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Michigan Tech Huskies 2020-21: * Our 100th Anniversary * No Catchy Title Needed *****

Watched some of BGSU / Adrian as well as Michigan & Wisconsin over past couple of weeks. We have some gears to get up into. Hoping they can shake things loose after this first weekend.
 
manurespreader said:
Well another day, another disappointment. The schedule isn't easier down the line. LSSU outplayed us, in my mind, in every aspect of the game. Even when they played the back up goalie we couldn't/didn't get any shots or make him do any work., We were sloppy on defense, we lost a lot of defensive battles and got knocked off the puck easily in the offensive end. .
I'd say our team had better take a good look in the mirror because otherwise....

You have to question the coach's strategy in the offseason, because he went and got bigger players in order to battle with these grind teams, and what happens, we still lose the battles?. And now we are slower than before as well. These games were played almost in slow motion compared to other games by other teams. At 8 minutes into the second, there were a total of 12 SOG between the two teams. I'd rather have a high skill/high-speed team any time! at least then it's fun to watch.
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On a positive note, Sinclair was a great pick-up and is a solid goalie.

Trying to be an optimist today, we were able to play hockey.

Put the dang puck on net! I fully realize LSSU did a great job of getting bodies/sticks in the lane. When we see an opening, we need to take it. We need to be putting 30+ shots on goal a game. Make their goalie do something. (Fully realizing shots on goal is a somewhat subjective stat.)

I do think we have a major disadvantage this year without fans being allowed into the rinks. Our guys are going to have generate that fight from within.
 
this is a repeat of every year save joe's first when he was using a mel-roster...

blame this kind of 'here we go again' start on the players if you want.

but this is a coaching issue 100%.

give joe until spring of 2022.

no change? well, then it's time for change.

do note; i like joe. but i think he lives in the past... classic as opposed to classy. archaic as opposed to progressive.

we are in 2020... not 1971...

i am already anxious... going through another last-three-years of a-la-jamie-russell would be insanity. sure... sure, i am comparing apples to oranges here. but russell had to battle much, much better teams in a league that had four national championships during his tenure. that's like one every other year...

joe coaches/has-coached in a league with three teams on the brink of non-existence and our best team, MNSU, can't even get past a first round game in the tourney after trying six times...

let's be honest... the nWCHA sucks, the nCCHA ain't gonna be that much better, and our coaching behaves accordingly.

GO TECH GOLD!
 
DrunkTrainPolka said:
the nWCHA sucks, the nCCHA ain't gonna be that much better
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I think this year, more than any other the coaches could get a pass on early season games. It's been chaos I'm sure trying to figure out what they are allowed to do, with who and when. If I had to guess, staying healthy might be a higher priority than Xs and Os for the staff right now. Given that non-conference play really means nothing in picking the NCAA field and that some committee will likely set the field, I think it will really come down to conference standings when the field is picked and which conferences get more bids than others.

As for the quoted portion above, I think the nCCHA will be a better conference looking at it from a National point of view. The conference sheds UAF, UAA and UAH and adds the Tommies, who I feel will be a very respectable. If ASU can have a tourney team nearly right out of out of the gate and find some talent, I have no reason to believe that a new D-I team in the state of hockey won't get a few eye raising signings in their first few years as well.

What does that mean specifically for Tech? A team that only a few years ago was a solid 1-2 finisher each year in the nWCHA, has fallen to the point where now they are fighting in the 3-4-5-6 group of teams at the end of the year. Finishing in that part of the rankings was bolstered by records of 10-6 vs UAF, 16-4 vs UAA and 14-2 vs UAH dating back to the 2014-15 season if I manually counted all those games correctly. That's a combined 40-12 record against teams you will no longer play in the nCCHA. That means more games against better teams, including the Tommies who I think will be in the 3-4-5-6 category their first season. Without a significant step forward this year, a 3-6 finish this year equates to a 5-8 finish next year. Not where we want to see the Huskies headed.

Tech really needs to find some firepower or a better style of play on the offensive end of the rink. Not even considering this past weekend, let's just focus on last year's numbers so we can look at a larger body of work, in a fairly normal season (excluding the ending.) Tech only scored 4 or more goals 11 times last season. That's putting a lot of pressure on the blue line back to hold teams to 2 or less goals. In 2019-20 (WCHA games only) the top 4 teams scored an average of just over 98 goals over the course of the 28 game season. Tech scored 68. That's essentially starting every game against teams you need to beat to climb in the standings down 1-0 before the puck even drops.

Tech tied at 4th for best in goals allowed with 68, but that's long way from #1 Mankato at 38 or Bemidji at 46 goals allowed over the 28 game conference season. Regardless of what players are in the mix, Tech needs to find a way to generate more offense. Find the right chemistry, find the right style of play that suits your talent, whatever it takes. If you can score 4-5 every night, you have room for error. When you only score 3 or less per night, the margin of error is razor thin.
 
Looks like we aren't going to get to see 6 games vs the Cats after all. NMU is going to cancel the next 3 weeks with positive tests on the roster.
 
Ferris called off their series with LSSU. Tech approached the Lakers about playing this weekend, but they opted to schedule a home-and-home with Adrian College instead.
 
LSSULaker889294 said:
Would it have been a home and home or both games in Houghton?
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I don't know if it ever got that far in the discussion.

It would have made sense in the regard that this was the arrangement with Adrian, with the justification being the elimination of a necessity for a hotel stay. Rough to travel that far, play, and leave - but understandable.

The determining factors had to be that LSSU and Tech just played last weekend, and in this agreement Lake State gets a home game (and the preferable first game of the set for travel purposes).
 
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John J. MacInnes said:
I don't know if it ever got that far in the discussion.

It would have made sense in the regard that this was the arrangement with Adrian, with the justification being the elimination of a necessity for a hotel stay. Rough to travel that far, play, and leave - but understandable.

The determining factors had to be that LSSU and Tech just played last weekend, and in this agreement Lake State gets a home game (and the preferable first game of the set for travel purposes).
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Seems like playing Tech would have made way more sense for both LSSU and Tech than LSSU playing Adrian College.
 
I have to imagine Tech would have been pushing for LSSU to be in Houghton since Tech was just in the Soo. A home/home Tech vs LSSU doesn't make much sense given the distance between campuses, but it's not like Adrian is any closer for the Lakers. I'm guessing Tech had no interest in going back to the Soo for 1 or 2 games this weekend and that's why it didn't happen. I'm sure Damon would have been happy to take another two wins from Tech based on last weekend's performance if he didn't have to leave home to do it.
 
JohnsonsJerseys said:
I have to imagine Tech would have been pushing for LSSU to be in Houghton since Tech was just in the Soo. A home/home Tech vs LSSU doesn't make much sense given the distance between campuses, but it's not like Adrian is any closer for the Lakers. I'm guessing Tech had no interest in going back to the Soo for 1 or 2 games this weekend and that's why it didn't happen. I'm sure Damon would have been happy to take another two wins from Tech based on last weekend's performance if he didn't have to leave home to do it.
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Tech wanted to play. Lake State made the choice to play Adrian instead.
 
LSSU's hospital is above 93% capacity as of yesterday. makes you wonder, since it's not all that big anyway. Reference the post by someone about no games if hospitals are full. Additionally, due to ever-increasing covid cases, the Gov will speak today at 6 pm. Press is signaling that more restrictions on the way. I think Marquette is also nearing the breaking point.
 
manurespreader said:
LSSU's hospital is above 93% capacity as of yesterday. makes you wonder, since it's not all that big anyway. Reference the post by someone about no games if hospitals are full. Additionally, due to ever-increasing covid cases, the Gov will speak today at 6 pm. Press is signaling that more restrictions on the way. I think Marquette is also nearing the breaking point.
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I think you may have been looking at something from a couple weeks ago. That press conference was on November 15, and that's also when all the stories about War Memorial Hospital were out. Not saying we are out of the woods or even improving, but this was outdated.
 
Per Joe Shawhan on his radio show this morning when asked about playing Adrian - "That's a last resort. My first obligation is to teams in our league who need help. We know NMU is going to need games. If we get a game in on a Tuesday or a Wednesday or a Thursday where we can just get on the bus, have our own food from home, and go right back after the game or them do the same thing, then we're going to first take care of our league."

Came about 45 minutes into the show. https://d2o2figo6ddd0g.cloudfront.net/l/k/qe53h1ga23xv5h/JSH_113020_SM.mp3

He also revealed that the Mankato series this upcoming weekend is now tentatively scheduled for Sunday-Monday to allow more time for the Mavs to clear the protocols.
 
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John J. MacInnes said:
Per Joe Shawhan on his radio show this morning when asked about playing Adrian - "That's a last resort. My first obligation is to teams in our league who need help. We know NMU is going to need games. If we get a game in on a Tuesday or a Wednesday or a Thursday where we can just get on the bus, have our own food from home, and go right back after the game or them do the same thing, then we're going to first take care of our league."

Came about 45 minutes into the show. https://d2o2figo6ddd0g.cloudfront.net/l/k/qe53h1ga23xv5h/JSH_113020_SM.mp3

He also revealed that the Mankato series this upcoming weekend is now tentatively scheduled for Sunday-Monday to allow more time for the Mavs to clear the protocols.
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Glad we were flexible and worked with them.

We are going to need to get our act together or it could be two ugly games.
 
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