Mike Schafer retiring 2025

[billhoward]

Schafer's record:

Code Select Expand


3 ECAC championships


Ummmmm, 6 ECAC Championships.

Correct.

[BearLover]

I guess Syer understood he wasn't going to be the next head coach, and so he left?

He wasn't the only one who understood this!

This hypothetical person you're thinking of who posted Syer wouldn't be the next head coach—such a person would have more credibility if he didn't, in that very same post, also say Casey wouldn't be the next head coach!

[Dafatone]

I guess Syer understood he wasn't going to be the next head coach, and so he left?

He wasn't the only one who understood this!

This hypothetical person you're thinking of who posted Syer wouldn't be the next head coach—such a person would have more credibility if he didn't, in that very same post, also say Casey wouldn't be the next head coach!

He also never denied my suggestion that he was actually the coach in waiting.

[imafrshmn]

I for one am happy for Coach Schafer. Selfishly I'd like him to stay another decade but he's earned his retirement, and that's a very personal decision that we must honor.

[Dafatone]

Casey's done a lot with a team that I can't imagine is easy to recruit for.

And good for Coach Schafer.

[billhoward]

When Cornell played in the Las Vegas tournament, ah, 3-4-5 years ago, at a pre-game reception for Cornell fans, he joked about liking the Xmas holiday trips to Vegas and Phoenix tournaments because it also game him a chance to look at places to look at for retirement years. It was a joke and I also thought it was on his mind.

Phoenix, also Vegas, are  places that are nice for retirement. The more money you have, the nicer the places are for retiring. If you were Casey, you'd love to have Mike sitting up in the press box as a sign of continuity. But you might not 100% love him there every night. Because when Casey loses a game, we'll all be yapping about how Schafer would've played that team.

[pfibiger]

I guess Syer understood he wasn't going to be the next head coach, and so he left?

He wasn't the only one who understood this!

This hypothetical person you're thinking of who posted Syer wouldn't be the next head coach—such a person would have more credibility if he didn't, in that very same post, also say Casey wouldn't be the next head coach!

https://twitter.com/CHN_AdamWodon/status/1801359099487207457

[abmarks]

here's some more insight on the process from AD Moore, via the Cornell Chronicle.   Clearly Syer knew he wasn't the answer.

https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2024/06/mike-schafer-86-retire-hockey-coach-after-next-season

"When Coach Schafer approached me this past spring about his desire to retire, his focus was to support the current student-athletes and to make sure he left the program in the best possible position," Moore said. "I think, in every way, we are doing that. After agreeing to stay on as head coach for one more season, and with the understanding of my commitment that Mike's successor would be a successful sitting Division I head coach with an uncommon passion for Cornell hockey, Mike and I worked together to develop an impressive list of candidates."

"Casey emerged as the right successor for this esteemed program," Moore said. "This creative succession solution allows us to seamlessly compete to win in the present and plan for the future with our current and future student-athletes top of mind. To have a coach of Casey's caliber be supportive of this approach, and to have a person with his character and deep ties to Cornell be fully enthusiastic about the unique opportunity our plan offers is extraordinary. I am so excited for Mike, for Casey and for our student-athletes and staff."

[David Harding]

here's some more insight on the process from AD Moore, via the Cornell Chronicle.   Clearly Syer knew he wasn't the answer.

https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2024/06/mike-schafer-86-retire-hockey-coach-after-next-season

"When Coach Schafer approached me this past spring about his desire to retire, his focus was to support the current student-athletes and to make sure he left the program in the best possible position," Moore said. "I think, in every way, we are doing that. After agreeing to stay on as head coach for one more season, and with the understanding of my commitment that Mike's successor would be a successful sitting Division I head coach with an uncommon passion for Cornell hockey, Mike and I worked together to develop an impressive list of candidates."

"Casey emerged as the right successor for this esteemed program," Moore said. "This creative succession solution allows us to seamlessly compete to win in the present and plan for the future with our current and future student-athletes top of mind. To have a coach of Casey's caliber be supportive of this approach, and to have a person with his character and deep ties to Cornell be fully enthusiastic about the unique opportunity our plan offers is extraordinary. I am so excited for Mike, for Casey and for our student-athletes and staff."

Can someone help me come up with"an impressive list" of "successful sitting Division I head coach[es] with an uncommon passion for Cornell hockey"?

[Old Red]

Can someone help me come up with"an impressive list" of "successful sitting Division I head coach[es] with an uncommon passion for Cornell hockey"?

Brent Brekke.
Doug Derraugh.

I guess Cornell is correcting an error from some 50 years ago.  Back when Harkness left everyone said it should have been Len Ceglarski, then of Clarkson, over Bertrand.  Let's hope it works out better than this episode of Car 54.

[ithacat]

Can someone help me come up with"an impressive list" of "successful sitting Division I head coach[es] with an uncommon passion for Cornell hockey"?

Ted Donato and Rand Pecknold may fit that definition, though their passion may be a bit more twisted toward/against Cornell. If I think of it as a deeply understood respect for and recognition of the passion that is Cornell hockey then it opens up a bit. Still, it's a pretty short list. Is one even a list?

Should make for a smooth transition and I'm excited to see Casey get some recruiting mojo back. I think when he was last here we were really plugged into St. Mike's, and his top (?) recruit for Clarkson in 25 is a St. Mike's kid. It'll be interesting to see what happens with Jonathan Morello. I think it was also the last time we picked up an Ithaca prospect and started to dip into the USNTDP pool. Of course, things change and Casey may have had very little to do with those things. For now, I just want to enjoy Mike's last ride behind the bench. Should be fun.

[BearLover]

The burning question on my mind is: what happened the last two years at Clarkson? The program was on a very nice run under Casey, until the past two years. The talent was there, but the wins were not. Many players transferred into and out of the school during this time (though, maybe that's just the reality for all the non-Ivies). Hiring Casey would have been a slam dunk in 2022. Two years later, his success at Clarkson looks quite a bit more modest.

Does Cornell have more/better resources than Clarkson? Probably, but without being able to offer scholarships, it's hard to say by how much. I think the quality of recruit at Clarkson under Casey wasn't materially different from at Cornell under Schafer. Was that in spite of Clarkson's disadvantages, or is it a sign Clarkson didn't have that many disadvantages after all?

[Chousnake]

I'm sure an ice hockey recruit would prefer Cornell to Clarkson for numerous reasons both from a hockey standpoint and a college/education standpoint.

[Swampy]

I thought of making this a new thread, but decided against it to prevent thread glut.

With Casey coming in after having been Clarkson's head coach for 13 years, I'd like to know what mistakes he thinks he made at Clarkson and what he would do at Cornell to avoid repeating them.

Similarly, with Mike, I'd like to know the most important things he wants to make sure Casey learns and masters this coming year.

At the end of the season, I'd like Casey to tell us what he learned from working alongside Mike this year. And vice versa.

During this upcoming year, I'd like both coaches to evaluate every aspect of Cornell Men's Hockey -- including recruiting, training, tactics, scheduling, ticketing, etc. -- and come up with a plan to improve it in coming years under Casey.

Perhaps part of the above, they should identify the next Associate Head Coach, after Mike steps down from HC and Casey ascends to be HC.

The university should consider retiring Mike's jersey number, not because of his HOF achievements in the NHL but because of his extraordinary, lifelong contribution to Cornell Hockey.

What other ways of using the knowledge of both men while we have both of them, and of honoring Mike, would you like to see?

[ugarte]

I guess Syer understood he wasn't going to be the next head coach, and so he left?

He wasn't the only one who understood this!

This hypothetical person you're thinking of who posted Syer wouldn't be the next head coach—such a person would have more credibility if he didn't, in that very same post, also say Casey wouldn't be the next head coach!

https://twitter.com/CHN_AdamWodon/status/1801359099487207457

I thank Adam for using the nickname and keeping our Strategic Lowercase R Reserve well-stocked.