Re: HARVARD CRIMSON 2010-2011 - A New Beginning
Teddy is doing a good job with the talent he's got. As an educator he's peerless. We do not need a new coach at Harvard, just managed expectations for some lunatic fringe fans. The bottom line is that Harvard is never going to ever compete for a national title in the present landscape. Harvard will never be able to compete for the brass ring and probably no ECAC school ( Yale included ) will once push comes to shove in March. The talent simply isn't there.
Seriously? So '89 banner, and the two runner up trophies, it was just an anomoly? It could not have been better coaching/coaching staff under Cleary?!
Do you seriously consider three consecutive years of 9 wins a [good] legacy because you "think" Donato is a great educator?! What in the heck are are you smoking?! Truth be told, Donato was a very good college player (no Kariya for certain, but up there for a Harvard player), he was a mediocre/injury prone NHL'er who was traded every year, and has proven himself as a rotten coach. Too much of the Ivy/Harvard/upper-lip snobbery-pride will keep many from admitting out loud "
I think we made a mistake selecting Donato as head coach" and the program is suffering for it. Does Harvard want a competitive program or club for snotty prep school kids? Do you want to compete in D-1, or would you rather tout the fact your players stay 4 years (which by the way has not been the trend under Donato with some key early departures).
However, since there is some made up notion that one who coaches must be an alum; now that he has come back to Harvard the expectation is that he obviously holds the skills to be a great coach! LOL, so how is that working out?! If you are Cornell,
et. al., you are glad Donato is coaching at Harvard.
Skate79 mentioned hockey farms, relating to BU and BC. Then why is Yale so good right now? Se above, must be that anomoly; or you truly believe the Ivies cannot compete with the other "hockey farms" or degenerates you turn your nose to. SO why is Yale seemingly winning the recruiting wars for the last three years in the ECAC with such tight Ivy League restrictions? How about Cornell's success? Sure, Harvard is not about athletics, but they are the first to tell you they've 41 D-1 programs.
Harvard is not poised to win hockey games with Donato as coach; maybe the lesson he is teaching to his students is the humility of losing. Any way you slice it, as a hockey fan and alum, I feel sorry for the program and echo the thoughts of 4faz. Teddy got the gig because he was shown the door at one NHL club due to performance and picked up another low-cash stinky 1 year deal with the Bruins, while Scalise & Co. were firing Mazz; opportunity knocked, Donato jumped, and the rest is Harvard Hockey history.
History is not always pretty.