There is not high end talent in this incoming recruiting class. We don't even have a first round pick.
There is not high end talent in this incoming recruiting class. We don't even have a first round pick.
please tell me you’re kidding
There is not high end talent in this incoming recruiting class. We don't even have a first round pick.
Three questions:
- How many first round picks did Quinnipiac have on the 2023 team?
- How many first round picks did Michigan have on their roster last year?
- How did that work out for them?
Tact is the ability to step on a man's toes without messing up the shine on his shoes - Harry S Truman
There is not high end talent in this incoming recruiting class. We don't even have a first round pick.
Three questions:
- How many first round picks did Quinnipiac have on the 2023 team?
- How many first round picks did Michigan have on their roster last year?
- How did that work out for them?
I trust (and hope) that Bob knows what he is doing, but if this team gets off to a slow start, its pretty obvious this will be the narrative as to why both in the newspapers on message boards like this. I'll admit, and maybe I am in the minority here, but I am a bit surprised we haven't seen any larger splashes for recruits than we have. I like what we have returning, but we certainly did lose a lot of talent.
'29, '40, '74, '76, '79, '02, & '03
GPL's Resident Cabin Enthusiast & Cadets Hockey Fan
There is not high end talent in this incoming recruiting class. We don't even have a first round pick.
Three questions:
- How many first round picks did Quinnipiac have on the 2023 team?
- How many first round picks did Michigan have on their roster last year?
- How did that work out for them?
Minnesota isn't built like Quinnipiac or even trying to be. The Gophers build teams on skill and speed, not on age, grit, and keeping opponents to 2 goals a game.
If the Gophers fall short of building their team, it's not like they can flip a switch and play like Quinnipiac.
When was the last time a Minnesota team was the Little Red Engine That Could?
Apparently Mason west is down to MSU and BC. It’s unfortunate that he won’t be a gopher. It makes me wonder a bit though, what’s the big attraction of playing for MSU as a kid from MN (Cullen for example)? They have been awful until the last 2 years. Is it just nightingale?
Either way, I think this team will be a serious contender again in 26-27.
I’ve wondered the same. That’s not a shot at MSU. Obviously it has some great attractions as a B1G school I’m not really sure what they have over Minnesota. As far as programs that’s the real head scratcher. I mean they’re a decent B1G program and they have some history but they’re certainly not the Gophers. I think the main draw has to be Nightingale. At the end of the day we all toured colleges and picked where we wanted to go for different reasons. That could be part of it. Maybe he just really liked MSU and BC.
I would agree the attraction to MSU has to be Nightengale. He seems kind of like of the next David Carle to me. He's got the tie to the NTDP. Not as young as Carle, but they strike me as similar. Seeing the development of Strammel who was lost until MSU, and the growth of Howard would seemingly make this attractive to a young player.
We're not the only team that's flamed out with high end talent recently - BC and Michigan have failed with arguably better talent. Western Michigan certainly didn't play a Quinnipiac style and they were excellent all year in winning the Natty with nothing higher than a 3rd rounder (I believe).
Fun fact (or not):
-
2024 Denver: Featured defenseman Zeev Buium, who was selected 12th overall by the Minnesota Wild in the 2024 NHL Draft.
-
2023 Quinnipiac: Secured their first national championship with a roster comprising players from various draft statuses, emphasizing team cohesion over individual draft pedigree.therinklive.com
-
2022 Denver: Included defenseman Shai Buium, drafted 36th overall by the Detroit Red Wings in 2021. While not a first-round pick, his contribution was significant.
-
2021 UMass: Won the championship with a roster lacking first-round NHL draft picks, highlighting the impact of experienced upperclassmen and team depth.
-
2020: The NCAA tournament was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
-
2019 Minnesota Duluth: Featured forward Riley Tufte, selected 25th overall by the Dallas Stars in 2016.grandforksherald.com
-
2018 Minnesota Duluth: Captured the title without any first-round NHL draft picks on their roster.
-
2017 Denver: Included forward Henrik Borgström, drafted 23rd overall by the Florida Panthers in 2016.
-
2016 North Dakota: Featured forward Brock Boeser, selected 23rd overall by the Vancouver Canucks in 2015.
Here is what ChatGPT returned when I asked about the last 10 NCAA championship winners - my prompt may have been off a little in that I didn't ask for players who became first round picks, only players who were first round picks at the time of the championship. Also, I didn't vet these results, so i'm passing all blame along to the AI Bot if its wrong.
Note: I'm not saying we shouldn't attempt to get the best players we can (we should), and I share concern that the U seems to be getting left behind a little but nonetheless, I found the above interesting.
I think the forward group will do fine. Also like our overall size on D. That said, my biggest concern is seeing how our D do with moving the puck under pressure. Meaning someone that’s a great skater that can evade and still be able to get the breakout going.
We’ve been pretty fortunate in recent years with really good skating D. The group we have this upcoming year may not have that element as much but they’ve got good size and I’m anxious to see how that plays out.
Potter has been a bit of a journeyman and spent older years playing hockey in Wisconsin. Trottier looks like a pedestrian recruit. Spehar had baggage (not his own) which seems as though it made him look elsewhere. I think everyone agrees Berchild is one we would love to have; same with West.
This is not to absolve the staff. They need to close on some of these. I have been consistent in only raising the alarms if this upcoming class - which looks deep with high-end talent - proves underwhelming. We have good talent coming in.
I’ll echo this. If this year’s recruiting cycle goes pear shaped I’ll be raising alarm bells.
2 of Schneider, Fitzhenry, Conboy and Jarvis need to be Gophers. 1 of Geiger and Scott.
There is not high end talent in this incoming recruiting class. We don't even have a first round pick.
Are we really busting out the first round picks are the only talented players argument in 2025? I thought humanity evolved past that.
Kyle Rau and Sammy Walker were 7th round picks. Ben Meyers was undrafted for christs sake.
I think the forward group will do fine. Also like our overall size on D. That said, my biggest concern is seeing how our D do with moving the puck under pressure. Meaning someone that’s a great skater that can evade and still be able to get the breakout going.
We’ve been pretty fortunate in recent years with really good skating D. The group we have this upcoming year may not have that element as much but they’ve got good size and I’m anxious to see how that plays out.
Couldnt agree more. I like the pieces back there but there’ll be a lot of youth. Keeping their head above water in the early months throughout the juggernaut non conference schedule and the start of a Big 10 schedule that will be a crucible this year will be tough but I hope they can find their stride by February.
Potter has been a bit of a journeyman and spent older years playing hockey in Wisconsin. Trottier looks like a pedestrian recruit. Spehar had baggage (not his own) which seems as though it made him look elsewhere. I think everyone agrees Berchild is one we would love to have; same with West.
This is not to absolve the staff. They need to close on some of these. I have been consistent in only raising the alarms if this upcoming class - which looks deep with high-end talent - proves underwhelming. We have good talent coming in.
It feels like you took this post from my brain haha. Those are my exact thoughts. Trottier would have been nice imo, but completely agree on the other 2.
Losing Berchild really stung, and losing West is the first one that really makes me scratch my head and start to worry (not as much as other people lol). The Edina to Gopher pipeline is so strong. To not even have us in the final 5 is a tough tough look.
If three of the five freshman forwards adjust well to the college game the Gophers will be fine. Goaltending is my biggest concern. Airey needs to control his rebounds otherwise Luca will replace him. I'm expecting a NCAA tournament team, but would be surprised if they finish ahead of Michigan State.
Some teams build great teams using mostly undrafted older players with great team cohesion, because they have to. My guess is if Quinipiacs, Mankatos, and Providences of the hockey world could grab early round NHL picks, they would. But they generally cant so they play the cards their dealt. I honestly DGAF what Quinnipiac does for recruiting. I do care how the Gophers recruit relative to BU/BC/MI/UND/MSU/WI/DU.
The Gophers can and should be able to grab a good percentage of those blue chip recruits so it's a bit concerning when they don't. To me, I question why. With both Woog and Lucia, there was a stage in their tenure where they lost the recruiting battles and the team talent dropped off and they became less competitive.
This year the Gophers were out recruited for the high end players they normally have success with. When was the last time they were so unsuccessful recruiting the top end players? Does that mean they won't kill it this year? Obviously not. But I've seen this before and it doesn't always fix itself. With the loss of so many early departures in March, I was hoping to see the staff pivot and use the CHL/WHL to shore up holes in the lineup. That also didn't happen even though it feels like every other blue chip school DID use the CHL/WHL to their advantage.
I'm not calling for anyone's head, but I do have concerns that the Gophers are falling behind on the recruiting relative to their top tier competition.
Is it the staff?
Is it NIL?
Is it random bad luck?
It is random bad luck since 2004🙈
Aloha!
The blue line is unlikely to be dynamic but McLaughlin as opposed to the other options at the bottom of the depth chart should help greatly.
The blue line is unlikely to be dynamic but McLaughlin as opposed to the other options at the bottom of the depth chart should help greatly.
This. floor raised. not going to change the ceiling much but should be less regular white knuckling compared to Phillips at this point in their career
@bertogliat Joy of that we haven’t built the incoming for the expected expenditures. Would have to boot guys out another year versus lose them to bring in these chl guys. Maybe you could’ve asked that of Kvas? But then it’s also pushing out an ntdp kid which has always been more a challenge to do so and you certainly don’t want to put any burn on that pipeline.
The in state class is pretty small of guys who felt like big hits this year. Some of this is an ebb and flow of caliber. Would we feel better had we taken vanek early just to have him written in rather than keep the spot open? Only 4 slots for next year as I don’t see anyone going pro early with mitts x2 Thomas and lamb to seniors.
This all rings true and the other thing to consider is that you have a lot of purists (and I assume this is true even among some of the top boosters though I'm not privy to that info) who want an all MN roster or one that's at least close. So when you lose out on the top MN guys it's even tougher because this program isn't gonna fill the roster with 22 year old Canadian freshmen. They've had some success with the portal in the past but the use of it has been limited, the CHL stuff remains to be seen. It'll be interesting to see what McKenna and some of the other top guys choose to do and if they even end up in the NCAA.Some teams build great teams using mostly undrafted older players with great team cohesion, because they have to. My guess is if Quinipiacs, Mankatos, and Providences of the hockey world could grab early round NHL picks, they would. But they generally cant so they play the cards their dealt. I honestly DGAF what Quinnipiac does for recruiting. I do care how the Gophers recruit relative to BU/BC/MI/UND/MSU/WI/DU.
The Gophers can and should be able to grab a good percentage of those blue chip recruits so it's a bit concerning when they don't. To me, I question why. With both Woog and Lucia, there was a stage in their tenure where they lost the recruiting battles and the team talent dropped off and they became less competitive.
Finn should have a chip on his shoulder for the game in Denver on Thanksgiving
Finn McLaughlin.
All I read is Irish McIrishperson. 😉
Finn first signing with Denver and now the Gophers is a clear indication that Notre Dame has major issues. They had not one but two chances at him. If they can't get Mr. Irish they are in big trouble. 😉 😏 😀
I bet Irish Puck Live is going crazy and will talk about this dramatic miss for years. 😀
Wearing the “M” and to play for an elite program should be recruitment enough with a fist bump at the locker room door. Kids still grow up dreaming of being a gopher, if guys now days need their ass kissed to play here is that the player you want anyway? Ok I’m a few cocktails too many in on a Friday night but just sayin.😁
“Good pace, a lot of north and south, or it could be east and west, I’m not sure but either way…” Wooger
But I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t starting to get a little concerned. It honestly has very little to do with not jumping on the CHL bandwagon. More with missing out on some big names right from our back yard. We can’t have them all but missing out on West, Berchild, Potter, Trottier, Sephar…? Not ideal.
I’m not saying that Bob is a bad coach or that he needs to go. I’m all onboard but that’s more than just one or two big players that we’ve missed out on this recruiting cycle and last. Bob’s supposed to be a solid recruiter and has a track record of developing guys and getting them to the NHL. Combine that with a Minnesota kid, especially one from the Metro, having the chance to wear the M has me kind of confused. Anyone have any actual, level headed insight?
Why are you so sure "wearing the M" is something he cares about? I would bet over half the metro doesn't care about the Gophers all that much.
And even if players do dream of playing for a certain team, that doesn't mean they will automatically take the chance when other great schools are offering. Maybe another school offers more money or better playing time or maybe you have friends on the other teams or maybe there is just too much pressure.
We are in a different era of sports now...we as fans have to accept that "The M" is not going to be enough to just bully our way to a top end roster.
Exactly. I know a lot of us here remember the days where this was true, but, the world of college hockey has changed a lot in the last 20 years.We are in a different era of sports now...we as fans have to accept that "The M" is not going to be enough to just bully our way to a top end roster.
This...so MUCH this!
Exactly. I know a lot of us here remember the days where this was true, but, the world of college hockey has changed a lot in the last 20 years.We are in a different era of sports now...we as fans have to accept that "The M" is not going to be enough to just bully our way to a top end roster.
This...so MUCH this!
With the added exposure/airtime, as in tv/streaming/etc, would a player rather be a 3rd liner for MN, or a 1st liner star for a smaller school? Where would they really get noticed, and have a better shot at getting to the pros?
That's a huge factor, IMO.
When you tell somebody somethin', it depends on what part of the United States you're standin' in... as to just how dumb you are.
There is not high end talent in this incoming recruiting class. We don't even have a first round pick.
But all are talented 3-4 year guys. I would also argue Ludtke, Mooney, and Rombach are high end talent.
If we assume Kvasnicka is coming in, who is the last forward or are we rolling with 14 again?
If we assume Kvasnicka is coming in, who is the last forward or are we rolling with 14 again?
I would assume Kvasnicka is NOT coming in for starters
Way too many people are caught up in the CHL players. Yes, they’re good but top end guys like J. Moore, Mooney, Moe, and on and on and on we got coming in, why ????? This team is fine. Gonna have e to grow as season goes on but my god we are bringing in top end talent!
J. Moore is not a top end guy, not even close. Mooney is, Moe could be. That's about it.
J. Moore is not a top end guy, not even close. Mooney is, Moe could be. That's about it.
Moore had 53 points in 28 games his last year at Tonka, and was drafted in the 4th Rd. He had 39 points this year in the USHL. Pritchard had 53 points in 54 games in the USHL this year. Moe had 43 points in the USHL this year.
Yep, no talent.
Looking down from my High Horse
Morality Police
Not very objective
Javon Moore will likely be a slow burn. Has potential to be a major difference maker as an upperclassman but as a freshman? We’ll see I guess…
We're referring to 39 pts in 56 games as top end now?
We're referring to 39 pts in 56 games as top end now?
Knies had 42 points his 2nd year in juniors. Lamb had 41.
Do I expect Moore to make an immediate impact this year? No. But he is a BIG body who is certainly isn't a stiff and by year 2 will play a large role. Why don't you give the team a chance to see what they have before going all Bonin on the bit. If you are going into the season with a negative attitude towards the team, nothing they will do will make you happy.
Looking down from my High Horse
Morality Police
Not very objective
I think everyone realizes the goal is to have as many Minnesota players on the roster as possible. But if there is anyone out there still expecting all Minnesota roster, they need to come back to reality. It isn't the 1980s anymore. It isn't going to happen regularly.This all rings true and the other thing to consider is that you have a lot of purists (and I assume this is true even among some of the top boosters though I'm not privy to that info) who want an all MN roster or one that's at least close. So when you lose out on the top MN guys it's even tougher because this program isn't gonna fill the roster with 22 year old Canadian freshmen. They've had some success with the portal in the past but the use of it has been limited, the CHL stuff remains to be seen. It'll be interesting to see what McKenna and some of the other top guys choose to do and if they even end up in the NCAA.Some teams build great teams using mostly undrafted older players with great team cohesion, because they have to. My guess is if Quinipiacs, Mankatos, and Providences of the hockey world could grab early round NHL picks, they would. But they generally cant so they play the cards their dealt. I honestly DGAF what Quinnipiac does for recruiting. I do care how the Gophers recruit relative to BU/BC/MI/UND/MSU/WI/DU.
The Gophers can and should be able to grab a good percentage of those blue chip recruits so it's a bit concerning when they don't. To me, I question why. With both Woog and Lucia, there was a stage in their tenure where they lost the recruiting battles and the team talent dropped off and they became less competitive.
Way too many people are caught up in the CHL players. Yes, they’re good but top end guys like J. Moore, Mooney, Moe, and on and on and on we got coming in, why ????? This team is fine. Gonna have e to grow as season goes on but my god we are bringing in top end talent!
Moore, Mooney and Moe are great recruits. My concern with the lack of CHL players has nothing to do with those players, but has more to do with the fact the Gophers had so many departures following the season. Likely more than expected. So they need an additional experienced player or two to fill the gaps, rather than hope some of last year's healthy scratches.
We are now bringing in Finn McLaughlin, who Denver wanted to develop with another year in the Juniors. Which shows we did have a need. Denver went out and got a CHL player. But instead using the CHL to bring in that more experienced CHL player we are brining in a player that Denver thought would benefit from a year in the juniors. Glad to have Finn on the Gophers, but it feels like we're lagging behind other Blue Chip teams.
I don't know anything about Finn, I am not doubting him. With defensemen, I know we can't go off scoring stats. I like his size. I am just curious about the moves the Gophers are making lately relative to their competition.
Way too many people are caught up in the CHL players. Yes, they’re good but top end guys like J. Moore, Mooney, Moe, and on and on and on we got coming in, why ????? This team is fine. Gonna have e to grow as season goes on but my god we are bringing in top end talent!
Moore, Mooney and Moe are great recruits. My concern with the lack of CHL players has nothing to do with those players, but has more to do with the fact the Gophers had so many departures following the season. Likely more than expected. So they need an additional experienced player or two to fill the gaps, rather than hope some of last year's healthy scratches.
We are now bringing in Finn McLaughlin, who Denver wanted to develop with another year in the Juniors. Which shows we did have a need. Denver went out and got a CHL player. But instead using the CHL to bring in that more experienced CHL player we are brining in a player that Denver thought would benefit from a year in the juniors. Glad to have Finn on the Gophers, but it feels like we're lagging behind other Blue Chip teams.
I don't know anything about Finn, I am not doubting him. With defensemen, I know we can't go off scoring stats. I like his size. I am just curious about the moves the Gophers are making lately relative to their competition.
im a little confused by this series of comments starting from the bolded.
DU has 1 D commit from the CHL who committed in January and would be nowhere near a blue chipper. Additionally both guys have played 3 years of junior hockey.
Tbh, don't think Denver was anticipating losing him but its the risk you take pushing any guy out. He also played with Gruba so wouldn't surprise me if there's some connection leading to him shopping around after they pushed him out (would assume this was moreso due to Pohlkamp coming back than Jamieson committing).
As far as general CHL activity, do agree would like to see us be more active here and find an impact F. Maybe this is coming after the draft as there are a lot of guys still out there for next year
To Bert's point I don't think the guys coming in are bad players it's just that this class is more like the Kurth/Lamb class and on a deeper team (like the one with Cooley) they would be easing into things playing bottom six roles and then eventually becoming solid point per game players the next 2-3 years. Now they get thrown to the wolves right away which will probably lead to mixed results. There's also the fact that we're obviously spoiled by what we had a few years back with Cooley, Knies, Snuggy, and a blue line loaded with NHL caliber talent where this roster, especially the blue line, is nowhere close to that. Combine all that with the fact that even with all the talent of the past 4 years or so the Gophers didn't have a ton to show for it in terms of post season success and an uneven second half of the year the past two seasons... you get the idea. Whether Motzko underachieved with the talent he had on those rosters is subject to debate and the talent level of this one is closer to what he had in his first year.
I'll be watching the team next year with tempered expectations and hoping they improve individually and as a team as the season goes on but I get why some people aren't as excited for that. And maybe it'll turn out that we were overly pessimistic and that'll be a welcome surprise.
Also, on the teams loaded with number ones, there was consistent chatter about them being distracted by their future, not working hard enough, no grit, and so forth.
This team should definitely have a different vibe with respect to that.
With the non-conference schedule this year, Bob shouldn't have any problem getting and holding their attention this year.
I don’t really buy the stuff about distraction or whatever, I don’t think that’s the reason they lost three years in a row at home to a similarly built Michigan team.
I know there’s a schedule thread but this counts as offseason discussion to me… I really like our non-con schedule but I can’t help but think this is a schedule that would’ve been better suited for last years veteran team. This year’s younger team will have their work cut out for them with BC, Denver, UND, UMD and even an older Tech team.
Swwep Tech and Long Island and split with the rest? Having never seen the 2025-26 team play a game I think I’d take that right now. Maybe I’m selling them short.
Agreed, you gotta hope the big ten wins the majority of their OOC games as well.
I know there’s a schedule thread but this counts as offseason discussion to me… I really like our non-con schedule but I can’t help but think this is a schedule that would’ve been better suited for last years veteran team. This year’s younger team will have their work cut out for them with BC, Denver, UND, UMD and even an older Tech team.
Swwep Tech and Long Island and split with the rest? Having never seen the 2025-26 team play a game I think I’d take that right now. Maybe I’m selling them short.
If they do that they’ll look a ok in the pwr provided they finish 4th or better in the b10
some interesting things out of the combine, especially with the CHL guys being crowed after. Apparently prospects were asked about loyalty while there with teams with multiple staying they'd stay in the CHL. Will be intriguing to see if it makes any guys who were considering the NCAA reconsider.
Apparently Malcolm Spence also said that Michigan has put the most guys in the NHL, which I think could be interesting for multiple reasons