UNH Hockey 2023 Off Season Thread Turn and Face the Strange

[Chuck Murray]

No, we cannot move on and be happy. The portal, NIL, facilities (hey, we have a Jumbotron!), etc., are just lame excuses for a total fail in recruiting and coaching over the past eight years. Pure and simple.

With you 110%, Snives. Sounds like a rehash of the same old excuses and justifications.

Are we simply to believe that Merrimack has overtaken us because they have a players' lounge??

 

[NCAA watcher]

Not to be to cynical, because of course I'm not cynical, but are we to believe Carfagna committed to UNH believing it had a players lounge, became a super prospect in his two years in the USHL (third-team USHL), still chose to attend UNH (apparently not yet finding out the pictures of the players lounge were doctored), became a near all-HE freshman member, and then chose to exit. All because he realized he'd been duped about having to walk from the weight room to rink.

Or was it that he gained strong affinity for his junior coach who brought him to the USHL championship, and so the ability to play for a coach he likes was appealing, combined with the fact that UNH is now on year 8 of 8th, 9th, 10th and last place finishes?

And are we to believe NH native Jamie Dunlop also was unaware of the UNH facilities? Or is it more plausible that Dunlop wanted to play for a successful program, so committed to U.Mass, until his junior play had U.Mass sour on him and cause him to de-commit. He then began to rehabilitate his status in his 20 year old junior year, and found someone willing to take a chance on him, the home-state team. Then he broke out the rest of his 20 year old USHL season, and combined with a promising freshman year at UNH he was again in a position to move upward to a successful program.

Which is why I wondered if one can attribute these two to "I want to play in the Big 10, and not HE" vs. something specific to UNH.

Either way, complaining about the fact that both players were not shackled to UNH and are now free to choose where they want to play seems.......curious? Hence, my surprise that the "portal" is now being cited as a cause of UNH's situation, rather than a symptom of UNH's situation.

Norbert, I'd love to hear how this was presented, to see if my cynicism is misplaced.
Also, which Unis' facilities were compared? I'm sure one can cherry pick successful teams and their facilities, but how does that track for other teams with comparable facilities being able to overcome that. Barr at Maine comes to mind. Northeastern has an old rink, but I assume better guts inside?

 

[HockeyRef]

No, we cannot move on and be happy. The portal, NIL, facilities (hey, we have a Jumbotron!), etc., are just lame excuses for a total fail in recruiting and coaching over the past eight years. Pure and simple.

I am being SARCASTIC.....

 

[Chuck Murray]

Based on today I think there is a significant uphill climb but it is not from lack of effort. There is a lot more behind just what we see that factors in.

I dunno, honestly just reading your account of Souza's comments, it feels like just more of the usual excuses.

I don't doubt he's put a lot of effort into the job. But if he's not focusing on the right things, the effort is wasted.

One point of emphasis I made was these are the items, fundraising, portal impact, ect that would be beneficial to pass along to give STH at a minimum insight.

We can now gauge whether there are improvements made going forward in any of these areas from where they are right now. It's interesting though to observe that while Coach Umile wasn't outwardly a guy noted for his communication skills, he recognized the importance of FOH as part of the program's success, and even protected it when he was in a position to do so. This is a relatively easy fix for MS7, let's see what he does.

And when I say "relatively easy fix", I'm referring to improving communications overall. The hard part - and what would be impressive to me - would be Souza and/or Rich both stepping up and extending an olive branch to the folks at FOH and FOWH, who got shredded and deep-sixed by BS35+ for their extensive and selfless volunteering efforts with the slightest of care and decency. Otherwise, setting up a new FOH/FOWH would be setting up a captive organization basically answering directly to Rich, which I don't think is either necessary OR appropriate.

We did not get into contract talk but he was very personable, forthcoming with information he can talk about, and transparent. As for a pass, that is tough as at the end of the day no matter the sport or the school results do matter.

It's precisely MS7's ability to blow through/set aside the nitty-gritty of tough questioning with his personal charm that worries me most about chances for a further extension. That personal charm should be a weapon in his favor when out on the recruiting trails ... but the problem there is, there are a lot of very personable guys he's up against from other programs AND they all have better records (W-L and player development) than Souza has. And there is a cottage industry of player advisors whose existence is based almost entirely on being able to weed through the pros and cons of those various destinations for the benefit of their player/family clients.

MS7 needs to elevate his reputation there to have any chance at attracting the best players. And unless he can suddenly demonstrate an ability to elevate nondescript players into quality future pros, that's unlikely to happen.

Thanks for giving it a shot, norbert.

 

[HockeyRef]

With you 110%, Snives. Sounds like a rehash of the same old excuses and justifications.

Are we simply to believe that Merrimack has overtaken us because they have a players' lounge??

Absolutely not.

I don't think it's to anyone's surprise that these things that the hockey program wants, are really, needs but NOT the reason they are in the state they are in.
So what are we looking at now? Getting the funds up to build the stuff asked for, and, needed...then what? Another 5 years of what?

Also, STH's are well aware of what Souza's main concern is, the facilities suck, I can't recruit with these facilities, etc. This isn't new. Coaches with alot
less have done well without a hot tub at every locker stall. Again...I agree that things need major improvement at the 'Whitt.

I remember Marty saying that despite Umile's last couple of seasons, it is the 'body of work' that one has to look at and admire (which I agree) so if you look
at the current HC's 'body of work'...what can you say about it? Heck, I wanted, still want to see Souza succeed, always have.

Personally I think some good recruits are coming our way (at least, from what I see from them). Guess once the facilities are upgraded, more will come, right? Kind of
like 'Field of Dreams'...if you build it, they will come...might only be true in a movie. Guess that remains to be seen...

 

[NCAA watcher]

Personally I think some good recruits are coming our way (at least, from what I see from them).

Good to see Ryan Comny voted to the USHL 3rd All-Star Team, much like Damien Carfagna the year before him. Those are the sorts of players that move you out of 10th place.

 

[Darius]

Are you implying in your last paragraph this is what transpired with the former FOH? Of so I think there are a few who would say it was the other way around...if not my apologies.

Not implying. Stating.

I know there are a few...

I was a member of the FOH for several years and my impressions were that they ( meaning Marty and Co.) didn't really like the FOH nor their influence with the thousands of dollars they raised each year.

Can't say who liked or disliked who. The money was a concern.

My hypothesis is a certain previous head coach essentially told the previous AD to leave his Friends of Hockey alone. A certain current head coach either didn't have the political pull or foresight to tell the AD to leave his Friends of Hockey alone. My hypothesis that it is the Athletics Department is based on how wonderful the Athletics Department has always been... I have never experienced them being a customer focused organization.

I'd say it was more that there was an understanding and agreement with Coach Souza that things with FOH woud be different when he became head coach.

Which included a full scholarship for a player..numerous items like lap top computers for the athletic trainers..new carpet for the lockerroom...feeding the team during the winter break...I could go on.

Agreed that FOH did all of these wonderful things.

But I won't because when I outlined how disappointed I was that there was no communication from the AD that the banquet had gone away....at least we got a letter from the AD.

Been wondering about this because the women's team had a banquet this year. Are you saying the men no longer have one? I thought that in the past few years they did, but it was no longer for the general public.

There are most likely two sides to this story..but if anyone wants to discount the huge impact this group had on the welfare of the team...they are sadly mistaken.

Three sides. No one is discounting the positive impact of FOH.

It was a family atmosphere of support. I am appreciative of the few times a year we are able to meet players and express our support directly but it was nothing like it used to be.

Family atmosphere was great 60, 50, 40, 30 years ago. Money is much more a concern with NCAA sports today. Athletic departments and groups that support them must adapt.


The FOH demise has been beaten to death on our threads. AFAIK no one from UNH Athletics or the FOH Board of Directors has posted on the subject so the posts (mine included) are from what we have been told or heard in conversation. What we hear are individuals' perceptions and their version of the truth. The one thing I know for 100% fact is that football has a fan support group and hockey does not. This tells me that UNH is receptive to having fans organize to volunteer time and effort to support teams as long as they are willing to work with the University.

 

[Darius]

Based on today I think there is a significant uphill climb but it is not from lack of effort. There is a lot more behind just what we see that factors in. One point of emphasis I made was these are the items, fundraising, portal impact, ect that would be beneficial to pass along to give STH at a minimum insight.

We did not get into contract talk but he was very personable, forthcoming with information he can talk about, and transparent. As for a pass, that is tough as at the end of the day no matter the sport or the school results do matter.

I don't really think these are excuses, but a reality that must be factored in when recruiting. The other facilities that I saw were pro level and do make an impact, which is also what the guys I talked to said. For example, kids need to practice, then walk to the field house, then back to the Whit. Where for as much of a dump Lawler is, kids can do this all in one facility, walk down for treatment, jump in a hot tub, grab food and go. They were not presented as excuses and it is understood that this is the hand dealt.

 

[HockeyRef]

Good to see Ryan Comny voted to the USHL 3rd All-Star Team, much like Damien Carfagna the year before him. Those are the sorts of players that move you out of 10th place.

He (Comny) had a great season...looking forward to his arrival!!

 

[Felger]

The portal is mentioned a lot, along with the NLI, but I'm not sure how this is a structural disadvantage to UNH.

Even as a non-portal fan I do wonder sometimes what it would have been like here back in the late 90's/early00's if the portal had been around.

 

[HockeyRef]

Darius, thanks for your reply. Agree it's (FOH) thing has been beaten to death here. Am all done talking about it. I have hoped that maybe someone from the group that
had a lot more exposure to it (thanks for your comments Scott!!) would speak on it but, it's done...Interestingly there is / are a faction of fans who should start a new group;
they are highly receptive to Mike Souza's mission and they would be a perfect group to start some kind of new thing...if they wanted to?? Regardless, you won't see
me talking about it again here.

As per the hockey banquet, I have no idea if it happened, is going to happen, etc. Normally the awards that are given out are mentioned but have not seen that as
of yet. I can't imagine they wouldn't have one...just havent seen anything. Maybe it's this weekend but with graduation looming?

Anyway...I need to purge some negative and I guess I've certainly been plenty negative. Need to take a health break for awhile.

I hope everyone has a great summer!

 

[Darius]

I consider myself pretty aware of the college hockey universe, but I must admit I was shocked when I watched Ben Barr's fundraising video and saw how far behind Maine also is in terms of facilities. I mean, when Merrimack has a lounge and Maine doesn't? Credit to Barr and his colleague for taking that empty space and doing something with it, but honestly the attic bedroom that Greg and Marcia Brady fought over might have been better. Should such facilities matter to players/recruiting as much as it does? A lot of us on this board might think it shouldn't, but some of us also think there shouldn't be a portal or NIL. Yet wishing doesn't make it so, it is the world live in today.

With all that has transpired in the past ten or even five years, I don't think 30 year olds, much less the old fogeys (typed with love and including myself) on this board can relate to what is in the minds of today's adolescents. Hopefully the portal activity will decrease as the Covid rules lapse. NIL is not going away. Pretty sure a recent athletics department administrative hire has NIL policies in her job description. A basketball recruit recently tweeted his commitment along with being open for NIL offers. I figured he must be a transfer or big time high school or prep player. Not to diminish him in any way, but nope, just another good player. NIL matters. Teams in larger/major metro markets and the B1G with a television network are attractive to recruits.

 

[Darius]

As per the hockey banquet, I have no idea if it happened, is going to happen, etc. Normally the awards that are given out are mentioned but have not seen that as
of yet. I can't imagine they wouldn't have one...just havent seen anything. Maybe it's this weekend but with graduation looming?

If I could ask Coach Souza one question right now it would be, "Would you please discuss the team's social medial presence and why it seems to lack compared to virtually every other UNH team?"

 

[JB]

Either way, complaining about the fact that both players were not shackled to UNH and are now free to choose where they want to play seems.......curious? Hence, my surprise that the "portal" is now being cited as a cause of UNH's situation, rather than a symptom of UNH's situation.

Is the symptom that the player don't really like the coach (yet)?

I have heard in several places that many of the players just aren't connected to MS7. Is this the Umile background where he had no use for younger players, by there Senior year many of the players were very connected to Umile... aka it took time. Well now with the transfer portal you can't take 2-3 years to form that bond. You can't skate Senior "pluggers" over defensively less responsible yet more talented freshman. Does it need to be a purer meritocracy to keep your talent.

 

[Dan]

Anecdotal evidence and coaching insecurity aside, Ill just leave these significantly researched, insightful and objective articles here...


https://dantudor.com/do-facilities-r...ge-recruiting/

* It's an emotional validation for you, Coach. This is where you spend your days. Your office might be a part of your facility. Your friends who are coaches at other campuses – the one’s who just got their new facility – are the one’s you’re really trying to keep up with. You deserve better, you want the newest stuff, and you don’t want to have to bring another recruit or booster into that old, smelly, outdated locker room. Why? Because you’re the representative of the program, and it doesn’t feel good to represent something old or smelly. Emotionally, you want the new, shiny building.

* Give them a reason to overlook an older facility. If you don’t tell them how to think about something, like your older facility, don’t be surprised when they make-up their own story. And, don’t be surprised if it’s not a flattering one for you or your program.


https://dantudor.com/facilities-just...your-recruits/

* Our national studies show that a program’s facilities – the track, the weight room, stadium, and other areas where they will spend time as an athlete – actually factors very little into their final decision as to whether or not they accept your offer. Yet, facilities and the surroundings are usually one of the things that a coach will primarily focus on in their recruiting; moreover, I’ve seen coaches base their entire recruiting strategy around what they feel those facilities will sell to a potential student-athlete...


https://dantudor.substack.com/p/turn...ys-lemons-into

* As we're talking about how to overcome your facility weaknesses, it starts with NOT having a negative attitude...


https://dantudor.com/ways-to-add-val...ic-facilities/

* Many coaches feel that if they just had better facilities, they would land better recruits. But what recruits tell us is that the quality of facilities is not even one of the top four factors they consider when choosing a school.


--


Miami University built the new Goggin Ice Center in 2006. Similarly to UNH's latest rise, the RedHawks built the foundation for their success while playing in their old building - a building that was subpar to say the least, with locker rooms that didn't even do justice for my own intramural hockey activities. They had seven strong seasons in eight, then despite facilities that match up with just about anyone in the country they nosedived and have yet to recover. It's never been about facilities. It's never been about being in the NCHC. Recruiting and Coaching has fallen off significantly.

When they lost Blashill (McCloskey) they lost the energy and belief in selling the program. If you can't sell a weak facility, you (most likely) cannot sell a good one either. Kids want scholarship money, coaching and development, a vision for their success, a vision for team success, academics, and a team connection (among many other considerations) long before they consider facilities.

As mentioned above, the world view of adults on a message board won't align with those of prospective student athletes - be careful projecting what you think is important on what prospects are looking for. More often then not, they simply want to afford school and be a part of 'something'. That something can be any vision you can come up with to sell, you just have to sell it.

If youre talking about 'having to cross the street to lift' in any other way than 'who gives a $#&%' than its an excuse and in-house perceived weakness. Where do you think the players get these talking points. Its never matter of fact when it's 'we have to do this, but they don't' - its self-pity, frustration and excuse even when projected in a friendly tone. It becomes more your reality and more the players reality every time you speak it.

These have always been and remain excuses. Understand what you have, position it as a strength or an opportunity. Or get out of the way.


* https://miamiredhawks.com/facilities...n-ice-center/8
* https://miamiredhawks.com/facilities...ance-center/10

 

[NCAA watcher]

Is the symptom that the player don't really like the coach (yet)?

I have heard in several places that many of the players just aren't connected to MS7. Is this the Umile background where he had no use for younger players, by there Senior year many of the players were very connected to Umile... aka it took time. Well now with the transfer portal you can't take 2-3 years to form that bond. You can't skate Senior "pluggers" over defensively less responsible yet more talented freshman. Does it need to be a purer meritocracy to keep your talent.

Except as HockeyRef mentioned, players don't have to like the coach, just trust the coach to get them where they want to be. That's playing in meaningful games and getting better exposure. You have to trust the coach is moving forward, and the longer the coach is stuck in the basement, the less you believe his vision of the future. It becomes a death spiral.
Carfagna and Dunlop were not stuck behind senior pluggers. They were given lots of playing time, so I can't believe that would be a factor in their choice to leave. I suspect it is more of what I said in my last post -- they originally chose UNh because it was the best they could do, but now that they have better options, they chose those.

 

[Darius]

Except as HockeyRef mentioned, players don't have to like the coach, just trust the coach to get them where they want to be. That's playing in meaningful games and getting better exposure. You have to trust the coach is moving forward, and the longer the coach is stuck in the basement, the less you believe his vision of the future. It becomes a death spiral.
Carfagna and Dunlop were not stuck behind senior pluggers. They were given lots of playing time, so I can't believe that would be a factor in their choice to leave. I suspect it is more of what I said in my last post -- they originally chose UNh because it was the best they could do, but now that they have better options, they chose those.

The future of college sports. Football and basketball are pretty much there already.

 

[NCAA watcher]

The future of college sports.

The future and past of life.

If you became a better student and had the ability to transfer to a higher ranked school, would you? Most kids do.

 

[Darius]

The future and past of life.

If you became a better student and had the ability to transfer to a higher ranked school, would you? Most kids do.

Yup, of course.

Not to begrudge or deny anyone an opportunity to improve themselves or their situation, but my totally selfish fan perspective is that professional sports should undo free agency. I hate the yearly roster transition. Once that was over and done, college sports remained true with four (once three) years of virtual roster consistency, watching players develop. Pffft. Gone. Combined with increased game times (mandatory time outs, extended television breaks, reviews), a less desirable in person viewing experience (white noise blaring from the PA during timeouts) it pretty much explains my still caring, but having much less emotional attachment to UNH Hockey which was the only college team I followed with passion.

 

[Robert Balin]

UNH picks up D-man out of portal Luis Lindner from AIC. He's from Austria and had 7 assists in 35 games last year. They actually have him listed as D/F.