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All Things Denver--XXXV

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Re: All Things Denver--XXXV

Oh for the love of God!! Can we get some good news please, anything!! I assume this Ausmus kid was a blue chipper. If these recruits start falling like dominoes, I am going to freak out right here on these boards!!

He was scheduled to defer for a year and hadn't signed yet. There was always a chance that he might not have shown up. Patrick Wiercioch was scheduled to defer for a year when he was committed to the Badgers, then DU had a spot a year earlier for him. You win some, you lose some, but you just carry on...
 
Re: All Things Denver--XXXV

"defer" would mean he "signed", which he didn't

He was verbally committed to DU and was scheduled to come in for the 2014-15, unless a scholarship defenseman left early.

I suspect Alts departure at the UM may have opened the door for him
 
Re: All Things Denver--XXXV

"defer" would mean he "signed", which he didn't

He was verbally committed to DU and was scheduled to come in for the 2014-15, unless a scholarship defenseman left early.

I suspect Alts departure at the UM may have opened the door for him
Or to UMD with the departure of Chris Casto. And his dad went to UMD.
 
Re: All Things Denver--XXXV

But Chris's basic point (you win some, you lose some) should probably be our rallying cry this offseason. We lost a guy who is one of the top coaches in the country. We may never know the exact reasons why we lost him, but the fact is, we are probably going to hemorrhage a little bit this summer. It won't be surprising if one or two guys sign pro contracts that no one expected. (If I'm the GM of an NHL team, I am probably trying to sign any DU player I have the draft rights to right now.) It won't be surprising if one or two guys, maybe a freshman or sophomore, transfer or, more likely, jump to major junior. And my guess is that Ausmus won't be the last recruit to de-commit. I have to think that any well-respected DU recruit, especially one that has NOT signed an LOI, is probably being viewed as available by coaches of other top-tier teams. Just as our guys with pro potential are probably being viewed as available by pro teams.

Two weeks ago I had a hope of winning the first NCHC regular season title. While nothing is impossible, at this point, I think that hosting a first round series next season will be represent a very good season.


What I would love to see is Steve Miller stay on board with the new coach. I have no insight whatsoever into the likelihood of this, but I have to believe that Miller gets a lot of credit for helping to build this program, and I think it would be good for the fans and great for the players if he stays on board, at least long enough for the new coach to really get things going his way.

Edit: Oh, and Beau Bennett is back in Pittsburgh.
 
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Re: All Things Denver--XXXV

It won't be surprising if one or two guys sign pro contracts that no one expected. (If I'm the GM of an NHL team, I am probably trying to sign any DU player I have the draft rights to right now.) It won't be surprising if one or two guys, maybe a freshman or sophomore, transfer or, more likely, jump to major junior. And my guess is that Ausmus won't be the last recruit to de-commit. I have to think that any well-respected DU recruit, especially one that has NOT signed an LOI, is probably being viewed as available by coaches of other top-tier teams. Just as our guys with pro potential are probably being viewed as available by pro teams.
.

Duper, you're killing me !!!!!!! Did I not make it clear I needed some good news!!! Does this look like good news!! I don't think so!!!! I need someone to counter Duper's post or Dmann is going into a tailspin!!!!!!!!!!
 
Re: All Things Denver--XXXV

Duper, you're killing me !!!!!!! Did I not make it clear I needed some good news!!! Does this look like good news!! I don't think so!!!! I need someone to counter Duper's post or Dmann is going into a tailspin!!!!!!!!!!
Sorry. :o For what it's worth, I think it's likely that the program will bounce back, and within a fairly reasonable amount of time. It will definitely be interesting when news starts coming out about who they're talking to. (And I suspect that that is when the real good news will start. :) )
 
Re: All Things Denver--XXXV

Everyone take a deep breath. Unless an NHL team wants a player in their system right now, they are not just going to sign a kid because a coach left. First round picks are the exception and DU has none right now. On the other hand, a player may approach the pro team and want to leave. Unless a player is ready for the next step, the pro teams don't want to start the clock on their contracts. Remember NHL teams are limited to 50 total contracts. Assuming 23 contracts are with the NHL club, they only have about 27 contracts to fill their AHL and ECHL teams. Not enough to stock two full teams and that is why many teams share ECHL teams. Do they want to tie up a contract with a kid they feel isn't ready and have to release someone who may be further along in their development. As far as players jumping to the CHL (WHL, OHL, QMJHL), there are limits to how many overage players you can have in what is primarily a 16 to 19-year old league. I doubt many current DU players have that option as they are all older. Most players jump to the CHL before or during their freshman years. The players to worry about for DU are the CHL drafted recruits who will get pressure to sign contracts with the CHL teams. For a current DU player to transfer to another D-1 school, they would have to sit out a year. Most players that transfer leave because of lack of playing time. Since DU had trouble fielding a complete roster for most of the season and the chance that some DU recruits won't come, playing time for the existing players isn't going to be an issue. I don't see any players transferring. There will likely be some growing pains with a new coach, but DU still has a strong tradition and great facilities to attract players even with a new coach. Unless DU is bringing in Jerry York, no one will have Gwoz's track record. There is no reason that someone can't come in and start a new tradition at DU.

Do I think DU made an error in letting Gwoz go, of course I do. They did what they did and need to move forward. As an alum, I am embarrassed at the way they handled the situation and personally don't think terminating his contract was warranted. We can jump up and down and complain about what happened but unfortunately we can't change the situation. The new coach, whoever that may be, is going to need our support for the team to be successful. While I strongly disagree with what happened, I will continue to support the hockey team and all other DU teams. I will be very hesitant to trust those in charge of the high level decisions as they have failed the athletes, fans, students, alums, coaches and press with their "cone of silence".

Per Mike Chambers from Twitter
Mike Chambers ‏@MChambersDP 23m
DU junior Nick Shore mulling options w/ LAK after meeting w/ club Sunday. Could be 3rd guy to sign early, matching what Pios lost a year ago
 
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Everyone take a deep breath. Unless an NHL team wants a player in their system right now, they are not just going to sign a kid because a coach left. First round picks are the exception and DU has none right now. On the other hand, a player may approach the pro team and want to leave. Unless a player is ready for the next step, the pro teams don't want to start the clock on their contracts. Remember NHL teams are limited to 50 total contracts. Assuming 23 contracts are with the NHL club, they only have about 27 contracts to fill their AHL and ECHL teams. Not enough to stock two full teams and that is why many teams share ECHL teams. Do they want to tie up a contract with a kid they feel isn't ready and have to release someone who may be further along in their development. As far as players jumping to the CHL (WHL, OHL, QMJHL), there are limits to how many overage players you can have in what is primarily a 16 to 19-year old league. I doubt many current DU players have that option as they are all older. Most players jump to the CHL before or during their freshman years. The players to worry about for DU are the CHL drafted recruits who will get pressure to sign contracts with the CHL teams. For a current DU player to transfer to another D-1 school, they would have to sit out a year. Most players that transfer leave because of lack of playing time. Since DU had trouble fielding a complete roster for most of the season and the chance that some DU recruits won't come, playing time for the existing players isn't going to be an issue. I don't see any players transferring. There will likely be some growing pains with a new coach, but DU still has a strong tradition and great facilities to attract players even with a new coach. Unless DU is bringing in Jerry York, no one will have Gwoz's track record. There is no reason that someone can't come in and start a new tradition at DU.

Do I think DU made an error in letting Gwoz go, of course I do. They did what they did and need to move forward. As an alum, I am embarrassed at the way they handled the situation and personally don't think terminating his contract was warranted. We can jump up and down and complain about what happened but unfortunately we can't change the situation. The new coach, whoever that may be, is going to need our support for the team to be successful. While I strongly disagree with what happened, I will continue to support the hockey team and all other DU teams. I will be very hesitant to trust those in charge of the high level decisions as they have failed the athletes, fans, students, alums, coaches and press with their "cone of silence".

Per Mike Chambers from Twitter

Remember, one way ahl or ECHL contracts don't count toward the 50...most of our players wouldn't garner an nhl contract.

r
 
Re: All Things Denver--XXXV

Remember, one way ahl or ECHL contracts don't count toward the 50...most of our players wouldn't garner an nhl contract.

r

The entry level contracts that drafted players sign are NHL contracts that do count against the 50. They are two-way contracts with NHL pay if you are on the big club and AHL pay if you are in the minors. Players like Matt Donovan and Scott Mayfield (next season) are under contract with the Islanders not Bridgeport in the AHL. They can be called up by the Islanders and sent back to the AHL without passing through waivers under entry level agreements. Peter Mannino and Marc Cheverie are currently under contract with their AHL clubs and are not under contract with any NHL teams. In order for Mannino or Cheverie to be called up by their AHL club's NHL team (LA or Ottawa), they would have to be signed to NHL contracts and would only count then against the 50 contract limit.
 
Re: All Things Denver--XXXV

I don't think any of it is a reason to panic. I suspect that we'll lose more this offseason than we originally anticipated, but I don't think it's going to kill the program. '78's comments notwithstanding, I am inclined to suspect that the coaching change will affect decisions for one or two players already on the team(which I think is what I said in the first place). We have already seen it affect one recruit, and I would be a little surprised if it doesn't affect any more.

On the other hand, worrying too much about recruits is counting chickens before they're hatched. Because Gage Ausmus decommitted, someone else will be brought in. Sometimes, the guys who are brought in on short notice turn out pretty good, like Olkinuora.

While I don't think anything '78 said negates or refutes what I said, I think the message that there is nothing to panic about is right on message. There isn't. There will be hiccups. That's just how it is. But until next season gets underway, there is no way to even begin to know how big the hiccups will be.

Edit: Looking back at my other comment, I guess I said one or two twice, adding up to two to four. Still, really nothing to panic over, especially since no one has jumped ship yet that is particularly surprising.
 
Re: All Things Denver--XXXV

As a change of pace, thought we might want to check in on the Pios currently in their league play-offs.

ECHL
Kyle Ostrow--Colorado
Kevin Ulanski--Colorado
vs
John Ryder--Idaho

Geoff Paukovich--Las Vegas vs Stockton
Cody Brookwell--Gwinnett vs South Carolina


CHL
J.P. Testwuide- Missouri vs rapid city

Allen (Tx) (Anthony Maiani-not active, Brett Skinner with AHL Grand Rapids Griffins)
eliminated
Gabe Gauthier--Denver
Luke Fulghum--Denver
Aaron Mackenzie--Denver
 
Re: All Things Denver--XXXV

Funny, but right after DU won its 2004 national title, I was complimenting Tim Whitehead in this forum. I said that if Gwoz ever left DU for any crazy reason, then I would hope that we could land Whitehead as a replacement. Maybe the stars are aligning for that to happen now? He rocked in his first few years at Maine, and went mediocre since that time. But he seems to conduct himself well, and I bet that he will be a top-5 candidate for the DU job.
 
Re: All Things Denver--XXXV

Funny, but right after DU won its 2004 national title, I was complimenting Tim Whitehead in this forum. I said that if Gwoz ever left DU for any crazy reason, then I would hope that we could land Whitehead as a replacement. Maybe the stars are aligning for that to happen now? He rocked in his first few years at Maine, and went mediocre since that time. But he seems to conduct himself well, and I bet that he will be a top-5 candidate for the DU job.

You must have already seen this, but if you didn't here is the link!

http://bangordailynews.com/slideshow/umaine-fires-mens-hockey-coach-tim-whitehead/
 
Re: All Things Denver--XXXV

Funny, but right after DU won its 2004 national title, I was complimenting Tim Whitehead in this forum. He rocked in his first few years at Maine, and went mediocre since that time. But he seems to conduct himself well, and I bet that he will be a top-5 candidate for the DU job.
No chance.
 
Re: All Things Denver--XXXV

Por que no?

EDIT: We all know the story about Ritchie getting played by Shawn Walsh. Is that what you're referring to? If so, I don't see how that would play into it, unless Ritchie now hates all things from the state of Maine. Which would exclude him from many fine things, such as lobster, LL Bean, maple syrup, beautiful fall colors, and Tim Whitehead.
 
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Re: All Things Denver--XXXV

Posted elsewhere, but here is the article about sources saying that Appert and LaLonde will be interviewed this week, with a possible decision next week. And Granato in the mix. Good news that the bridge to Appert apparently is not burned:

http://www.collegehockeynews.com/news/2013/04/09_denver_interviewing_coaching.php


Let's hope that's true. It would be ridiculous to eliminate potentially great candidates because of the "sin" of having been associated with Gwoz. I'm feeling a bit more optimistic.
 
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