I congratulate you on getting the extension last summer, so forcing AD Hollis to fire you would probably incur a financial hit. However, I also know you care quite a bit about your alma mater. So do the right thing. The donations are drying up, and local businesses are inventing giveaways to put people in the seats
You said five years ago "this will not be an easy task," and many people just nodded with an assurance that you had the energy and the connections to get this done. I for one bought the "thinking outside the box" track record that Mark Hollis built, and trusted that he had made an insightful decision in hiring you. We heard you talk about the exciting style of play (we will attack attack attack), how your relationships to NHL GM's would make MSU a sort of pipeline to the next level.
What has become clear, though, is that there are essential things missing: there seems to be a lack of fundamentals - or an enforcement of fundamentals, a winning strategy in the third period and when the game is on the line ... whether ahead or behind (how many overtime wins have we seen in the last 5 years, or last-minute goals to tie a game?) and, even more concerning, watching a promising freshman fail to follow the trajectory to become a great junior or senior D1 player.
I could pile on with the lost or switched verbals (Justin Bailey, Brendan Perlini and more), the Josh Jacobs departure (there was more than just academics, folks), and little paper-cut irritations like Josh Norris committing to Michigan. These are part of the landscape, but what should be happening is there should be wins on the recruiting front, and somebody please tell me one of them ...
Jake Hildebrand? There's one in a sense, but it was a case of a nice surprise the night he first suited up. He can't be Superman though, of course. He can't always backstop MSU to victory when we see atrocious turnover after turnover in front of him - the result of either failing to secure a puck or making stupid or slowly executed decisions. This season is an eerie reminder of the fall/winter of 2008, when MSU lost an insane string of games. The difference here is we're basically playing with a healthy team now. And they are your players.
Coach Anastos, I credit you for being creative in creating a good atmosphere for students, or bringing Munn Arena up to modern standards, and I also appreciate your emphasis on conditioning and the training table. But the old "X's and O's" of coaching a D1 team ... that important bit does not seem to be there. Suffice it to say the results you want are not getting any nearer.
I am a season-ticket holder, and want to continue to support this hockey team. It's always exciting to walk into the arena in October for the first time get up for that faint promise of a bold new season. However, it has been a LONG time (2008?) since anything other than Torey Krug has really energized this program for more than just a handful of weekends.
If you love this university (I know you do) and care about the survival of this hockey program, PLEASE do the right thing. I read a quote this morning that you made following last night's game: "we have to do some soul-searching". Search your soul - think about the big picture - and walk away with dignity.
