Maine Black Bears 2026 Offseason: Missing Out on Mistlebacher

[walrus]

DC frozen four we adopted Bemidji , their fans were awesome.

 

[ticapnews]

Men's Hockey Day of Giving

 

[Darius]

I cant say it.

How about Mankato?

 

[BernieTheReffigy]

As long as we keep Veronin and Lafton I am happy. Seems like Barr is relying on the portal for bigger veteran players instead of taking the risk of bringing in a ton of green horns that might not be acclimated to the physicality and speed of ncaa d1 hockey.

Personally, I think that bringing in guys Voronin, Bales, etc. will be the secret sauce that pushes us to success. The CHL experiment of 25/26 was a failure. And even then, it managed to get us a first-round bye in the HEA Playoffs. This year's portal activity/roster additions scream 24/25 to me. Some experienced veterans who aren't necessarily flashy, but will play into the system well, and maybe won't be part of the "culture" issue in the dressing room. The freshmen look promising as well. Give Fowler the C, and watch 'em go.

 

[MBB4Life]

Personally, I think that bringing in guys Voronin, Bales, etc. will be the secret sauce that pushes us to success. The CHL experiment of 25/26 was a failure. And even then, it managed to get us a first-round bye in the HEA Playoffs. This year's portal activity/roster additions scream 24/25 to me. Some experienced veterans who aren't necessarily flashy, but will play into the system well, and maybe won't be part of the "culture" issue in the dressing room. The freshmen look promising as well. Give Fowler the C, and watch 'em go.

Really hoping for a “the whole is more than the sum of its parts” year with the new roster!

 

[umhockey91]

Men's Hockey Day of Giving

What a Maine Day of Giving it's been!

Another $10 million from Phil Morse.... https://goblackbears.com/news/2026/...illion-estate-gift-from-phillip-morse-64.aspx

"The $10 million estate commitment will establish the endowed Morse Arena, Alfond Stadium and Alfond Arena Endowment Fund, providing long-term support for the maintenance and enhancement of those facilities. A portion of the gift will also create the Morse Recruitment and Retention Fund, which will help recruit and retain UMaine coaches and staff, as well as the Morse Baseball Support Fund, which will provide resources for travel, projects, and other baseball program needs."

Maine Day of Giving link: https://engage.umaine.edu/mdg-2026

$87,224 in individual donations to UMaine Athletics with about 10 hours to go.

 

[Orono1993]

I'm sorry, but the "you can't control those who want to leave anyway" is the exact same mindset my managers at work have. It's a poor excuse for poor management and leadership. If you go into all this treating/expecting top tier talent to be a one and done and/or chase more money, you're failing from the start IMO.

Sure, there are anomalies that are truly using a year or two as a stepping stone to bigger and better things, whether it be money, NHL/AHL deals, etc. but I'd like to think that isn't the norm for most players (certainly not disputing the change in landscape). If we are unable to retain talent that may have otherwise stayed due to personality, cultural, (you name it) issues, we need to look in the mirror and consider maybe we're the problem and not the player.

Not implying Maine has a problem just yet, however, I agree completely that we should absolutely be disappointed that we are/were unable to keep some of the players leaving this year especially if the reason for leaving is something that is/was within our control and/or capabilities to address.

Could not agree more w this

 

[Orono1993]

Anyone want to bet that Poirier doesn’t make it through a full season at Penn State? He doesn’t like playing college hockey.

That does seem true

 

[umhockey91]

Money left on the fundraising table yesterday. Men's hockey had $25K and $15K matching 1:1 gifts that were no where near maxed out. Guess everyone is saving their pennies to pay for season tix.