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Coaching experiment at Princeton failing?

Re: Coaching experiment at Princeton failing?

You must agree that it is a big jump from assistant to head coach and is always a gamble. He may be an example of a good career assistant who is unable to transition to the top job.

Career assistant unbale to transition to the top job? You can discern this after 25 games? The hiring of a head coach is an "experiment" the results of which can be seen after less than one full season? You have to be able to see how crazy that is.

Please look again at Guy Gadowsky's record in his first season - 8-20-3 - and the criticisms you've made of Bob Prier. Gadowsky's first team had a good goaltender in his third season, had slightly more experience, and had worse average GF and GA numbers than this year's team. Gadowsky's prior experience was at UAF and coaching roller hockey. Bob Prier has a master's degree in education, was an assistant at Denver and Princeton, and was an assistant and associate head coach at SLU for almost ten years.

Look at the youth on your roster. Look at the injuries. Look at the roster changes from last year: you lost 45% of the team's scoring to graduation! When you lose half your scoring, field a younger team, and bring in a new head coach, to demand the results you seem to expect is completely unreasonable.
 
Re: Coaching experiment at Princeton failing?

I know someone close to the goings on at Princeton, and the word I got from him/her is that Prier is a complete maniac. I've heard stories of screaming tantrums, military-like workouts, breaking sticks and chairs, incoherent ramblings......not good. Seems the program is spiralling of control. If they keep Prier, they better get a good shovel to dig the team out of the ground....because it looks like he's burying it. TimU, you must not know anyone who's played for him.
 
Re: Coaching experiment at Princeton failing?

I am confused. Many who post on this thread are saying that Prier is in his first season of coaching at Princeton but the Princeton Hockey website says that this is his third season. I don't know enough about the situation there to comment on whether he is a good coach, but if your argument is that he is not succeeding because it's his first year, you better get another argument.
 
Re: Coaching experiment at Princeton failing?

Or maybe they're dealing with a lot of injuries. Maybe they're dressing 7 defensemen because they don't have enough healthy bodies to fill 4 forward lines. Maybe they're showing a lot of character by competing through some very tough circumstances, with the full support, admiration, and gratitude of their new coach. Maybe this type of criticism is ridiculous after less than one season.

Just look at the user name. I'm betting that they still use the "EZAC" moniker.
 
Re: Coaching experiment at Princeton failing?

BTW, Are you sure the guy wasn't talking about Coach Bennett at union? ;)

RPI clearly started that fight and cleared the bench, Appert just said something to aggravate Bennett to the point of assault, etc. etc. ALL RPI'S FAULT
 
Re: Coaching experiment at Princeton failing?

TimU: I don't think you should be arguing with someone who feels that sufficient arguments are anecdotal ones expressed in one or two sentences and feels as though their user handle has to imply political leanings. Just leave it be, they don't realize that every league has their stinker team every season, and Princeton was the ECAC's.
 
Re: Coaching experiment at Princeton failing?

TimU: I don't think you should be arguing with someone who feels that sufficient arguments are anecdotal ones expressed in one or two sentences and feels as though their user handle has to imply political leanings. Just leave it be, they don't realize that every league has their stinker team every season, and Princeton was the ECAC's.

If I'm not mistaken, TimU's last post in this thread was almost two years ago.
 
Re: Coaching experiment at Princeton failing?

I know someone close to the goings on at Princeton, and the word I got from him/her is that Prier is a complete maniac. I've heard stories of screaming tantrums, military-like workouts, breaking sticks and chairs, incoherent ramblings......not good. Seems the program is spiralling of control. If they keep Prier, they better get a good shovel to dig the team out of the ground....because it looks like he's burying it. TimU, you must not know anyone who's played for him.

I know Bob Prier well. IF you don't want him, we'll gladly take him back. He is as competitive as they come. He doesn't tolerate excuses and doesn't make excuses for himself. There is not a harder worker in the business. Even though he was an assistant at Princeton, I was sorry to see him leave for that job. The position at Princeton is tough. Hockey is a red-headed step-child to Lacrosse and Basketball, the program has never had great success no matter who their head coach has been, and presently all the top players with the academic credentials to get into Princeton seem to be going to Yale and Harvard who have had their pick amongst the top student athletes.

If you don't like screaming tantrums, tough work outs, and broken equipment then I'd stay clear of many, if not most, D1 Hockey programs. Prier was extremely well-liked by the SLU players who affectionately nicknamed him Sarge. Not getting in the lineup was a bummer because those not dressing on game days usually were treated to a nice long run. Prier was not following them in the golf cart but leading them himself.

Prier loves to win. He is extremely competitive. His prototypical player is bigger, tougher than most not unlike him as a player. I think Joe Marsh would probably still rate him as one of his two best captains of all time. I didn't see this 2 years ago. But what TimU said still stands true.

It will take time to create a mentality that will mesh with BP. In the end, I have every confidence in Bob and Princeton should too because he is honest, ethical, hard-working and competitive. I would imagine there are some old-regime guys not liking BP. To them I say touch ****. Do you want to win and get on the good side of your coach? Play you guts out and leave nothing out there. The turnaround will come. Trust me it is not happening enough for Prier either, but he will keep going and keep working which is all anyone can do.
 
Re: Coaching experiment at Princeton failing?

Again, my info is all of the 'second hand' variety. Apparently the story goes like this: Prier was an assistant under Marsh for many years, but the SLU players couldn't stand Prier. They had a party after he left. Why would Prier have given up a chance to coach at his alma mater and keep his family from relocating? He must have known Marsh was retiring. Story goes he wasn't getting the head coaching job at SLU because, A) He was only kept on as an assistant at Marsh's request, B) the AD had grown tired of having a maniac assistant coach. Prier probably knew he wasn't getting the job.

No one wants to be screamed at, it's not fun. Yellers and screamers get tuned out. These players are adults, very intelligent adults. They'll learn from teachers that speak to them, not yell.They came to college to study and play hockey, they didn't join the Marine Corps. I'd doubt that any of the professors at both SLU and PU yell and scream and break things when students underachieve. If PU let's him go, you can have him. Maybe he'll get the idea theat his methods just plain don't work.
 
Again, my info is all of the 'second hand' variety. Apparently the story goes like this: Prier was an assistant under Marsh for many years, but the SLU players couldn't stand Prier. They had a party after he left. Why would Prier have given up a chance to coach at his alma mater and keep his family from relocating? He must have known Marsh was retiring. Story goes he wasn't getting the head coaching job at SLU because, A) He was only kept on as an assistant at Marsh's request, B) the AD had grown tired of having a maniac assistant coach. Prier probably knew he wasn't getting the job.

No one wants to be screamed at, it's not fun. Yellers and screamers get tuned out. These players are adults, very intelligent adults. They'll learn from teachers that speak to them, not yell.They came to college to study and play hockey, they didn't join the Marine Corps. I'd doubt that any of the professors at both SLU and PU yell and scream and break things when students underachieve. If PU let's him go, you can have him. Maybe he'll get the idea theat his methods just plain don't work.

Ummm, ya. Most of this "story" is laughable, at best, as far as the stuff at SLU goes. Bobby P is as fierce a competitor as they come, of course he is going to try lighting a fire under his guys when things aren't going well, any coach worth a pinch of salt would do that.
 
Well, Bi-Polar Bob Prier 'resigned' last night. I can't say it surprises me, or that it upsets me. I hope he didn't drag Scott Garrow down with him. The poor guy leaves a regularly successful program at Cornell to take a chance on a first time head coach, and ends up being part of a monumental disaster.

I read that he was forced to resign.
 
Re: Coaching experiment at Princeton failing?

Well, Bi-Polar Bob Prier 'resigned' last night. I can't say it surprises me, or that it upsets me. I hope he didn't drag Scott Garrow down with him. The poor guy leaves a regularly successful program at Cornell to take a chance on a first time head coach, and ends up being part of a monumental disaster.

Stop calling a very decent guy 'bi-polar'. Your information about his position at SLU is 100% wrong and I am guessing so is your information about his job at Princeton. I'm not going to dignify your comments further but now I can go back to watching Princeton be the doormat of the league. No one knew Joe Marsh was going to retire either. He talked about it. He disliked watching players get concussions. But his health issues combined with finding an heir in Carvel expedited his retirement.
 
Re: Coaching experiment at Princeton failing?

I know Bob Prier well. IF you don't want him, we'll gladly take him back. He is as competitive as they come. He doesn't tolerate excuses and doesn't make excuses for himself. There is not a harder worker in the business. Even though he was an assistant at Princeton, I was sorry to see him leave for that job. The position at Princeton is tough. Hockey is a red-headed step-child to Lacrosse and Basketball, the program has never had great success no matter who their head coach has been, and presently all the top players with the academic credentials to get into Princeton seem to be going to Yale and Harvard who have had their pick amongst the top student athletes.


If you don't like screaming tantrums, tough work outs, and broken equipment then I'd stay clear of many, if not most, D1 Hockey programs. Prier was extremely well-liked by the SLU players who affectionately nicknamed him Sarge. Not getting in the lineup was a bummer because those not dressing on game days usually were treated to a nice long run. Prier was not following them in the golf cart but leading them himself.

Prier loves to win. He is extremely competitive. His prototypical player is bigger, tougher than most not unlike him as a player. I think Joe Marsh would probably still rate him as one of his two best captains of all time. I didn't see this 2 years ago. But what TimU said still stands true.

It will take time to create a mentality that will mesh with BP. In the end, I have every confidence in Bob and Princeton should too because he is honest, ethical, hard-working and competitive. I would imagine there are some old-regime guys not liking BP. To them I say touch ****. Do you want to win and get on the good side of your coach? Play you guts out and leave nothing out there. The turnaround will come. Trust me it is not happening enough for Prier either, but he will keep going and keep working which is all anyone can do.

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