2014 UNH Wildcats: Ending Strong and Starting Fresh

[puckskillz]

Re: 2014 UNH Wildcats: Ending Strong and Starting Fresh

It’s great for everyone who’s tied to the UNH program to finally have some clarity and direction. These last six months will not go down as “best practice” for managing the entire situation but the program now has a head coach and everyone can move forward.

I am not sure of Coaches’ Wood and Jones future at UNH but would like to recognize and thank them for their leadership and behind the scenes commitment to the student athletes. They had a brief but transformative opportunity to instill the type of commitment and discipline this program will require to compete at the National level and this has energized the players. They both embody great character as well as empathy and accountability which will take both of them far in their coaching careers.

Congratulations to Coach Witt and welcome to UNH. Best wishes to her and her staff as they work to build a positive and competitive culture. I hope that even with all of the negativity in regards to the off-ice issues that alumni and fans can get behind this team and the new staff. It is a new beginning.

 

[The Zlax45]

Re: 2014 UNH Wildcats: Ending Strong and Starting Fresh

No offense to Al Pike but he doesn't have any quotes from Witt, nor anything from her....recaps this thread pretty well but if she was named Monday don't you think in 48 hours you could get an interview or quote? Mention Jones and Woods and maybe get a quite from Scarano on their future? Wow....

Did UNH even have a press conference? Has Marty come out of his cave yet?

Actually looks like they did....that is pretty inexcusable article by Pike.

 

[ExHockeyguy]

Re: 2014 UNH Wildcats: Ending Strong and Starting Fresh

Hillary Witt is actually a very good coach. Not saying the process was great, and obviously a lot of people had sentimental reasons for wanting Wood or Jones to be hired...but if you can step back, be objective, and look at the hiring for what it is then it's a pretty solid choice.

Don't get me wrong. She's a quality person. And a good coach. That said, I just don't feel as if the program is going to benefit as it should. UNH athletics in general is going through a lot of turmoil right now; this wasn't much of a search. I can't get excited over the process or the selection. Witt is one of many good coaches, but she's not a standout, she's not a rainmaker. I hope I'm wrong for the program's sake, but I don't think I am.

Just my two cents...

 

[WIrinkrat]

Don't get me wrong. She's a quality person. And a good coach. That said, I just don't feel as if the program is going to benefit as it should. UNH athletics in general is going through a lot of turmoil right now; this wasn't much of a search. I can't get excited over the process or the selection. Witt is one of many good coaches, but she's not a standout, she's not a rainmaker. I hope I'm wrong for the program's sake, but I don't think I am.

Just my two cents...

And who would have made you happy?

 

[ExHockeyguy]

Re: 2014 UNH Wildcats: Ending Strong and Starting Fresh

And who would have made you happy?

Doesn't matter. The pick has been made.

 

[WIrinkrat]

Doesn't matter. The pick has been made.

If youre going to complain about it then man up and tell us who you think should have been hired?

 

[ref11]

Re: 2014 UNH Wildcats: Ending Strong and Starting Fresh

Sorry UNH fans .. no one (IMO) did their due diligence behind Witt leaving Yale (not on her own accord).

Hope she has learned from past mistakes - have to believe there were other candidates who communicate better.

 

[whoop87]

Re: 2014 UNH Wildcats: Ending Strong and Starting Fresh

Article in The New Hampshire by Max Sullivan, Sports Editor

Women's Hockey: UNH hires Hilary Witt as new women's head coach

The University of New Hampshire’s athletic department held a press conference Wednesday to announce the hire of new women’s hockey coach Hilary Witt, the team’s fourth head coach in its 37-year history.

“We are very excited to welcome Hilary to the UNH family,” UNH athletic director Marty Scarano said in a press release. “She is one of the brightest young coaches in the nation, has a fabulous understanding of the game and her recruiting ties will have an immediate impact on our program. Furthermore, Hilary is one of the all-time great players in women’s hockey and knows exactly what it takes to succeed at this level. We look forward to her leadership in rebuilding UNH into once again a national contender.”

Witt, a native of Canton, Mass., played hockey at Northeastern from 1997-2000 and the US national team, said not only was she excited to be working again in Hockey East, but also that she had been set on chasing the job in Durham this year.

“I wanted the job,” Witt said. “I didn’t come up here to interview just to have a new job. I came here because I wanted this job … because of the history and because I feel like it has the bones to be fantastic every year.”

Witt has 14 years coaching experience, including as an assistant coach and team scout for USA Hockey. She became head coach of the Yale women’s hockey team after just one year as an assistant, followed by assistant coaching jobs with her alma mater and USA Hockey.

In 2003, Witt was named ECAC Coach of the Year. In just three seasons, she had taken a team with a 9-19-3 record and helped them win 16 games.

Witt cited her time at Yale when asked if she’d ever been faced with a challenge like the one handed to her with the Wildcats. UNH had a record of 9-23-2 this past year.

“I worked at Yale for nine years and took over a program that really struggled and we had more success there than they had ever had,” Witt said. “The great part of this program is that its only had a couple years where it’s kind of gone off-track a little bit.”

After the controversial departure of former head coach Brian McCloskey this past December, the UNH players are relieved that the team has finally found a coach to move forward with.

“I think we’ve been waiting for this day for a very long time,” junior forward Hannah Armstrong said. “We’re all in there celebrating in the dressing room right now. It’s a great, heavy burden lifted off of our shoulders.”

 

[pakidnyc]

We are doomed to mediocrity. Wish I could be positive, but sorry, I can't.

Her record at Yale 96-126-23 as head coach. Her record as scout for USA (in gold medal games vs Canada -- 0-?? (a lot!) in the last 3 years we've beaten Canada only once when it mattered at national or u18 level.

 

[WIrinkrat]

Re: 2014 UNH Wildcats: Ending Strong and Starting Fresh

Her record at Yale 96-126-23 as head coach. Her record as scout for USA (in gold medal games vs Canada -- 0-?? (a lot!) in the last 3 years we've beaten Canada only once when it mattered at national or u18 level.

The one aspect that is really relevant to this discussion is the Yale piece...and her teams at Yale have been far and away the most competitive teams they've had. The record may not blow you away, but that is a hard, hard place to win (IMO, the toughest of the Ivy gigs) and she did it a lot more than the team she inherited had, and a lot more than the teams they've had since.

 

[Trillium]

Re: 2014 UNH Wildcats: Ending Strong and Starting Fresh

The one aspect that is really relevant to this discussion is the Yale piece...and her teams at Yale have been far and away the most competitive teams they've had. The record may not blow you away, but that is a hard, hard place to win (IMO, the toughest of the Ivy gigs) and she did it a lot more than the team she inherited had, and a lot more than the teams they've had since.

Really? That's an incredibly generous comment. In Marchetti's last season at Yale, their record was 9-19-3. The next season under Witt, their record was 9-20-2. Seven seasons later, in her last season, Yale's record was 10-16-3. The following season under Flygh, their record was 9-17-3. In Flygh's most recent season, Yale's record was 9-16-7. Even a cursory look at those numbers doesn't support that she was much better, (albeit not worse), than her colleagues.

In Witt's 9 seasons on the bench at Yale (8 as HC), her teams surpassed Yale's performance in this past season (.463) only twice, in 04-05 and 06-07 (.516 both times). But one should also take a closer look at the quality of her teams' wins under her tenure. Whereas virtually all D1 teams are now quite competitive, back in those days, teams like Cornell, Quinnipiac, Union, Vermont and Northeastern (which accounted for many of those wins) were complete cakewalks. Her records also benefited quite a bit from scheduling weak non-conference match ups, including 5 NC wins in 06-07. In contrast, it has certainly not helped Flygh's teams' records to have played its NC games against the likes of top-ranked teams like Minnesota, BC, BU, and Mercyhurst the past couple of years.

That said, while her career record of .439 as a head coach was not spectacular, as you mentioned there are severe recruiting constraints on Yale that do not exist at UNH, that may mitigate her potential results. Her record even under those conditions is most certainly an improvement on the .389 average record at UNH over the past 4 years.

I'd say in many ways Witt is a very reasonable, safe choice for UNH as coach. You definitely know what you are getting with her. She has extensive D1 coaching experience. She is not a polarizing figure in any way. She's not a screamer, nor prone to creating controversy.

While she is unlikely to dramatically improve team results in short order based on her track record, really, how many new coaches around the league have made dramatic program turnarounds anyway? Maybe the kind of stability she provides is something UNH could benefit the most from at this point--especially if Wood and/or Jones are kept on. I do believe she is smart enough to know that recruiting is certainly not her forte, and she will want to have staff in place for whom that is their strength. That may bode well for their retention. Rosenholtz's strength in that area as associate HC was certainly key to her recruiting success at Yale all those years. Without him, they would have fared far, far worse.

The best news of all for UNH players is that they have a new coach in place in April. So many schools leave these things hanging throughout the summer.

 

[HockeyRef]

The one aspect that is really relevant to this discussion is the Yale piece...and her teams at Yale have been far and away the most competitive teams they've had. The record may not blow you away, but that is a hard, hard place to win (IMO, the toughest of the Ivy gigs) and she did it a lot more than the team she inherited had, and a lot more than the teams they've had since.

Seems obvious Ms Witt has a detailed resume, the team is excited to have her. Not just anybody gets the nod to be an Olympic coach. Best wishes to her and the team as they move ahead!

 

[Trillium]

Re: 2014 UNH Wildcats: Ending Strong and Starting Fresh

Seems obvious Ms Witt has a detailed resume, the team is excited to have her. Not just anybody gets the nod to be an Olympic coach. Best wishes to her and the team as they move ahead!

I find that comment hilarious. On both sides of the border, national team coaching gigs are frequently given to coaches to whom those in the know find to be highly questionable at best. Coaching acumen doesn't generally seem to be the primary criteria. Some of the weakest regarded coaches have much national team experience. Politics (and often gender) typically play a huge part, and perhaps some of the "thinking" is that when you have the best players, it's hard for a coach to screw up anyway.

On the Canadian side, examples have included Mel Davidson, who "led" Cornell to repeated oblivion for many years, and Dan Church, who has never coached a winning team in Canadian college hockey. On the US side, both Jackie Barto and Digit Murphy, (like Hilary Witt), were ultimately relieved of college coaching responsibilities due to losing records.

 

[HockeyRef]

I find that comment hilarious. On both sides of the border, national team coaching gigs are frequently given to coaches to whom those in the know find to be highly questionable at best. Coaching acumen doesn't generally seem to be the primary criteria. Some of the weakest regarded coaches have much national team experience. Politics (and often gender) typically play a huge part, and perhaps some of the "thinking" is that when you have the best players, it's hard for a coach to screw up anyway.

On the Canadian side, examples have included Mel Davidson, who "led" Cornell to repeated oblivion for many years, and Dan Church, who has never coached a winning team in Canadian college hockey. On the US side, both Jackie Barto and Digit Murphy, (like Hilary Witt), were ultimately relieved of college coaching responsibilities due to losing records.

I'm so glad you had a good laugh over my comment . Obviously you have a more detailed view of the big pic when it comes to coaching selection than I do ! Regardless I see her experience as an asset to a team that is in desperate need of stability. (No offense to Coaches Jones and Wood) And as an educator I can always learn of course ridicule normally isn't my forte...

 

[Stick Boy]

Re: 2014 UNH Wildcats: Ending Strong and Starting Fresh

You guys are killing me!! I was and am a fan of McCloskey. I like Wood and Jones too. I don't know Witt. What I do know is: 1) she has a resume/experience; 2) she has played at a high level and performed very well; 3) she coached non-scholarship athletes in a tough conference in a school with very high academic entry standards; 4) she wanted the job at UNH even given the present situation; 5) she is female which the school wanted; and 6) she is starting with a last place team that has lost some key members that can't sink any deeper.

The coach selection, like on ice officiating, can never please everyone but let's give her a chance to get her feet under her and more importantly get behind the athlete's that have been hung out to dry the last number of months. Good luck Coach Witt! It is going to take a while and there will be much more banter along the rough road ahead but let's hope for quick and positive developments in the coming months/years. Go Cats.

 

[HockeyEast33]

Re: 2014 UNH Wildcats: Ending Strong and Starting Fresh

Maybe the kind of stability she provides is something UNH could benefit from at this point--especially if Wood and/or Jones are kept on. I do believe she is smart enough to know that recruiting is certainly not her forte, and she will want to have staff in place for whom that is their strength. That may bode well for their retention.......

If I were Coach Witt it would be very difficult for me to think that it makes sense to keep Coaches Wood and/or Jones, regardless if they are good recruiters or coaches. This is a situation where the previous coach was fired for inappropriate conduct (whether we agree or not), the assistant coaches supported the previous coach after his firing, and then the assistant coaches were interested in but passed over for the head coaching job (and presumably are not on great terms with the school admin after supporting McCloskey). Even if they are stellar human beings (which many have said they are), I'd be hard-pressed to believe that they can be advocates for me and UNH with the current players and potential recruits - it would take a rare individual to rise above the history and long term personal connections here. I would be HIGHLY predisposed to wiping the slate clean and bringing in new assistants to start over and ensure cohesiveness amongst the coaching staff. As an absolute maximum I would retain only one and probably that one only for a season for continuity purposes.

 

[Trillium]

Re: 2014 UNH Wildcats: Ending Strong and Starting Fresh

If I were Coach Witt it would be very difficult for me to think that it makes sense to keep Coaches Wood and/or Jones, regardless if they are good recruiters or coaches. This is a situation where the previous coach was fired for inappropriate conduct (whether we agree or not), the assistant coaches supported the previous coach after his firing, and then the assistant coaches were interested in but passed over for the head coaching job (and presumably are not on great terms with the school admin after supporting McCloskey). Even if they are stellar human beings (which many have said they are), I'd be hard-pressed to believe that they can be advocates for me and UNH with the current players and potential recruits - it would take a rare individual to rise above the history and long term personal connections here. I would be HIGHLY predisposed to wiping the slate clean and bringing in new assistants to start over and ensure cohesiveness amongst the coaching staff. As an absolute maximum I would retain only one and probably that one only for a season for continuity purposes.

Perhaps. Interested in a friendly wager?

I think she's uncommonly self-aware of her strengths and weaknesses, and will be looking to complement them in her staff.

I guess it would ultimately depend on how meetings go with Wood and Jones and their attitude towards her, but having met her on multiple occasions and knowing of her from many others, I doubt she'd find their having past UNH ties threatening on its own, and she would likely be open to that possibility at least. Much could depend on whether keeping current staff in place might be seen to be divisive among the players though.

If that's not an issue, I'd be willing to bet that she does keep at least one of the coaches around for at least a year and see how it goes from there. If she doesn't retain either, I'd wager that it would be because she chose to bring in staff she's worked with previously to complement her skill sets instead.

As a parallel, I can think of at least one program in recent years where an incoming coach surprisingly chose not to retain any existing staff despite strengths in recruiting and player rapport and personal weakness in that area. History has proved that to be a big, and potentially ultimately a fatal, mistake that has left that team in arguably a worse position than ever....one I just can't see Witt making given her past coaching experience.

If I was Witt, I'd definitely keep at least one of them around, only judging by the positive support for them amongst players if the posts in this thread are accurate. If you are secure in your own abilities and track record, you really have nothing to fear from the staff. Like most of us in the business world, I've either been promoted, or hired, into positions where those I had to manage thought they deserved my job. Big deal. After a few months, if you are a good leader, once to get to know and respect one another's abilities, everything is fine between you and your staff. The bigger worry is getting the team on board. If they loved the assistants, and hold you responsible for firing them for no reason, they are potentially much more difficult to get onside, and the turnaround in attitudes can take much longer. You then have a much greater issue on your hands in gaining the respect and buy-in of those who are needed to deliver the results on-ice, especially in a completely new culture. It's human nature to find change far easier to accept, when some friendly and familiar faces from the past are part of the change. Having staff who understands the in and outs of dealing with the UNH bureaucracy is also a hugely valuable plus.

Time will tell.

 

[zoofer]

Re: 2014 UNH Wildcats: Ending Strong and Starting Fresh

Wow.....wasn't ready for all the divisiveness and disagreement with choosing Coach Witt...I appreciate and understand the viewpoints based on her record at Yale, but other than that I was ready to write exactly what Stick Boy has to say, but not quite as eloquently...
For me, Coach Witt has a whole lot of chutzpah to want to come in and take over our team! I mean, we all previously commented on what coach in their right mind would come into this quagmire! Well I for one is **** happy that a coach like Witt, with her experience in playing, coaching and recruiting at all levels of the women's game WANTS to be at UNH!! She's lived and played thru UNH's best, so she knows how passionate and knowledgable the fan base is here....sure, maybe her previous coaching stints didn't attain the level of success we all desire but from my experience team includes the coach and players...and as experience tells us, to make a run for the championship in today's game with its parity, everything has to jive just right...I'm glad that Coach Witt is willing to put herself on the front line and try for our sake! I know the team is excited to finally be moving forward on a positive note, chomping at the bit to prove they're much more than a last place team! I hope we save this thread so we can compare it to this time next year....I'm willing to bet Coach Witt will have the team getting home ice!!

 

[Trillium]

Re: 2014 UNH Wildcats: Ending Strong and Starting Fresh

Wow.....wasn't ready for all the divisiveness and disagreement with choosing Coach Witt...I appreciate and understand the viewpoints based on her record at Yale, but other than that I was ready to write exactly what Stick Boy has to say, but not quite as eloquently...
For me, Coach Witt has a whole lot of chutzpah to want to come in and take over our team! I mean, we all previously commented on what coach in their right mind would come into this quagmire! Well I for one is **** happy that a coach like Witt, with her experience in playing, coaching and recruiting at all levels of the women's game WANTS to be at UNH!! She's lived and played thru UNH's best, so she knows how passionate and knowledgable the fan base is here....sure, maybe her previous coaching stints didn't attain the level of success we all desire but from my experience team includes the coach and players...and as experience tells us, to make a run for the championship in today's game with its parity, everything has to jive just right...I'm glad that Coach Witt is willing to put herself on the front line and try for our sake! I know the team is excited to finally be moving forward on a positive note, chomping at the bit to prove they're much more than a last place team! I hope we save this thread so we can compare it to this time next year....I'm willing to bet Coach Witt will have the team getting home ice!!

I certainly wish Witt and the team all the best. To clarify, I don't think it was a bad decision under the circumstances as I did say, and I quote....

"...while her career record of .439 as a head coach was not spectacular, as you mentioned there are severe recruiting constraints on Yale that do not exist at UNH, that may mitigate her potential results. Her record even under those conditions is most certainly an improvement on the .389 average record at UNH over the past 4 years.

I'd say in many ways Witt is a very reasonable, safe choice for UNH as coach. You definitely know what you are getting with her. She has extensive D1 coaching experience. She is not a polarizing figure in any way. She's not a screamer, nor prone to creating controversy.

While she is unlikely to dramatically improve team results in short order based on her track record, really, how many new coaches around the league have made dramatic program turnarounds anyway? Maybe the kind of stability she provides is something UNH could benefit the most from at this point--especially if Wood and/or Jones are kept on. "

 

[LaRondelle]

Re: 2014 UNH Wildcats: Ending Strong and Starting Fresh

I find that comment hilarious. On both sides of the border, national team coaching gigs are frequently given to coaches to whom those in the know find to be highly questionable at best. Coaching acumen doesn't generally seem to be the primary criteria. Some of the weakest regarded coaches have much national team experience. Politics (and often gender) typically play a huge part, and perhaps some of the "thinking" is that when you have the best players, it's hard for a coach to screw up anyway.

On the Canadian side, examples have included Mel Davidson, who "led" Cornell to repeated oblivion for many years, and Dan Church, who has never coached a winning team in Canadian college hockey. On the US side, both Jackie Barto and Digit Murphy, (like Hilary Witt), were ultimately relieved of college coaching responsibilities due to losing records.

This is exactly and totally true. Just be a politician and USA Hockey will like you a lot and promote you far in excess of your abilities.