UNH- How Far West Do We Go?

[Jellsville USA]

It's really fucking embarrassing what you guys have turned into. Sweep in Orono I was like do we suck or is UNH that good? They were pumped coming off the ice. Then the wheels slowly fell off.

I mean what does it take to get rid of Souza? Something like the late Red Gendron (RIP).

I actually didnt give a shit when you guys won in Orono. Why? I figured you would be irrelevant end of the year. Chocked it up to luck or maybe we are just on the fly rebuilding. That's sad. From a Mainer we need you guys to be good too because then it means something. Right now it doesnt mean anything. Something has to change. UNH as a program is exactly what you think: non existent..and as I said earlier..irrelevant.

Rant off.

Boston College blanks Maine, 5-0, to advance to HEA semifinals

 

[Robert Balin]

Don't know if you saw this. Kyle Chauvette joined the San Jose roster for one game as the emergency goalie backup against the Bruins on Thursday.. He signed an ATO. Even though he didn't play it makes him the only UNH player to make it to the Fleet Center good on him.

 

[RossiRules]

How many years left on Souza’s contract? One? Fire him, have an interim season, clean house in the following offseason and bring in a whole new coaching staff. 23 year HEA tile drought, 12 year NCAA appearance drought… How much worse can it get?

The seniors will be missed! Winters a great Captain. Young core… we shall see.

Go ‘Cats.

Lol, you must think you are in North Dakota.

 

[NCAA watcher]

I'm going to have to see a lot more "evidence" of a lack of resources than the fact that:
* UNH does not have a third $75K coach (while referencing that the coaches have a budget to be on the road recruiting for longer periods, which in the past has also been cited as a lack of budget)
* Not mentioning the bigger investments UNH has made to fix its disadvantages, including the jumbletron, shortening the rink, and now the lockerrooms. Either these big investment items were wasted, or UNH has actually provided Coach Souza with millions in resources to "fix" what he believed the problems to be.
* I see no evidence that nowadays one can identify the hotshot recruits any better than 11 years ago when Souza was hired to lead recruiting and put his stamp on the program. I'd argue that hotshots are less important today, with the CHL pool allowing you to see what 20 year olds are out there.
* As noted in the article, UNH had deeper resources 11 years ago when Coach Souza was hired. So, is Coach Souza's decade long lack of success the result, or the cause of the lack of resources?

On that last point, the unwillingness of some to even consider a change -- "let's not fix anything unless we can fix what we think the problem is" -- is baffling.
You could argue whether Coach Souza was viewed in the hockey community as a hotshot "he's going places and I want to play for him" 11 yers ago. But, at a certain point, perception is reality. No recruit, after 11 years, is going to look at Coach Souza and say "I'm going to the Garden for the playoffs."

At worst, you have two problems, and solving one won't solve the second. But, it also may be that solving the first does solve the second. My brother in law likes to quote the "we've tried nothing and we're all out of ideas" line. Sticking with a proven unsuccessful coach rather than giving someone else a chance certainly seems to capture UNH's approach to solving its hockey problem.

As to the argument that you cannot find a good replacement without resources, any good administrator would find out if that is true -- what resources will someone new demand/ require?

And if the answer truly is, as Mr. McMahon anecdotally offers, that UNH just lacks resources to compete in HE, then is not the answer to drop down to the ECAC or AHA? I would like to see those apologizing for the past decade answer that question. If the problem is insurmountable, what is your plan?

And from a overall perspective, I'm baffled by the why there is not an obvious answer. If Coach Souza is a good fundraiser, securing millions from DiLorenzo, that is a great gift. Northeastern had Coach Madigan have a role in its athletic fundraising. Why not create a position for Souza to keep getting funds for a lockerroom, but why does that have to be tied to Souza also coaching? Did the car dealer condition his gift on a lifetime Souza appointment? And is Souza unwilling to advocate for the car dealer giving the money to fund a different coach? Does Souza even want to keep doing this when internally he must know there are better options for UNH? What is the sticking point to moving Souza and his salary into a fundraising role? Shouldn't Souza be allowed to fail upwards even more into administration, and earn a pension, or is his fundraising only a means to force UNH to keep him in a job so he can "prove" that he's a good coach (all facts to the contrary be damned)? I'm sure that someone that loves UNH as much would not tie fundraising to a personal goal.

 

[JB]

I think the hidden item is how much worse would it get if you don't renew MS7 and hire any coach?

Hire the ORHS hockey coach.

How much worse does it get? The team is annually 9th or 10th in HE and wins 4 games after new years.

My question to Mr. McMahon. What evidence do you have to back up that MS7 is a good coach? Were is there anything that points to MS7 ever being a good hockey coach. Even anecdotes from former players, anything. Or is it that you personally like him?

 

[Potluck]

Lots of interesting comments on here about Mikes column on Souza/UNH. Btw, my favorite is Elwood a/k/a JB’s theory that it’s the beginning of a soon to be broad based yet subtle PR campaign to get Souza a new contract. lol.

McMahon literally can get any HE coach or administrator on the tele or get a substantial return text from them whenever he wants. He’s straight up legit. Yet people question his integrity or competence. That’s no surprise to me. The chimps on this Board that claim to have “sources “ simply don’t.

It’s very simple. UNH is not committed to success - academically or athletically. The funding problem Souza is dealing with is hitting the entire school. Full stop.

Mike explained very clearly just how far behind UNH is. There’s no commitment AT ALL to success. UNH hockey is precisely where it should be .

My brother in law likes to quote the "we've tried nothing and we're all out of ideas" line.

Love this. But the key question I have in response: what makes you think UNH sees the performance of the hockey team as a problem? The program is performing precisely to the level of its institutional support. This is what should worry fans the most. And if the institution doesn’t see it as a problem, especially in light of the devastating problems UNH is experiencing elsewhere on campus, things aren’t going to change unless outside forces in Concord intervene.

This is not a problem FoH EVER had to deal with. It’s far more serious. In the FoH days UNH was in much better shape as an institution.

 

[JB]

Also the 3rd paid assistant was a rule change in 2023. Converting the volunteer assistant to a potential 3rd position. So this last year was year 3.

This is the first I have heard of that change and UNH should absolutely be funding that position. If the FoH still existed MS7 could communicate that need. If MS7 went to STH events he could find ways to communicate that need. If MS7 didn't generally hide from and not engage with his fan base we might have known.

BUT...

What is the excuse for the 5 years of bad hockey coaching before the 2023 rule change allowing a 3rd paid assistant?

 

[Potluck]

On that last point, the unwillingness of some to even consider a change -- "let's not fix anything unless we can fix what we think the problem is" -- is baffling.

What leads you to believe UNH thinks there’s a problem in need of fixing? I’m quite serious. Dollar for dollar, UNH is getting precisely what it is paying for with the hockey program. The players are good citizens and perform well in the classroom. Souza is a good man etc..

I really would appreciate your thoughts.

 

[Jellsville USA]

Lots of interesting comments on here about Mikes column on Souza/UNH. Btw, my favorite is Elwood a/k/a JB’s theory that it’s the beginning of a soon to be broad based yet subtle PR campaign to get Souza a new contract. lol.

McMahon literally can get any HE coach or administrator on the tele or get a substantial return text from them whenever he wants. He’s straight up legit. Yet people question his integrity or competence. That’s no surprise to me. The chimps on this Board that claim to have “sources “ simply don’t.

It’s very simple. UNH is not committed to success - academically or athletically. The funding problem Souza is dealing with is hitting the entire school. Full stop.

Mike explained very clearly just how far behind UNH is. There’s no commitment AT ALL to success. UNH hockey is precisely where it should be .


Love this. But the key question I have in response: what makes you think UNH sees the performance of the hockey team as a problem? The program is performing precisely to the level of its institutional support. This is what should worry fans the most. And if the institution doesn’t see it as a problem, especially in light of the devastating problems UNH is experiencing elsewhere on campus, things aren’t going to change unless outside forces in Concord intervene.

This is not a problem FoH EVER had to deal with. It’s far more serious. In the FoH days UNH was in much better shape as an institution.

I get what you’re saying about institutional support, but there’s a piece of this conversation that often gets overlooked: UNH has to see losing hockey as a problem, because the financial structure of the Whittemore Center forces them to.

The Whitt is enormously expensive to operate. The only reason it stays open for hockey is because hockey attendance historically pays the bills. When the team struggles and attendance drops, the arena becomes a cost center instead of a revenue generator. That’s not a philosophical issue—it’s a budgetary one.

Not sure if your aware of this but the Whit was expected to be the Basketball arena as well and was for only one season, but it isn’t, because basketball attendance has never come close to covering the cost of opening the Whitt. If hockey ever stops generating enough revenue to justify the building, UNH wouldn’t be able to open it. That’s the reality.

So even if the institution is dealing with bigger problems elsewhere—and it absolutely is—they can’t just shrug at hockey underperforming. The program isn’t just another team; it’s the only thing keeping a major campus facility financially viable. That alone makes losing a problem they can’t afford to ignore.

Forever Optimistic Fan

 

[HockeyRef]

Well it's quite obvious UNH doesn't have the resources they once had but gee haven't they done what the HC has asked for over the years? (Shrunk the rink etc) Thought that was the main drawback..or at least it was at the time?

If throwing $$ at a problem makes it better then we are 3 to 5 years out from fielding a team that is going to be successful on that theory..and I am all for the needed changes. I would write the check if I could. But I just am not sure that guarantees success.

So riddle me this...explain why Merrimack is playing in a 'legit' playoff game this afternoon when their facilities aren't Agganis (and yes I know they have made changes to Lawler..decent place to watch a game). I respect Mike McMahon and he could easily answer this question as MC is his gig. Love to hear it...

They've also been to the Garden / Regional recently. Oh and we lose to them on a regular basis...quite badly as of late I might add. Could it be...coaching? Is MC a far superior place to get an education?

All I know is many fans are sick of excuses and want to see results. I go back to my premise that 8 years time is enough to clearly demonstrate whether or not someone has what it takes.

 

[HockeyRef]

I get what you’re saying about institutional support, but there’s a piece of this conversation that often gets overlooked: UNH has to see losing hockey as a problem, because the financial structure of the Whittemore Center forces them to.

The Whitt is enormously expensive to operate. The only reason it stays open for hockey is because hockey attendance historically pays the bills. When the team struggles and attendance drops, the arena becomes a cost center instead of a revenue generator. That’s not a philosophical issue—it’s a budgetary one.

Not sure if your aware of this but the Whit was expected to be the Basketball arena as well and was for only one season, but it isn’t, because basketball attendance has never come close to covering the cost of opening the Whitt. If hockey ever stops generating enough revenue to justify the building, UNH wouldn’t be able to open it. That’s the reality.

So even if the institution is dealing with bigger problems elsewhere—and it absolutely is—they can’t just shrug at hockey underperforming. The program isn’t just another team; it’s the only thing keeping a major campus facility financially viable. That alone makes losing a problem they can’t afford to ignore.

Forever Optimistic Fan

Bingo.

 

[Engineers]

I'm going to have to see a lot more "evidence" of a lack of resources than the fact that:
* UNH does not have a third $75K coach (while referencing that the coaches have a budget to be on the road recruiting for longer periods, which in the past has also been cited as a lack of budget)
* Not mentioning the bigger investments UNH has made to fix its disadvantages, including the jumbletron, shortening the rink, and now the lockerrooms. Either these big investment items were wasted, or UNH has actually provided Coach Souza with millions in resources to "fix" what he believed the problems to be.
* I see no evidence that nowadays one can identify the hotshot recruits any better than 11 years ago when Souza was hired to lead recruiting and put his stamp on the program. I'd argue that hotshots are less important today, with the CHL pool allowing you to see what 20 year olds are out there.
* As noted in the article, UNH had deeper resources 11 years ago when Coach Souza was hired. So, is Coach Souza's decade long lack of success the result, or the cause of the lack of resources?

On that last point, the unwillingness of some to even consider a change -- "let's not fix anything unless we can fix what we think the problem is" -- is baffling.
You could argue whether Coach Souza was viewed in the hockey community as a hotshot "he's going places and I want to play for him" 11 yers ago. But, at a certain point, perception is reality. No recruit, after 11 years, is going to look at Coach Souza and say "I'm going to the Garden for the playoffs."

At worst, you have two problems, and solving one won't solve the second. But, it also may be that solving the first does solve the second. My brother in law likes to quote the "we've tried nothing and we're all out of ideas" line. Sticking with a proven unsuccessful coach rather than giving someone else a chance certainly seems to capture UNH's approach to solving its hockey problem.

As to the argument that you cannot find a good replacement without resources, any good administrator would find out if that is true -- what resources will someone new demand/ require?

And if the answer truly is, as Mr. McMahon anecdotally offers, that UNH just lacks resources to compete in HE, then is not the answer to drop down to the ECAC or AHA? I would like to see those apologizing for the past decade answer that question. If the problem is insurmountable, what is your plan?

And from an overall perspective, I'm baffled by the why there is not an obvious answer. If Coach Souza is a good fundraiser, securing millions from DiLorenzo, that is a great gift. Northeastern had Coach Madigan have a role in its athletic fundraising. Why not create a position for Souza to keep getting funds for a lockerroom, but why does that have to be tied to Souza also coaching? Did the car dealer condition his gift on a lifetime Souza appointment? And is Souza unwilling to advocate for the car dealer giving the money to fund a different coach? Does Souza even want to keep doing this when internally he must know there are better options for UNH? What is the sticking point to moving Souza and his salary into a fundraising role? Shouldn't Souza be allowed to fail upwards even more into administration, and earn a pension, or is his fundraising only a means to force UNH to keep him in a job so he can "prove" that he's a good coach (all facts to the contrary be damned)? I'm sure that someone that loves UNH as much would not tie fundraising to a personal goal.

Drop down to ECAC? Not sure if you know but ECAC is sending 3 possibly 4 teams to the tournament this year and sends 3 teams to the tournament every year for the past 10 plus years. UNH would be a middle pack team in the ECAC most years with some years bottom tier. I agree with everything else tho