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The Barr Has Been Raised at UMaine

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Further on my point about TW's long-term outlook at UMaine had he gotten over the hump against Minnesota and/or Denver, look at how things played out for the two HC's he lost to in those games. Don Lucia was winning the first of his two in a row and those would be his only title wins at Minnesota, but he lasted for almost two more decades before stepping down, and later becoming commish of the CCHA (?). George Gwozdecky was also winning the first of his two in a row at Denver, but despite being pretty successful after, he was eventually fired less than a decade after his biggest wins, with a combination of a contract dispute and a string of early postseason losses in more recent seasons to blame.

If you're saying that losing GS to retirement (for good) in '08 - and him being off the road for a couple of years before that - caused TW's ultimate downfall, I'm not going to disagree with you. But the guy was already in his early 70's, so losing him at that point was to be expected, and Whitehead did have the opportunity to win a WC or two before then. And if he had, then I have every reason to believe his stay in Orono would have been extended to a point to eliminate the Gendron Era as we know it entirely. You don't just dump a NC pedigree HC. There's even an outside longshot chance TW's tenure could have made it far enough to the point where he handed the program off in recent years to Carvel, or to Barr, or to another guy like them.

As they say, timing in life can be everything. There are lots of "what if's" out there, surrounding guys like Walsh, Whitehead, Umile, York, etc. Sometimes fate steps in and has a different take ...
 
Chuck Murray said:
Respectfully disagree. People (recruits, advisors, assistants) will tolerate a lot of junk so long as they think their wagon is hitched to a winner. Had Whitehead gotten over the hump in St. Paul or in Boston in either of those two finals, he would be viewed entirely differently. Had UMaine won both, TW would have been a second "Walshy", except without the personality.

Instead, he came up short, folks gradually started to lose faith in his abilities, and his shortcomings were exposed. Much the same as could be said about the guy who was in charge at the time at UNH.

Jack Parker could rub people the wrong way (ditto Walshy outside the UMaine bubble), but they both had big self-confidence that allowed them to sell big dreams to a lot of talented players. And they both won the big prize enough times to be able to back up that self-confidence, and had long lists of alums playing in The Show to demonstrate the worth and value of their programs. And Whitehead still had GS doing the recruiting work for him early in his tenure.

Had TW won one NC in the early '00's I very much doubt there would have been a Red Gendron era. And if he'd won both of those, TW might very well still be behind the UMaine bench right now, possibly with another title or two on top of those.

Winning begets winning. It's only when folks think you aren't capable of winning, when the end comes. Unless of course if you have a lifetime contract, but that's another story for another day ...
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+1
 
We were right behind the goal, exciting to watch the scrambling, but like what’s been said, shots were everywhere, except not on goal. Good memories regardless of outcome.
 
Ma#1ne Hky said:
EZ, ez buddy...hang onto your reel...don't have the big one on us...just a general statement on the play...period.
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There'll be a lot of people left happy when I have "the big one".

I'm guessing that I'll survive another Summer, but you never know.

And while I never let go of my reel, the crazy rain made fishing nearly impossible in my local river.

Maybe this coming June...
 
So……….do we think Josh Nadeau is showing up in the fall or not?
  • He’s tied for first in points on his first place BCHL team (45 points in 34 games).
  • He’s 9[SUP]th[/SUP] in the BCHL in total scoring, 4th in goals, and is now 2 points behind the most touted member of next year’s class Felix Trudeau.
  • He would be a 19-year-old Freshman so it’s not like he’s showing up at 17, but he's also not 21.
  • He is small at 5’7 157LBS.
Thoughts?
 
Tango said:
So……….do we think Josh Nadeau is showing up in the fall or not?
  • He’s tied for first in points on his first place BCHL team (45 points in 34 games).
  • He’s 9[SUP]th[/SUP] in the BCHL in total scoring, 4th in goals, and is now 2 points behind the most touted member of next year’s class Felix Trudeau.
  • He would be a 19-year-old Freshman so it’s not like he’s showing up at 17, but he's also not 21.
  • He is small at 5’7 157LBS.
Thoughts?
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I've thought about that quite a bit and I see pros and cons to bringing him in now and holding him back a year.

First off, he can really help Maine, I’ve seen highlights of the Vees and he would immediately be the most skilled player on Maine. He has great hands, vision and shot.
A pro of holding him back a year just has to do with experience. This is his first year in a top league and even though his transition has been smooth, he may benefit from staying in the same spot for another year.
A con of him staying is losing him. If Maine were to lose Nadeau, it would be devastating to the rebuild. It would likely mean the loss of his brother as well who is viewed as a legit pro prospect.
A pro of him staying is possibly bringing him and his brother in together. 4 years of the Nadeau brothers playing together could be really fun.

I assume Barr wants to see how the rest of the season plays out and which guys with an extra year choose to stay. Hebert, Dawe and JSS all have an extra year so I assume if a couple forgo their extra year or transfer, Barr will look to bring him in.
 
BlackBearFan19 said:
I've thought about that quite a bit and I see pros and cons to bringing him in now and holding him back a year.

First off, he can really help Maine, I’ve seen highlights of the Vees and he would immediately be the most skilled player on Maine. He has great hands, vision and shot.
A pro of holding him back a year just has to do with experience. This is his first year in a top league and even though his transition has been smooth, he may benefit from staying in the same spot for another year.
A con of him staying is losing him. If Maine were to lose Nadeau, it would be devastating to the rebuild. It would likely mean the loss of his brother as well who is viewed as a legit pro prospect.
A pro of him staying is possibly bringing him and his brother in together. 4 years of the Nadeau brothers playing together could be really fun.

I assume Barr wants to see how the rest of the season plays out and which guys with an extra year choose to stay. Hebert, Dawe and JSS all have an extra year so I assume if a couple forgo their extra year or transfer, Barr will look to bring him in.
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Well said. I think it would be a massive loss to the program if he and his brother don't come but ultimately I'd be surprised if they went elsewhere (sounded like being close to home was a big plus for them).

Can't miss out on highly skilled offensive talent right in your own backyard.
 
BlackBearFan19 said:
I assume Barr wants to see how the rest of the season plays out and which guys with an extra year choose to stay. Hebert, Dawe and JSS all have an extra year so I assume if a couple forgo their extra year or transfer, Barr will look to bring him in.
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Dawe should move on, theres obvious problems there with the new regime. JSS, maybe will stay, Barr has been praising his ability to change and be open about learning new things. Barr also likes Hebert saying hes low maintenance and very coachable.
 
NorthMike said:
Dawe should move on, theres obvious problems there with the new regime. JSS, maybe will stay, Barr has been praising his ability to change and be open about learning new things. Barr also likes Hebert saying hes low maintenance and very coachable.
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I think and hope that Hebert will stay.....he has been consistently good this season. He seems like a great teammate.
 
defkit said:
Well I think a loss against BU, as well as they are playing, would not necessarily mean regression. Commesso is in Beijing but Case McCarthy is back after missing several games. He is our best all-around d-man. Hope it's a good game.
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Feels like Maine ran into a buzzsaw tonight. I don’t know if it’s as much Maine as it is BU playing terrific hockey. They’re fast, wouldn’t be surprised to see BU make a run down the stretch.
 
MC is having a much better year than we expected, but I would think they still view tonight as a winnable game. I'll be there, hopefully they can play well.
 
Most of that first period was pretty brutal. 2-0 Mack, shots 20-7 for them. Could have been worse than that, though Maine did look better the last few minutes. Maybe that will translate to a better second period.
 
Ill tell you Mc recruited in some kids who can skate and handle a puck, make a pass and know where their mate is. Not afraid to check and be scrappy either. Not sure how.
They make maine look as slow as they are. Like slow old men who complain when getting checked.
 
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