Pardon the misspelling of names, and I took the um's, uh's, and stutters out.
Gwoz and Moose: [Banter about WCHA play so far this season, DU's struggles]
Gwoz and Moose: [Banter about DU's trip to Bemidji a month ago...]
Gwoz: [Raves about the new facility, personal tour by BSU coach Tom Serratore, How BSU is becoming a strong program]
Moose: I wanna turn it around a little bit here after heaping some praise on what Bemidji State has done; Why did Denver University decide to leave BSU behind and move on to the new conference, the NCHC, as you guys made the decision now about six, seven months ago.
Gwoz: Well, you know, that's a question that's been asked of our administrators a lot, and rather than having to go into a long list of reasons and considerations all I can say is, to be able to keep this interview fairly short, is that this was something that I know that our administrators not only from our school but from other schools had been looking into for a number of years. For a number of reasons it came to a head about a year and a half ago and serious discussions began at that time. And so. As to the reasons, there is a whole list, I won't bore you, I won't go into a long reading of the list, but certainly it was a very serious discussion and to be able to, or to have, or to leave a league like the WCHA that we have been a member of for over 50 years, that has been a great home for us, was a very difficult decision, and yet for many reasons it was the decision that was decided by our administrators as the best one available.
Moose: In your opinion, is it a fair assessment that since the WCHA was actively pursing Notre Dame and Miami this past offseason that fans from Bemidji State, Alaska Anchorage, Mankato, Michigan Tech kinda get the feeling that they were kicked out of the league rather than the other way around?
Gwoz: Well, I don't know how they... Anybody can view a change anyway they want to. Certainly, that, I don't think that was the intent of anybody in making the decision they did. And so, but people can feel the way they want to, about that.
Moose: The reason I bring this up with you is that you seem to be one of the, the spokesman, the conference put out a video which you were featured prominently in right after the creation of the NCHC. A term that came out was "Like Minded Institutions," and I guess the question there is, in your opinion, how do you think those four teams are different from say a St. Cloud State or a Minnesota Duluth which were invited to the NCHC?
Gwoz: Well, you know the only thing I will say is this had nothing to do with on-ice performance. [pause] You know, this had nothing to do with, you know, what team is more competitive one year versus the next year. It had nothing to do with on-ice performance, it had nothing to do, as far as I know from the administration, it had nothing to do with who's a better coach, who's got better team from one year to the next, who has better players, or anything like that. It was more about as the schools that were a part of this group said that, "Like Minded Institutions." And you can take it for what you will.
Moose: [Pause] In your recent trip here to Bemidji you felt that they demonstrated a high commitment to hockey, the new facility is very high class. Does BSU, or what do you think BSU doesn't have that would fit with that "Like Minded" mentality.
Gwoz: Well you know, Moose, I'll be really honest with you. Not that I want to avoid answering your question, but you know, both BSU and Denver have a really big series coming up this weekend. And what's happening a year and a ... what is gonna be happening this weekend. We look at what, how Walsh has played in net for them. And how well George is playing, and Walters is playing, and Bradey Hunt. We've got our hands full with a very good team that continues to get better and better. We're a team that is trying to figure out how do we need to play to be more successful. We're hoping to get a couple more guys back into the lineup this weekend. This is a huge, huge weekend for us, and I would assume, for the Beavers as well. So to waste time talking about what is happening a year or two from now, I think, is really not going to do anything for the build up of this coming series.
Moose: Well, unfortunately, I don't get an opportunity to talk to you on a regular basis, so this was my chance. I appreciate you do taking the time to answer my questions. Good luck against BSU, George, and if we have the opportunity to talk in the playoffs hopefully we get another chance to talk.
Gwoz: I look forward to that. Thanks.
Moose: George Gwozdecky, Head Coach of the Denver Pioneers, as BSU on the road this weekend. We'll come back, wrap up the program in a moment. Next on the BUN. And online of course and KBUNam.com
[Music Interlude]
Co-Host: Welcome Back. College Hockey Tonight. KBUN Sports Radio AM 1450 and on KBUNam.com. So you can rewind and make sure you heard that correctly out of George Gwozdecky, dancing around Moose's, well definitely, last question there. My goodness 'Let's not talk about what's happening a year and a half from now Moose.' Well, I think it's an opportunity, I know he was up here, and, he. [pause] And I know Moose you weren't trying to set him up, I know it was your intention to eventually ask him about it, but he just happened to praise Bemidji State, and the community and town, and the rink, and everything else. And then it was time to ask him, so that sometimes that just happens when your interviewing. I get it. But, I don't know if we really got an answer there.
Moose: We didn't.
Co-Host: No, Basically he just skirted around the discussion like we've heard so many times in the past. Look, to lay it out simply, as it stands right now, the former WCHA which will be in a year and a half's time, like you said, Tech, Alaska, Mankato, and Bemidji are being replaced by Miami of Ohio and Western Michigan. That's the simple math of it.
Moose: Right, the most frustrating part of that interview, right when he got very upset. I shouldn't say upset.
Co-Host: No, he was very professional about it.
Moose: He was very professional about it. Right when he turned the discussion back to this weekend, the comment he made was 'who care's about what's happening a year and a half from now,' and the one follow up question I wanted to ask...
Co-Host: To be fair, it's on the spot and he's trying to find his way out of it and just move on.
Moose: Right, but the one follow up question to that that I would have liked to have asked ... was 'Maybe Denver doesn't care because they feel like they're in a very comfortable position but Bemidji State was thrown into upheaval, put into a, at the time five team conference needing to find additional members to save the WCHA. There is concern about attendance here in town. Yeah, frankly, we care in Bemidji.
Co-Host: It comes off as elitist and self-centered. It does.
Moose: Absolutely it does.
Co-Host: And North Dakota and Denver were at the heart of this thing.
Moose: Exactly. And that's why I said, "You have been, George, one of the feature players in this. There was a video put out on YouTube about 'This is the NCHC, look how great we are' and George was featured predominately in that video. So yeah, that was the one follow up question that if I would have been able I would have liked to have asked.
Co-Host and Moose: [Banter about WCHA and NCHC]
IMO, it is the most scenic area of all the schools in the conference. Well it is not even a contest.
