Lucia

Still doesn't mean he was wrong...stop being a ******

BS.

I've added more substantive discussion to this thread than half the Gopher posters have. Sorry I'm not tiptoeing around all these babies and their egos.

[Puck Swami]

Re: Excellent Interview with Don Lucia

heck, i even enjoy hokydad!

Me too. A guilty pleasure, indeed.

[jay ferguson]

Re: Excellent Interview with Don Lucia

I assume you once fell off the back of a sugar beet truck, and landed on your head. so what?

That's how Mike Fairbourne got that plate in his head.

[MinnesotaNorthStar]

Re: Excellent Interview with Don Lucia

Yep, lots of rational discussion here in these posts.

Hey, hey, hey....you know **** well you can't count Dirty.

Hey I can quote people out of context too! Yippee

Still doesn't mean he was wrong...stop being a ******

[Happy]

Re: Excellent Interview with Don Lucia

Hey I can quote people out of context too! Yippee

I assume you once fell off the back of a sugar beet truck, and landed on your head. so what?

[Happy]

Re: Excellent Interview with Don Lucia

It's interesting how these informative stories about the struggles of being an NCAA Division I men's hockey coach always come out after the Gophers lose a player. You didn't have a similar outcry from Dave Hakstol when David Toews left the Sioux this summer. Is it because the Sioux coaching staff did a better job of managing their team, so it wasn't a devastating loss? BC and BU fans have made the same argument about their teams ability to have success.




It's really too bad most of you people can't accept that people have different opinions and there are two sides to every situation.

Minnesota lost two first round hockey players, both who are considered locks to make the NHL by their NHL teams, and UND lost a player who isn't good, and didn't even really have future playing for UND. I don't see any rational comparison, do you really?

[J.D.]

Re: Excellent Interview with Don Lucia

Hey I can quote people out of context too! Yippee

Something about a blind squirrel and a nut comes to mind...

[mookie1995]

Re: Excellent Interview with Don Lucia

Wodon is the best college hockey journalist in the country, IMHO. He writes fairly and is the best connected writer at a national level. That said, College hockey media simply can't behave like big media - like Tony Kornheiser or Mike Lupica and rip people left and right just to entertain. If Adam thinks someone is worth ripping, he will.

The college hockey world is small, and the pay and power of the media who cover it is low (or in some cases volunteer). They rarely bite the hand that feeds them, and for good reasons - 1) they need cooperation from the key people and 2) most of the people in college hockey are really good people and don't need to be bitten or ripped.

he loves our sport and knows that we love it just as much as he does. when he was writing here he made mistakes on two articles/columns. i emailed him and he replied back "stupid mistake" and edited the pieces.

he is not above his audience. doesn't blame 'editors'. steps up.

and honestly i welcome any person who can come in and give me information or a view on this sport that i wouldn't get otherwise. heck, i even enjoy hokydad!

[cg_siouxfan]

Re: Excellent Interview with Don Lucia

It's clear this person has no reading comprehension whatsoever.

Simpletons like your self seem to be produced in mass numbers in the Grand Forks area. Laugh it up dirty UND.


I am quickly loosing patience with the arrogance of many UND fans. News flash for you….you live in the ***** crack of America. Get over yourselves and try to act civilized when you follow your team.

No, we don't play teams with racist mascots.

While other coaches are complete class acts and only give the finger to the game officials.

You make siouxinminny look smart.

The internet has truly been a blessing to people like cg_siouxfan & Goon. Now they can achieve social interaction from the comfort of their mother’s basement.

you simply can't take Minnesota getting any attention at all .

None of it does and you are correct he can't handle any kind of Gopher press and he probably had to go curl up in the corner with his thumb in his mouth after reading it.

His thumb was in his mouth and his head was undoubtedly up his ***.

Most other posters have been able to discuss the issues raised rationally.

He wants Lucia to be a whiner so bad that's all he can see.

Hey I can quote people out of context too! Yippee

[Turk 77]

Re: Excellent Interview with Don Lucia

I think its fair to say that the culture of Minnesota hockey has changed a bit, somewhat.

Gopher Hockey once represented the pinnacle of desire for the high end Minnesota High School player, with maybe an Olympic team or a pro career as icing on the cake after a Gophers' career. Sure, some Gophers left early and some made the pros, but being a Gopher really represented the top of the Minnesota development system - grow up, play hockey in your town, be the high school star, then play for the Gophers and see what happens.

In recent years, The Gophers' success at producing NHL players has changed the goalposts. High end prospects growing up in Minnesota now view the the NHL as the end game much like a Canadian prospect does. The Gophers are now much more of stepping stone than an end in itself. Few Gopher players go from HS to the Gophers in wide-eyed admiration for the opportunity to play for their home state - they now play HS, then play junior somehere else, and they see hockey as a business and by the time they arrive on campus at the U, the agents and NHL are waiting for them. These guys are thinking about paychecks and payoffs and the Maroon and Gold are mostly a stepping stone for that.

I think the other WCHA programs don't have as strong of a home state pride factor vortex, and they have been viewed as pro stepping stones for a longer time, and were faster adjusting to this reality.

Nice post Swami I agree