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UMD - Bulldogs -'11-'12 Season Thread

Re: UMD - Bulldogs -'11-'12 Season Thread

And every other team has players who aren't natives of that state, so clearly every WCHA team is evil. Or something. I don't get it, I don't want to get it, and I'm not remotely interested in this conversation. Have at it. It's all yours. :rolleyes:
 
Re: UMD - Bulldogs -'11-'12 Season Thread

It has nothing to do with Miller not liking MN girls. The top MN players tend to be from the metro region. Top MN HS girls want to be gophers if they are going to play in MN. It's hard to recruit against that and will be increasingly harder if Frost continues on his path of success. Miller tried hard her first years as a coach here and quickly found that it's hard to recruit top girls to a smaller school/ town up in nothern MN. She has a connection to the Canadians because of her connection to the Hockey Canada scene. Just like Johnson recruits great Americans that are Team USA bound, or aren't already there.

Are we really still having this conversation?

Gina Dodge is going to Scholastica to play DIII. I think she'll do really well there. Hard work ethic and three years of great training and playing with UMD. That's happened before on this team, with MN girls, too. Both Hakala and Guzzo went DIII. (Hakala did come back to UMD for her senior year.) Guzzo did really well at CSS.
 
Re: UMD - Bulldogs -'11-'12 Season Thread

rugrats said:
Miller loves the Euros... All about the Euros and yes, she has found much success with them. The big question for her next season will be goaltending, but it appears that she has recruited a Swede from Kim Martin's home town.
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She's about great kids who are great people and that can contribute to the team. Not any different than any other coach.

She actually has recruited two good goalies that will have to compete and push each other for ice time so hopefully that will accelerate their transition to D1.
 
Re: UMD - Bulldogs -'11-'12 Season Thread

skatefast said:
She actually has recruited two good goalies that will have to compete and push each other for ice time so hopefully that will accelerate their transition to D1.
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Yes, I would think that the other one coming in with Canadian U-18 on her resume means that she is not intended as a backup.
 
Re: UMD - Bulldogs -'11-'12 Season Thread

Unfortunately for UMD, high school girls hockey in Northeastern Minnesota has very much gone downhill over the past 3-4 years. It is not nearly what it used to be, and the pool of top D1 recruits has all but disappeared. If you want proof, just look at the records and rankings of teams like the Duluth Northern Stars, Cloquet-Esko-Carlton, Proctor/Hermantown/Marshall and Grand Rapids/Greenway - they are all way down from what they were just a few years ago. Other than demographics and the economy, I don't know why this would be the case.

The far Northwestern part of the State remains relatively strong, but with the possible exception of Warroad - which traditionally has been a UND recruiting hotbed - there are signs here too that the quality of girls hockey all across Northern Minnesota may have peaked. For this reason I believe too that Bemidji State - which in recent years has relied heavily on Northern Minnesota girls - will need to broaden their recruiting base.

UMD has never relied on players from it's own area, and their strategy of pulling in players from Canada and Europe has obviously been very successful in the past. Looking at current trends this will absolutely need to continue for the foreseeable future, if for no other reason than they have no other choice.

Hopefully for Northern Minnesota hockey the recent downward trend is merely cyclical, and some or most of the northern schools can re-establish themselves as top state contenders. If they don't, the vast majority of the top Minnesota recruits will continue to come from the metro area, where the Gophers have a natural advantage.
 
Re: UMD - Bulldogs -'11-'12 Season Thread

skatefast said:
Gina Dodge is going to Scholastica to play DIII. I think she'll do really well there. Hard work ethic and three years of great training and playing with UMD. That's happened before on this team, with MN girls, too. Both Hakala and Guzzo went DIII. (Hakala did come back to UMD for her senior year.) Guzzo did really well at CSS.
Click to expand...

I was going to mention that Dodge will play with her former Bulldog teammate and former high school teammate Stephanie Lenz at CSS, but Lenz isn't listed on their roster for this year. But the Saints also have former INCREDIBLE Bulldog goalie Patricia Elsmore (Sauter) coaching their goalies, so that's kind of cool.
 
JosephPSchmoe said:
I was going to mention that Dodge will play with her former Bulldog teammate and former high school teammate Stephanie Lenz at CSS, but Lenz isn't listed on their roster for this year. But the Saints also have former INCREDIBLE Bulldog goalie Patricia Elsmore (Sauter) coaching their goalies, so that's kind of cool.
Click to expand...

It sounds like CSS is where upper classmen from UMD go to finish out their careers. At least upperclassmen from northern MN.
So that makes UMD, Scholastica's feeder program?
 
Re: UMD - Bulldogs -'11-'12 Season Thread

D2D said:
Unfortunately for UMD, high school girls hockey in Northeastern Minnesota has very much gone downhill over the past 3-4 years. It is not nearly what it used to be, and the pool of top D1 recruits has all but disappeared. If you want proof, just look at the records and rankings of teams like the Duluth Northern Stars, Cloquet-Esko-Carlton, Proctor/Hermantown/Marshall and Grand Rapids/Greenway - they are all way down from what they were just a few years ago. Other than demographics and the economy, I don't know why this would be the case.
Click to expand...

Great observation, D2D. And I agree, the stronger schools like BSU and UND become, the competition gets that much harder for recruiting.

I have utmost respect for girls like Hakala, Lenz, Guzzo and now Dodge and Turner that transfer to D111. It can't be an easy choice given how sometimes we D1 fans can turn our nose up at D111 programs. I think it's great that they can go there and contribute and make an impact immediately. Bottom line is, once a Bulldog, always a Bulldog. I look forward to reading about them in the headlines.
 
Re: UMD - Bulldogs -'11-'12 Season Thread

As long as I'm at it, when is the best time to start the Off-season Thread? Because that's what this latest discussion is, right? I'd hate to commit some wrong doing and be verbally attacked by the Czar of the Boards.
 
Re: UMD - Bulldogs -'11-'12 Season Thread

skatefast said:
As long as I'm at it, when is the best time to start the Off-season Thread? Because that's what this latest discussion is, right? I'd hate to commit some wrong doing and be verbally attacked by the Czar of the Boards.
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Technically, the season IS over . . . . so by definition, I'd think we're officially in the "Off-season". I'm all for a new thread since the Gophers are present in most of the recent news!! :eek:;)

Some might say that good manners might dictate that we wait until we get a list of all new recruits (usually some time in June) or some other true "next" season news to start a new thread . . .
 
Re: UMD - Bulldogs -'11-'12 Season Thread

Just a note re: N Mn girls hockey - The Duluth Marshall School is no longer part of Proctor/Hermantown girls HS hockey. Marshall broke away about a year ago and now offers a 14U program. I believe they plan to step up to a 16U program for the 2013-2014 season. Also for the gopher fans, I believe an assistant coach is Whitney Graft.
 
Re: UMD - Bulldogs -'11-'12 Season Thread

D2D said:
UMD women's hockey team seeks fresh start in 2012-13

"Miller, who will scout the World Championships with assistant Laura Schuler, expects to add two recruits to the 2012-13 freshman class."

http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/event/article/id/227267/group/Sports/
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More Euros.... I think that Miller and Schuler are a little concerned after their worst finish in Bulldogs history. I predict that they will drop out of top 10. ;)
 
Re: UMD - Bulldogs -'11-'12 Season Thread

Great to see Wong wearing the "C" for next season. She has a good head about her and will do well with the refs, which seems to be one of the biggest responsibilities of that title. She's an amazing player who is patient and very much a team player. Flanked by the Quebecois girls and Jamie Kenyon, I think this is a leadership group that the could have a great impact on the team.

Is it October yet?
 
Re: UMD - Bulldogs -'11-'12 Season Thread

A young UMD team loses just four players, including scoring leader Haley Irwin, a senior center from Thunder Bay, Ontario, and top goalie Jennifer Harss of Rieden, Germany. Other seniors were winger Kacy Ambroz (who played in a program-record 142 straight games) and goalie Lana Steck.
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Well, he's close. They're not losing four players, they're losing eight (he forgot about Posa, Turner, Dodge and Jaakkola.) But whatever, it's just women's hockey. :mad:
 
Re: UMD - Bulldogs -'11-'12 Season Thread

Based on a conversation I saw on Twitter, I think Madison Kolls of UND might be transferring to UMD. Anyone know anything about this? The convo was between Katie Wilson and Madison. It went like this:
@maddykolls maaaaaaadison. i'm phoneless, message me if you have questions about hockey or school on here or fb! :)
@Katie_Wilson9 kaaatieeeee, thank you I will! When are you coming back?
@maddykolls good question haha. I'm thinking 15th or 16th. when do you move to d town?
@katie_wilson9 I'm actually thinkin about doin it next week so I can get situated... It's only two hrs from me
@maddykolls nice! i'll have to hurry back then
 
Re: UMD - Bulldogs -'11-'12 Season Thread

champ2014 said:
Based on a conversation I saw on Twitter, I think Madison Kolls of UND might be transferring to UMD. Anyone know anything about this? The convo was between Katie Wilson and Madison. It went like this:
@maddykolls maaaaaaadison. i'm phoneless, message me if you have questions about hockey or school on here or fb! :)
@Katie_Wilson9 kaaatieeeee, thank you I will! When are you coming back?
@maddykolls good question haha. I'm thinking 15th or 16th. when do you move to d town?
@katie_wilson9 I'm actually thinkin about doin it next week so I can get situated... It's only two hrs from me
@maddykolls nice! i'll have to hurry back then
Click to expand...

Yes, Madison Kolls is transferring from NoDak to UMD and will be, as per the NCAA rules, red-shirting.
 
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