Re: Michigan Tech 2011-12 Season Thread, Part II: You're gonna need a bigger bandwago
Mel Pearson show, Mel was on the phone today, I only included Tech related items, they also talked about some other team's standing in WCHA:
On weekend in Duluth:
Outcome was good, the way the weekend started we were concerned, probably our worst period of season.
On leaving Robinson in on Friday: Josh has played well for the most part this season, he was pulled against NMU, Mel second guessed himself about that a bit, Josh didn't have a chance on most goal Friday, it was more on our team standing around.
We told Josh he'd remain in net, our team had let him down and they'd have to be better. Josh responded and made some key saves, that give him confidence and Sat he was in control and solid.
On friday, wanted to come out and play better hockey in 2nd/3rd, we dug a very deep hole, we wanted to win 2nd period. Players knew we could play a lot better, just wanted to chip away.
Kero made a nice saucer pass to Furne, JOhnstone also drove net with Dman, giving Furne some room, nice goal for 1st goal Friday
Damon Whitten gets a ton of credit, he's done a great job with PK for killing the 5 min penalty in 3rd Friday night
We were in control of the game after tieing it 4-4
We dug ourselves a hole,but coming back like we did set the tone for the next night
Sat:
Been working with J. Johnstone to have a quicker one-timer, and it's helped with his PP goal
Great to see Josh get the shutout
Was able to use all 4 lines the whole game, a lot of confidence in all our lines right now
We were able to shutdown Connolly, need to be aware he's on the ice, don't give him time/space
WCHA Standings: Currently in 7th
Tech plays a few teams around them in the standings
It's exciting, our guys are looking forward to the finish, we're not that far out of 3rd place, every point is huge
Have to just be sure you play the games, don't get caught up in where you'll finish
3 point out of 3rd, DU, and we hold tie breaker, kids have done a great job, we need to take care of our business
Questions:
At what age do you start watching potential recruits?
Mostly in grade 9, start to get a feel for kids that age. Recruiting is getting earlier and earlier. When Mel started it was pretty much only Seniors you watched.
Most Sophomore/Junior kids have a scholorship offer. It's the recruiting world we live in.
Your thoughts on Amsoild arena and any plans changed for JMSIA?
They've done a really nice job there, nice intimacy, not huge but can seat 6700 people. JMSIA changes: we've discussed some things, nothing planned or ready to talk about at this point.
On defense, you aren't losing any defensemen to graduation, do any incoming players have the chance to crack top 6 next year?
We don't lose anyone, we have 1 coming in and he probably wont crack the top 4 but could crack the 6 Dmen.
Any European recruiting trips?
We've talked about it, but no. Mel would like to get into Finland and maybe Sweden. Mel has some connection to Finland and they've talked about it a little.
Any updates to JMSIA?
Personally Mel would like to make a couple, the scoreboard is dated. Our weight room/locker room need to be updated, hopefully we can make some changes as we go forward.
How have you gotten the team to believe they're going to win?
We have good kids here, they want to succeed and do well. Have to put them in a position to have success. Have to show them you believe in them, let them play. Success helps them believe in what we're doing too.
Has Chad Pietila been a pleasant surprise, or were you expecting a certain level of play from him?
He's been good, whenever you sit out a year, it takes time to get back into the game. Friday he didn't get a chance to play a lot due to not being on PK/PP, he's a great kid, fun to have around.
Series against Mankato:
Last time they met they split.
Mankato is a good hockey team, they had a lot of injury problems early in the year.
Mankato split with UNO, we'll have our hands full, it's always tough on the road.
Mel likes our confidence, but have to get back to work and move forward.
They have an olympic sheet.
1st think you look at is to make sure there isn't a let down, happy to go back on road, no distractions.
Currently expecting same lineup, hard to find someone that did not play well, especially on Sat
Came out of weekend fairly healthy, may sit a couple guys at practice to let them rest
Mel made one comment about all the fans in Duluth, and all the fans that stayed after the game on Saturday, what a great experience for our players, really somethign Mel hadn't seen in awhile, good for our fans/players.
