UNH 2025 Offseason: Where in the World is MS7?

[Snively65]

Morning Snives - any chance USNH will ultimately find savings by combining UNH Manchester/CPS and Franklin Pierce Law School (Concord)?

Not sure of the tenant/ownership situation in Manch, but I gotta think USNH owns the Concord property, and there's growing resale value in that area.

Gotta think the folks in charge of the budget(s) will want to avoid closing Plymouth State or Keene State, but it's a pretty big number out there.

I'd still love to see the flagship explore a public/private partnership in Durham, with some retail/residency options and long-term parking solutions in the space currently (under)utilized by the infamous "A" Lot, just over the tracks. All of your spectator sports within a short walk, not to mention the Downeaster with its Boston/Portland terminus accesses being right there. Even the Johnson Theater isn't a huge distance away, although I realize they have closer parking options.

The townies may not love the idea ... but it's kind of isolated to the campus, and most out-of-town traffic could be directed to the Rtes. 4/155 interchange.

Not sure if that ambitious concept fits into the timeline for the budget discussions, but I've been trying to sell this one for awhile, why not now??

“I cannot believe that I am saying this, but that does not sound all that much like a bad idea.” Jerry to Kramer.

Not so sure about the private part of the partnership, especially after the Whitt renaming fiasco.

Overall, I think that Durham and UNH have been good partners over the years, ignoring the odd bonfire of fraternity house furniture on Main Street after Boston pro sports teams’ successes and defeats.

Until the mid-1960s, about the time when Snively Arena was constructed, Durham and UNH lobbied together to get the Rte 4 By-Pass constructed to remove the Sprague oil tanker trucks (Sprague had a port on Great Bay, which is another story) rumbling down Main Street through campus, past T Hall, and up and down the bridge over the RR tracks.

 

[Chuck Murray]

“I cannot believe that I am saying this, but that does not sound all that much like a bad idea.” Jerry to Kramer.

Not so sure about the private part of the partnership, especially after the Whitt renaming fiasco.

Overall, I think that Durham and UNH have been good partners over the years, ignoring the odd bonfire of fraternity house furniture on Main Street after Boston pro sports teams’ successes and defeats.

Until the mid-1960s, about the time when Snively Arena was constructed, Durham and UNH lobbied together to get the Rte 4 By-Pass constructed to remove the Sprague oil tanker trucks (Sprague had a port on Great Bay, which is another story) rumbling down Main Street through campus, past T Hall, and up and down the bridge over the RR tracks.

TDL has also apparently gone into hiding, at his intown island compound in Portsmouth.

You'd think underutilized local journalists might be curious to find out what's happened with the "Complex", eh?

Tony, if you read this, please feel free to reach out on the QT to discuss, please? Confidentiality, etc. I also speak semi-fluent paisan.

 

[Felger]

Overall, I think that Durham and UNH have been good partners over the years, ignoring the odd bonfire of fraternity house furniture on Main Street after Boston pro sports teams’ successes and defeats.

Until the mid-1960s, about the time when Snively Arena was constructed, Durham and UNH lobbied together to get the Rte 4 By-Pass constructed to remove the Sprague oil tanker trucks (Sprague had a port on Great Bay, which is another story) rumbling down Main Street through campus, past T Hall, and up and down the bridge over the RR tracks.

How many others remember when Main Street in Durham had two way traffic?

 

[TheGrouchyCat]

View them as two completely different cuisines. Problem solved.

With Nine Dragons, the Kowloon offshoot at The Brook in Seabrook, I've tried to get in for my non doctor recommended meal of fried Chinese American apps with no success.

No takeout is available and I refuse to wait three hours at the old dogtrack for a meal which will inevitability leave me starving two hours after I eat.

 

[Darius]

TDL has also apparently gone into hiding, at his intown island compound in Portsmouth.

You'd think underutilized local journalists might be curious to find out what's happened with the "Complex", eh?

Tony, if you read this, please feel free to reach out on the QT to discuss, please? Confidentiality, etc. I also speak semi-fluent paisan.

 

[Darius]

How many others remember when Main Street in Durham had two way traffic?

Missed it by a year or two.

A bunch of years ago I was sitting at the bar at Libby’s. It was before the fire so the old Libby’s. Mike was behind the bar. A writer for TNH also at the bar says he’s writing an article about the lighter side of life in the old days on campus, asked if I had any amusing stories. In the moment I couldn’t think of anything I wanted to be associated with. It was going to be published. Mike says, “I’ve got one for you” and tells a tale of how on year one of one-way they used to bet six packs on who could drive the most wrong way laps before getting pulled over by the po-po.

 

[Chuck Murray]

With Nine Dragons, the Kowloon offshoot at The Brook in Seabrook, I've tried to get in for my non doctor recommended meal of fried Chinese American apps with no success.

No takeout is available and I refuse to wait three hours at the old dogtrack for a meal which will inevitability leave me starving two hours after I eat.

Does anyone else find it at least slightly ironic that the latest "gourmet" Chinese place in the area is built on the site of an abandoned greyhound track??

 

[Felger]

Does anyone else find it at least slightly ironic that the latest "gourmet" Chinese place in the area is built on the site of an abandoned greyhound track??

That's just cruel Chuck, but seriously that place is a LOT nicer now then when it was a dog track/otb.

 

[Snively65]

Missed it by a year or two.

A bunch of years ago I was sitting at the bar at Libby’s. It was before the fire so the old Libby’s. Mike was behind the bar. A writer for TNH also at the bar says he’s writing an article about the lighter side of life in the old days on campus, asked if I had any amusing stories. In the moment I couldn’t think of anything I wanted to be associated with. It was going to be published. Mike says, “I’ve got one for you” and tells a tale of how on year one of one-way they used to bet six packs on who could drive the most wrong way laps before getting pulled over by the po-po.

I confirmed that Rte 4 By-pass opened in 1966 (online sources), removing the through-flow of oil tanker trucks and semi’s on Main Street. But I have not been able to confirm when the one-way loop traffic loop began operation. Do you have a year for that, Darius? I am thinking mid- to late-1970s?

Funny story on the Rte 4 By-pass construction, which was walking distance through woods and fields from where I grew up. On Sundays, as restless teenagers without driver’s licenses, we would fire up the one D-9 Cat on site, which had the key left in the ignition, and then drive it about a mile from where it had been left and leave it in the new location. Then, the next weekend, we would fire it up again and drive it to where it had been left the previous weekend, always between the Rte 108 and the Madbury Road interchanges, as we did not dare cross Madbury Road. To this day, that is the only time that I have driven a D-9 Cat.

 

[JB]

OK - Hockey Question

So I am looking at the number of undergraduates leaving for the NHL. Yes, I know a big piece of this is the new CBA which means a team is better to sign after Junior year than wait until after the senior year and take the chance of August free agency.

Unlike 30-40 years ago the NHL sees College Hockey as development route. Google AI (and I am not digging deeper to double check) says in 22-23 it was 33% of NHL players came via College up from 21% in 2002-2003. I will note the percentage of draft collegians has been relatively stable the number of former college players making the show is up significantly. Additionally those players tend to be of the higher skill variety.

SIDE NOTE: doing a little research on this got me to a Wikipedia page on drafted college players. UNH ranks 12th in drafted players and 11th in players making the NHL. Both numbers were shocking to me. Also I noted it looks like Michigan State has the best conversion rate for the teams with a significant number of drafted players 60%. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/College_players_in_the_NHL_entry_draft

To the question probably most targeted at Dan and/or NCAAWatcher.

How much of what we are seeing is recruiting / "feedstock" and how much is "development"?

As an example lets take the BC players Perreault, Leonard and Fowler. How much of the desire to pull them out now is because they have truly developed at BC under Brown vs. they were just freaking talented players and just need to mature a couple years someplace?

I don't see players at UNH developing any longer. The numbers don't climb they are what they are. How much of that is bad coaching vs bad environment vs. just the talent coming in the door. Are players significantly developing in 1-3 years in college?

I remember stories from the past (20 years ago) of UNH getting players with hands that might not be the best skaters. Which was always strange when the Whitt was still a giant lake with super deep corners. Somebody at UNH knew how to "fix" skating issues and that was a bit of a hidden advantage probably allowing UNH to get talent that others were chasing as hard because they had a track record of developing those players.

 

[Robert Balin]

OK - Hockey Question

So I am looking at the number of undergraduates leaving for the NHL. Yes, I know a big piece of this is the new CBA which means a team is better to sign after Junior year than wait until after the senior year and take the chance of August free agency.

Unlike 30-40 years ago the NHL sees College Hockey as development route. Google AI (and I am not digging deeper to double check) says in 22-23 it was 33% of NHL players came via College up from 21% in 2002-2003. I will note the percentage of draft collegians has been relatively stable the number of former college players making the show is up significantly. Additionally those players tend to be of the higher skill variety.

SIDE NOTE: doing a little research on this got me to a Wikipedia page on drafted college players. UNH ranks 12th in drafted players and 11th in players making the NHL. Both numbers were shocking to me. Also I noted it looks like Michigan State has the best conversion rate for the teams with a significant number of drafted players 60%. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/College_players_in_the_NHL_entry_draft

To the question probably most targeted at Dan and/or NCAAWatcher.

How much of what we are seeing is recruiting / "feedstock" and how much is "development"?

As an example lets take the BC players Perreault, Leonard and Fowler. How much of the desire to pull them out now is because they have truly developed at BC under Brown vs. they were just freaking talented players and just need to mature a couple years someplace?

I don't see players at UNH developing any longer. The numbers don't climb they are what they are. How much of that is bad coaching vs bad environment vs. just the talent coming in the door. Are players significantly developing in 1-3 years in college?

I remember stories from the past (20 years ago) of UNH getting players with hands that might not be the best skaters. Which was always strange when the Whitt was still a giant lake with super deep corners. Somebody at UNH knew how to "fix" skating issues and that was a bit of a hidden advantage probably allowing UNH to get talent that others were chasing as hard because they had a track record of developing those players.

Your right, UNH always seemed to get players that would develop from year to year. The days of Bobby Butler. Paul Thompson. Mike sislo ect have disappeared.

 

[Snively65]

Your right, UNH always seemed to get players that would develop from year to year. The days of Bobby Butler. Paul Thompson. Mike sislo ect have disappeared.

Too bad that Angus Crookshank did not stay for his senior year to see if he might have developed further at the Div 1 level. Angus playing in his fourth straight game for Ottawa tonight, his only NHL games this season, with 0 points and 2 SOG so far.

 

[Felger]

I confirmed that Rte 4 By-pass opened in 1966 (online sources), removing the through-flow of oil tanker trucks and semi’s on Main Street. But I have not been able to confirm when the one-way loop traffic loop began operation. Do you have a year for that, Darius? I am thinking early to late-1970s?

Funny story on the Rte 4 By-pass construction, which was walking distance through woods and fields from where I grew up. On Sundays, as restless teenagers without driver’s licenses, we would fire up the one D-9 Cat on site, which had the key left in the ignition, and then drive it about a mile from where it had been left and leave it in the new location. Then, the next weekend, we would fire it up again and drive it to where it had been left the previous weekend, always between the Rte 108 and the Madbury Road interchanges, as we did not dare cross Madbury Road. To this day, that is the only time that I have driven a D-9 Cat.

For some reason 1973 sticks in my mind

 

[Snively65]

For some reason 1973 sticks in my mind

Ha, ha, I must have edited my original post to mid- to late-1970s just after your reply, but you could be right. I was still visiting Durham often until I left Orono for the West in 1974 so one would think that I could remember, although several friends and family members who have been in the Durham area for the duration do not remember either. Maybe Darius will clarify. Sorry for these non-hockey distractions, JB.

 

[Chuck Murray]

I remember stories from the past (20 years ago) of UNH getting players with hands that might not be the best skaters. Which was always strange when the Whitt was still a giant lake with super deep corners. Somebody at UNH knew how to "fix" skating issues and that was a bit of a hidden advantage probably allowing UNH to get talent that others were chasing as hard because they had a track record of developing those players.

A certain Michael Souza (#7) would've fit that description almost 30 years ago. Became a decent skater by the time he left, sadly not good enough for The Show.

 

[Chuck Murray]

OK so this wandered into my e-mail last week, from a certain someone who not too long ago was without question the most accomplished coach in the entire UNH Athletics Department. I got onto his e-mail list when he was a virtual unknown, coaching at SNHU, and working the local grass roots organizations for whatever support he could get OR offer - clinics, game attendance, player references, the whole lot. Mind you, this is a guy who has moved on to bigger and better, first at UNH, and I have no doubt he will carry it forward to NC State. But here he is, still sending out grass roots emails to contacts he developed almost 20 years ago now, and I'm sure I'm just one of several hundreds of folks - if not thousands - this guy is actively working on to grow his latest D-1 program.

Good morning, We are reaching out to inquire about any players that you feel might be a good fit for us here at North Carolina State University for the upcoming Fall 2025 class. We are still very much building a highly competitive roster and are still looking for players capable of coming in right away and starting for a top 25 program in the ACC in the positions listed below. For reference we mostly play in a 4-4(diamond)-2 system.

- Left sided defenders (LB and LCB)
- Right back
- Forward (need someone with size, speed and elite finishing abilities)
- Two-way midfielder (comfortable working in pockets, has athleticism to cover ground and willing to defend)

If you have any players who fit these profiles, or know of anyone planning on entering the upcoming portal, we would love to learn more about them. Please feel free to share player profiles, highlight videos, or any relevant information with me directly at marc.hubbard@ncsu.edu .

Take care and have a great day,

Marc

It seems so simple, would take a minimum amount of effort to generate and carry forward ... and who knows what kind of nuggets he has unearthed over the course of his highly successful career to date? Are there any grass roots hockey coaches who don't have an 03824 ZIP, that the current staff canvases???

 

[Snively65]

OK so this wandered into my e-mail last week, from a certain someone who not too long ago was without question the most accomplished coach in the entire UNH Athletics Department. I got onto his e-mail list when he was a virtual unknown, coaching at SNHU, and working the local grass roots organizations for whatever support he could get OR offer - clinics, game attendance, player references, the whole lot. Mind you, this is a guy who has moved on to bigger and better, first at UNH, and I have no doubt he will carry it forward to NC State. But here he is, still sending out grass roots emails to contacts he developed almost 20 years ago now, and I'm sure I'm just one of several hundreds of folks - if not thousands - this guy is actively working on to grow his latest D-1 program.

Good morning, We are reaching out to inquire about any players that you feel might be a good fit for us here at North Carolina State University for the upcoming Fall 2025 class. We are still very much building a highly competitive roster and are still looking for players capable of coming in right away and starting for a top 25 program in the ACC in the positions listed below. For reference we mostly play in a 4-4(diamond)-2 system.

- Left sided defenders (LB and LCB)
- Right back
- Forward (need someone with size, speed and elite finishing abilities)
- Two-way midfielder (comfortable working in pockets, has athleticism to cover ground and willing to defend)

If you have any players who fit these profiles, or know of anyone planning on entering the upcoming portal, we would love to learn more about them. Please feel free to share player profiles, highlight videos, or any relevant information with me directly at marc.hubbard@ncsu.edu .

Take care and have a great day,

Marc

It seems so simple, would take a minimum amount of effort to generate and carry forward ... and who knows what kind of nuggets he has unearthed over the course of his highly successful career to date? Are there any grass roots hockey coaches who don't have an 03824 ZIP, that the current staff canvases???

ORHS, Durham, NH!

 

[Chuck Murray]

ORHS, Durham, NH!

Definitely in the 03824 ZIP code, you're making my point Snives!

 

[2013hockeyfan]

So bizarre to see so little activity in either direction from UNH in the portal. I expected Conmy to enter but I certainly thought we'd see a couple other forwards join him. And surely I thought they'd at least try and grab another goalie, if nothing else. Going to be a not-at-all surprising lack of experience and skill on the roster that takes the ice next season.

 

[Darius]

Ha, ha, I must have edited my original post to mid- to late-1970s just after your reply, but you could be right. I was still visiting Durham often until I left Orono for the West in 1974 so one would think that I could remember, although several friends and family members who have been in the Durham area for the duration do not remember either. Maybe Darius will clarify. Sorry for these non-hockey distractions, JB.

Looks like 1972 or '73. From the 1973 Durham Annual Report, page 14:

"The mild winter of 1973 allowed a number of projects to be completed. Many trees were removed in order to obtain better sight distances on Mill Road, as well as to remove those dead trees that were determined to be hazardous to traffic during strong wind conditions. The mild winter also allowed time for equipment repair, as well as the painting of truck bodies, Due to the early spring weather, work on the wall near the Town parking lot, sidewalks, landscaping, and the top application coat of pavement were finished in time for the opening of one-way traffic."

Annual report, 1973. Durham, New Hampshire.

I thought it was later and am now thinking this was a story told to Mike Libby as I don't think he was that much older than me. Perhaps he was a Freshman in the first year of one-way traffic.