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[Timothy A]

One could say, "Just do everything Johnson did," but she isn't going to be able to attract the same caliber of players as he does, at least a first, so it won't be apples to apples.

Plus she has to have it in her to be just like Mark Johnson. That I think is the biggest challenge for any MJ disciple, or any coach who has a top notch mentor. They all can run the same systems, but the ability or inability to push the right buttons at the right time is what sets every coach apart from each other. Success does make recruiting easier, but personalities also attract or turn off recruits as well.

 

[FiveHoleFrenzy]

How does the SCSU roster today compare to what Idalski inherited? Did he upgrade the talent, or was he just able to get slightly more out of equivalent pieces?

Are there SCSU posters on the forum who could better answer this? I don't remember any.

They have 3 transfers and I believe, 10 freshmen coming in, so lots of change. Could be a bit of a struggle for them to maintain what level of improvement they had under him. It did seem like he was able to get a little more out of what he had compared to previous coaches.

 

[rika88]

Are there SCSU posters on the forum who could better answer this? I don't remember any.

They have 3 transfers and I believe, 10 freshmen coming in, so lots of change. Could be a bit of a struggle for them to maintain what level of improvement they had under him. It did seem like he was able to get a little more out of what he had compared to previous coaches.

SCSU fan here. It’s difficult to compare the rosters because they lost a lot from last year on D, Gentry a big loss, and in net with Ahola. TBD on portal adds but initially it appears less than the previous couple seasons. Most of the contributors brought in during the Idalski era are Euro or from the portal.

IMO his biggest impact was changing the culture to very hardworking and professional compared to previous and installing a solid team defensive system in front of elite goaltending. I didn’t check stats but my guess is offensively they were not much better if any.


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[FiveHoleFrenzy]

SCSU fan here. It’s difficult to compare the rosters because they lost a lot from last year on D, Gentry a big loss, and in net with Ahola. TBD on portal adds but initially it appears less than the previous couple seasons. Most of the contributors brought in during the Idalski era are Euro or from the portal.

IMO his biggest impact was changing the culture to very hardworking and professional compared to previous and installing a solid team defensive system in front of elite goaltending. I didn’t check stats but my guess is offensively they were not much better if any.


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Thank you for the input...Welcome to the forum. Good to see a SCSU poster on here.

 

[Timothy A]

Thank you for the input...Welcome to the forum. Good to see a SCSU poster on here.

Absolutely. Don't be a stranger. We all love fan perspectives from each of the teams in the league, except for maybe one.

 

[PSUfan]

IMO his biggest impact was changing the culture to very hardworking and professional compared to previous and installing a solid team defensive system in front of elite goaltending. I didn’t check stats but my guess is offensively they were not much better if any.

Article by Nicole Haase on Idalski's hiring by PWHL Vancouver which echos much of rika88's thoughts: https://victorypress.org/2025/06/24/why-i-love-the-pwhl-vancouver-brian-idalski-hiring/

Quoting from the article: "Little had changed with the team or program, but as we'd come to learn from the players, the biggest thing Idalski brought to St. Cloud was belief. That changed the way the players viewed themselves and their team. He taught them how to be confident and believe in themselves, each other and the team as a whole and with that came the knowledge that they belonged playing against the best teams in the country."

 

[Timothy A]

Article by Nicole Haase on Idalski's hiring by PWHL Vancouver which echos much of rika88's thoughts: https://victorypress.org/2025/06/24/why-i-love-the-pwhl-vancouver-brian-idalski-hiring/

Quoting from the article: "Little had changed with the team or program, but as we'd come to learn from the players, the biggest thing Idalski brought to St. Cloud was belief. That changed the way the players viewed themselves and their team. He taught them how to be confident and believe in themselves, each other and the team as a whole and with that came the knowledge that they belonged playing against the best teams in the country."

If you go the the podcast referenced and listen, he sounds defeatist. The players played exactly how the coaches wanted them to in an OT loss to WI and he was throwing up his arms like saying "what else am I supposed to do?! We played so well." How about get better players. That's his job. Easier said than done, but they have great hockey facilities, a beautiful campus and hockey is pretty much king there. If Muzzy can convince players to play in that dump and get little to no attention in the big picture of a football school, then someone should be able to get better players to come to St. Cloud. I don't know, maybe they need to blow it all up coach-wise and start from scratch.

 

[OE2022]

Long time lurker to the forum and SCSU fan. Hopefully the next coach will have the same impact that Idalski had on the program.

 

[JDHack51]

If you go the the podcast referenced and listen, he sounds defeatist. The players played exactly how the coaches wanted them to in an OT loss to WI and he was throwing up his arms like saying "what else am I supposed to do?! We played so well." How about get better players. That's his job. Easier said than done, but they have great hockey facilities, a beautiful campus and hockey is pretty much king there. If Muzzy can convince players to play in that dump and get little to no attention in the big picture of a football school, then someone should be able to get better players to come to St. Cloud. I don't know, maybe they need to blow it all up coach-wise and start from scratch.

You're comparing a Big Ten school to St. Cloud, that's a good one. That's even a stretch coming from you, lol. St. Cloud is hardly a gem with their severe budget issues and lack of campus improvements, even with good hockey facilities. Idalski finally provided some hope for the budget strapped program, so hardly a poor job.

It will be interesting if Jalosuo can leverage her international and MN connections to continue to move the program forward.

 

[Timothy A]

You're comparing a Big Ten school to St. Cloud, that's a good one. That's even a stretch coming from you, lol. St. Cloud is hardly a gem with their severe budget issues and lack of campus improvements, even with good hockey facilities. Idalski finally provided some hope for the budget strapped program, so hardly a poor job.

It will be interesting if Jalosuo can leverage her international and MN connections to continue to move the program forward.

St. Cloud's rink is way better. I can only imagine what kind of dumps the TWSNBN players live in.

Any word on the assistants?

 

[Ditra]

. I can only imagine what kind of dumps the TWSNBN players live in.

I don't think you will ever see the TWSNBN posters on here again to take the bait.