Why hasn't the hockey coaching search started yet?
The fact that they haven't announced Red retiring yet and nobody connected to the program has said anything about anybody being contacted about the job.
Since Red said pretty explicitly that he would make a decision and announcement after the Frozen Four, I think you're jumping the gun here. And "nobody connected to the program saying anything" is not a good barometer, since there has been some smoke from guys like Spath about possible options and apart from that this is not football where rumors are hard to keep inbounds. College hockey is a pretty small community, if people want to keep things quiet, they can.
But no public search will occur before Red retires, and he hasn't retired yet.
Relax, this isn't college football, Alabama isn't going to hire our preferred candidate if we wait an extra week.
This is what I'm hearing as well...
Yep, there is....I am prepared to do a similar boycott of Michigan Hockey like I did with Michigan football during the end of the Dave Brandon era. This game Red is playing with deciding until the last second to retire at the Dekers banquet is getting old. It is damaging our recruiting. Who wants to play for a program where the coach is 50/50 coming back every season. I know I wouldn't.
Shit or get off the pot. MSU is already over a week ahead of us in the coaching search process.
the very least Red deserves is the opportunity to announce his retirement before some formal search process for his replacement is public, don't you think?
ETA: assuming he even plans to retire.
which is that it's not clear what Red will be doing next year. Maybe Warde is sending out some feelers to big names out there and if he fans on everything then he brings Red back another year. Or maybe Red has said he's not sure he wants to retire
I srsly don't get the angst. First, THE JOB ISNT OPEN -- we still have a coach. How bad would it be to put feelers out there while we have a coach, and a legendary one at that? WTF do you think this is, an SEC school? Second, this isn't football or basketball with zillions of opportunities for the few good coaches. It's a small pool of potential coaches; and I'd think ALL of the good ones are busy right now with the NCAA tournament and/or NHL. Third, we aren't MSU or anyone else who would have an opening. So there's no reason to rush.
So if MSU hires this guy at Umass Lowell that everyone seems to want or the Providence coach while we sit around for a month, you're okay with limiting our available options?
1. MSU demonstrated its commitment to hockey when it retained Tom Anastos last season after one of their worst years ever. Even if Hollis weren't tied up in far more serious problems, I don't think they're interested in that kind of national hire. They certainly weren't before. If they did, I would be impressed and generally pleased.
2. And not heartbroken, because there are multiple good options for Michigan. Good, coaching-based arguments can be made for Mel Pearson, who would probably come if Michigan asked (and that might be the plan).
Gwoz or Cole. My connections in EL would be shocked if it is anyone else.
No idea if this is legit. Cole is a known and sensible if unspectacular candidate. Gwozdecky would be surprising because he was available last time when they should have gone for him; hiring him now would be a significant admission of failure and a weird choice with how old he now is.
How do you know they're not having discussions behind the scenes? But out of respect for Red and his timeline for an announcement, it would make zero sense to go public about an opportunity when there isn't currently an opening.
Hopefully the search begins and ends with this guy.
http://www.collegehockeynews.com/news/2017/03/16_Bazin-Just-May-be-the-Best.php
Or, you know, Nate Leaman or Jim Montgomery.
I tend to think Leaman is the likeliest to jump, because Montgomery and Bazin have stronger reasons (a great and fully committed program, and his home program, respectively) to stay where they are.
Leaman has a national title sure but hasn't done much at all in his other 13 years coaching. He's missed the tournament 9 times. Montgomery is a good coach but he's only been at Denver 3 years. I think Bazin is more likely to jump than Montgomery because Denver is a nice place to live and they have a rich hockey history. UMass Lowell not so much. Just one man's opinion.
Leaman has taken over two programs in Union and Providence that had almost no history of success in the sport and turned them into winners. Union's rise has been continued by his successor, but his last four years demonstrated steady improvement that culminated in an appearance in the NCAA tournament.
He was then hired by Hockey East afterthought Providence after the team had won 18 games total in the previous two seasons. He posted a winning record in his second season and in the four seasons since has made the NCAA tournament every year, including a title (albeit an unexpected one) in 2015.
The guy can coach.
Bazin's credentials are good, too. But Leaman is no slouch here.
I agree that Montgomery is a tough get. If there's a national search, though, he's a guy they should look at.
Why is everyone suddenly in love with Bazin? Literally didn't know the guys name a week ago
Brian's been writing about him since 2014:
Pearson's biggest obstacle to the Michigan job is in Massachusetts, where UMass-Lowell coach Norm Bazin has done even more incredible work. The year before his arrival UML went 5-25-4. They hadn't been to the tournament since 1996. In Bazin's three years UML has been to the tourney every year,—doubling the number of bids in the history of the program—won their first-ever Hockey East title, and gone to their first-ever Frozen Four. He's in his fourth year there and he's already won HE coach of the year twice and national coach of the year once. Possible difficulty: Bazin's a UML alum.
http://mgoblog.com/content/mailbag-dead-yet-duderstadt-days-again-turnaround-timeframe#more
Beat me to the punch with better documentation.
They aren't. Brian has mentioned him as a possibility, and Maizen has latched on with a passion that is impressive.
It's not "love." It is, however, interest. There is interest in a couple of guys, including Bazin, Leaman, and Jim Montgomery. In all cases this interest has been prompted by a combination of their youth and their high level of college hockey success; in the cases of Leaman and Bazin, significant success in programs that don't traditionally win. In Montgomery's case (at least with me) it is top-level success in the best conference in the west, meaning he would presumably be able to handle the westernized needs of Michigan's hockey program.
Stephen feel free to call it a man crush lol.
Haha that's my friend's column. I'm going to tell him he was linked to here.
I do not know.
I have never understood the "let him go on his own time" mentality for ANY coach or ANY player. If the results are not there and the person is damaging either his or the teams reputation it should be easy in the most polite way to say... get the fuck out!!(jk)
Red isn't going to announce until after the hockey banquet. That's where he announced his return last year. He sees that as the official end of the season and (even though he kind of is) he doesn't want to take attention away from the players.
Give it 5 days. If it's still crickets come Monday, I'll join you in a fit of pure outrage.
it occured to me this morning that krimmer would be a great hire. michigan man, fine hockey player in his day (way better than me), smart guy, has coaching experience and has done pretty well. the new NHL franchise in LV hired him last year, but i bet he could be swayed by the maize and blue.
link to article here: http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/las-vegas-hires-kelly-mccrimmon-assi…
I mean we still have a coach, right? Can we let Red retire first?!
a: we have a coach.
b: if you think the a.d. doesn't have a list of potential coaches already (for every head coach on campus, up to and including football and basketball), you really don't understand how an athletic department works.
double post
Brian knows.
For a small subscription fee he will tell you.
Go back and read his post-game comments after our last game of the season. That did NOT read like a man who wants to step down and no way Warde will take him out.
He coming back.