Ohio State U. ( 2009-2010 )

[osualum86]

Re: Ohio State U. ( 2009-2010 )

The problem is (and I don't blame you because you are hockey fans) Gene Smith doesn't care as much about Hockey as you guys would like. Its the 3rd maybe 4th sport on campus behind Football, Basketball, and maybe even Womens Basketball. You have a nice facility, not the greatest for hockey, but its nice. You have a good school and are funded well. For me they aren't going to pump a lot more into the hockey program because it is overshadowed by football and basketball which overlap the hockey season. Until the athletic department puts more into it like the other big ten schools it won't change and I don't see them firing markell because of that. Sure there will be years when OSU makes a splash but Markell has brought them out of the basement where they were most of the 90's and got them a new facility. From an outsiders perspective, I don't see much more he can do. IMO it seems like the university is happy with a mediocre competitive hockey program that shows splashes of brilliance.

I wish you all the best though and the more programs that are committed to hockey the better for the CCHA.

RedHawkMan10, thanks for welcoming me. As much as I want to disagree with you, you're probably right regarding Gene Smith's expectations for the hockey program. However, I have read in numerous articles that Gene Smith expects all our programs to be championship-caliber. Hockey is obviously falling pitifully short of that. As for the facility, I've debated about that on another forum. Everyone thinks the Schott is bad for hockey because it's only half full on a good night (not even that these days). Of course, our half-full crowd would sell out every other CCHA Arena. Maybe we should have built a hockey-only facility with a capacity of 7,000 - 8,000 or so. Hindsight is 20/20. The fact that we put ice in the Schottenstein Center tells me that someone had plans for our hockey program to be big time. As for the last part of your first paragraph, I just hope you are wrong about that. As an OSU Hockey fan, I'm not interested in "just making it out of the basement" or being a "mediocre competitive hockey program that shows splashes of brilliance." You're absolutely right about John Markell, he has shown that "he can't do much more" than run a second-tier, less-than-mediocre college hockey program. That's why we need to make a change. Great talking with you. You guys have shown exactly what can happen when a university actually makes a committment to college hockey. You brought in a brilliant coach, built a state-of-the-art, hockey-only facility, and now all of a sudden, you're a perennial top five program that is going to Frozen Fours and competing for National Titles. And anyone who watched last year's National Championship Game knows your team should have won it. I cannot fathom why our athletic department would not want our hockey program to have that kind of success. If they bring Markell back, they're basically saying they don't care if our program is a national punchline.

 

[Bleachered]

Re: Ohio State U. ( 2009-2010 )

The fact that we put ice in the Schottenstein Center tells me that someone had plans for our hockey program to be big time.

That person was Andy Geiger, who was a big supporter of the program. As others have said, the mediocrity is becoming permanent. It's up to Gene Smith to see if he wants the OSU Hockey program to continually be in the middle of the pack of the CCHA, with an occasional trip to an NCAA regional, where they will lose in the first round. That's how it has been under Markell's coaching - with the exception of the 1998 frozen four and one CCHA title.

Again, OSU has invested a lot of coin in the hockey program. With attendance problems along with a lack of consistency in winning, the university, with Markell behind the bench, is not getting the returns.

 

[osualum86]

Re: Ohio State U. ( 2009-2010 )

That person was Andy Geiger, who was a big supporter of the program. As others have said, the mediocrity is becoming permanent. It's up to Gene Smith to see if he wants the OSU Hockey program to continually be in the middle of the pack of the CCHA, with an occasional trip to an NCAA regional, where they will lose in the first round. That's how it has been under Markell's coaching - with the exception of the 1998 frozen four and one CCHA title.

Again, OSU has invested a lot of coin in the hockey program. With attendance problems along with a lack of consistency in winning, the university, with Markell behind the bench, is not getting the returns.

Bleachered, agree on all points. Geiger definitely supported the program. We built this beautiful state-of-the-art facility and decided it would be used for both hockey and basketball. In fact, I distinctly remember a Frozen Four being held here in 2005 and by most, if not all accounts, the NCAA was impressed with the job OSU did with that. You are correct, the mediocrity is becoming permanent. One NCAA Tournament in five seasons = mediocrity. And after getting destroyed 8-3 in that game against Boston University, I'm not so sure we belonged in the NCAA Tournament last season. We couldn't even finish in the top four of the CCHA. It will be interesting to see what happens in the offseason. Does Gene Smith want this program to be something more than mediocre or no? Time will tell.

 

[THE OHIO STATE]

Re: Ohio State U. ( 2009-2010 )

Mid-season results break down.



Seniors;


## Player POS YR GP G A PTS PEN/MIN PP SH GW +/- SO
Forwards = 11 Mathieu Picard F SR 20 1 4 5 8/16 0 0 1 -1 25

Defense = No Player.



Juniors;

## Player POS YR GP G A PTS PEN/MIN PP SH GW +/- SO
Forwards = 26 Peter Boyd F JR 20 5 11 16 9/29 0 0 0 +8 45

44 Sergio Somma F JR 20 6 7 13 12/32 0 0 1 +9 49

15 John Albert (ATL) F JR 20 4 9 13 4/8 1 1 0 -3 56

8 Hunter Bishop F JR 14 5 2 7 5/10 1 0 0 +2 36

20 C.J. Severyn (CAL) F JR 19 2 1 3 8/16 0 0 1 -5 28

10 Kyle Reed F JR 10 1 2 3 4/8 0 0 1 -1 15

9 Patrick Schafer F JR 15 1 2 3 4/8 0 0 1 +1 19



## Player POS YR GP G A PTS PEN/MIN PP SH GW +/- SO

Defense = 24 Shane Sims (NYI) D JR 15 2 6 8 5/10 1 1 0 +1 29

17 Chris Reed D JR 20 0 2 2 3/6 0 0 0 +6 27

4 Corey Toy D JR 19 0 1 1 12/35 0 0 0 -4 17

7 Erick Belanger D JR 7 0 0 0 3/6 0 0 0 -2 3

Sophmores ;


## Player PO YR GP G A PTS PEN/MIN PP SH GW +/- SO

Forwards = 19 Zac Dalpe (CAR) F SO 20 10 9 19 2/15 4 0 1 +11 76

18 Taylor Stefishen (NSH) F SO 14 2 3 5 4/8 1 0 1 +1 20

23 Cory Schneider F SO 15 1 2 3 5/10 0 0 0 -2 20

16 Ian Boots F SO 13 1 1 2 3/6 0 0 0 -8 22



## Player POS YR GP G A PTS PEN/MIN PP SH GW +/- SO

Defense= 12Matt Bartkowski (FLA) D SO 20 2 4 6 21/69 1 0 0 +4 52

21 Sean Duddy D SO 16 0 3 3 0 0 0 -2 9

3 Mike Folkes D SO 5 0 0 0 2/4 0 0 0 -3 3


Freshman ;


## Player POS YR GP G A PTS PEN/MIN PP SH GW +/- S0

Forwards = 14 Alex Carlson F FR 9 1 1 2 1/2 0 0 0 +2 10

13 Paul Kirtland F FR 11 1 0 1 5/10 1 0 0 -2 10

25 Jeff McNeil F FR 17 0 0 0 1/2 0 0 0 E 4



## Player POS YR GP G A PTS PEN/MIN PP SH GW +/- S0

Defense = 27 Devon Krogh D FR 17 1 4 5 4/8 0 0 0 +9 20

5 Brandon Martell D FR 4 0 0 0 2/4 0 0 0 -1 1

 

[Kitchenhockeydad]

Re: Ohio State U. ( 2009-2010 )

...and I don't see them firing markell because of that.

If they haven't fired him by now, I don't see them doing it, but I believe that this is the final year of his contract, so technically, they would not be firing him, they just wouldn't renew his contract.

 

[osualum86]

Re: Ohio State U. ( 2009-2010 )

If they haven't fired him by now, I don't see them doing it, but I believe that this is the final year of his contract, so technically, they would not be firing him, they just wouldn't renew his contract.

Kitchenhockeydad, you touched on what scares me the most. It's basically been this way for almost the entire 14 seasons or so of Markell's tenure and they haven't fired him yet, so why would they fire him now? One Frozen Four (1998), one Mason Cup (2004), and five one-and-dones in the NCAA Tournament to go with the 1998 Frozen Four. I guess I am holding out hope that Gene Smith will man up and do what's best for the program, along with backing up his contention that he wants all of our programs to be championship-caliber.

 

[redhawkman10]

Re: Like Deja Vu All Over Again

Re: Like Deja Vu All Over Again

Welcome, osualum86, to USCHO. And welcome, too, to the topic many of us love to hate: John Markell.

I'm not sure I agree with our friend from that school down south who suggests that, "the university is happy with a mediocre competitive hockey program that shows splashes of brilliance." If that were the case, I think we would've seen a contract extension to Markell after returning to the NCAAs last season. Interestingly, instead, Gene Smith has allowed contract renewal to hang over him like the sword of Damocles.

Some of us went into the season with high optimism. Look at all those returning players. Think of the experience and skill that is coming back. Even Markell himself salivated over a lineup with so many juniors because, he claimed, "typically, that is when players really 'pop.'"

But the more cynical of us remember how we'd seen this movie before. I immediately thought Markell meant "pop" as in a "balloon." Then, right before the season started, Assistant Coach Lammers left for Colorado College (anyone noticed how well they're doing, BTW?). Palmer bolted (and, FYI, was recently called back up to Rockford). Rudasill was shown the door. Things were going bump in the night. Again.

And our new hockey sweaters with the big scarlet "O" began to look more and more like a zero.

It was if the public, too, wasn't as buying into it anymore either. Attendance plummeted. The Michigan series failed to draw bodies in. You could've counted the number of students in the "O Block" for the Miami game on two hands. Symbolically, perhaps, only the alumni band showed up for that one.

And so we close the first half of the season with the hockey Bucks possessing the third-most losses in the league. With a defensive corps which seems to alternate between taking bad penalties and hanging their goaltenders out to dry. With an offensive strategy based on long breakout passes and/or dump-and-chase (which a friend of mine via Ken Hitchcock calls it "chip-and-dip") turnovers.

Meanwhile, Markell watches, clutching a notepad with....what? Post-game pizza orders? Lottery numbers? Career websites?

Enough.

Fair enough, great post right there! Im with you, I want OSU to be good its better for us and the conference. I was with you in expecting more out of this club. But Markell has been around for more than a decade and it has all been up and down. So I guess I just don't see what is different from this year to years past when they didn't get rid of him.

 

[redhawkman10]

Re: Ohio State U. ( 2009-2010 )

RedHawkMan10, thanks for welcoming me. As much as I want to disagree with you, you're probably right regarding Gene Smith's expectations for the hockey program. However, I have read in numerous articles that Gene Smith expects all our programs to be championship-caliber. Hockey is obviously falling pitifully short of that. As for the facility, I've debated about that on another forum. Everyone thinks the Schott is bad for hockey because it's only half full on a good night (not even that these days). Of course, our half-full crowd would sell out every other CCHA Arena. Maybe we should have built a hockey-only facility with a capacity of 7,000 - 8,000 or so. Hindsight is 20/20. The fact that we put ice in the Schottenstein Center tells me that someone had plans for our hockey program to be big time. As for the last part of your first paragraph, I just hope you are wrong about that. As an OSU Hockey fan, I'm not interested in "just making it out of the basement" or being a "mediocre competitive hockey program that shows splashes of brilliance." You're absolutely right about John Markell, he has shown that "he can't do much more" than run a second-tier, less-than-mediocre college hockey program. That's why we need to make a change. Great talking with you. You guys have shown exactly what can happen when a university actually makes a committment to college hockey. You brought in a brilliant coach, built a state-of-the-art, hockey-only facility, and now all of a sudden, you're a perennial top five program that is going to Frozen Fours and competing for National Titles. And anyone who watched last year's National Championship Game knows your team should have won it. I cannot fathom why our athletic department would not want our hockey program to have that kind of success. If they bring Markell back, they're basically saying they don't care if our program is a national punchline.

Im speaking as an outsider here, but I do have ties to the University and am a fan in every other sport besides hockey (because of my ties to the Miami program). But with all that said, Gene Smith has to say that about all of his programs. But for me I don't believe him, you can't expect every program to win consistantly and bring in money. The athletic department focuses on their two main money makers and that is Football and Basketball. IMO, if they truly wanted to commit to hockey they would of built a hockey only arena. I look at them putting ice into the schott as a way to save them money to build a hockey only arena. I have seen several games there and it is a great arena but when half full it seems like less. Most games they aren't drawing much more than some other teams like UNO, Miami, Mich, and MSU. The university is an attraction to recruits because of its size, location, and they do put more into their program than most (although not what they can).

Kitchen you are right, they technically wouldn't be firing him but I don't think they let him go. Mainly because I think OSU has a better second half and parlay's it into a decent season. But it isn't like this is Gene Smith's first year as AD and Markell hasn't changed. He is what he is by now and so is the program under him. If OSU is going to change coaches they will have to invest a lot more money and I dont know if they are willing to do so.

 

[Draighlicht]

Re: Ohio State U. ( 2009-2010 )

I'm new to this forum. I've tried to get some hockey talk going on other OSU message boards, but it's all about football and basketball on those boards so I decided to sign up for USCHO.com. Just judging by some of the posts I can tell that some of you know more about hockey than I do. As for the "John Markell Farewell Tour," I think Markell has to go. I realize we have decent recruiting classes coming in, but what else is new? John Markell normally does bring in good recruiting classes. The problem is, he doesn't develop those talented players into a championship-caliber hockey club. The track record bears that out. He can't live on the 1998 Frozen Four forever. It's time to bring in someone new that will take this program to the next level. John Markell is a nice guy and the players go to class and graduate. However, if Gene Smith really expects all our programs to be championship-caliber, he needs to pull the plug on the current staff and bring in someone else. I've gotten weary of watching a second or third-tier, less-than-mediocre hockey program. This program is a sleeping giant in hockey. It's time for a change!

I would disagree with you on one point here, Markell does develop players. The problem is they don't seem to shine until they leave OSU. Two recent examples are Rod Pelley (NJ Devils) and now Cory Elkins, who was just called up to the LA Kings. Neither was drafted and both spent four years at OSU and never created much excitement. They were solid and dependable and if you focused closely on them did a lot of the little things right, but they weren't stars. Dave Steckel (Wash Caps) would fall into that category except he was a first round NHL pick. Dave was a good player who got it all together late. You might also add Mathieu Beaudoin, who was the AHL player of the week last week, Tyson Strachan, Sean Collins and Nate Guenin, all of whom have played at least a game or two in the NHL and are back and forth between the NHL and AHL.

Markell's problem in my opinion is that he doesn't know what to do with talent when he has it. OSU seems to get freshmen who come in and compete and get the fans excited and by the time they are juniors Markell has coached all the emotion out of them. They seem bored by the time they are juniors.

The problem this year is that with one exception (or maybe two) the defensemen on this team are barely adequate. Just my opinion but there may be a reason why we have 21 year old freshmen and that reason isn't that they were super stars who loved playing junior hockey. They were older kids who were adequate but were physically more mature than the 17/18 year olds they were playing against in junior hockey. Put them on the ice with better and more mature college age kids and they look barely adequate again. Bottom line for me is this is the poorest group of d-men I've seen at OSU.

Nice to see a good discussion without trolls again.

To address one other point in the discussion. Never pas on an opportunity to see a game at Goggin. There are a few mouthy fans, but 90% of the folks are great. I see about half a dozen games there each year (living close to Oxford helps). They crowd is fun and they are into their team and they are enjoying themselves. Can't say the same for OSU at this point in time.

Winning would change that, but I don't see winning as an option with this coach. Sad to say that. Of course, Miami has a great assistant coach who I understand would love to run his own program. Anyone got Gene Smith's e-mail address?

 

[tic tac toe]

Re: Ohio State U. ( 2009-2010 )

If they haven't fired him by now, I don't see them doing it, but I believe that this is the final year of his contract, so technically, they would not be firing him, they just wouldn't renew his contract.

Letting him go in mid season would be just stupid, the worst move the athletic department could make, would really set the team back. Really this discussion shouldn't even happen. There are still a lot of games on the slate.

 

[tic tac toe]

Re: Ohio State U. ( 2009-2010 )

one-and-dones in the NCAA Tournament

Let's review THE CCHA last seasons NCAA tournament
ND loses to Bemidji, of all teams...fire Jackson
UM loses to Air Force of all teams...fire Red
Miami(in respect to RedHawkMan)...fire Enrico
At least OSU lost to the Champs

 

[Bleachered]

Re: Ohio State U. ( 2009-2010 )

Let's review THE CCHA last seasons NCAA tournament
ND loses to Bemidji, of all teams...fire Jackson
UM loses to Air Force of all teams...fire Red
Miami(in respect to RedHawkMan)...fire Enrico
At least OSU lost to the Champs

Let's review Markell's last five runs in the NCAA Tournament. All losses.

4-2
1-0
1-0
3-2
8-3

Let's review the coaching statistics for some successful college hockey programs.

In his fourteen years as coach. Markell's teams have won twenty games seven times.

Miami University's coach Enrico Blasi has won twenty games seven times in his decade as head of the Redhawks, the same as Markell, in fewer seasons.

Boston University's Jack Parker has hit the twenty win mark sixteen times in the last twenty years.

Jerry York has won twenty games 11 of his sixteen years as coach of Boston College.

The University of North Dakota has had three coaches in the last twenty years and has won twenty games fourteen of those years.

Now. Here's the staggering one.

Red Berenson's Michigan teams have won twenty or more games twenty two years in a row.

I like John Markell and want him to do well. I want the program to succeed and do well. In an ideal world Markell would be welcomed with open arms at Bowling Green, his alma mater, and return that program to its past successes.

Attendance is horrible. An arena that seats 17,000 is barely a third full, at best for games. Part of this is the marketing of the program. Part of this is the coach providing a good hockey tradition. It's time for the Ohio State University Athletic Department to look at the talent that is coming into the hockey program, see how they are being coached and act appropriately.

 

[THE OHIO STATE]

Re: Ohio State U. ( 2009-2010 )

Markell's problem in my opinion is that he doesn't know what to do with talent when he has it. OSU seems to get freshmen who come in and compete and get the fans excited and by the time they are juniors Markell has coached all the emotion out of them. They seem bored by the time they are juniors.

The problem this year is that with one exception (or maybe two) the defenseman on this team are barely adequate.

Just my opinion but there may be a reason why we have 21 year old freshmen and that reason isn't that they were super stars who loved playing junior hockey. They were older kids who were adequate but were physically more mature than the 17/18 year olds they were playing against in junior hockey. Put them on the ice with better and more mature college age kids and they look barely adequate again. Bottom line for me is this is the poorest group of d-men I've seen at OSU.


DRAIGHLICHT.

The Defense has needed help from day one. The forwards need to back-check harder to help a weaker Defense.

Freshmen Defenseman,

Player POS YR GP G A PTS PEN/MIN PP SH GW +/- S0

27 Devon Krogh D FR 17 1 4 5 4/8 0 0 0 +9 20

5 Brandon Martell D FR 4 0 0 0 2/4 0 0 0 -1 1


Devon Krough is making the Veteran Defenseman look like " ROOKIES." Devon is playing smart hockey. It's good to see he's getting playing time.



Freshmen Forwards ,

What I don't understand is why the Coach doesn't play Carlson and Kirtland more. They have produced on the ice and can score. If you look at the games played for the three forwards you can see that McNeil has more games with no results.

If the Veteran forwards are not getting the job done , then start benching them more to make them work harder. Play Carlson and Kirtland more and play McNeil less. And when McNeil comes around add him back into the mix.



## Player POS YR GP G A PTS PEN/MIN PP SH GW +/- S0

14 Alex Carlson F FR 9 1 1 2 1/2 0 0 0 +2 10

13 Paul Kirtland F FR 11 1 0 1 5/10 1 0 0 -2 10

25 Jeff McNeil F FR 17 0 0 0 1/2 0 0 0 E 4



" GO BUCKS. "



__________________

 

[redhawkman10]

Re: Ohio State U. ( 2009-2010 )

Let's review THE CCHA last seasons NCAA tournament
ND loses to Bemidji, of all teams...fire Jackson
UM loses to Air Force of all teams...fire Red
Miami(in respect to RedHawkMan)...fire Enrico
At least OSU lost to the Champs

Well with all due respect, miami lost to the champs too and they weren't one and done either. But atleast some people are forgetting the monumental collapse late in the third of the title game.

 

[redhawkman10]

Re: Ohio State U. ( 2009-2010 )

I would disagree with you on one point here, Markell does develop players. The problem is they don't seem to shine until they leave OSU. Two recent examples are Rod Pelley (NJ Devils) and now Cory Elkins, who was just called up to the LA Kings. Neither was drafted and both spent four years at OSU and never created much excitement. They were solid and dependable and if you focused closely on them did a lot of the little things right, but they weren't stars. Dave Steckel (Wash Caps) would fall into that category except he was a first round NHL pick. Dave was a good player who got it all together late. You might also add Mathieu Beaudoin, who was the AHL player of the week last week, Tyson Strachan, Sean Collins and Nate Guenin, all of whom have played at least a game or two in the NHL and are back and forth between the NHL and AHL.

Markell's problem in my opinion is that he doesn't know what to do with talent when he has it. OSU seems to get freshmen who come in and compete and get the fans excited and by the time they are juniors Markell has coached all the emotion out of them. They seem bored by the time they are juniors.

The problem this year is that with one exception (or maybe two) the defensemen on this team are barely adequate. Just my opinion but there may be a reason why we have 21 year old freshmen and that reason isn't that they were super stars who loved playing junior hockey. They were older kids who were adequate but were physically more mature than the 17/18 year olds they were playing against in junior hockey. Put them on the ice with better and more mature college age kids and they look barely adequate again. Bottom line for me is this is the poorest group of d-men I've seen at OSU.

Nice to see a good discussion without trolls again.

To address one other point in the discussion. Never pas on an opportunity to see a game at Goggin. There are a few mouthy fans, but 90% of the folks are great. I see about half a dozen games there each year (living close to Oxford helps). They crowd is fun and they are into their team and they are enjoying themselves. Can't say the same for OSU at this point in time.

Winning would change that, but I don't see winning as an option with this coach. Sad to say that. Of course, Miami has a great assistant coach who I understand would love to run his own program. Anyone got Gene Smith's e-mail address?

NO! umm draig this memo just came across the wire, you are no longer welcome at goggin! Stay away from our coaches!!!

Great post btw, but what I get from reading your analysis is that these players aren't playing hard for Markell. They do get good recruiting classes and players do have success once leaving so its pretty obvious what the problem is. It will be interesting to see what they do after the season, I just wonder how much the athletic department really puts into the Hockey program or how much more they would be willing to put in it. It seems like Markell is content with what he gets and where he is and if they let him go (or don't bring him back) they would undoubtedly have to put a lot more into the program for a new coach. I just don't know if they are willing to do that, am I wrong?

 

[OSUmab]

Re: Ohio State U. ( 2009-2010 )

Don't give up on a Hockey only arena just yet, that's all I will say about that for now, stay tuned......

Oh and btw, now who's the goalie!?

 

[klbaum1077]

Re: Ohio State U. ( 2009-2010 )

Don't give up on a Hockey only arena just yet, that's all I will say about that for now, stay tuned......

Oh and btw, now who's the goalie!?

We can only hope about the arena.

I think they will go back to alternating them, but i still say heeter is the better of the two.

 

[osualum86]

Re: Ohio State U. ( 2009-2010 )

Draighlicht, I wasn't really saying Markell didn't develop players individually. It's obvious we have been developing individuals with all the Buckeyes suiting up in the NHL. My point, and maybe it didn't come across, is that he doesn't take these talented players and mold them into a championship-caliber team.

Tic Tac Toe, I can see you're in Markell's corner and that's fine. I don't think anyone here is saying to fire him in the middle of the season. We just don't want his contract renewed after this season. As for your other post about firing Jackson, Berenson, and Blasi, those coaches have either won National Titles, or at least played for them in recent years, or have at least been to Frozen Fours in recent years. John Markell's recent accomplishments pale in comparison to theirs, don't you think? As for the rest of the season, there are a lot of games left, but what makes you think the second half of the season will be any different than the first half? Just curious.

RedHawkMan10, I hope you're wrong about Gene Smith bringing John Markell back, that's all I can say. If Gene Smith does bring Markell back, it will tell me loud and clear that hockey is just an afterthought to him, and that he doesn't care if our hockey program continues to be a joke. As for what OSU is willing to do, I wouldn't sell OSU short on that. OSU has shown in the past that they are willing to shell out the $$$ for coaches.

 

[osualum86]

Re: Ohio State U. ( 2009-2010 )

Don't give up on a Hockey only arena just yet, that's all I will say about that for now, stay tuned......

Oh and btw, now who's the goalie!?

OSUmab, I like the Schott just fine, but if the powers that be think a hockey-only facility would bring in better players and a better coach, then I am all for it. I know you said "that's all I will say about that for now," but any idea what sort of capacity we're talking about? What's your opinion on that? I would love to see something like Ralph Englestaad Arena in North Dakota (11,000) or Mariucci Arena in Minnesota (10,000), but I am thinking 7,000 or 8,000 would be fine for tOSU. If we get our program to the level where it should be, we could sell out an arena of that size for most games. I wonder where they would put a new hockey arena. They do have room over on that part of campus.

 

[OSUmab]

Re: Ohio State U. ( 2009-2010 )

OSUmab, I like the Schott just fine, but if the powers that be think a hockey-only facility would bring in better players and a better coach, then I am all for it. I know you said "that's all I will say about that for now," but any idea what sort of capacity we're talking about? What's your opinion on that? I would love to see something like Ralph Englestaad Arena in North Dakota (11,000) or Mariucci Arena in Minnesota (10,000), but I am thinking 7,000 or 8,000 would be fine for tOSU. If we get our program to the level where it should be, we could sell out an arena of that size for most games. I wonder where they would put a new hockey arena. They do have room over on that part of campus.

You're on the right track with capacity and what area of campus. Don't forget the womens team as well.

I want to add this. My source (ha! ) states it is very premlim and nothing has been approved, but its on the table at least for discussion/drawings.