Opponents and Others 2023-24

[cbuckser]

surprised this hasn't been posted yet.

Clarkson Turns to Alum J.F. Houle as Next Coach

Seems like a solid hire for Clarkson as they get an alum who's been successful (and had just been extended) as HC with Montreal's AHL affiliate.
 Also probably good for the ECAC overall to land coaches thatve reached that level.

Makes me wonder whether Cam Abbott might get a future sniff with us after Casey given he just landed an AHL HC gig himself.

A few days ago I posted that CJ's sudden and late departure totally screws Clarkson. I was entirely wrong. In the matter of a week Clarkson managed to replace, and maybe even upgrade, their coach.

Makes you wonder whether Clarkson is really such a difficult place to win at, given they managed to attract a successful AHL coach.

If that AHL coach weren't a Clarkson alumnus, I'd make the same inference. (Actually, I already agree that Clarkson is a program that is well-positioned to succeed the majority of the time, But I have my own pro-ECAC biases.)

I think Casey Jones and Jean-Francois Houle's decisions to return to their alma maters reveal a lot about how strong former players' emotional ties are to their college programs. Heck, I was a terrible skater and a subpar intramural player, yet I have similar nostalgia and emotional bonds to Cornell hockey. This phenomenon is a significant part of what makes NCAA hockey great.

[BearLover]

surprised this hasn't been posted yet.

Clarkson Turns to Alum J.F. Houle as Next Coach

Seems like a solid hire for Clarkson as they get an alum who's been successful (and had just been extended) as HC with Montreal's AHL affiliate.
 Also probably good for the ECAC overall to land coaches thatve reached that level.

Makes me wonder whether Cam Abbott might get a future sniff with us after Casey given he just landed an AHL HC gig himself.

A few days ago I posted that CJ's sudden and late departure totally screws Clarkson. I was entirely wrong. In the matter of a week Clarkson managed to replace, and maybe even upgrade, their coach.

Makes you wonder whether Clarkson is really such a difficult place to win at, given they managed to attract a successful AHL coach.

If that AHL coach weren't a Clarkson alumnus, I'd make the same inference. (Actually, I already agree that Clarkson is a program that is well-positioned to succeed the majority of the time, But I have my own pro-ECAC biases.)

I think Casey Jones and Jean-Francois Houle's decisions to return to their alma maters reveal a lot about how strong former players' emotional ties are to their college programs. Heck, I was a terrible skater and a subpar intramural player, yet I have similar nostalgia and emotional bonds to Cornell hockey. This phenomenon is a significant part of what makes NCAA hockey great.

I basically agree with you—but if Clarkson is already well-positioned to succeed the majority of the time, what indicates Casey is an above-average coach? In his 12 seasons as head coach, only twice did Clarkson outperform Cornell in the Pairwise. Last year, they finished 37th. The year prior, 32nd.

I don't believe the new NCAA rules are the reason they've regressed. Clarkson did lose a lot of players to the transfer portal, but they also brought in a lot of transfers. And they had several key contributors return for a fifth year (something not allowed for Cornell).

It's hard to make much out of the advanced stats we do have for college hockey, given they don't account for SOS (and Clarkson's schedule has been relatively weak), but Clarkson's CORSI suggests they are a middle-of-the-pack team the past few years—in line with their finish in the PWR. Their save percentage last season was quite bad, but their save percentage the prior year was average. And their shooting percentage was above average each of the past two years. Which is to say, there aren't any signs they got particularly unlucky.

In 2022-23, Clarkson had 6 draft picks on their roster to Cornell's 2. Last year, Clarkson had 7 draft picks to Cornell's 6. So it doesn't look like Cornell has much, if any, of a talent advantage. Clarkson recently renovated its facilities (mentioned in a recent CHN article) and just shelled out a bunch of money for Casey's replacement. So how big is the resource disparity, really?

Two seasons is a small sample, though. And Clarkson had been on a nice run up until that point. It would be interesting to be able to do a deeper dive on what happened the past two years, if only we had access to the stats and information.

Casey is clearly a logical choice to take over Cornell's hockey program. But I would not call it a slam dunk. I am hopeful that Casey can dip into whatever secret sauce Schafer found, because it seems there was some secret sauce responsible for Cornell's comparative success—something beyond the numbers.

[cbuckser]

Casey is clearly a logical choice to take over Cornell's hockey program. But I would not call it a slam dunk. I am hopeful that Casey can dip into whatever secret sauce Schafer found, because it seems there was some secret sauce responsible for Cornell's comparative success—something beyond the numbers.

I think culture and reputation are the key ingredients, and I expect Casey will maintain both. Systems and identity should remain mostly intact, too.

[Swampy]

Casey is clearly a logical choice to take over Cornell's hockey program. But I would not call it a slam dunk. I am hopeful that Casey can dip into whatever secret sauce Schafer found, because it seems there was some secret sauce responsible for Cornell's comparative success—something beyond the numbers.

I think culture and reputation are the key ingredients, and I expect Casey will maintain both. Systems and identity should remain mostly intact, too.

I'd add that Schafer was part of the (perhaps the entire) search committee. Mike's passion for Cornell hockey is no doubt just as strong in looking for his successor as it is in his playing and coaching throughout his affiliation with Cornell. And I trust Mike's judgement about how good other coaches are. So, I am optimistic about Casey as our next head coach.

In Mike We Trust.

[Swampy]

At another school, an alum is hired to be the HC in waiting, replacing the current HC after the 2024-5 season.

Also see here, where the comparison is more in depth.

[RichH]

At another school, an alum is hired to be the HC in waiting, replacing the current HC after the 2024-5 season.

Also see here, where the comparison is more in depth.

If you had to fabricate a name of a generic Notre Dame male athlete for your improv class, nothing you could conjure up would be as spot-on as "Brock Sheahan."

[pfibiger]

Have you ever wondered if it's possible to hate a coaching staff more?

https://twitter.com/MarkDivver/status/1807768879453884881

[abmarks]

Harvard makes what looks to be a  solid hire

https://www.uscho.com/2024/08/07/former-hobey-baker-winner-boston-university-all-american-gilroy-hired-as-new-assistant-coach-with-harvard-mens-hockey-team/

(Hobey winner Matt Gilroy who played at BU, hired as assistant coach)

[ithacat]

Harvard makes what looks to be a  solid hire

https://www.uscho.com/2024/08/07/former-hobey-baker-winner-boston-university-all-american-gilroy-hired-as-new-assistant-coach-with-harvard-mens-hockey-team/

(Hobey winner Matt Gilroy who played at BU, hired as assistant coach)

That sucks. Would love to see deeper NTDP ties at Cornell. Cornell's next hire appears to be solid as well and, hopefully, opens up Minnesota for the men.

[Weder]

Harvard makes what looks to be a  solid hire

https://www.uscho.com/2024/08/07/former-hobey-baker-winner-boston-university-all-american-gilroy-hired-as-new-assistant-coach-with-harvard-mens-hockey-team/

(Hobey winner Matt Gilroy who played at BU, hired as assistant coach)

That sucks. Would love to see deeper NTDP ties at Cornell. Cornell's next hire appears to be solid as well and, hopefully, opens up Minnesota for the men.

I hadn't heard about a new assistant (or even that Russell had left), and Cornell hasn't announced anything, but here is an article about the new coach from a Minnesota paper: https://www.mankatofreepress.com/sports/local_sports/north-mankato-native-leivermann-lands-job-as-assistant-coach-at-cornell/article_2c86bad6-542b-11ef-b030-7302ff6847c8.amp.html

[Swampy]

Harvard makes what looks to be a  solid hire

https://www.uscho.com/2024/08/07/former-hobey-baker-winner-boston-university-all-american-gilroy-hired-as-new-assistant-coach-with-harvard-mens-hockey-team/

(Hobey winner Matt Gilroy who played at BU, hired as assistant coach)

That sucks. Would love to see deeper NTDP ties at Cornell. Cornell's next hire appears to be solid as well and, hopefully, opens up Minnesota for the men.

I hadn't heard about a new assistant (or even that Russell had left), and Cornell hasn't announced anything, but here is an article about the new coach from a Minnesota paper: https://www.mankatofreepress.com/sports/local_sports/north-mankato-native-leivermann-lands-job-as-assistant-coach-at-cornell/article_2c86bad6-542b-11ef-b030-7302ff6847c8.amp.html

Thanks for the link. I particularly like this part:

Leivermann acknowledged that he does have some work to do in terms of learning NCAA compliance rules, the NIL world and other stuff unique to the college game.

I hope Casey has warned him about the Ivy League's version of rules for the college game. Also, while it would be great to have closer ties to the NTDP, having closer ties with the USHL ain't exactly chopped liver.

[abmarks]

Two quotes stood out to me.  This was clearly Casey's hire.

Jones has spent the last 13 years as the head coach at Clarkson, and Leivermann has discussed joining Jones' staff there the past two offseasons. When the succession plan at Cornell was finalized, Jones reached out to Leivermann

.

You kind of got two head coaches at the helm there. Just my ability to sit back and learn there this year will be tremendous," Leivermann said. "Casey was the one kind of spearheading the hire. Just hoping to do a good job this year and to stay on staff for the future and continue to work under Casey."

[ithacat]

I hope Casey has warned him about the Ivy League's version of rules for the college game. Also, while it would be great to have closer ties to the NTDP, having closer ties with the USHL ain't exactly chopped liver.

Not at all...add in deeper ties with Minnesota too. Maybe this gives Cornell a chance with Gavin Kor. A former Shattuck player who was with Fargo last season. Between the WHL, the Minnesota schools, and other Big-10ish schools, he's probably a long shot. Maybe I just like the name.

[Old Red]

In case anyone wonders where, Ben Russell went to Northern Michigan:  https://nmuwildcats.com/news/2024/7/26/ben-russell-named-assistant-hockey-coach.aspx

I have to wonder what all this turnover means to the team next season.  That is a lot of transition in one season.  How will this change the organization of the defense?  We've lost two leadership coaches there.  \\

What specialties does this new coach bring to the team?  Is he here to teach or learn?

[Cop at Lynah]

I've spoken to some of the team members and they all say that they are looking forward to the coaching changes and what they mean for the future of the program