Okay, now that DU fans are processing the pain of another NCAA first game fizzle, it makes sense to start looking at what it will take to get over that hump in the future. This coming season will be pivotal for Denver as they attempt to stay among the elite programs in college hockey. With three consecutive first game NCAA early departures in the last three seasons, we have a program that is still looking for the extra mixture of talent, attitude, health, chemistry and coaching that vaults a top 3 WHCA program into a Frozen Four calibre program once again as they were five years ago.
I think the coaching staff (and the players) clearly need to make some changes to the way they prepare for end-of-season success, because the current post-season fizzles need to be addressed. The common thread in recent years is a talented DU club suffers some second-half injuries, loses confidence and effort level and there does not appear to be enough gas in the tank for the NCAAs. I am sure this keeps the coaching staff (and some of the players) up late at night trying to figure out how to correct it.
Here are some interesting thought starters that might suggest areas of improvement that DU might want to look into...
1) Nutrition: A recent article in Toronto talked about how Tyler Bozak had to change his eating habits and learn about nutrition and and eating right when he got to Toronto. Seems to me that perhaps DU needs to do a better job with player nutrition, which could be a contributing factor to a late season fade. That is easily fixed.
2) Physical Strength: DU has been a finesse team for a while, and more physical teams out there have pushed DU around in tourney play (the first period of the RIT game was a great example of this).In the mid-decade NCAA title period, Mike Sanders (DU's strength coach) was widely lauded for having DU peaking physically at the right times, even through injuries. Let's hope DU's new strength coach can do more with guys so they don't fade phsyically. This is also a recruiting issue as well, as DU needs some bigger and stronger guys than they have now.
3) Mental Strength: DU needs to do a better job instilling the killer instinct into the players, and how to deal with sporadic effort levels. I don't know how the team did or didn't use a sports psychologist, but this area needs a long, long look from the coaching staff. Mental toughness is everything in a league and tourney where talent is well distributed. DU needs to be mentally tougher and that is certain. Getting the early jump is crucial, and most of DU's playoff starts were flat. This was a problem in the regular season, too. Motivation should come naturally to players at this level, and the fact that it doesn't means that change needs to happen.
4) Leadership: Seems to me that we've seen great captains like Caldwell and Laatsch who overcame their physical and playing deficiencies to lead the Pioneers to NCs. Since 2005, DU's captains have been star players who may command respect for their talent and personalities, but who all left with regrets that they weren't able to lead their teams to a better finish. Maybe it's time to pick a captain who brings a different outlook to the table. Not sure who that is, but DU needs to get everyone pulling at the same time, which hasn't happened in the NCAA tourneys.
5) Coaching: Clearly what worked in prior years no longer works, so DU needs to find better adjustments, preparation strategies and other elements to really peak at the right time. Innovation must be continuous and these guys need to be open to changing the things that don't work.
