Re: UNH Wildcats 2012-2013 Postseason Thread
Yeah. My point was just that past success of a team, comprised of different players, does not translate into future success of the same team with different players.
The point is, there is institutional knowledge within a program that goes far beyond how the current cast of players stack up against past teams and their players. A lot of it lies with coaches, some of it lies with returning upperclassmen. All bring their past experiences with them. Wisconsin and Denver have won D-1 titles in the not too distant past, obviously not with the same players, but in large part due to coaching staffs that remain intact from the years when they took the big trophy. It's how teams prepare for/know what to expect as the postseason plays out. It's why "newbies" usually don't come out of the woodwork and win the big trophies first time (or second time) out of the chute, and why there's often a "same old same old" look to the Frozen Four. Success breeds success.
At least Lowell got there last season (AND won a game), so I give them a better chance than UNH at advancing out of the Regionals. It's why I'm just happy UNH gets to play this weekend - to give the young players the experience of a big postseason game (which BTW they haven't experienced in the league tourney since missing the HE Semis two years running now). Sad to say, but after being a postseason "fixture" at the Garden and in the NCAA's for the better part of a decade-and-a-half, UNH hasn't been able to bank on participating in those tourneys lately, and that is NOT going to do them any good come this weekend.

And while the Lowell program is clearly on the rise, they are still "newbies" to this postseason thing TBH, and although I have all the time in the world for what Coach Bazin has accomplished, there will probably be a few more bumps in their learning curve in the near future. Look at Merrimack, their upturn in recent years, and a slight fall-back this year. Not looking to rain on anyone's parade here, but this is just how I see things. Winning doesn't happen by accident. JMHO.