UNH Men's Hockey 2022 Off Season Thread- Goodbye Lake Whitt!

[NCAA watcher]

If the current regime wanted to win over the disenchanted - adding Eiserman and Sadowski would be a great place start. But I’d put those chances low for reasons I won’t even get into, but relate just as much internally strategies as any external factors....

Ironic to think that the fact that they will commit August 1 this year rather than next year will hurt our chances, because this year the coach will still be (checks notes) Sadowski's dad's linemate and Eiserman's brother's coach. Groan.

 

[After the Whistle]

Wildcatdc, all is well, all the Bruin games will be on networks that my expensive “internet has me paying for. All is well, especially if they can go a couple of series deep in these playoffs.

 

[Chuck Murray]

Ironic to think that the fact that they will commit August 1 this year rather than next year will hurt our chances, because this year the coach will still be (checks notes) Sadowski's dad's linemate and Eiserman's brother's coach. Groan.

Telling, isn't it? How "unlucky" for UNH.

 

[Dan]

Blashill is on the market!

 

[NCAA watcher]

We have no AD to do any hiring, and no hockey opening needing hiring, so....

Get back to me on March 8th next year after UNH loses the 7/10 play in game.

 

[Dan]

We could just vote here - a board meeting or the like...

—

There are some big name schools who would be foolish not to kick the tires aggressively on Blashill this season, but let’s hope he wants a season off to re-evaluate his future...

Whoever they target - and if there even is a UNH opening next season - the only potential big fish competition would be Wisconsin. Not sure where else there might be openings. So they delay may be a benefit if the hole doesn’t get too deep...

 

[HockeyRef]

Well done Andrew Poturalski!


Andrew Poturalski has earned the John B. Sollenberger Trophy as the league’s top point-producer and is the fifth skater ever to win back-to-back AHL scoring titles. https://abs-0.twimg.com/emoji/v2/svg/1f920.svghttps://abs-0.twimg.com/emoji/v2/svg/1f3c6.svg He became the first AHL player to hit the 100-point mark since 2009-10 as he recorded 101 points (28G, 73A).

We have a couple of other players who are playing in the AHL right now: Marcus Vela and Patrick Grasso (who scored his first AHL goal last night). Proud of these guys! And, did anyone catch JvR's Sportscenter #1 play with this goal?

 

[Chuck Murray]

We could just vote here - a board meeting or the like...

—

There are some big name schools who would be foolish not to kick the tires aggressively on Blashill this season, but let's hope he wants a season off to re-evaluate his future...

Whoever they target - and if there even is a UNH opening next season - the only potential big fish competition would be Wisconsin. Not sure where else there might be openings. So they delay may be a benefit if the hole doesn't get too deep...

Mildly surprised Yzerman didn't offer Blashill another role in the organization, but it looks like they just decided to clean house entirely, except for Alex Tanguay. The team looked competitive through January, but collapsed in February-March-April, which if we're in a mood to kid around and bust chops, would seem to make Blash a perfect fit for the UNH job.

Most of the talk on the forums I sampled today is pointing towards what's next for DRW - Islanders assistant and former Yzerman teammate Lane Lambert seems to be heading up the speculation, with some longer shots like Quenneville, Larionov and even Fedorov (!) getting some mentions - but precious little on what folks think Blash might do next, other than one guy speculating how Michigan State might be a perfect landing place for him.

I will say, to the extent that UNH fans are mostly resigned to the likelihood of one more season of MS7 mediocrity, the DRW faithful seem to think it's going to take the new coach (and more of the developing youth picked by Yzerman) another year to get back to the playoffs as well. This has pretty much been a wasted decade from a hockey standpoint, time to turn this ship around ...

 

[norbert]

Ah NHL playoff hockey, nothing beats it, especially OT. Do you think DU is sitting in his high grade leather recliner watching PIT vs NYR thinking boy I wish I had a goalie like Casey DeSmith for an extra year as he is keeping PIT in this game?

As for some older posts, if Muszelik can be the real deal you still have to score a goal to win a game. MR had his moments but never was consistent enough for my linking. When he was on his streaks UNH was in games in theory but you knew they could never win a 4-3 game.

 

[Chuck Murray]

Ah NHL playoff hockey, nothing beats it, especially OT. Do you think DU is sitting in his high grade leather recliner watching PIT vs NYR thinking boy I wish I had a goalie like Casey DeSmith for an extra year as he is keeping PIT in this game?

I'm sure Umile has that thought, but in fairness to him, he didn't have any realistic say in the matter. CDS behaved very badly, got tossed out of school, and has since clearly grown from the experience. Clawing your way up from the 'Coast to an active NHL back-up that gets a start in an NHL playoff game is very rare, and speaks to a renewed sense of character that (unfortunately for UNH) went missing a few weeks before the start of his senior season. These things happen. I was initially very critical, but what he's done since that fateful incident has been remarkable.

As for some older posts, if Muszelik can be the real deal you still have to score a goal to win a game. MR had his moments but never was consistent enough for my linking. When he was on his streaks UNH was in games in theory but you knew they could never win a 4-3 game.

Muszelik has a shot at being the best UNH netminder since the aforementioned CDS. Both of the main guys in between since were known for their up-and-down performances, and both haven't gotten past the 'Coast level themselves (I don't think MR got another start after his trade from Reading to Wichita, and does not appear on Wichita's current roster), which only further highlights what an exceptionally challenging road CDS has travelled post-UNH. Kudos.

In retrospect, the CDS incident was probably the death knell for UNH being a middling HEA program, but the earth-shattering off-ice "incident" that symbolically marked the end of UNH's run at the elite FF level occurred 19 years ago, only a month after UNH's FF loss to Minnesota in Buffalo:

19 years after collapse, remembering the Old Man of the Mountain | History | unionleader.com

 

[norbert]

From what I know don’t think MR liked being in the bowels of hockey and took his one game check and went home. He’s back on campus I assume finishing his degree.

While CDS was not an outstanding citizen during his “event” there is definitely more to the story. All blame on him is not warranted and there are other circumstances that are not in the articles. This is a case of guilty until proven innocent.

As for the current CDS was tough to watch him leave the ice. Guessing it’s a groin based on the limp of the ice. Currently listed as DTD

 

[Chuck Murray]

While CDS was not an outstanding citizen during his “event” there is definitely more to the story. All blame on him is not warranted but some certainly was and there are other circumstances that are not in the articles True. This is a case of guilty until proven innocent as always, but the criminal legal threshold differs from program/school eligibility rules.

Just a couple minor adjustments, but yeah, an unfortunate incident for the player and the program.

The player has moved on to bigger and better, so kudos. The program has still yet to recover.

 

[cavbim]

Nailed it.

BC can now take credit for rampant HC salary inflation across HEA, first Luce, now Leaman.

if Umile was real clever hed get a 4 win contract from BC. Then he’d find a way to leverage it to get a pension increase. Or better yet get an extension on his life expectancy to collect it.

 

[NCAA watcher]

Once these spots all shake out we should have a better idea of who UNH can target on March 9th

 

[Chuck Murray]

if Umile was real clever hed get a 4 win contract from BC. Then he'd find a way to leverage it to get a pension increase. Or better yet get an extension on his life expectancy to collect it.

... except BC would get stuck on only 2 or 3 wins, and DU wouldn't be able to "seal the deal". ;-)

 

[Chuck Murray]

Once these spots all shake out we should have a better idea of who UNH can target on March 9th

Blashill isn't going to be available by next March. Maybe UNH will have hired an AD by then???

 

[Dan]

Once these spots all shake out we should have a better idea of who UNH can target on March 9th

One or two of these hires will work, others wont, but they are all pretty uninspired and share a tree with the Souza hire. Lots of likeable guys with obvious ties to their programs, fans on hiring/advising committees and limited proven experience. Hires that generate hope more than optimism. We've seen how that has worked out at UNH. These decisions certainly leave plenty of meat on the bone for a pending UNH search, but they also set a bad precedent for who might be considered...

Despite Hastings/Leaman rumors (leverage plays?) no current HC's really showed any interest in moving to a new job. Very few considerations were extended for high level assistants and proven recruiters without major ties to the university? The final choices seemed pretty zeroed in from the start.

I think the MSU hire gives them a modest ceiling and the chance for disaster. I read on an MSU thread (from a poster I know has connections deep into that department) that Muckalt expressed a desire for that job and was essentially ignored. Would UNH take a chance on an assistant like Muckalt with an even less obvious connection to NH than he'd have in EL?

I'd imagine Brown and Pandolfo will be fine hires - at the very least - but exactly what those ceilings are remain to be seen. I wouldn't fault either decision, though I expected more proven choices. Their success will come down to the things I don't have any insight into in either instance (or are unproven) - belief, confidence, competitiveness, recruiting ability/strategy, player development)...

UNH's immediate connections & radar don't have any shoe in candidates - Ayers? Dean? - and it didn't work out well last time they went that route anyway. I'd love a home run swing at a Blashill type. At the very least they need a deep dive and consideration into any and all candidates, connections be damned (Muckalt, Jackson, Harbinson, Jones, the SHU/Toronto guy you like). A similar plan as the hires made this season will only disappoint me...

 

[Chuck Murray]

I'd imagine Brown and Pandolfo will be fine hires - at the very least - but exactly what those ceilings are remain to be seen. I wouldn't fault either decision, though I expected more proven choices. Their success will come down to the things I don't have any insight into in either instance (or are unproven) - belief, confidence, competitiveness, recruiting ability/strategy, player development)...

UNH's immediate connections & radar don't have any shoe in candidates - Ayers? Dean? - and it didn't work out well last time they went that route anyway. I'd love a home run swing at a Blashill type. At the very least they need a deep dive and consideration into any and all candidates, connections be damned (Muckalt, Jackson, Harbinson, Jones, the SHU/Toronto guy you like). A similar plan as the hires made this season will only disappoint me...

It looks like we remain on the same page. I see the decisions being made by the Boston schools, and all I can see is there is real opportunity for a program like UNH if they are brave and hit the proverbial "home run" with the next hire. The decisions at BU and BC were safe decisions, with parallels to what we went through with Umile's "long goodbye" transition, so there's really not a lot of buzz or "new car smell" for either of those programs, really. I still think UMaine stole a march on the rest of HEA with the Barr hire at this point last season - albeit by way of a tragic situation - and if there was ever an opportunity for UNH to stand out and "jump the line" with a dynamic hire for HC, right about now would be that time. Just like the Carvel-to-UMass hire turned HEA on its ear.

Someone new, someone fresh, someone not afraid to take chances. A modern day Walshy would do just fine with me. The current crop of HEA head coaches sound almost interchangeable at times, and with modern day connectivity and immediacy it's very easy to copycat what is perceived to be profound or successful elsewhere. I think the current UNH HC fell into that trap early in his time in charge, never developed a unique personal style, and as a result gets lost in the recruiting shuffle (IF he even puts himself into "reach" situations in the first place, which is questionable). I always got the impression that MS7 took swathes of his coaching persona equally from Coach Umile and Coach Belichick, without really being either one. And he badly underestimated the demands of the job.

Despite some decent early sourcing, it's looking like UNH is not in any hurry to make their new AD hire, so it looks like the choice will be someone out of the McKinsey mold, who will know all the "right" things to do and say, without really doing or saying anything. And if that's the case - and UNH has that kind of track record - we can expect another HEA clone type to follow after MS7 is shown the door in a year, two or maybe three. And the hole we've found ourselves in after a decade of abject failure will only get deeper, the excuses will only continue to grow, etc.

Even with the current AD 3/4's of the way out to Podunk, his legacy here has never been stronger ...

 

[NCAA watcher]

It looks like we remain on the same page. I see the decisions being made by the Boston schools, and all I can see is there is real opportunity for a program like UNH if they are brave and hit the proverbial "home run" with the next hire. The decisions at BU and BC were safe decisions, with parallels to what we went through with Umile's "long goodbye" transition, so there's really not a lot of buzz or "new car smell" for either of those programs, really. I still think UMaine stole a march on the rest of HEA with the Barr hire at this point last season - albeit by way of a tragic situation - and if there was ever an opportunity for UNH to stand out and "jump the line" with a dynamic hire for HC, right about now would be that time. Just like the Carvel-to-UMass hire turned HEA on its ear.

Someone new, someone fresh, someone not afraid to take chances. A modern day Walshy would do just fine with me. The current crop of HEA head coaches sound almost interchangeable at times, and with modern day connectivity and immediacy it's very easy to copycat what is perceived to be profound or successful elsewhere. I think the current UNH HC fell into that trap early in his time in charge, never developed a unique personal style, and as a result gets lost in the recruiting shuffle (IF he even puts himself into "reach" situations in the first place, which is questionable). I always got the impression that MS7 took swathes of his coaching persona equally from Coach Umile and Coach Belichick, without really being either one. And he badly underestimated the demands of the job.

Past results are not guarantee of future performance. BUT THEY ARE THE BEST INDICATORS.

Souza was undistinguished at recruiting for Brown and U.Conn. So, it has nothing to do with being "fresh" or "taking chances." Walsh connected with recruits at Michigan State for three years, recruiting multiple All-Americans prior to being hired at Maine. Let's not make it seem like personality and brashness is the sine qua non to success. Walsh earned his credits. Souza never did. End of story.

Despite some decent early sourcing, it's looking like UNH is not in any hurry to make their new AD hire, so it looks like the choice will be someone out of the McKinsey mold, who will know all the "right" things to do and say, without really doing or saying anything. And if that's the case - and UNH has that kind of track record - we can expect another HEA clone type to follow after MS7 is shown the door in a year, two or maybe three. And the hole we've found ourselves in after a decade of abject failure will only get deeper, the excuses will only continue to g.

The time table has always been that Scarano has a contract to the end of the May term (maybe even June) so the hire will be then. Just like the BU crowd getting anxious about the lack of immediate results, the new AD will be hired in June, and Souza will be out in March.

 

[Dan]

DeSmith had a real opportunity in front of him heading into the players as a starter, but despite a great performance in game one that's now out the window as his season ended with surgery on a muscle in his core. Really unfortunate...