Rau to Sioux Falls

[High Flyer]

If true, this seems like an unusual choice to me.
Is this type of move entirely a players choice?
Is there pressure from someone?
College coach thinks it the right move?
USHL coach thinks it's the right move?
Can it be called selfish on any of their parts?
I know every situation is different but we're all trying to understand how these choices are made. Is there pressure appplied from someone?

It seems to make a lot of sense to me. Just look at what is happening at the college level with only a few kids coming in right after high school, but most coming in after a year or more in the USHL. How many of those guys coming in right a way are actually producing for their program?

Ambroz wasn't going to get a lot of playing time, so playing another year in the USHL was in his & the programs best interest. Does anyone think that maybe Bugstad should have played at least a year the USHL? How about Ness? How about Alt & Holl (though there moves was more of a necessity)

I'll bet Rau had a choice to stay and play another year of high school hockey, but he was probably recently told that he would have to at least play a one year in the USHL before coming to the Gophers. I'm sure the timing of this is all linked with the early signing period last week, as he probably was not offered a scholarship agreement to play starting the fall of 2011. Was this different than what was discussed this spring when he committed? Probably, but I'll also bet they only had a verbal agreement, as things can/do change.

Then there is the NHL draft aspect, which is another view point that may or may not be a driving factor

Not sure if I totally agree with this for the highest end players... and what does it really mean to "produce"? Because for a younger kid to go out there and hold his own (like a sophomore that made 3rd line varsity) in my opinion, is a productive player. Furthermore, playing that younger kid that holds his own is an investment for the next couple seasons - even if he doesn't "produce" a ton of points.

I think you are now just proving Lucias point...why should he waste a year of elgibilty on a (in your words) "younger kid to go out there and hold his own" when he already has a capiable "sophomore" to play that role? "Playing that younger kid is an investment" and Lucia is using the USHL just for that purpose, without giving up a year of eligibility.

[eastsideguy]

Pretty sure the fans of Minnetonka, Wayzata and BSM are standing and cheering this morning

[shakey]

Don will not be mustering much sympathy around EP next time he pulls out his crying towel over NHL roster rapes.

[gerryodrowski]

Don will not be mustering much sympathy around EP next time he pulls out his crying towel over NHL roster rapes.

Does anyone know if Mario Lucia is planning to return to Section 6 participant Wayzata High School this season?

[gerryodrowski]

I don't know - Flintstone is a big EP hockey guy - if he says Rau's going, I highly doubt it's not true, although I know we all wish it weren't. His game is ready for the next level for sure, but it would've been great to get to watch him play one more year at the State Tournament. Either way - good luck to him - we wish him all the best - and we'll still get to watch him play for the Gophers next year!

That may be true, it just seems weird that he played 2 games on the 5th and 6th but didn't play this weekend...

He had to pack.

[DubCHAGuy]

Totally disgracefull... See ya Don ... Welcome Dean

Tough loss for EP as well as HS hockey fans, but IF the 'U' goes in another direction, I would expect the next coach (especially if it's Blais) to be bringing in far fewer HS players than Lucia has over the years.

[keepyourheadup]

Agreed, its the same trap Woog fell into at the end. The pressure to recruit the high profile HS kids at the "U" is tremendous. I'm not a huge Lucia fan but its pretty much damned if does and if he doesn't.

[demongoed]

I have no kids this age, so I'm really in the dark here, but could someone tell me what the significant downside is to a player like Rau, who seemingly was looking forward to spending the last possible year playing with his lifelong friends, staying and doing just that? I agree with many posters here that if his talent is that great that he could be offered not one, but a number of D1 scholarships, what overrode what appeared to be in the ESPN article his dream of playing out his senior year? What is the hurry? In the scheme of things what could a talent like his lose in one year?

[keepyourheadup]

Just my opinion here, Player wants to wear the "M". Coach makes it clear that to get the ice time you want you'll need to play at a higher level first. Choice comes down to what Kyle could expect as a freshman. There just seems no other reasonable explanation. I'm sure he could decommit now and have a deck full of offers on the table by tomorrow.

[High Flyer]

I'm sure he could decommit now and have a deck full of offers on the table by tomorrow.

If he didn't sign a NLI...or if he is willing to lose 1 year eligibility and sit out next year regardless

[MrBoDangles]

What a slap in the face to his former Eden Prarie teammates!!!! I could see making a decision a few months ago, not a week before the season. How many teammates might not have stuck around if they knew he would be gone?

[mngopherfan]

What a slap in the face to his former Eden Prarie teammates!!!! I could see making a decision a few months ago, not a week before the season. How many teammates might not have stuck around if they knew he would be gone?

the funny thing is, usually the kids are the most understanding and levelheaded in situations like this...

[StillAnEagle]

It seems to make a lot of sense to me. Just look at what is happening at the college level with only a few kids coming in right after high school, but most coming in after a year or more in the USHL. How many of those guys coming in right a way are actually producing for their program?

Ambroz wasn't going to get a lot of playing time, so playing another year in the USHL was in his & the programs best interest. Does anyone think that maybe Bugstad should have played at least a year the USHL? How about Ness? How about Alt & Holl (though there moves was more of a necessity)

I'll bet Rau had a choice to stay and play another year of high school hockey, but he was probably recently told that he would have to at least play a one year in the USHL before coming to the Gophers. I'm sure the timing of this is all linked with the early signing period last week, as he probably was not offered a scholarship agreement to play starting the fall of 2011. Was this different than what was discussed this spring when he committed? Probably, but I'll also bet they only had a verbal agreement, as things can/do change.

Then there is the NHL draft aspect, which is another view point that may or may not be a driving factor

Not sure if I totally agree with this for the highest end players... and what does it really mean to "produce"? Because for a younger kid to go out there and hold his own (like a sophomore that made 3rd line varsity) in my opinion, is a productive player. Furthermore, playing that younger kid that holds his own is an investment for the next couple seasons - even if he doesn't "produce" a ton of points.

I think you are now just proving Lucias point...why should he waste a year of elgibilty on a (in your words) "younger kid to go out there and hold his own" when he already has a capiable "sophomore" to play that role? "Playing that younger kid is an investment" and Lucia is using the USHL just for that purpose, without giving up a year of eligibility.

Because this particular player is still better next year as a true freshman, than many of the other current non contributing gopher players - and boy are there a lot of those right now!

[StillAnEagle]

What a slap in the face to his former Eden Prarie teammates!!!! I could see making a decision a few months ago, not a week before the season. How many teammates might not have stuck around if they knew he would be gone?

the funny thing is, usually the kids are the most understanding and levelheaded in situations like this...

but not when they stayed, just because he was going to!!!!!

[High Flyer]

What a slap in the face to his former Eden Prarie teammates!!!! I could see making a decision a few months ago, not a week before the season. How many teammates might not have stuck around if they knew he would be gone?

Back off BoDangs...It's clear to everyone what Rau's intentions where, that was to play one more year of high school and then off to the U of M, but something only recently changed

ESPN article was published Nov. 1 and the interview was probably done the week prior. Rau was schedule to play in the Bauer NIT Nov. 5-7, but backed out only 4 days prior.. its pretty clear when the timming of these discussions began

[stpaul]

If I were an EP follower I'd be disappointed too, but there is no bad guy here. I agree that Kyle Rau could play for the U next year no matter what and he could have his choice of college scholarships. There is also no question that the USHL is a much higher level of play than HS and he will be a better player as a result. I can't blame Don Lucia for steering him in that direction nor Rau and his parents for agreeing.

[seek & destroy]

I have no kids this age, so I'm really in the dark here, but could someone tell me what the significant downside is to a player like Rau, who seemingly was looking forward to spending the last possible year playing with his lifelong friends, staying and doing just that? I agree with many posters here that if his talent is that great that he could be offered not one, but a number of D1 scholarships, what overrode what appeared to be in the ESPN article his dream of playing out his senior year? What is the hurry? In the scheme of things what could a talent like his lose in one year?

I, for one, don't understand the rush but I think there are some obvious reasons why it can occur.

The biggest one is that people want to strike while the iron is hot. Players can have a good or bad year depending on lots of things (injuries, teammates etc.). The top level talent that gets recognized early on needs to stay in the light as much as possible before some other great player takes over. It isn't a question of whether they will get to play at the college level, it's when and how much that hasn't been decided.

Another factor for the real high end players like Rau is the NHL and potential for early recognition there. Playing USHL hockey over H.S. could help them get more early recognition at that level which could mean a lot financially to their career.

A player can stay and complete their Senior year and move on to college and get recognized by the NHL early (Leddy just did it). However, the fact that a player is "talked about" a lot right now makes it very tempting to make decisions to accelerate their hockey so they can prove that they are ready for other levels. Bjugstad and Ness did it by finishing H.S. a year early. Others have gone to the USHL after their Junior year like Rau is going to do. Either way, you are a talked about player that continues to attract attention.

The only sad thing is that some of these guys don't have the success they want or have an unexpected injury and ultimately it seems a shame when they miss out on the simple joys of the last year of H.S. with all their friends.

[MrBoDangles]

What a slap in the face to his former Eden Prarie teammates!!!! I could see making a decision a few months ago, not a week before the season. How many teammates might not have stuck around if they knew he would be gone?

Back off BoDangs...It's clear to everyone what Rau's intentions where, that was to play one more year of high school and then off to the U of M, but something only recently changed

ESPN article was published Nov. 1 and the interview was probably done the week prior. Rau was schedule to play in the Bauer NIT Nov. 5-7, but backed out only 4 days prior.. its pretty clear when the timming of these discussions began

Yes, it is very clear the "timming" was way late for his teammates.

[High Flyer]

What a slap in the face to his former Eden Prarie teammates!!!! I could see making a decision a few months ago, not a week before the season. How many teammates might not have stuck around if they knew he would be gone?

Back off BoDangs...It's clear to everyone what Rau's intentions where, that was to play one more year of high school and then off to the U of M, but something only recently changed

ESPN article was published Nov. 1 and the interview was probably done the week prior. Rau was schedule to play in the Bauer NIT Nov. 5-7, but backed out only 4 days prior.. its pretty clear when the timming of these discussions began

Yes, it is very clear the "timming" was way late for his teammates.

Yea, your right. I bet he thought he could pull a fast one on everybody and do a coverup feature article the end of Oct. with the intentions to con everybody into thinking he was playing senior year at high school, then he had the precence of mind to wait a couple more weeks until the first day of tryouts before he made his announcement. I'm sure he and his family hatched this plan a few months ago....

right bodangs???

[gerryodrowski]

What a slap in the face to his former Eden Prarie teammates!!!! I could see making a decision a few months ago, not a week before the season. How many teammates might not have stuck around if they knew he would be gone?

Slap in the face? Absolutely.

How many teammates would have stuck around if they knew he would be gone? All of them.

[The Exiled One]

Lee Calrissian: "You said he'd be left in Eden Prairie under my supervision!"
Darth Lucia: "I am altering the deal. Pray I don't alter it any further."

[Cowboy]

Totally disgracefull... See ya Don ... Welcome Dean

How is this disgracefull on Lucia's part?

Didn't his brother skip his senior season to play in the USHL also before going on to CC?

I would bet this was Kyles choice, either play this year in the USHL and come to the U in 2011 or play next year in the USHL and come in 2012.

Is it the timing? Practice starts today so it's not like he left E.P. during the season. Don't they have like 3000 kids in their high school? I'm guessing this will just give an opportunity to another kid.

Was it just last year when everyone was criticizing the Benick kid for staying at St.Francis instead of going to the USHL? The loss of Benick to S.F. would have meant a whole lot more than E.P. losing Rau.

[MrBoDangles]

Back off BoDangs...It's clear to everyone what Rau's intentions where, that was to play one more year of high school and then off to the U of M, but something only recently changed

ESPN article was published Nov. 1 and the interview was probably done the week prior. Rau was schedule to play in the Bauer NIT Nov. 5-7, but backed out only 4 days prior.. its pretty clear when the timming of these discussions began

Yes, it is very clear the "timming" was way late for his teammates.

Yea, your right. I bet he thought he could pull a fast one on everybody and do a coverup feature article the end of Oct. with the intentions to con everybody into thinking he was playing senior year at high school, then he had the precence of mind to wait a couple more weeks until the first day of tryouts before he made his announcement. I'm sure he and his family hatched this plan a few months ago....

right bodangs???

After the article it would almost seem that way....... Player, parent, or
coach, the decision was made too late.

Right HighGuy????

[HockeyMN1]

Rau texted his teammates last night and word around EP today is that the gophers screwed him. Said earlier that he could stay his senior year but this weekend told him to go to SF. He should have just played a little hardball with them and started talking to the Souix and I guarantee you Don would have folded and let him stay.

[koho#1]

The "Don" pulled a fast one on EP and the Rau's. First it proves the "Don" is in charge and is trying to prove that he runs a tight ship at the U to help save his job! Second, It will make it easier to convince the future gopher recruits that leaving is the correct thing to do! Nice job Don! Third and most important, it gives his kid a great chance of playing in the State Tournament this year. With EP down Rau, Mario and Wayzata are the clear favorites? If Mario is the no#1 rated prospect in the NHL draft for HS players, why in the world would he play HS hockey? The "Don" is proving to be quite the shrewd ruler at the U! The Rau's should of stood up and called his bluff, worst case had this finalized earlier. Not good for HS Hockey but as said by other's great for Wayzata and BSM!!