LSSU Laker Hockey

[Bill]

Re: LSSU Laker Hockey

Kids from SJHL WOULD have been happy to play at Lake State... WOULD that's the operative word. Now they'd rather lose in Columbus than lose in The Soo. My Reference to North Battleford was about the great Laker net minder Bruce Hoffart. Not so much about SK, but small towns in general.

A lot of the SJHL kids that have played for the Lakers came to the Soo because they liked the small school atmosphere, and for many of them the Soo was also bigger than their own home towns, so I don't think that you can generalize that they'd rather lose in Columbus than the Soo. Columbus might be bigger than many of them feel comfortable with. From the CCHA, LSSU and Ferris are probably the only 2 schools that regularly recruit in the SJHL.

 

[Neil Diamond]

Re: LSSU Laker Hockey

I am half suspecting that Rolston is awaiting Berenson's retirement.

That job will go to the ever-patient Mel Pearson, I can assure you.

 

[Neil Diamond]

Re: LSSU Laker Hockey

A lot of the SJHL kids that have played for the Lakers came to the Soo because they liked the small school atmosphere, and for many of them the Soo was also bigger than their own home towns, so I don't think that you can generalize that they'd rather lose in Columbus than the Soo. Columbus might be bigger than many of them feel comfortable with. From the CCHA, LSSU and Ferris are probably the only 2 schools that regularly recruit in the SJHL.

Bill's exaclty right. That's the beauty of the hockey dynamic: many quality players come from small towns, especially in Canada, and the Soo looks much more inviting than a bigger city.

 

[jnacc]

Re: LSSU Laker Hockey

Kids from SJHL WOULD have been happy to play at Lake State... WOULD that's the operative word. Now they'd rather lose in Columbus than lose in The Soo. My Reference to North Battleford was about the great Laker net minder Bruce Hoffart. Not so much about SK, but small towns in general.

I was a Freshman at Lake State the same year as Weight (lived two doors down in form him Brady Hall, though I did not really know him). The word was he was a good high school student; And since he went to Notre Dame H.S. I would assume that was the truth.

The reality is that there is not that much talent in the SJHL to begin with so my suspicion is that most players in that league would be tickled pink to be recruited by any D-1 school. This of course does very little to help a program like Lake State and my arguement for quite some time has been that the coaching staff must bend their recruting practices and resources away from the Canadian tier II Junior leagues and onto the domestic junior ranks.

This is not to say that there is no talent in Canada, far from it, but rather that talent that remains after the Major Junior Programs have had their fill is more apt to favor the big name programs in hopes of advancing their professional hockey careers over the lesser ones who are not known to move players on to the NHL. Think about it, a solid player who could have played in the OHL as a 17 year old did not forgo that prime opportunity to play at a small school with limited resources....like Lake Superior.

What is eventually left for the smaller programs are players who did not possess the ability/talent to play in the CHL as 16, 17 and even 18 year olds and who were passed over by the more successful college teams. You simply cannot build a winning program taking the bulk of your players from these leagues. Yes, you may find a few decent players who can help your program but certainly not enough to have your program compete year in and year out.

As for Borek, I was once his harshest critic but have since realized that there was little if anything he could have done to prevent Lake States slide from one of the preeminent teams in the nation to an also ran. As has been mentioned, the college hockey landscape was evolving rapidly and elite players no longer wished to play for Lake State....no matter who was on the coaching staff.

Many of the better Laker players in the past were known as "partial qualifiers", meaning they did not possess the necessary SAT/ACT scores and grades to earn a regular admission but were brought in because they were athletes. They were requried to take remedial programs and achieve a passing GPA in order to continue playing and studying. The clearinghouse did away with all of that.....putting even more of a strain on Lake State recrutiting practices that relied heavily on taking such players.

These are some tulmutous times for Lake State....the advent of the big 10 and resulting shakeup coupled with massive budgetary cuts proposed by the state Governor will require real leadership from administration to overcome.

 

[peten16]

Re: LSSU Laker Hockey

As for Borek, I was once his harshest critic but have since realized that there was little if anything he could have done to prevent Lake States slide from one of the preeminent teams in the nation to an also ran. As has been mentioned, the college hockey landscape was evolving rapidly and elite players no longer wished to play for Lake State....no matter who was on the coaching staff.

Borek killed that team. It dropped WAAAAY too quickly to blame it on changes in the larger college hockey environment. When it comes to college, kids will go to winning teams, regardless of budget. The problem is once these small schools start to lose they have little left to recruit on. When Azalone/Jackson snatched Clayton Beddoes from WI in 1990 all those differences between big and small programs were there, but Beddoes went because he knew he would win (and get ice-time).

On a related note, IF a single person can be credited for changing the college hockey landscape to big money, it's Berenson. He won his first GLI in his 4th or 5th year as coach at UM (all his own guys). From there Michigan rose to prominence and never looked back. Once the Michigan "brand" became emphasized hockey, a lot more fans got on board and it snowballed from there.

 

[sm2pk]

Re: LSSU Laker Hockey

Borek killed that team. It dropped WAAAAY too quickly to blame it on changes in the larger college hockey environment. When it comes to college, kids will go to winning teams, regardless of budget. The problem is once these small schools start to lose they have little left to recruit on. When Azalone/Jackson snatched Clayton Beddoes from WI in 1990 all those differences between big and small programs were there, but Beddoes went because he knew he would win (and get ice-time).

On a related note, IF a single person can be credited for changing the college hockey landscape to big money, it's Berenson. He won his first GLI in his 4th or 5th year as coach at UM (all his own guys). From there Michigan rose to prominence and never looked back. Once the Michigan "brand" became emphasized hockey, a lot more fans got on board and it snowballed from there.

Borek. he can't even get the powerplay at New Hampshire to work . I was told flat out by a Bowling Green player that under Borek the players lacked conditioning and strength and began recruiting Division 3 players more than Division 1. In all fairness to Anzalone, he took over a Laker team that was out of shape,lack strength and too many positions filled by Division 3 players. You want to know how the lakers are going to do next season. Look at the amount of loses they have over the last 5 years and you are probably getting a good look at how many loses they will have this coming season.

 

[DopeyBaker]

Re: LSSU Laker Hockey

Borek. he can't even get the powerplay at New Hampshire to work . I was told flat out by a Bowling Green player that under Borek the players lacked conditioning and strength and began recruiting Division 3 players more than Division 1. In all fairness to Anzalone, he took over a Laker team that was out of shape,lack strength and too many positions filled by Division 3 players. You want to know how the lakers are going to do next season. Look at the amount of loses they have over the last 5 years and you are probably getting a good look at how many loses they will have this coming season.

I'm not a Borek fan, but what does it matter what a Bowling Green player says about an LSSU coach? Who really cares? People on the forum (even the troll) have as much or more insight.

 

[Buck LeVasseur]

Re: LSSU Laker Hockey

Rick had a goal and an assist in the Crunch's past two goals. Tyson and Chad were released from their tryout agreements with Idaho.

 

[peten16]

Re: LSSU Laker Hockey

Borek did NOT run a tight ship though. For example, under Anzalone and then Jackson those guys were FORCED to live on campus all four years. Freshman, no matter how old, lived in Brady Hall with the rest of us freshman and all the rest of the guys lived in the Townhouses. They actually did bed checks. Borek came along and allowed them to live where they wanted. I am sure that was probably an indicator of Borek being soft on that team in other ways too. This would explain a team that was weak and out of shape; taking holding and interference calls because they were sucking wind.

 

[sm2pk]

Re: LSSU Laker Hockey

I'm not a Borek fan, but what does it matter what a Bowling Green player says about an LSSU coach? Who really cares? People on the forum (even the troll) have as much or more insight.

I think when you actually played against them on the ice and you played against them when Borek was coaching,you are in a pretty good position to note the conditioning of the team.

 

[Truth Squad]

Re: LSSU Laker Hockey

Bill contributes more to this forum in one sentence than you have in all of your posts combined. In fact, your best post ever was:

"This is my last post."

Unfortunately and ironically, you never speak the truth.

Thank Coach Dopey Baker.

It is funny how the conversation always get pulled away from Jim Roque when someone other then his trained flunkies on here make an accurate statements. Now it is Scott Borek?? You people up there will go to any limits to defend this administration.

Neil and Bill have their marching orders and you people are so predictable. Neil will poke fun at a legendary coach, who is still coaching this season I might add, and Bill will talk about 2014 recruits. What is a budget for D3 college hockey recruiting? Might want to look into that one Bill, after all, you do know it all.

You people at your little school continue to hero worship this coach and continue to ridicule those that dare speak out against him. I am done, focusing on much better things away from your little village and small college.This worn out and tired conversation will be repeated this year and this fall and next season, and the season after that. That is why people are not coming to games anymore at the Norris Center and why your playoff crowds are more in the hundreds than in the thousands. Make excuses all you want, just like the coach you will. Well if it wasn't for this, if it wasn't for that, etc. etc.

Maybe D3 will give you people something new and exciting because it won't be under this coach and he will be around for a very long time, not because he is winning or is a great guy, because of something else that very few know about. I am done wasting my time on you people up there who forget what it was like to win, and instead all you can do now is defend and deflect. You people are so predictable.

The Truth Is Out There....
TBA

The Truth Is Out There.....

 

[Buck LeVasseur]

Re: LSSU Laker Hockey

Thank Coach Dopey Baker.

It is funny how the conversation always get pulled away from Jim Roque when someone other then his trained flunkies on here make an accurate statements. Now it is Scott Borek?? You people up there will go to any limits to defend this administration.

Neil and Bill have their marching orders and you people are so predictable. Neil will poke fun at a legendary coach, who is still coaching this season I might add, and Bill will talk about 2014 recruits. What is a budget for D3 college hockey recruiting? Might want to look into that one Bill, after all, you do know it all.

You people at your little school continue to hero worship this coach and continue to ridicule those that dare speak out against him. I am done, focusing on much better things away from your little village and small college.This worn out and tired conversation will be repeated this year and this fall and next season, and the season after that. That is why people are not coming to games anymore at the Norris Center and why your playoff crowds are more in the hundreds than in the thousands. Make excuses all you want, just like the coach you will. Well if it wasn't for this, if it wasn't for that, etc. etc.

Maybe D3 will give you people something new and exciting because it won't be under this coach and he will be around for a very long time, not because he is winning or is a great guy, because of something else that very few know about. I am done wasting my time on you people up there who forget what it was like to win, and instead all you can do now is defend and deflect. You people are so predictable.

The Truth Is Out There....
TBA

The Truth Is Out There.....

I've only been here for a short time but I think this forum will be missing something valuable if you really do decide to leave. While I don't always agree with you, you do bring a different viewpoint that nobody else on the forum will bring up.

 

[peten16]

Re: LSSU Laker Hockey

Thank Coach Dopey Baker.

It is funny how the conversation always get pulled away from Jim Roque when someone other then his trained flunkies on here make an accurate statements. Now it is Scott Borek?? You people up there will go to any limits to defend this administration.

Neil and Bill have their marching orders and you people are so predictable. Neil will poke fun at a legendary coach, who is still coaching this season I might add, and Bill will talk about 2014 recruits. What is a budget for D3 college hockey recruiting? Might want to look into that one Bill, after all, you do know it all.

You people at your little school continue to hero worship this coach and continue to ridicule those that dare speak out against him. I am done, focusing on much better things away from your little village and small college.This worn out and tired conversation will be repeated this year and this fall and next season, and the season after that. That is why people are not coming to games anymore at the Norris Center and why your playoff crowds are more in the hundreds than in the thousands. Make excuses all you want, just like the coach you will. Well if it wasn't for this, if it wasn't for that, etc. etc.

Maybe D3 will give you people something new and exciting because it won't be under this coach and he will be around for a very long time, not because he is winning or is a great guy, because of something else that very few know about. I am done wasting my time on you people up there who forget what it was like to win, and instead all you can do now is defend and deflect. You people are so predictable.

The Truth Is Out There....
TBA

The Truth Is Out There.....

I am not defending Roque, I think its time for a change. However I am not sure ANYONE short of a talented marquee name can help due to the pivotal damage Borek did. The program has improved under Roque, but seems to have stalled. I do not think he can take it any further.

 

[peten16]

Re: LSSU Laker Hockey

What's Jim Dowd up to ? ;-)

 

[Flashy Man]

That job will go to the ever-patient Mel Pearson, I can assure you.

The word out of the paint store is that Pearson may be interested in returning to his alma mater.

 

[Neil Diamond]

Re: LSSU Laker Hockey

I'm going to have to agree with the people that set the current problems at the feet of Borek. He was a terrible coach. His hiring instantly erased a lot of credibility Lake State had built up the previous years. Borek was never much more than a glorified high school coach. He may be doing okay at NH, but to put him in charge of a D1 program was absurd.

He was an easy hire. Also, people at the university at the time were riding the incredible wave Lake State created the prior years. There was a general consensus all would work out for the best, because, well, we're Lake State-the "little school that could"-the Cinderella story of D1 hockey.

A lot of damage was done. That much is clear. But a larger question remains...

Is it possible the current powers-that-be are quite content with Laker hockey falling down a rung or three? While much of the area embraced what Laker Hockey brought to the Soo, some chafed at it, as all it did was reinforce the perception (and reality) that the Soo is a Hockeytown. It gave credence to the belief the top-three most popular sports in the Soo saw hockey at number one, while hockey took second place, and bringing up the rear in third was hockey.

There has always been a part of the Soo that has hated the fact this town revolves around hockey.

 

[Truth Squad]

Re: LSSU Laker Hockey

I've only been here for a short time but I think this forum will be missing something valuable if you really do decide to leave. While I don't always agree with you, you do bring a different viewpoint that nobody else on the forum will bring up.

Thank you Buck and I appreciate you and a few others that are fair-minded and not part of any agenda or afraid of any of the administration's goons on here.

The Truth Is Out There....

 

[Truth Squad]

Re: LSSU Laker Hockey

I'm going to have to agree with the people that set the current problems at the feet of Borek. He was a terrible coach. His hiring instantly erased a lot of credibility Lake State had built up the previous years. Borek was never much more than a glorified high school coach. He may be doing okay at NH, but to put him in charge of a D1 program was absurd.

He was an easy hire. Also, people at the university at the time were riding the incredible wave Lake State created the prior years. There was a general consensus all would work out for the best, because, well, we're Lake State-the "little school that could"-the Cinderella story of D1 hockey.

A lot of damage was done. That much is clear. But a larger question remains...

Is it possible the current powers-that-be are quite content with Laker hockey falling down a rung or three? While much of the area embraced what Laker Hockey brought to the Soo, some chafed at it, as all it did was reinforce the perception (and reality) that the Soo is a Hockeytown. It gave credence to the belief the top-three most popular sports in the Soo saw hockey at number one, while hockey took second place, and bringing up the rear in third was hockey.

There has always been a part of the Soo that has hated the fact this town revolves around hockey.

Again nothing about this coach or any constructive criticism. But always quick to bash a coaching legend in Frank Anzalone, who built your little school into a power, or now Scott Borek. You are taking the title away from Bill on here as the biggest Roque apologist.

The Truth Is Out There....

 

[Lakerchum]

Re: LSSU Laker Hockey

Thank you Buck and I appreciate you and a few others that are fair-minded and not part of any agenda or afraid of any of the administration's goons on here.

The Truth Is Out There....

Did you really just say all this? Well thank god you are "fair minded", don't have an "agenda" and because Frank Anzalone is GOD in your world he would never act like a "goon". Please keep posting on this forum but if you decide to quit i think you found your calling in life as a comedian!

 

[Neil Diamond]

Re: LSSU Laker Hockey

Again nothing about this coach or any constructive criticism. But always quick to bash a coaching legend in Frank Anzalone

Legends Never Die, They Just End Up in Quad City

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