Our New White Jerseys are Turrible

The Michigan Hockey twitter account linked out to pictures of the new jerseys today. The blue jersey is basically unchanged. We get a solid block M on the shoulder instead of the hockey-stick M. The M on the shoulders looks really nice. That's a solid looking jersey, even if I'm disappointed they didn't go for a blue version of the whites that they've worn the past few years.

We're back to the maize jersey with a blue M, which, okay, it's nice to have that one every few years.

The whites though? Ugh. After a couple of years with the modernized throwbacks, which I think are the nicest looking jerseys they've had since I've been following the team, they've tweaked them. It looks very similar except the M in "Michigan" is now a block M.

 

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Un-fan. HSR points out that it could be somewhat based on a jersey from 1976 and that it's somewhat reminiscent of basketball jerseys past. I see it. And maybe I'm being somewhat inconsistent between my views on this jersey (ugh) and my views on the fairly-ugly football "throwbacks" for the Notre Dame game and the Big Chill jerseys (love both of them). I guess my philosophy is that ugly works for a throwback if it's a one-off. If it's the jersey the team is going to wear night-in and night-out, I'm less of a fan of ugly. The old whites were sweet because they were an old design modernized, but more than anything else, they looked sharp. The block M just makes it look kind of lopsided. I feel like something looks off about the arch. Not a fan.

HSR has a post breaking down all three jerseys. I'll echo the sentiment. More than anything else, the change to the whites was unnecessary. The whites of the last couple years were classic. It feels like it loses something with the block M.

That said, Moffie and Spencer Hyman are fans. If not liking one of the three new jerseys is the biggest problem we've got, that's pretty good.

A school with bigger problems: Western Michigan. After coach Jeff Blashill pulled the team from the ashes and brought them to the NCAA Tournament last year, his stock went through the roof. Too much if you're a Bronco fan. Blashill left today to take an assistant coaching position with the Detroit Red Wings. As a Wings fan, I absolutely love the hire. As a college hockey fan who wishes good things for the CCHA teams that aren't FYS, OSU, or Miami, it kills me. I loved seeing Western get it together last season. Hopefully they can land a good coach and keep up their momentum, but man, that's going to be tough....

...especially given the new uncertainty in college hockey. So everyone knows by now that the Big Ten is only a couple of years away. Now it appears the breakup of the CCHA and WCHA will be right behind it. According to reports, Colorado College, North Dakota, Denver, Minnesota-Duluth, Nebraska-Omaha and Miami are set to break away and form a "super conference" of sorts. Western Michigan and Notre Dame have also been rumored, but are less uncertain.

MGoBlog and MHNet have takes on the situation. Western College Hockey chimes in from a national perspective and CHN has a couple of good takes as well.

Me? I'm just going to stick with what I've said all along, ever since talks of the BTHC started: I'm excited about more games on TV, more games on TV in HD, more exposure for the sport, more games against Minnesota and Wisconsin, and the possibility of re-opening college hockey to expansion due to the conferences having some open slots. But if it causes any of the smaller schools to fold their team, I don't like it at all. It also makes me kind of sad that the CCHA and WCHA entities are possibly going away. I felt the same way when it looked like the Big 12 was going to disband.

With this, I still think we just have to wait and see. There's a lot of uncertainty and depending on scheduling agreements it might still work out. If BGSU still gets some games with the schools that draw well and play in a conference that's down Michigan/FYS/Miami/ND, maybe it's more realistic that they get back to the NCAAs someday. It's hard to not enjoy being a "have" and just think HDGAMESHDGAMESHDGAMESHDGAMESHDGAMES but anything that results in a former national champion folding isn't a good thing. They need to find a way to keep these programs around. If that happens, then I'm all for the Big 10 and whatever Super Conference they can come up with.

Other stuff:
Jeff Tambellini signed a deal to play in Zurich for the next three years. He's a third-generation player for the team, which is kind of cool, but man. I'm not joking about this: Out of all the players that have come through the Michigan program in the past decade, aside from JMFJ, there's not a player that I was more convinced was going to make it in the NHL.

Maybe this will work out for him. He'll get a ton of ice time on a scoring line (instead of playing a 4th-line role that he's not really suited for) and according to the linked article, he'll actually likely be receiving a pay bump. He said that he had other opportunities in the NHL. Hopefully we'll see Tamby back here someday.

His West Qua* roommate, *anny Richmon*, just signe* with the Washington Capitals.

Andrew Ebbett signed with the Canucks and Jed Ortmeyer signed with the Minnesota Wild.

Gibson, Serville Drafted

Two of Michigan's incoming freshmen were taken today in the NHL Draft.

John Gibson was the second goaltender selected when the Anaheim Ducks picked him at #39. According to the Orange County Register:

Gibson said he believes he needs at least two years at Michigan as far as a timetable but "at the same time, it's all up to what their needs are and if they think I'm ready to take the next step."

Here's an article about Gibson from Anaheim's website. There was a pre-Draft article from The Sporting News comparing Gibson and former Michigan verbal Jack Campbell.

It doesn't sound like Anaheim is going to rush him, though they have run into some goaltending troubles, with Jonas Hiller's vertigo-like symptoms. They had four goalies start 10+ games last year.

Serville went 78th to the new incarnation of the Winnipeg Jets. GM Kevin Cheveldayoff moved up in the third round to grab Serville. He said the following about the future Wolverine:
“In today’s game, with the way he skates and the way he moves, along with his size, he’s a very interesting prospect."

In Lou We Trust had a nice profile of Serville in the lead up to the Draft.

Schedule Released, More Players are Official

Michigan has announced their schedule for the upcoming season and they did a pretty nice job catering to a fairly young team that is probably going to struggle to score goals at times. The schedule is front-loaded with home games, and with the loss of the College Hockey Showcase they didn't exactly load up the non-conference schedule. There are also a surprising number of mid-week games.

The Wolverines will open against Niagara on a Tuesday before a weekend series against Bentley. St Lawrence comes in on a Thursday. We'll also have home games against Union and Northeastern in the non-conference slate. We do get Boston College in the first round of the GLI. Noticeably absent is the WCHA. Michigan Tech is the only WCHA team that we could potentially face. Man I wish we had beaten Duluth, so I could make a joke right here.

The schedule is heavily front-loaded with home games. Michigan plays 12 of their first 16 at Yost, though they do open the CCHA slate on the road against Northern. After the GLI, Michigan has just six home games, which does include a home series against Hockey's Dynasty.

The Regionals this year are in Bridgeport, Green Bay, Worcester, and (shocking!) St. Paul. I look forward to the Gophers missing the tournament again. The Frozen Four is in Tampa. 

Also note that the outdoor game in Cleveland is absent at this point. They were supposed to officially announce it last week, but it sounds like there's still some work to be done.

MGoBlog has a take on what the schedule means from a PWR perspective.

Now some recruiting:
Michigan officially announced Michael Szuma, Andrew Sinelli, and Mike Chiasson as a part of the 2011-12 team. Not that they don't like all the recruits, but it sounds like they really like Chiasson.

Some of the freshman profiles are up. They're just shells right now, but some of the guys have numbers listed:
1-Gibson (when was the last time we had a kid wear #1? I don't think it's happened since I started college in 2000.)
3-Chiasson (which is very cool that he was able to get #3)
6-Serville
11-Hyman
17-Sinelli
20-Lynch
26-Szuma

Edit: Guptill is 27 and we think di Giuseppe and Guptill is 7. Lynch is switching to 14 and DeBlois is switching to 19.

Mark Burns has a nice story about Zach Hyman, who could be the first in a family that becomes Michigan's version of the Millers. There were questions about why he didn't join Princeton as an 18-year-old, and it turns out that Princeton coach Guy Gadowsky wanted him to play another year and feel what it was like to be "The Man" at that level. Mission accomplished, and it's Michigan's gain.

MHNet has some stuff about our players who should go in the NHL Draft this weekend. +1 for the bit about the two Gibson goalies. He also mentions that Max Shuart just obliterated the Muskegon Lumberjacks tryout camp. His team won 5-0 and he had 3-2--5 in the game.

More Outdoor Hockey!

Fun times in Cleveland this winter! Cleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeveland!

Based on all the smiles I saw at the Camp Randall Hockey Classic and The Big Chill at The Big House, I can't imagine that anyone is tiring of outdoor hockey. That's a good thing because reports are that the Wolverines will travel to Cleveland to take on Ohio State at Progressive Field this coming season. Progressive Field is where the Cleveland Indians play. (It's kind of cool that this story actually hit the front page of ESPN.com)

Stephen Nesbitt reported the game will be January 15, 2012. I had heard that the game would be played on a Sunday (following a game at The Schott on Friday), so that makes sense.

This would be the fourth outdoor game for Michigan (and the third for a good number of players on the team) and the second for the Buckeyes. They played Wisconsin at Lambeau Field a few years back.

And if you don't think for a second that I won't be getting my picture with the Moses Cleveland statue, you're crazy. He's the guy who invented Cleveland, YEAH!!!

I'm excited. I've always been of the position that more outdoor hockey is a great thing.

In other news, the new scoreboard is going in at Yost and it's massive. Check this out:

That doesn't even include the rings, which should be added today. As much as I'll miss "GO, FIGHT, WIN!", the new scoreboard is going to be awesome!

Also, MHNet mentioned that Northeastern will be visiting Yost this season. They'll play the day after Thanksgiving, since Wisconsin wussed out of the College Hockey Showcase.

Wiseman, Muckalt, Hyman, and More

Now that the AHL Playoffs are finally over, Michigan has officially announced Brian Wiseman as the new assistant to Red Berenson. He replaces Mel Pearson who took the Michigan Tech head coaching job after much debate.

Wiseman was most recently an assistant with the Houston Aeros of the AHL, who just fell to Binghamton Senators in the Calder Cup Finals. He played for four years under Red Berenson, racking up 248 points. He remains 3rd on Michigan's all-time scoring list.

He also has experience as an assistant with Princeton and was the video coordinator for the Dallas Stars. From 2005-10 he wasn't actually working in hockey, instead working as an account manager for an oil supplier. He said that he would have stayed in that job, but he didn't want Michigan State trying to hire him away to be their head coach after Anastos gets fired.*

When the job was originally open, Bill Muckalt was one of the names mentioned as a potential replacement for Pearson. As it turns out, he didn't replace Pearson. He joined him. Muckalt was named as an assistant at Michigan Tech, coaching under Pearson. Muckalt was a head coach in the NAHL and WSHL. He was also Head Coach of the Eastern Michigan club team. Can I make another Tom Anastos joke in the same article? No. Alright, fine.

In other news, Zach Hyman was honored with the BJ Monro award by the OHA. This award is given to the OHA's top professional prospect. Mike Cammalleri and Nathan Horton are previous winners of the award. Hyman's jersey will also be displayed in the Hockey Hall of Fame during July.

Brandon Burlon has officially signed with the New Jersey Devils and won't be returning to school. I think the writing was probably on the wall after Mike Chiasson committed. Burlon denied that the decision to leave him as a scratch for the National Championship Game had anything to do with his decision. It sounds like he got "the speech" from Red about not leaving, but he indicated that he intends to finish his degree.

Best of luck to Brandon! I don't think it was unreasonable for him to head to the pros. I wish he had come back for his senior season, but this shouldn't be a shocker to anyone, and I don't think it's a head-scratcher either. He's a talented kid and I think he can probably play in the NHL. The Devils have struggled, so now is probably a good time to head that way. Just so long as he doesn't go trying to bring any of his teammates (Merrill, Wohlberg) along with him!

More stuff I haven't commented on!

Louie Caporusso did end up signing with Ottawa. While Caporusso never quite got back to the level (offensively) that he reached during his sophomore season, he did give us four very-good seasons and I think he became a much better all-around player by the end of his career. I mean, he ended up being a freaking penalty killer! He'll likely end up joining the Binghamton Senators, who just won the AHL Championship. Again, it would be great to see the Love Guru in the League someday. I'm really going to miss Louie.

Carl Hagelin was given the Big Ten's Medal of Honor for his success in the classroom and on the ice. The New York Rangers site just did a profile of him for their "20 Prospects in 20 Days" series.

"He's an elite skater," Jeff Gorton, the Rangers' Assistant Director, Player Personnel, said of Hagelin. "He's evolved from maybe what people thought of as a role-type player to a guy that's shown some skill and been very productive at the college level with speed and tenacity.”

It was a really great article (and a really LONG article!). There are quotes from Carl and all sorts of people in the Rangers organization. And it turns out we've been saying his name incorrectly all along. Whoops! Sorry about that, Carl. That kid is going to make everyone who loves Michigan hockey proud. What a find he was...

NHL.com has a feature about the two top-ranked goalies named Gibson. John is the top-ranked, and Chris is the second-ranked heading into the Draft, which is in a couple of weeks.

*He didn't actually say that.

Having a Seat Over There: Mike Chiasson

The Omaha Lancers announced that Mike Chiasson has committed to Michigan for next season. Chiasson, the son of former Red Wings defenseman Steve Chiasson (who was killed in a car wreck back in 1999), is a 5'11" 195 defenseman.

Chiasson put up 4-11--15 in 50 games this season. He was fourth on the team with a +10 rating and had 41 PIMs. He was named the most-improved player on the team last season and won the a leadership award this year. He was unanimously voted team captain this past season and Lancers coach Bliss Littler wasn't surprised:

“The kid reeks with character on and off the ice,” Littler said. “For a player to be selected that way (unanimously) really tells you a lot. That doesn't happen very often.”

This also means that Brandon Burlon will not be back. Mike Spath mentioned that he spoke with the Michigan coaches, and it sounds like both sides decided it was time to move on. 

Chiasson will be an older freshman (he's 20 right now) that brings 122 games of USHL experience. It's reasonable to expect that he'd be able to come in and play right away. In addition to Burlon, the Wolverines lost Langlais and kind-of Llewellyn. In addition to Chiasson, the Wolverines bring in the highly-regarded Brennan Serville and preferred-walk-on Michael Szuma, giving them 8 D. Once again, I fully expect some nice competition for the final spots on the blueline.

He another kid who is interested in education. The linked article is a nice story about how he got to this point. Here is a Q&A with him from two seasons ago.

He wears #3 just like his father. With Scooter Vaughan graduating, I'd imagine that Chiasson will have dibs on that number.

Having a Seat Over There: Spencer Hyman

Princeton's coach leaving for Penn State appears to be the gift that keeps on giving. Yesterday Zach Hyman committed to the Wolverines for next season, after decommitting from Princeton due to Guy Gadowsky moving on to the BTHC. Today, Mike Spath chatted with Zach and was told that his brother Spencer has also committed to the Wolverines for either 2012 or 2013.

 

He's a forward that was converted to defense a couple of years ago. Pointstreak lists him at 6'0", 210. DCNole mentioned that he is nicknamed "The Bus" and that he once one-punched Lucas Lessio (remember him?) in a fight. The Scouting News says that he "works like a beserker", which I didn't realize was a word, but it totally is and it's awesome.

 

Last season he had 4-16--20 in 49 games with 62 PIMs. So based on the limited info out there about it, it seems like this upshot is this: Big kid, maybe not as gifted as his brother but works his butt off every shift, can play a physical game.