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Maine Hockey Thread II: The Search for Spock

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Re: Maine Hockey Thread II: The Search for Spock

Been a lot of fun to watch Jimmy and Goose this year.

Howard has been the difference for the Wings so far, and Nyquist is developing rapidly, though still perhaps a little too "Swedish" in his own end. He's coming along for sure, but Babcock doesn't play him much if he has the lead, and with good reason.

I think that Goose has benefitted from watching Datsyuk, who is the best 2-way guy in the world right now, IMO... I'm thinking that Nyquist has a chance to be compared to him, if he continues to pay attention to his elders.
 
Re: Maine Hockey Thread II: The Search for Spock

Fishman'81 said:
Been a lot of fun to watch Jimmy and Goose this year.

Howard has been the difference for the Wings so far, and Nyquist is developing rapidly, though still perhaps a little too "Swedish" in his own end. He's coming along for sure, but Babcock doesn't play him much if he has the lead, and with good reason.

I think that Goose has benefitted from watching Datsyuk, who is the best 2-way guy in the world right now, IMO... I'm thinking that Nyquist has a chance to be compared to him, if he continues to pay attention to his elders.
Click to expand...

I was noticing it was a lot of neutral zone and offensive zone faceoffs as well as the last 30-45 seconds of powerplays...but he is for sure making a difference and will become one HELL of a player. Good stuff, for sure...and nothing that another year or two of experience won't handle. Right now he bounces between the second and third line depending on the situation along with short PP shifts.
 
Re: Maine Hockey Thread II: The Search for Spock

Ma#1ne Hky said:
The "DRAMA" continues at UMaine Hockey. I don't know what to think...it has turned from interesting to whats next(Abbotts Follies..?)
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A lackluster and pathetic list.......let's hope that Larry was drinking heavily when he wrote the article.

And it's time for Maine to stop worrying about facilities and start concentrating on increasing coaching salaries to a level that at least gives Maine teams a chance of having a quality coach someday........I think that the old saying "you get what you pay for" definitely describes Maine's current stable of coaches.
 
Re: Maine Hockey Thread II: The Search for Spock

MichaelMaineFan said:
. If Corks IS the man, why would he be selected and then accept the position to coach the kids later in the year? HIS time, as the new head coach, would be better spent trying to resurrect a dismally mediocre program to national prominence. Let someone else do the USA stuff.
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You accept the USAH position to meet the kids and to open up recruiting doors for those that have not already "committed". As I recall, Walsh did quite a bit with some of the USAH developmental teams as well...
 
Re: Maine Hockey Thread II: The Search for Spock

Maine Event said:
http://bangordailynews.com/2013/05/...st-hopes-to-name-mens-hockey-coach-next-week/ - UMaine narrows candidate list, hopes to name men’s hockey coach next week
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fairly shrewd move on abbott's part... he knows that given the fans desire for jimmy and how that played out, that he is going to be second guessed at every turn with whomever is hired... not releasing a list of finalists "out of respect for their current positions" allows him to avoid the "what if they had hired so and so over so and so" debate...
 
Re: Maine Hockey Thread II: The Search for Spock

Maine Event said:
http://bangordailynews.com/2013/05/...st-hopes-to-name-mens-hockey-coach-next-week/ - UMaine narrows candidate list, hopes to name men’s hockey coach next week
Click to expand...

Just a gut feeling from an admitted outsider, but I think by the end of the month, Gendron is going to be the guy. Tortorella being a close second (appropos for a current UNH guy I suppose ;) ). The longer this has gone on, the less likely it's going to be Corkum, but in fairness, I'd have expected a more impressive cast of candidates. But Gendron has been a part of a lot of successful teams/programs, and that's usually not a coincidence. If I was choosing among those 4 candidates, that's the guy I'd be picking. :)
 
Re: Maine Hockey Thread II: The Search for Spock

Fishman'81 said:
Been a lot of fun to watch Jimmy and Goose this year.

Howard has been the difference for the Wings so far, and Nyquist is developing rapidly, though still perhaps a little too "Swedish" in his own end. He's coming along for sure, but Babcock doesn't play him much if he has the lead, and with good reason.

I think that Goose has benefitted from watching Datsyuk, who is the best 2-way guy in the world right now, IMO... I'm thinking that Nyquist has a chance to be compared to him, if he continues to pay attention to his elders.
Click to expand...

As a Wings' fan, it's been frustrating in recent seasons to see some talented, older teams come up short in close series losses, with a big slice of blame to be attributed to an inexperienced Howard learning the ropes at the NHL level. But last year, and especially this year, Howard has emerged as a top-tier NHL goalie, and I firmly believe he's been the team MVP this season ... and that's on a team with guys named Datsyuk and Zetterberg, so that's no small feat. Right now, with a very green defense (arguably at least as green overall as the B's defense) he is the guy who has given them the confidence to play their game, knowing if they mess up, Howard will probably bail them out. That hasn't been the case really until this season, but right now I wouldn't trade Howard for anyone. His mechanics right now are virtually flawless.

I was thinking the same thing recently about Nyquist as the "Datsyuk of the future", and it's important to remember that Datsyuk wasn't always the same two-way player he's now become. Like Babcock says in the video on this thread, when you have guys like Yzerman and Lidstrom, and now Datsyuk (and Zetterberg and Kronwall) to learn from, you almost have to be brain dead not to pick something up from their good habits. If Nyquist can spend some extra time in the weight room, the sky's the limit for that kid ... :)
 
Re: Maine Hockey Thread II: The Search for Spock

revoman said:
You accept the USAH position to meet the kids and to open up recruiting doors for those that have not already "committed". As I recall, Walsh did quite a bit with some of the USAH developmental teams as well...
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Yes, I would agree with this...That said, Corks was a coach on last years squad...Not a single player on that team even considered coming to Maine...

If people are upset with he candidate list they should not blame salary. There are plenty of coaches out there who put opportunity in front of salary. I heard one poster say to forget about facilities and start paying the coaches more. Well, the reason good coaches (Jim Montgomery) do not want to go to Maine is because they do not have the infrastructure in place to sustain success. They used to, but not anymore. Its is kind of like walking into a job with the noose already around your neck. The expectations are super high up in Orono and the fans expect a top four team. Is the infrastructure in place to consistently be a top four team with BC, BU, Notre Dame, UNH, and UConn in the league?

Getting a kid to go all the way up to Maine is tough as it is. It is even tougher when your facilities are incredibly far behind your competition. This is going to be a tough job for whoever gets the job. I think that is why the list is not as good as some people would like it to be. Monty would have never gone to Denver if he felt he could sustain success at Maine. It was not about money, it was about where can he have success as a head coach?
 
Re: Maine Hockey Thread II: The Search for Spock

dover4345 said:
Is the infrastructure in place to consistently be a top four team with BC, BU, Notre Dame, UNH, and UConn in the league?
Click to expand...
.

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/ueZ6tvqhk8U" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
 
Re: Maine Hockey Thread II: The Search for Spock

Chuck Murray said:
As a Wings' fan, it's been frustrating in recent seasons to see some talented, older teams come up short in close series losses, with a big slice of blame to be attributed to an inexperienced Howard learning the ropes at the NHL level. But last year, and especially this year, Howard has emerged as a top-tier NHL goalie, and I firmly believe he's been the team MVP this season ... and that's on a team with guys named Datsyuk and Zetterberg, so that's no small feat. Right now, with a very green defense (arguably at least as green overall as the B's defense) he is the guy who has given them the confidence to play their game, knowing if they mess up, Howard will probably bail them out. That hasn't been the case really until this season, but right now I wouldn't trade Howard for anyone. His mechanics right now are virtually flawless.

I was thinking the same thing recently about Nyquist as the "Datsyuk of the future", and it's important to remember that Datsyuk wasn't always the same two-way player he's now become. Like Babcock says in the video on this thread, when you have guys like Yzerman and Lidstrom, and now Datsyuk (and Zetterberg and Kronwall) to learn from, you almost have to be brain dead not to pick something up from their good habits. If Nyquist can spend some extra time in the weight room, the sky's the limit for that kid ... :)
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While we are singing Jimmy’s praises here, during the broadcast of Detroit’s game the other night “Doc” Emrick mentioned that Jimmy hadn’t forgot his roots. At the beginning of the youth hockey season last fall back in New York Jimmy bought blue hockey shirts for all the players; he’s not only a great player but an outstanding individual, something most Maine fans already knew.
 
Re: Maine Hockey Thread II: The Search for Spock

dover4345 said:
Is the infrastructure in place to consistently be a top four team with BC, BU, Notre Dame, UNH, and UConn in the league?
Click to expand...
Did you just say UConn will be a HE power? Bahahahahaha!

Priceless said:
.

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/ueZ6tvqhk8U" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Click to expand...
UConn must be the thimbleful we can't see behind the BC bowl.
 
Re: Maine Hockey Thread II: The Search for Spock

UncleRay said:
Did you just say UConn will be a HE power? Bahahahahaha!

UConn must be the thimbleful we can't see behind the BC bowl.
Click to expand...

There are better players in connecticut than NH, Maine, and Vermont combined---so yes, I think that gives them a nice advantage.

Their athletic department also has more money than those three schools combined.

A nice rink with all top notch faciltiies WILL be in place in the next 4 or 5 years.

So to answer your question, yes I think UConn is a school that will be a contender in 5-10 years.
 
Re: Maine Hockey Thread II: The Search for Spock

And the athletic department continues to be a joke.........at least the national media is questioning how things operate up there, unlike the Puppet Paper (BDN).
 
Abbott was on the PM Jab tonight and pretty much reiterated what was in the BDN article... He's confident that they will be announcing a new coach in the next week, the unnamed finalists all have a common theme about them, and that they have taken their time to make sure they get it right because of how important the role is to both the team and the athletics at maine in general...

He did seem sincere in his words and didn't seem to be faking it
 
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