St Thomas DI hockey?

[MplsGopher]

https://www.startribune.com/augustana-s-division-i-hopes-dealt-a-setback/571242322/

As for men’s hockey, Tommies make sense as eighth team in “new’’ CCHA in the fall of 2021, except they don’t have a right-sized arena.


Oh yeah, there's also this little thing called "money" !!

 

[Ignatius L Hoops]

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Lucia sees St. Thomas as a CCHA candidate.

Might Lucia have tipped his hand for a preferred school? If so, he appeared to have some “UST’’ face cards.

“They certainly would be a candidate,’’ the former Gophers men's hockey coach said. “They have a rich tradition academically and athletically. They should find out, hopefully today, which direction they’re going to go [from the Division I Council]. In past conversations with Phil [Esten, St. Thomas athletic director] that he’s pretty positive, so we’ll keep our fingers crossed. Any time we can add a Division I institution to college hockey, I think is a great day for college hockey. Hopefully, that’s going to happen here today.

“If they do come through with that announcement, they’re obviously going to be looking for a home, and that’s somebody we certainly would have an interest in, as I’m sure other conferences would as well,’’ he added. “They would be a nice candidate, and I look forward, if this goes through, being able to sit down and talk to them.’’

 

[MplsGopher]

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Lucia sees St. Thomas as a CCHA candidate.

Of course. Institutionally, geographically, market ... they’re perfect.

Oh but except this little thing that grown ups have: money!!!!!

If corporate and alumni donor want to pump in millions to make it happen, go for it. The arena they play in now won’t cut it though.

 

[bonin21]

If corporate and alumni donor want to pump in millions to make it happen, go for it.

Well ya, they probably will

 

[MplsGopher]

Well ya, they probably will

Going from Augsburg level hockey to Mankato level hockey, is going to cost many millions of dollars.

 

[MennoSota]

Will they still play at the crackerbox St Thomas Academy Ice Arena in Mendota Heights?

 

[MennoSota]

Honestly, I think St Thomas would be wise to disband their hockey program entirely.

 

[MplsGopher]

Agree, unless donors step up hugely. UST can’t afford Mankato level hockey, AND even Pioneer football, AND upgrading all other sports and facilities to Summit level.

 

[TRF Guy]

Never happen

 

[Ignatius L Hoops]

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Another D1 program:

The Tommies announced that they will join the Summit League for 19 of their 22 sports, the Pioneer Football League and the Western Collegiate Hockey Association for women's hockey. St. Thomas will also find a new conference home for Division I men's hockey.

 

[Ignatius L Hoops]

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More Tommy hockey:

For Boeser and the St. Thomas men, there are unknowns. First and foremost is their conference home.

The new Central Collegiate Hockey Association, which conveniently for St. Thomas will begin play in the 2020-21 season, seems to be the most likely landing place for the Tommies. The league is made up of seven breakaway members of the WCHA, and adding St. Thomas would give the league three Minnesota teams – Minnesota State Mankato and Bemidji State are the others – along with four in Michigan and one in Ohio.

[...]

Boeser said he’ll likely alter his recruiting strategy slightly in the transition to Division I.

“The last five years, all we’ve recruited is 20-year-old freshmen,’’ said Boeser, who has a 154-80-31 record and six MIAC titles in 10 seasons at St. Thomas. “We’re probably older than the Gophers. That dynamic will probably change a little bit. We’ll probably be going after that junior in high school if he’s exceptional. Don’t get me wrong; if Casey Mittelstadt had said when he was a freshman in high school, ‘I want to go to St. Thomas,’ we would have taken him. We just didn’t get that type of student-athlete.’’

 

[Ski U Mah Gopher]

I don't envy the women.

4 games each vs Minnesota, Wisconsin, OSU, & UMD. Four of the eight teams in the NCAA tournament.

 

[GopherJack]

Remember when we didn't envy Penn State's new men's team having to play in the BIG against powerhouses like us, WI, MI, etc? Things can change quickly.

 

[Ignatius L Hoops]

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The CCHA adds St. Thomas:

A marriage that seemed inevitable more than a year ago became reality Wednesday when the Central Collegiate Hockey Association announced that the University of St. Thomas would be the eighth member of the men's hockey conference that begins play in the 2021-22 season.

It was a case of a new conference looking to fill an open spot with a regional program, and that regional program needing a home.

"The CCHA really is a perfect fit for St. Thomas,'' Tommies athletic director Phil Esten said. "It offers opportunities for us to build regional rivalries in the state, new rivalries in Michigan and Ohio, and compete against, and hopefully compete with, some of the most historic brands in college hockey.''

 

[salaunese]

Agree, unless donors step up hugely. UST can’t afford Mankato level hockey, AND even Pioneer football, AND upgrading all other sports and facilities to Summit level.

I'm guessing there are more well-heeled UST alums than Mankato. UST's endowment is much bigger as well.

 

[MplsGopher]

I'm guessing there are more well-heeled UST alums than Mankato. UST's endowment is much bigger as well.

Probably a good guess. All the same, how are they going to afford all of it?

My guess is sports that will be in the Summit League will be prioritized for getting their budgets up to league averages (and ideally league leaders) as soon as possible. Basketball, volleyball (which could be a competitive mid-major level program, given how much talent is in the state), soccer, baseball, softball. These are reasonably inexpensive, as well. Biggest bang for the buck.

DI hockey and football are expensive, and niche sports unless it's major college football, which they can't do even if they wanted to sans an invitation to a G5 league. Relatively little bang for the relatively large buck, to get up to CCHA leader budgets (hence my Mankato comment) and Pioneer leader budgets.

 

[#2Gopher]

Never happen

You kind of disappeared.

 

[bonin21]

You kind of disappeared.

People don't own up to when they were wrong on the internet