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Michigan Tech Huskies Off-Season 2019: The Quest to Get Hard

Re: Michigan Tech Huskies Off-Season 2019: The Quest to Get Hard

beaverhockeyfan said:
My bet is on St. Thomas. They have the money, it is just a matter of what hoops the NCAA is going to make them jump through, whether they go full D-I or up to D-II with D-I hockey. I think it would be a good grab by the 7 as it would give the league a foot in the door of the Twin Cities market. And those two "saint" schools of the current MIAC have pretty strong alumni bases, so any money that isn't there for the Tommies I am sure would show up pretty quickly.
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NCAA requirements aside, I think UST will need a sizable gift to build a DI rink, preferably on, or close to campus. I don't know where they would find the real estate. IMHO the STA rink won't cut it.

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Re: Michigan Tech Huskies Off-Season 2019: The Quest to Get Hard

MTUHuskies said:
NCAA requirements aside, I think UST will need a sizable gift to build a DI rink, preferably on, or close to campus. I don't know where they would find the real estate. IMHO the STA rink won't cut it.
Click to expand...

Funding won't be a problem, I think there are some deep pockets in the St. Thomas alumni and booster base. But you are correct, land will be an issue. I have seen rumors of two ideas (not sure how much traction they have): 1. The university buys up some houses near campus, bulldozes them and puts up a rink. 2. They work out a deal with the Minnesota State Fair Board to renovate/rejuvenate the Warner Coliseum at the Fairgrounds.
 
Re: Michigan Tech Huskies Off-Season 2019: The Quest to Get Hard

beaverhockeyfan said:
Funding won't be a problem, I think there are some deep pockets in the St. Thomas alumni and booster base. But you are correct, land will be an issue. I have seen rumors of two ideas (not sure how much traction they have): 1. The university buys up some houses near campus, bulldozes them and puts up a rink. 2. They work out a deal with the Minnesota State Fair Board to renovate/rejuvenate the Warner Coliseum at the Fairgrounds.
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That would be a great geographical fit and in interesting cultural fit.

LOL A livestock barn as the ice rink. Ok, "multi-use" building. ;)

If it is viable, it is a reasonable location given their environment. Great parking, accessible, close to campus, potentially huge capital cost cost savings, project delivery logistics savings, local PR capital savings,...
 
Re: Michigan Tech Huskies Off-Season 2019: The Quest to Get Hard

beaverhockeyfan said:
Funding won't be a problem, I think there are some deep pockets in the St. Thomas alumni and booster base. But you are correct, land will be an issue. I have seen rumors of two ideas (not sure how much traction they have): 1. The university buys up some houses near campus, bulldozes them and puts up a rink. 2. They work out a deal with the Minnesota State Fair Board to renovate/rejuvenate the Warner Coliseum at the Fairgrounds.
Click to expand...
To preface this comment, I realize there is a big difference between D-III and D-I and if the building could be renovated to a suitable D-I facility we are really dealing with apples and oranges.

From my experience with UST (then CST) in the late 80s, there was very little support for the hockey team at the Fairgrounds. The vibe on campus was that it was too far to go to watch a game in a bad hockey venue. I no longer live in St. Paul and I am not familiar with the current attitude on campus toward going to Mendota Heights for a game. With a 1400 capacity, I find it hard to believe they get a strong student following.

Going D-I will definitely draw more interest from the non-student fans, but how much? The twin cities are Yellow Rodent country and I don't see the Tommies taking a very big bite out of that pie. (Just look at the attendance at Mariucci last year, with how fair-weather MN sports fans are the Tommies would have to be Frozen Four contenders to get any interest.)

As for the building reno, please explain to me how you would have a building suitable for both D-I hockey and the State Fair livestock/horse uses?

I'd love to see the Tommies go D-I but I see a bunch of major hurdles that won't be cleared by just having wealthy alumni.

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Re: Michigan Tech Huskies Off-Season 2019: The Quest to Get Hard

MTUHuskies said:
To preface this comment, I realize there is a big difference between D-III and D-I and if the building could be renovated to a suitable D-I facility we are really dealing with apples and oranges.

From my experience with UST (then CST) in the late 80s, there was very little support for the hockey team at the Fairgrounds. The vibe on campus was that it was too far to go to watch a game in a bad hockey venue. I no longer live in St. Paul and I am not familiar with the current attitude on campus toward going to Mendota Heights for a game. With a 1400 capacity, I find it hard to believe they get a strong student following.

Going D-I will definitely draw more interest from the non-student fans, but how much? The twin cities are Yellow Rodent country and I don't see the Tommies taking a very big bite out of that pie. (Just look at the attendance at Mariucci last year, with how fair-weather MN sports fans are the Tommies would have to be Frozen Four contenders to get any interest.)

As for the building reno, please explain to me how you would have a building suitable for both D-I hockey and the State Fair livestock/horse uses?

I'd love to see the Tommies go D-I but I see a bunch of major hurdles that won't be cleared by just having wealthy alumni.

Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

I think St Thomas would do just fine because they won't be charging Gopher prices and if they can be good, they'll be fun to watch for a cheap ticket depending on where they end up playing...
 
Re: Michigan Tech Huskies Off-Season 2019: The Quest to Get Hard

DrunkTrainPolka said:
hmm...

how about MSOE or maybe even adrian?
Click to expand...

the reason St Thomas gets mentioned is because they were just booted from their D3 conference for basically being too good...so now that they've been pushed, they might just move up to D2, which would mean if they keep hockey, it would likely go D1.
 
Re: Michigan Tech Huskies Off-Season 2019: The Quest to Get Hard

Shirtless Guy said:
the reason St Thomas gets mentioned is because they were just booted from their D3 conference for basically being too good...so now that they've been pushed, they might just move up to D2, which would mean if they keep hockey, it would likely go D1.
Click to expand...

as per; https://www.d3sports.com/notables/2019/05/tommies-tossed-from-miac/

"St. Thomas has nearly two years to evaluate options for further conference affiliation before it is removed from the MIAC. The department could choose to pursue alternate affiliation within Division III, perhaps in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, which is made up of public schools based in Wisconsin but not limited to rule to Wisconsin state schools. St. Thomas also could choose to pursue membership in NCAA Division II, although that would not leave a place for its ice hockey programs."

as per; https://www.startribune.com/if-miac-drops-st-thomas-the-tommies-options-are-complicated/509992312/

"WIAC Commissioner Gary Karner said, “The WIAC has been in the past and remains open now to adding full or affiliate members.” The league has “clearly established a receptiveness” to considering schools in other states for full membership, he said, and it has previously talked with schools outside the University of Wisconsin system about joining.

Coleman said the WIAC could benefit from adding a school. It has only five men’s hockey teams and seven baseball teams, and another member would help fill its football schedule. As for St. Thomas becoming a D-III independent, Coleman said that is “almost impossible” because there are so few open dates in conference schedules."

as per; https://kwsn.com/news/articles/2019/may/22/st-thomas-kicked-out-of-miac-could-replace-augie-in-nsic/

"Regarding hockey, Midco Sports Network NSIC reporter David Brown tweeted Wednesday:

There will obviously be speculation on if the NSIC would be a good fit for St. Thomas once Augustana goes D-I. On the surface, seems natural. But it would force UST to look for a hockey home. No D-II hockey & whole program has to move up. MSU/SCSU hockey in D-I ‘grandfathered’ in...

Same goes for UMD/Bemidji State hockey being ‘grandfathered’ in obviously. Character limit needs to go to 300! The point being, St. Thomas would more than likely need to drop hockey to join NSIC unless they can work out some sort of arrangement."
 
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Re: Michigan Tech Huskies Off-Season 2019: The Quest to Get Hard

DrunkTrainPolka said:
as per; https://www.d3sports.com/notables/2019/05/tommies-tossed-from-miac/

"St. Thomas has nearly two years to evaluate options for further conference affiliation before it is removed from the MIAC. The department could choose to pursue alternate affiliation within Division III, perhaps in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, which is made up of public schools based in Wisconsin but not limited to rule to Wisconsin state schools. St. Thomas also could choose to pursue membership in NCAA Division II, although that would not leave a place for its ice hockey programs."

as per; http://www.startribune.com/if-miac-drops-st-thomas-the-tommies-options-are-complicated/509992312/

WIAC Commissioner Gary Karner said, “The WIAC has been in the past and remains open now to adding full or affiliate members.” The league has “clearly established a receptiveness” to considering schools in other states for full membership, he said, and it has previously talked with schools outside the University of Wisconsin system about joining.

Coleman said the WIAC could benefit from adding a school. It has only five men’s hockey teams and seven baseball teams, and another member would help fill its football schedule. As for St. Thomas becoming a D-III independent, Coleman said that is “almost impossible” because there are so few open dates in conference schedules.
Click to expand...

Well that does leave a place for D1 hockey...he's wrong.
 
Re: Michigan Tech Huskies Off-Season 2019: The Quest to Get Hard

MTUHuskies said:
To preface this comment, I realize there is a big difference between D-III and D-I and if the building could be renovated to a suitable D-I facility we are really dealing with apples and oranges.

From my experience with UST (then CST) in the late 80s, there was very little support for the hockey team at the Fairgrounds. The vibe on campus was that it was too far to go to watch a game in a bad hockey venue. I no longer live in St. Paul and I am not familiar with the current attitude on campus toward going to Mendota Heights for a game. With a 1400 capacity, I find it hard to believe they get a strong student following.

Going D-I will definitely draw more interest from the non-student fans, but how much? The twin cities are Yellow Rodent country and I don't see the Tommies taking a very big bite out of that pie. (Just look at the attendance at Mariucci last year, with how fair-weather MN sports fans are the Tommies would have to be Frozen Four contenders to get any interest.)

As for the building reno, please explain to me how you would have a building suitable for both D-I hockey and the State Fair livestock/horse uses?

I'd love to see the Tommies go D-I but I see a bunch of major hurdles that won't be cleared by just having wealthy alumni.

Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Minnesota sports fans are passively die hard. (As in everything) If things are going great, they show up. If the team is terrible, we have better things to do. If there is an incompetent owner who doesn't know what they heck they are doing (WC Ford, Mike Brown,...) they voice their displeasure by having empty seats. (The Wild were different as they were happy they had an NHL team after the Norm Green debacle.)

Yes, Minnesota is U of M country, because it is the only game in town. As we all know, right now they are not the dominate U of M everyone in The Cities expects.

If one of the colleges went D1, they would find support if they were decent and had lower priced tickets. Assuming they played in an average sized WCHA arena, their campus is in the middle of the alumni base and two weekends would be sell outs as MnSU and BSU fans would help sell out the place. Throw in a series or two per year against U of M, SCSU, UMD, and NDa and they have a good base to build off of. If in their first year as an independent if they get all the MN schools, NDa, Wisconsin, UNO, and a group of WCHA schools, would be a nice first season attendance wise. (Fully realize one can't snap their fingers and create a perfect independent schedule.)

It all depends on how quickly UST wants to go D-1 in hockey.
 
Re: Michigan Tech Huskies Off-Season 2019: The Quest to Get Hard

Lost_Husky said:
Minnesota sports fans are passively die hard. (As in everything) If things are going great, they show up. If the team is terrible, we have better things to do...

If one of the colleges went D1, they would find support if they were decent and had lower priced tickets.
Click to expand...

My point exactly, in the end Minnesota sports fans are cheap bandwagon fans.

If they could get those regional teams on their home schedule it would help for for a year or two, but if they aren't consistently in the NCAA tournament, they won't get non-student fans.

I'd like to know how many students make it to Mendota Heights for games now. If the new rink isn't on or very near campus (even the Fairgrounds is too far away) I just don't see a solid student fanbase either.

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Re: Michigan Tech Huskies Off-Season 2019: The Quest to Get Hard

MTUHuskies said:
My point exactly, in the end Minnesota sports fans are cheap bandwagon fans.

If they could get those regional teams on their home schedule it would help for for a year or two, but if they aren't consistently in the NCAA tournament, they won't get non-student fans.

I'd like to know how many students make it to Mendota Heights for games now. If the new rink isn't on or very near campus (even the Fairgrounds is too far away) I just don't see a solid student fanbase either.

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Click to expand...

MN fans are not cheap, they are value conscience. ;)

They have some things to work out, but it is realistic they could have a successful D1 hockey program.
 
Re: Michigan Tech Huskies Off-Season 2019: The Quest to Get Hard

So I wonder if Tech hockey legend Mike Zuke will be coming up from St Louis to join his Blues in the Copper Country.
 
Re: Michigan Tech Huskies Off-Season 2019: The Quest to Get Hard

Lost_Husky said:
MN fans are not cheap, they are value conscience. ;)

They have some things to work out, but it is realistic they could have a successful D1 hockey program.
Click to expand...
I agree, if they do it right and create their niche in the twin cities, they definitely can be a successful D-I program. But they have a lot going against them.

As a CST alum, I'd love to see it. It's been many years (30+) since I was there but at the time I was underwhelmed by the level of support for the Tommies hockey program. They were a solid team at the time but even as a huge college hockey fan, I think I only attended 2 or 3 games because it was hard to get to the Fairgrounds and there was no student presence in the stands. I will concede that the building was a horrible venue for hockey and it will be different with renovations.

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Re: Michigan Tech Huskies Off-Season 2019: The Quest to Get Hard

MTUHuskies said:
I agree, if they do it right and create their niche in the twin cities, they definitely can be a successful D-I program. But they have a lot going against them.

As a CST alum, I'd love to see it. It's been many years (30+) since I was there but at the time I was underwhelmed by the level of support for the Tommies hockey program. They were a solid team at the time but even as a huge college hockey fan, I think I only attended 2 or 3 games because it was hard to get to the Fairgrounds and there was no student presence in the stands. I will concede that the building was a horrible venue for hockey and it will be different with renovations.

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Click to expand...

its not that surprising that D3 hockey isn't that well attended in the MSP area when you have so many other choices from D1, NHL, NAHL, and high school.
 
Re: Michigan Tech Huskies Off-Season 2019: The Quest to Get Hard

MTUHuskies said:
I agree, if they do it right and create their niche in the twin cities, they definitely can be a successful D-I program. But they have a lot going against them.

As a CST alum, I'd love to see it. It's been many years (30+) since I was there but at the time I was underwhelmed by the level of support for the Tommies hockey program. They were a solid team at the time but even as a huge college hockey fan, I think I only attended 2 or 3 games because it was hard to get to the Fairgrounds and there was no student presence in the stands. I will concede that the building was a horrible venue for hockey and it will be different with renovations.

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Click to expand...

They were a football school when I was in MN. Quick search shows they are strong at almost all non-hockey sports.

As DPT pointed out, staying D3 with the Wisconsin schools would be a good fit. They could jump D2, but that would almost force their hockey team to go D1. D1 hockey for UST is a long shot. I assume they would have to make women's hockey to D1 as well.

Makes me wonder what the "Mag 7" are going to do for that 8th team.

The hockey season can't get here soon enough. We are talking everything but Tech hockey.
 
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