Duluth East vs. Duluth Marshall -- 12/16/15 @ Amsoil Arena

[Wet Paint]

Those last two losses by East have dropped them to #42 in PageStat, 33rd in Class AA. That's unprecedented and I've been running PageStat since the 1997-98 season.

Of far more importance is the question; what do they do now? Luckily it's only December so there is time. Before they end up going on the road to Cloquet or Mars Lakeview in the 7AA quarterfinals.

Lee

Having watched him you know he is working on this. It probably looks like the scene from Good Will Hunting when you walk into that classroom and see that chalk board covered in calculations and formulas and him standing there looking it over with a satisfied look on his face. I am sure that ER and GR are feeling pretty good about this run that he is on but I would be worried about him come play offs even if he was the 9 seede. This is probably what he needed to keep the juices flowing and to keep him around for a few years.

[east hockey]

Those last two losses by East have dropped them to #42 in PageStat, 33rd in Class AA. That's unprecedented and I've been running PageStat since the 1997-98 season.

Of far more importance is the question; what do they do now? Luckily it's only December so there is time. Before they end up going on the road to Cloquet or Mars Lakeview in the 7AA quarterfinals.

Lee

Having watched him you know he is working on this. It probably looks like the scene from Good Will Hunting when you walk into that classroom and see that chalk board covered in calculations and formulas and him standing there looking it over with a satisfied look on his face. I am sure that ER and GR are feeling pretty good about this run that he is on but I would be worried about him come play offs even if he was the 9 seede. This is probably what he needed to keep the juices flowing and to keep him around for a few years.

For some reason, I thought of Sheldon Cooper when I read this.

Lee

[Wet Paint]

Those last two losses by East have dropped them to #42 in PageStat, 33rd in Class AA. That's unprecedented and I've been running PageStat since the 1997-98 season.

Of far more importance is the question; what do they do now? Luckily it's only December so there is time. Before they end up going on the road to Cloquet or Mars Lakeview in the 7AA quarterfinals.

Lee

Having watched him you know he is working on this. It probably looks like the scene from Good Will Hunting when you walk into that classroom and see that chalk board covered in calculations and formulas and him standing there looking it over with a satisfied look on his face. I am sure that ER and GR are feeling pretty good about this run that he is on but I would be worried about him come play offs even if he was the 9 seede. This is probably what he needed to keep the juices flowing and to keep him around for a few years.

For some reason, I thought of Sheldon Cooper when I read this.

Lee

Me too when I re-read it.

[elliott70]

Those last two losses by East have dropped them to #42 in PageStat, 33rd in Class AA. That's unprecedented and I've been running PageStat since the 1997-98 season.

Of far more importance is the question; what do they do now? Luckily it's only December so there is time. Before they end up going on the road to Cloquet or Mars Lakeview in the 7AA quarterfinals.

Lee

Having watched him you know he is working on this. It probably looks like the scene from Good Will Hunting when you walk into that classroom and see that chalk board covered in calculations and formulas and him standing there looking it over with a satisfied look on his face. I am sure that ER and GR are feeling pretty good about this run that he is on but I would be worried about him come play offs even if he was the 9 seede. This is probably what he needed to keep the juices flowing and to keep him around for a few years.

For some reason, I thought of Sheldon Cooper when I read this.

Lee

Who does Cooper play for?

[Wet Paint]

Having watched him you know he is working on this. It probably looks like the scene from Good Will Hunting when you walk into that classroom and see that chalk board covered in calculations and formulas and him standing there looking it over with a satisfied look on his face. I am sure that ER and GR are feeling pretty good about this run that he is on but I would be worried about him come play offs even if he was the 9 seede. This is probably what he needed to keep the juices flowing and to keep him around for a few years.

For some reason, I thought of Sheldon Cooper when I read this.

Lee

Who does Cooper play for?

Yikes, I could have gotten banned there. Had a couple of replies and then deleted them. Proof that I do learn, sort of.

[elliott70]

For some reason, I thought of Sheldon Cooper when I read this.

Lee

Who does Cooper play for?

Yikes, I could have gotten banned there. Had a couple of replies and then deleted them. Proof that I do learn, sort of.

I think I read your mind.

But the correct answer is Cal Tech.

[Sats81]

East hasn't avoided playing Class A Denfeld all along, so Marshall's previous Class A status can't be the reason why they hadn't played in more than a decade, until now. Must have been something more to it.

Denfeld is the only A team East plays. No Hermantown either for how many years, why is that also?

Wonder if Randolph thinks they should be playing with the big boys in AA and they refuse to schedule them until they do so.

Yes, that is why he doesn't play Hermantown and didn't play Marshall until this year. He wants to see more Northern AA teams and he knows that's where Hermantown should be. Doesn't want to reward them with a game until they help carry the torch for Northern AA hockey.

"reward" them with a game? This is a joke, right?

[InYourFace09]

Denfeld is the only A team East plays. No Hermantown either for how many years, why is that also?

Wonder if Randolph thinks they should be playing with the big boys in AA and they refuse to schedule them until they do so.

Yes, that is why he doesn't play Hermantown and didn't play Marshall until this year. He wants to see more Northern AA teams and he knows that's where Hermantown should be. Doesn't want to reward them with a game until they help carry the torch for Northern AA hockey.

"reward" them with a game? This is a joke, right?

If you want to play AA schools, move your team up to AA.

[Jeffy95]

Denfeld is the only A team East plays. No Hermantown either for how many years, why is that also?

Wonder if Randolph thinks they should be playing with the big boys in AA and they refuse to schedule them until they do so.

Yes, that is why he doesn't play Hermantown and didn't play Marshall until this year. He wants to see more Northern AA teams and he knows that's where Hermantown should be. Doesn't want to reward them with a game until they help carry the torch for Northern AA hockey.

"reward" them with a game? This is a joke, right?

No

[rainier]

I also thought the idea of "rewarding" Hermantown with a game was stupid at first, but then I thought about it and I agree.

Hermantown has nothing to lose by playing East. The Hawks are an A team, so if they beat the big time AA team, they get all the accolades and can say they were the best team in northern MN. If they lose to East, no one bats an eye, because they lost to a great AA program.

East has nothing to gain. If they win, they don't get a huge boost come seeding time because they beat "only" an A team. And if they lose it's even worse because it was to an A team.

Randolph not playing Hermantown is a compliment to the Hawks. To me it indicates that he thinks they are a threat to beat the Hounds, and I agree. If they were never a serious threat (see: Denfeld), then I imagine they would be playing.

I would love to see at least one DE-Herm game per year, but I can see the reasoning behind not playing it.

[Wet Paint]

I also thought the idea of "rewarding" Hermantown with a game was stupid at first, but then I thought about it and I agree.

Hermantown has nothing to lose by playing East. The Hawks are an A team, so if they beat the big time AA team, they get all the accolades and can say they were the best team in northern MN. If they lose to East, no one bats an eye, because they lost to a great AA program.

East has nothing to gain. If they win, they don't get a huge boost come seeding time because they beat "only" an A team. And if they lose it's even worse because it was to an A team.

Randolph not playing Hermantown is a compliment to the Hawks. To me it indicates that he thinks they are a threat to beat the Hounds, and I agree. If they were never a serious threat (see: Denfeld), then I imagine they would be playing.

I would love to see at least one DE-Herm game per year, but I can see the reasoning behind not playing it.

Years past when Hermantown had some of their good teams and East had some of theirs I thought it would be a fun game to use as a fund raiser for a local charity if you could get all parties to go. Take it to the DECC (at the time) and charge everybody a few bucks and several cans of food to watch. Would have filled the place I think.

[elliott70]

I also thought the idea of "rewarding" Hermantown with a game was stupid at first, but then I thought about it and I agree.

Hermantown has nothing to lose by playing East. The Hawks are an A team, so if they beat the big time AA team, they get all the accolades and can say they were the best team in northeast MN. If they lose to East, no one bats an eye, because they lost to a great AA program.

East has nothing to gain. If they win, they don't get a huge boost come seeding time because they beat "only" an A team. And if they lose it's even worse because it was to an A team.

Randolph not playing Hermantown is a compliment to the Hawks. To me it indicates that he thinks they are a threat to beat the Hounds, and I agree. If they were never a serious threat (see: Denfeld), then I imagine they would be playing.

I would love to see at least one DE-Herm game per year, but I can see the reasoning behind not playing it.

[rainier]

I also thought the idea of "rewarding" Hermantown with a game was stupid at first, but then I thought about it and I agree.

Hermantown has nothing to lose by playing East. The Hawks are an A team, so if they beat the big time AA team, they get all the accolades and can say they were the best team in northeast MN. If they lose to East, no one bats an eye, because they lost to a great AA program.

East has nothing to gain. If they win, they don't get a huge boost come seeding time because they beat "only" an A team. And if they lose it's even worse because it was to an A team.

Randolph not playing Hermantown is a compliment to the Hawks. To me it indicates that he thinks they are a threat to beat the Hounds, and I agree. If they were never a serious threat (see: Denfeld), then I imagine they would be playing.

I would love to see at least one DE-Herm game per year, but I can see the reasoning behind not playing it.

I stand corrected.

[Jeffy95]

I also thought the idea of "rewarding" Hermantown with a game was stupid at first, but then I thought about it and I agree.

Hermantown has nothing to lose by playing East. The Hawks are an A team, so if they beat the big time AA team, they get all the accolades and can say they were the best team in northern MN. If they lose to East, no one bats an eye, because they lost to a great AA program.

East has nothing to gain. If they win, they don't get a huge boost come seeding time because they beat "only" an A team. And if they lose it's even worse because it was to an A team.

Randolph not playing Hermantown is a compliment to the Hawks. To me it indicates that he thinks they are a threat to beat the Hounds, and I agree. If they were never a serious threat (see: Denfeld), then I imagine they would be playing.

I would love to see at least one DE-Herm game per year, but I can see the reasoning behind not playing it.

That has nothing to do with him not playing them. If that were the case then he wouldn't risk losing to Marshall either. There is no rule that says he has to play them even though they're in AA now. How do you think he feels today after the loss last night? It's a lot bigger than risking a loss. He's a smart guy and he knows that Hermantown should be in AA. Like it or not, East is the Premier Program in Northern MN and getting them on the schedule gets you some credibility. He built the program and he's well within his rights to make you earn that first. That's why I said he won't "reward" them with a game. The proof is in the pudding. He scheduled Marshall immediately upon them opting up to AA.

As far as Denfeld, I've heard the same thing about the School District requiring the game. Even if they didn't, this is a rivalry that goes back decades and it would be a shame if they didn't play it.

[rainier]

Sounds good.

I have also wondered the reason they don't play could be because of other possible reasons than just the A/AA thing. My theories are:

1. They totally hate each other, as the whole getting voted out of the LSC probably created some serious bad blood.

2. Their completely different philosophies when it comes to personnel. Randolph will not hesitate to take 9th and even 8th graders from bantams and play them while cutting seniors. (Wasn't this the reason he was temporarily fired?) Randolph is willing to suffer some losses as his talented underclassmen learn as the season goes along.

Plante, on the other hand, has never brought up a bantam kid early (as far as I know), and he seems to always give the nod to the senior if they are close in ability to a sophomore. I think this style is a big part of Plante's belief that they should be considered "small town" hockey. I imagine that this will change as the next Hermantown coach throws open the doors to transfers and plays younger stars more, given that they will likely move up to AA.

[Wet Paint]

Sounds good.

I have also wondered the reason they don't play could be because of other possible reasons than just the A/AA thing. My theories are:

1. They totally hate each other, as the whole getting voted out of the LSC probably created some serious bad blood.

2. Their completely different philosophies when it comes to personnel. Randolph will not hesitate to take 9th and even 8th graders from bantams and play them while cutting seniors. (Wasn't this the reason he was temporarily fired?) Randolph is willing to suffer some losses as his talented underclassmen learn as the season goes along.

Plante, on the other hand, has never brought up a bantam kid early (as far as I know), and he seems to always give the nod to the senior if they are close in ability to a sophomore. I think this style is a big part of Plante's belief that they should be considered "small town" hockey. I imagine that this will change as the next Hermantown coach throws open the doors to transfers and plays younger stars more, given that they will likely move up to AA.

I suppose a lot would matter on who they hire to coach when he goes. One would have to assume that his tenure is getting close to up there. How much longer will he be willing to hang on for 2nd place in state or for that matter how much longer before the parents and school want to "go another way" and he retires. If he wins it all this year you would have to assume he will retire on a high note going out on top. Either way the big question will be who replaces him. Do they promote an assistant coach from the ranks in which case I think that "small town hockey" mentality will stick. Has he been mentoring another person on the fringes who will step in or will they throw caution to the winds and try to bring in a guy with some local connections who is outside of the system now but who made it big (has anybody from Hermantown turned pro yet?) to take the helm? Their program is at the point where if they stick with the small town, local boy but we recruit a kid to fill a hole when we need to, approach I can see Marshall's numbers from Hermantown going up. OTOH, if they bring in a guy who is willing to throw caution to the wind and play a 9th or 10 grader who is better than a 12th grader they could go into the AA ranks and really stir things up. Imagine sitting here trying to figure out an Elk River, East, Grand Rapids, Hermantown seeding system with the likes of Marshall and Cloquet sliding into the mix also. That would be/will be fun.

[Tower power93]

Timer has it another Plante will step in when he retires after the season. Derek Plante played at umd and was a great player.

[Jeffy95]

Timer has it another Plante will step in when he retires after the season. Derek Plante played at umd and was a great player.

Derek would be a great choice. If he's interested I imagine the job would be his. Scott Pionk is another local guy from Proctor who lives in Hermantown now and has one kid left in Youth hockey. He also has the background and experience for the job being a former USHL coach. I don't know how Derek feels about the AA/A thing but his kids are great players so I'm sure he would want to challenge them. There is no doubt Scott would push for AA.