What's new
By:
USCHO Fan Forum

This is a sample guest message. Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

  • The USCHO Fan Forum has migrated to a new plaform, xenForo. Most of the function of the forum should work in familiar ways. Please note that you can switch between light and dark modes by clicking on the gear icon in the upper right of the main menu bar. We are hoping that this new platform will prove to be faster and more reliable. Please feel free to explore its features.

UNH- How Far West Do We Go?

Chuck Murray said:
From what I'm hearing lately from pretty reliable sources, the situation behind the scenes with UNH Hockey is an absolute train wreck. I'm not in a position to reveal some of these tidbits - at least until I get some second source confirmations to back it up - but if even half of what I'm hearing is even close to accurate, it's going to take a massive overhaul of ALL aspects of UNH Hockey (including the now apparent short-timer AD) to get this ship righted. Totally dysfunctional.

I'm still here, pulling for the guys on the team, but they absolutely have their work cut out for them. I'm going to park the bus right here, and it'll stay parked for now.
Click to expand...
Not to nit-pick this too much, I’m very curious at your choice of words regarding “now apparent short-timer AD”. Going off our conversation a couple of pages ago, are we now leaning towards her leaving/dismissal?

Not sure if it was just your choice of words, and I’m reading way too into this. I respect you wanting to wait to get additional evidence (which I appreciate), so if you’d rather not elaborate I understand.
 
Felger said:
He did that to me once (and I'm sure he didn't know my name either) when I was walking down Main Street. It was during spring break so no traffic and he was driving the complimentary Dodge SUV. Asked if I was headed to Boston for the HE Semis. I forget who we were playing.

Why is it that you can seemingly find anything on YouTube but I can't find that commercial?:(
Click to expand...
I've been looking for the Walshy & Umile commercials for Tri City Dodge for decades now ...
 
FlagUp17 said:
Not to nit-pick this too much, I’m very curious at your choice of words regarding “now apparent short-timer AD”. Going off our conversation a couple of pages ago, are we now leaning towards her leaving/dismissal?

Not sure if it was just your choice of words, and I’m reading way too into this. I respect you wanting to wait to get additional evidence (which I appreciate), so if you’d rather not elaborate I understand.
Click to expand...
Our current AD has never really impressed me as someone who views this job as anything but a placeholder and stepping stone/resume builder for her future dream job, probably back at Princeton. Some of the scuttlebutt I'm hearing lately has fallen very comfortably into place with those early impressions of mine.

If she decides she wants to extend her stay a little, I strongly suspect no one in admin (where it counts anyway) will have the 'nads to show her the door. And I'm definitely not expecting her to take any action on MS7 any earlier than she absolutely has to. Super bummer, I know. Even if it turns out that she should be aware of the sh!tshow that's going down with Men's Hockey at this point. The rot apparently has set in, deep and widespread, with no white knights to be seen. Tragic.

But as soon as the "right" job opens up, our AD will be gone. Whether MS7 beats her out the door from Titletown, that's anyone's guess. Both have to go, and it's probably better if she goes first, because the next AD would have to be a mouth breathing idiot to allow Men's Hockey to continue to fester and crater like it is now ...
 
Chuck Murray said:
Our current AD has never really impressed me as someone who views this job as anything but a placeholder and stepping stone/resume builder for her future dream job, probably back at Princeton. Some of the scuttlebutt I'm hearing lately has fallen very comfortably into place with those early impressions of mine.

If she decides she wants to extend her stay a little, I strongly suspect no one in admin (where it counts anyway) will have the 'nads to show her the door. And I'm definitely not expecting her to take any action on MS7 any earlier than she absolutely has to. Super bummer, I know. Even if it turns out that she should be aware of the sh!tshow that's going down with Men's Hockey at this point. The rot apparently has set in, deep and widespread, with no white knights to be seen. Tragic.

But as soon as the "right" job opens up, our AD will be gone. Whether MS7 beats her out the door from Titletown, that's anyone's guess. Both have to go, and it's probably better if she goes first, because the next AD would have to be a mouth breathing idiot to allow Men's Hockey to continue to fester and crater like it is now ...
Click to expand...
Perhaps if the AD leaves when the contract is up in June, the new person who comes in will want to make a “splash” with a big coaching change. I kind of felt AD Rich used that opportunity to make the change for Men’s basketball when she first joined.

Likely though, if she leave in June, it will take a number of months to do a national search and find a replacement. At that point, the new hockey season will be drawing near, and likely no change will happen until seasons end.

Along with the new renovations, MS7 will have the added pressure of trying to impress his new boss. Will he rise to the occasion in this scenario?

End of year decisions loom large for UNH admin - I’m very interested to see how it shakes out!
 
FlagUp17 said:
Perhaps if the AD leaves when the contract is up in June, the new person who comes in will want to make a “splash” with a big coaching change. I kind of felt AD Rich used that opportunity to make the change for Men’s basketball when she first joined.

Likely though, if she leave in June, it will take a number of months to do a national search and find a replacement. At that point, the new hockey season will be drawing near, and likely no change will happen until seasons end.

Along with the new renovations, MS7 will have the added pressure of trying to impress his new boss. Will he rise to the occasion in this scenario?

End of year decisions loom large for UNH admin - I’m very interested to see how it shakes out!
Click to expand...

With the current fiscal woes at the school, even the most common sense solutions may not even be viable if budget doesn't exist to execute accordingly.

Unless the UNH administration is blind or delusional, they can plainly see the challenges on and off the ice. But, with limited budget, there is no slush fund to buy out MS7 and pay market rates (or more) for a coaching upgrade.

So, we wait.
 
TheGrouchyCat said:
With the current fiscal woes at the school, even the most common sense solutions may not even be viable if budget doesn't exist to execute accordingly.
Click to expand...
Some of us have speculated about certain possibilities ... would MS7 resign a year early? Might Jimmy T. slide down from upstairs and do an interim HC role for one season to give the program a chance to breathe and take some time to get the next step(s) right? If MS7 does stick it out for the end of his current contract, might he do the until-now unthinkable and jettison one of his two loyal assistants to create the illusion of "taking a different approach", when all it would be was rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic? Unless there is a miraculous turnaround with the fortunes of UNH Men's Hockey over the next 3 weeks, this will just be the latest in a long (and growing longer) streak of UNH seasons that end up far short of Boston, which buries the program's profile increasingly deeper.

Absolutely everything should be on the table this offseason ... but due to a combination of finances and utter incompetence, very little is likely to change, and what might actually "change" will arguably just be "window dressing" to create the illusion of change. Even the possibility of MS7's "Charm Offensive 2.0" is increasingly unlikely, as some of his higher profile friends in the media are either not there any longer, or are probably having second thoughts about rising to the defense of a fellow alum whose ongoing failures will only bring his former supporters' judgment and credibility into question. We'll see soon enough ...
 
TheGrouchyCat said:
This is based on what the players said in a public event for STHs, not once but twice.

This is not speculation. It is a matter of record.
Click to expand...

Wrong.

A matter of record is "some members of the team didn't receive other scholarship offers, as stated at STH events."

You said "If we're honest, most of the current roster is lucky to have received a scholarship offer" which is notably a statement of opinion. For instance, maybe Morgan Winters didn't receive other scholarship offers but I think his body of work obviously suggests he is worthy of one. You make no distinction between other offers and the validity of the ones they did receive from UNH.

Regardless, someone who goes on the internet to speculate on whether members of the team deserve their college scholarship is not someone who should be welcome as a volunteer at the summer fundraiser.
 
2013hockeyfan said:
Wrong.

A matter of record is "some members of the team didn't receive other scholarship offers, as stated at STH events."

You said "If we're honest, most of the current roster is lucky to have received a scholarship offer" which is notably a statement of opinion. For instance, maybe Morgan Winters didn't receive other scholarship offers but I think his body of work obviously suggests he is worthy of one. You make no distinction between other offers and the validity of the ones they didn't receive from UNH.

Regardless, someone who goes on the internet to speculate on whether members of the team deserve their college scholarship is not someone who should be welcome as a volunteer at the summer fundraiser.
Click to expand...

And, that statement is based on public (and private) comments made by current and past players discussing their specific opportunities, or lack thereof, to play Division 1 hockey compared to D3.

No individual player was named. Just because you weren't at the events where these discussions took place or have personal relationships with players or families, doesn't mean they didn't occur.

They did.
 
TheGrouchyCat said:
And, that statement is based on public (and private) comments made by current and past players discussing their specific opportunities, or lack thereof, to play Division 1 hockey compared to D3.

No individual player was named. Just because you weren't at the events where these discussions took place or have personal relationships with players or families, doesn't mean they didn't occur.

They did.
Click to expand...
I have not said they didn't occur! I don't think you're capable of comprehending what I'm saying in my post.

And, if you have "personal relationships" with the players their and families that you leverage information from to post that the athlete is lucky to have a scholarship then I feel truly sorry for other half of that "relationship."
 
In my experience interviewing players soon after they committed to UNH, many were reluctant to share details of specific scholarship offers made by other DI schools.
For example:
Connor DeHaro "I toured a few other schools and had an offer from one other school. I liked the other schools but UNH was the one that stuck out to me as the best."
Jason Siedem "I was being recruited by a number of D-1 schools, including two from out west and two others in the east. I felt that UNH was the best fit for me when you consider the quality of the school, and the level of the hockey program. I also felt good about my connection with the coaching staff."
Jared Whale "When I went in the portal I did have interest from other schools, they were all great opportunities and programs. It made the decision really tough, but at the end of the day I wanted to play in Hockey East for UNH!"

Occasionally, the new UNH commit would be specific about scholarship offers.
For example:
Brendan Fitzgerald "Merrimack and UConn were the two other schools that offered me on August 1. They are both great schools and I considered every option, but in the end I went with my gut and the school that felt the best for me."
 
Last edited:
2013hockeyfan said:
I have not said they didn't occur! I don't think you're capable of comprehending what I'm saying in my post.

And, if you have "personal relationships" with the players their and families that you leverage information from to post that the athlete is lucky to have a scholarship then I feel truly sorry for other half of that "relationship."
Click to expand...

Why should you feel sorry when they, the players and their families, have volunteered this information?

Most players are pragmatic about their hockey futures. Some have high ceilings,others are lucky to have a roster spot and be healthy scratches 98% of the time.

They are more self aware than you give them credit for.

No names are mentioned. This pattern of players and parents talking to long term STHs isn't new as many are friends, neighbors or colleagues. Those players and parents introduce some of us to incoming frosh and their families. It's organic and natural.
 
2013hockeyfan said:
People often share information that they don't expect to feed message board fodder.
Click to expand...

Or, they want certain information shared about the program.

Relaying what was said publicly at a STH event doesn't violate trust. Many posters on this board know a lot more than they let on, but don't share as not to violate trust.
 
Question: maybe I'm missing a key piece of info here ... but how would the organizers of the UNH Hockey golf fundraiser know The Grouch's identity, so they could in turn deny him access to volunteering for their event on that basis??

I mean, with some sleuthing, you can eventually figure things out (take note of our suddenly reticent mole), but knowing The Grouch pretty well, I know he's not airing personal opinions or inside info to every Tom, Dick and Kevin he encounters. So, what gives??
 
2013hockeyfan said:
Ah, yes. I'm sure they want "my kid is lucky to have received an athletic scholarship" shared on the internet. lol
Click to expand...

Have I named names? Nope. I could but I haven't.

Certain players, current and historic, and their parents have wanted certain things shared because of the dysfunction and lack of communication and accountability from the Athletic Department and coaching staff.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top