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Minnesota Golden Gophers 2017-18 Season Thread

Re: Minnesota Golden Gophers 2017-18 Season Thread

Lindsay said:
I figure we will experience it on the women's side eventually, just a matter of when whether its five, ten or twenty years. I will be very sad to say goodbye to Penn State as a CHA fan when the day comes, but I'm sure the CHA would survive as would the remaining Minnesota programs in a Big Ten free league.
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?? The WCHA is using crowdsourcing to cover costs. If Minnesota and Wisconsin left, the remaining programs are in trouble.
 
EastFan1 said:
?? The WCHA is using crowdsourcing to cover costs. If Minnesota and Wisconsin left, the remaining programs are in trouble.
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Yes they would be in trouble, but I hope they would find a way to survive. Could reorganize under a league with more modest membership fees, play more games against Lindenwood, play non conference games against Wisc and Minnesota, and appeal to the 25ish other teams in the NCAA to travel west. If Notre Dame ever added a team, that’s drivable.

It’s an odd spot to be in, you want the sport to grow but not at the expense of others. I’m not advocating for a big ten, but do want the sport to grow, and just want what’s best for it overall. Who knows what that is.

Interesting to hear others say they don’t think it will happen anytime soon. I understand why the entire state of Michigan wouldn’t add hockey right now, but still wonder if Notre Dame might put something together. I take Eeyore’s word that the money from tv rights is going to go down, but at the same time I look at things like the athlete’s village that just opened at Minnesota, and it seems like there is money at the big schools (probably from boosters, but still).

Further, you look at small schools that have very respectable programs on presumably a much smaller budget and it’s hard to believe a big school is never going to come up with a similar amount of money and start a program of their own, especially if they have a rink, men’s hockey and women’s club team already.

Anyway, a bridge to cross another day I guess.
 
Re: Minnesota Golden Gophers 2017-18 Season Thread

Lindsay said:
Interesting to hear others say they don’t think it will happen anytime soon. I understand why the entire state of Michigan wouldn’t add hockey right now, but still wonder if Notre Dame might put something together. I take Eeyore’s word that the money from tv rights is going to go down, but at the same time I look at things like the athlete’s village that just opened at Minnesota, and it seems like there is money at the big schools (probably from boosters, but still).

Further, you look at small schools that have very respectable programs on presumably a much smaller budget and it’s hard to believe a big school is never going to come up with a similar amount of money and start a program of their own, especially if they have a rink, men’s hockey and women’s club team already.

Anyway, a bridge to cross another day I guess.
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one of the few things eeyore is correct about, but then Blackbeard and myself said this a year ago

look at it this way, if schools like Clarkson and Mercyhurst didn't have hockey, you'd never have heard of them. Clarkson isn't going to win a national championship in women's hoops or men's football

the athletes village at U of MN has had a hard time getting funding since it depends on donations, I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for a Big Teen school to add women's hockey
 
pokechecker said:
one of the few things eeyore is correct about, but then Blackbeard and myself said this a year ago

look at it this way, if schools like Clarkson and Mercyhurst didn't have hockey, you'd never have heard of them. Clarkson isn't going to win a national championship in women's hoops or men's football

the athletes village at U of MN has had a hard time getting funding since it depends on donations, I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for a Big Teen school to add women's hockey
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Haha, ok I won’t hold my breath. I will enjoy the current structures and hope the sport continues to grow in other ways.
 
Re: Minnesota Golden Gophers 2017-18 Season Thread

Lindsay said:
Haha, ok I won’t hold my breath. I will enjoy the current structures and hope the sport continues to grow in other ways.
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I'd agree that starting up a BTHC on the women's side would be way too costly to work. I mean, UMn got up to #5 in the PWR, and still had to play the team that was #1 the entire season until the day we beat them for the first time in 5 games? And that was because of costs. So if the sport can't afford to have teams travel out of their regions to keep things more fair the one and only weekend it could help and really counts more than any other games basically, then there is no way it could afford to travel every weekend.


No the only way Women's hockey will be able to afford to grow is if schools that need to add a women's program so that they can keep or add a mens program have the ability to start up women's hockey and are within driving distance to schools already playing. So maybe a Miami of Ohio for example? UND coming back alive? And honestly at this point, I just don't see the women's game expanding much more in the near future and may need the men's game to expand more first. The men's game can expand because the NHL is expanding and spreading out into areas of the country outside of the Midwest and East Coast and because the NHL feels it can benefit by helping chk to expand and because rich alums are more likely to pony up the cash needed to make it happen. Guess we need some billionaires to become women's hockey fans. But if the men's game expands, some schools may need to add a woman's team as well in order to keep right with Title IX?

The men's game also may expand because kids giving up on football won't always choose bb or wrestling so some will choose hockey. There is no women's sport struggling, in fact women's sports were growing for awhile there and so women's hockey had to compete with other sports. Maybe if sex scandals involving Gymnastics coaches keep popping up maybe there will be a lot of young girls not going the route of gymnastics? That is something I could see happening. A lot harder for a hockey coach to get creepy with a female athlete when she's wearing all of her pads and equipment compared to what Gymnasts wear.
 
Re: Minnesota Golden Gophers 2017-18 Season Thread

FredsDeadFriend said:
I'd agree that starting up a BTHC on the women's side would be way too costly to work. I mean, UMn got up to #5 in the PWR, and still had to play the team that was #1 the entire season until the day we beat them for the first time in 5 games? And that was because of costs. So if the sport can't afford to have teams travel out of their regions to keep things more fair the one and only weekend it could help and really counts more than any other games basically, then there is no way it could afford to travel every weekend.


No the only way Women's hockey will be able to afford to grow is if schools that need to add a women's program so that they can keep or add a mens program have the ability to start up women's hockey and are within driving distance to schools already playing. So maybe a Miami of Ohio for example? UND coming back alive? And honestly at this point, I just don't see the women's game expanding much more in the near future and may need the men's game to expand more first. The men's game can expand because the NHL is expanding and spreading out into areas of the country outside of the Midwest and East Coast and because the NHL feels it can benefit by helping chk to expand and because rich alums are more likely to pony up the cash needed to make it happen. Guess we need some billionaires to become women's hockey fans. But if the men's game expands, some schools may need to add a woman's team as well in order to keep right with Title IX?

The men's game also may expand because kids giving up on football won't always choose bb or wrestling so some will choose hockey. There is no women's sport struggling, in fact women's sports were growing for awhile there and so women's hockey had to compete with other sports. Maybe if sex scandals involving Gymnastics coaches keep popping up maybe there will be a lot of young girls not going the route of gymnastics? That is something I could see happening. A lot harder for a hockey coach to get creepy with a female athlete when she's wearing all of her pads and equipment compared to what Gymnasts wear.
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A thought on hockey expansion: The USAHA national high school championships were held in Plymouth MN last week. The Florida State HS champions played in the tourney. I was not able to find the total number of schools with a team but there are 18 - 18! - in the Tampa area alone. I wouldn't have been surprised if that was the state total. (BTW - The winning team was Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School from Parkland FL, Parkland is near Ft. Lauderdale so pretty far South). The game is growing
TO BE CLEAR> MSD High won the State Tourney, didn't do so hot in the national one

But expense is still the controlling factor. Given the shortage of money I don't expect any schools to be adding womens hockey because it might take money away from football & basketball programs.
 
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Re: Minnesota Golden Gophers 2017-18 Season Thread

Scobee will be the starter next year! Sounds like Clarkson is going to get better quick! Crazy offseason for the gals game!
 
Re: Minnesota Golden Gophers 2017-18 Season Thread

ne7minder said:
Interesting story on the beginning of girls youth hockey in MN. It includes Laura Holldorson as a player
https://nationals.usahockey.com/news_article/show/904234
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I'm guessing Laura Halldorson is the 3rd from the left top row player in the colored photo and maybe the lower middle top row player in the black and white photo. It's hard to imagine the usually restrained coach "running across the ice on my toes."

Thanks for the article.:)
 
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