We’re about a week and a half removed from the day the news broke that former University of Denver Hockey head coach Jim Montgomery would leave the Pioneers and to the Dallas Stars in the same role. Now that some time has passed and the goodbyes have been said, attention has shifted to who might replace Montgomery behind the bench.
The coaching search is starting to come into focus and decision could be made as early as later this week. It was reported last week that in addition to current assistant David Carle, current UMass-Lowell head coach Norm Bazin, former DU assistant and current Iowa Wild (AHL) head coach Derek Lalonde, and former DU assistant Steve Miller are seen as possible candidates to replace Montgomery. Magness Mayhem confirmed that report earlier this week and added a surprising name to that list in Providence head coach Nate Leaman.
I sat down and talked with Magness Mayhem to digest all of this and make some sense of the search. Head on over to Magness Mayhem to listen to our conversation about the future of Denver Hockey.
You can also click here if you were reading too quickly and missed the link above. It happens.
Nick, good timing for this topic. This week will be hot on interviews and either a decision or close to one. I’ll bet you will get upwards to 50 comments here as the week wears on and rumors fly.
I think Nick and Mayhem get it right. There are five very good candidates here and I will certainly be excited for any of them to get hired here at Denver. Leaman and Bazin have both done wonders with recruiting and developing talent at schools that are a notch below DU in pedigree. Of the two of them, Leaman is the bigger prize since he’s more proven won a recent NCAA title at DU’s expense, and if Leaman chooses DU, I could perhaps see him bring Steve Miller back as his top assistant as he did at PC. But Leaman would cost DU big bucks, since he’s got a great situation in Providence.
Bazin is also a good choice – he’s done very well as a head coach at Lowell given that it’s branch campus school in a not-so-great area of Massachusetts. He’s also been a CC assistant, so he knows the western recruiting pipeline. He would likely not cost as much as Leaman if he were to leave Lowell.
Lalonde is intriguing – he was a good assistant here, and has done well in the juniors and minors as a head man. He has a lot of respect and knows DU.
Miller is a great defensive coach, but I don’t know what kind of offense he would bring, but he’s a great recruiter and knows DU inside and out.
All that said, I think Leaman and Carle are the guys that would excite me the most of this five man pool. If I have any reservations about either of those guys, it’s a lack of NHL experience that I think is pretty relevant for a program like DU that has to be strong in Canada. Monty had it, and I think it was a difference-maker.
Swami, any idea why dineen is out of the top 5?
Bring back GWOZ!!!
I like Gwoz, but he is 64 years old now. He had his great 20 year run here already, and I think the game has changed since he’s moved on. You saw what Monty was able to do with Gwoz’ recruits and then his own guys – Monty’s playing style of relentless puck pressure and possession hockey was the difference maker. Gwoz’ style was more traditional dump-and-chase while relying on transition and mobile defense to create mismatches and scoring opportunities.
I didn’t realize he was 64.
No Kevin Dineen in the mix?
Dineen no degree
why does that matter? he has a phd in coachology
After his back-to-backs, seemed like Gwozdecky was more about keeping the penalty box bench warm. He ran some highly-penalized teams for several years there. Besides; why in the hell would he want to come back to his “ex”?? Come on; no money can be that good.
DU on line job posting states “Bachelor’s degree or equivalent combination of education and professional experience.” I would hope the search committee at least reaches out to him to see if he is interested in the job.
2.07 post refers to Dineen.
Dineen should be a candidate for sure, would be really weird/disappointing if Kreech didn’t at least reach out to him/his camp
Nick, good timing for this topic. This week will be hot on interviews and either a decision or close to one. I’ll bet you will get upwards to 50 comments here as the week wears on and rumors fly.
I think Nick and Mayhem get it right. There are five very good candidates here and I will certainly be excited for any of them to get hired here at Denver. Leaman and Bazin have both done wonders with recruiting and developing talent at schools that are a notch below DU in pedigree. Of the two of them, Leaman is the bigger prize since he’s more proven won a recent NCAA title at DU’s expense, and if Leaman chooses DU, I could perhaps see him bring Steve Miller back as his top assistant as he did at PC. But Leaman would cost DU big bucks, since he’s got a great situation in Providence.
Bazin is also a good choice – he’s done very well as a head coach at Lowell given that it’s branch campus school in a not-so-great area of Massachusetts. He’s also been a CC assistant, so he knows the western recruiting pipeline. He would likely not cost as much as Leaman if he were to leave Lowell.
Lalonde is intriguing – he was a good assistant here, and has done well in the juniors and minors as a head man. He has a lot of respect and knows DU.
Miller is a great defensive coach, but I don’t know what kind of offense he would bring, but he’s a great recruiter and knows DU inside and out.
All that said, I think Leaman and Carle are the guys that would excite me the most of this five man pool. If I have any reservations about either of those guys, it’s a lack of NHL experience that I think is pretty relevant for a program like DU that has to be strong in Canada. Monty had it, and I think it was a difference-maker.
Swami, any idea why dineen is out of the top 5?
Bring back GWOZ!!!
I like Gwoz, but he is 64 years old now. He had his great 20 year run here already, and I think the game has changed since he’s moved on. You saw what Monty was able to do with Gwoz’ recruits and then his own guys – Monty’s playing style of relentless puck pressure and possession hockey was the difference maker. Gwoz’ style was more traditional dump-and-chase while relying on transition and mobile defense to create mismatches and scoring opportunities.
I didn’t realize he was 64.
No Kevin Dineen in the mix?
Dineen no degree
why does that matter? he has a phd in coachology
I would love for Kevin Dineen to be contacted and considered for this job. I don’t know if DU reached out to him or not to gauge his interest, but he would have been my very first call if I were the search committee.
That said, Ron Grahame, who had a deep NHL and college hockey background, is likely a key man in the search, and from the sounds of it, DU had done some good due diligence in creating the candidate pool. The trick. of course, is hiring the right one…
After his back-to-backs, seemed like Gwozdecky was more about keeping the penalty box bench warm. He ran some highly-penalized teams for several years there. Besides; why in the hell would he want to come back to his “ex”?? Come on; no money can be that good.
DU on line job posting states “Bachelor’s degree or equivalent combination of education and professional experience.” I would hope the search committee at least reaches out to him to see if he is interested in the job.
2.07 post refers to Dineen.
If DU hires Bazin or Leaman, it would be interesting to see if Carle was a candidate for their former coaching jobs or stays at DU. It could be uncomfortable working for the new coach or the new coach may want to hire their own assistants. The fact that this has been a public campaign may make it even more difficult if David does not get the job. Then, if/when Carle goes someplace else to coach, let’s just hope DU doesn’t have regrets because he is likely to be around a long time. Not an easy choice for the athletic department.
Dineen should be a candidate for sure, would be really weird/disappointing if Kreech didn’t at least reach out to him/his camp
There is a precedent for DU hiring a young coach in his 20s, albeit an old one…
In 1951, DU hired a 24-year old hockey coach – 1948 US Olympian Neil Celley, the year after Celley graduated from Michigan. Celley took over a two year old DU program from its first coach, Vern Turner, the former rink manager at the Broadmoor in Colorado Springs. Celley then coached DU for five winning seasons in a row, including a rookie season record of 18-6-1 and a second season record of 17-6-1. But in those days, the NCAA tournament was just a four team tournament and since DU wasn’t selected in those 5 seasons, Celley was replaced by Murray Armstrong in 1956, who promised DU that the Pioneers would NCAA Champions within three years.
Armstrong keep his promise and won the Natty for DU in his second season, in 1958. He would then spend the next 20+ years building DU into a legendary power en-route to five NCAA titles.
I would love for Kevin Dineen to be contacted and considered for this job. I don’t know if DU reached out to him or not to gauge his interest, but he would have been my very first call if I were the search committee.
That said, Ron Grahame, who had a deep NHL and college hockey background, is likely a key man in the search, and from the sounds of it, DU had done some good due diligence in creating the candidate pool. The trick. of course, is hiring the right one…
If DU hires Bazin or Leaman, it would be interesting to see if Carle was a candidate for their former coaching jobs or stays at DU. It could be uncomfortable working for the new coach or the new coach may want to hire their own assistants. The fact that this has been a public campaign may make it even more difficult if David does not get the job. Then, if/when Carle goes someplace else to coach, let’s just hope DU doesn’t have regrets because he is likely to be around a long time. Not an easy choice for the athletic department.
There is a precedent for DU hiring a young coach in his 20s, albeit an old one…
In 1951, DU hired a 24-year old hockey coach – 1948 US Olympian Neil Celley, the year after Celley graduated from Michigan. Celley took over a two year old DU program from its first coach, Vern Turner, the former rink manager at the Broadmoor in Colorado Springs. Celley then coached DU for five winning seasons in a row, including a rookie season record of 18-6-1 and a second season record of 17-6-1. But in those days, the NCAA tournament was just a four team tournament and since DU wasn’t selected in those 5 seasons, Celley was replaced by Murray Armstrong in 1956, who promised DU that the Pioneers would NCAA Champions within three years.
Armstrong keep his promise and won the Natty for DU in his second season, in 1958. He would then spend the next 20+ years building DU into a legendary power en-route to five NCAA titles.
What about Derek Armstrong?!? He coached the Cutthroats and was the GM. Probably would be a good fit for DU.
Go Cutty’s!!!
is this a similar-sized pool from when they did a search in 2013? mix of backgrounds comparable as well?
seems like it; some similar names as well!
In 2013, I heard that DU offered the job to Seth Appert first after they agreed on the dollar per year figure. Appert wanted a five year deal, since his kids were still in school, but DU wasn’t willing to offer that many years. BC assistant Greg Brown and BU coach David Quinn (then an assistant at BU) were also in the consideration mix, but in the end, they chose Monty later in the process…
What about Derek Armstrong?!? He coached the Cutthroats and was the GM. Probably would be a good fit for DU.
Go Cutty’s!!!
is this a similar-sized pool from when they did a search in 2013? mix of backgrounds comparable as well?
seems like it; some similar names as well!
In 2013, I heard that DU offered the job to Seth Appert first after they agreed on the dollar per year figure. Appert wanted a five year deal, since his kids were still in school, but DU wasn’t willing to offer that many years. BC assistant Greg Brown and BU coach David Quinn (then an assistant at BU) were also in the consideration mix, but in the end, they chose Monty later in the process…
As I recall RPI came up with a new contract for Appert and he withdrew his name from consideration.
Viz – your recollection is correct. Appert was able to leverage a new deal at RPI. I’m guessing here, but Appert probably told RPI about DU’s offer, RPI countered with a new contract offer, and Appert probably went back to DU with his demand for more years on the DU offer or he’d withdraw and take the RPI deal. When DU didn’t offer more years on their deal, Appert withdrew from the DU search with a raise from RPI.
As I recall RPI came up with a new contract for Appert and he withdrew his name from consideration.
Viz – your recollection is correct. Appert was able to leverage a new deal at RPI. I’m guessing here, but Appert probably told RPI about DU’s offer, RPI countered with a new contract offer, and Appert probably went back to DU with his demand for more years on the DU offer or he’d withdraw and take the RPI deal. When DU didn’t offer more years on their deal, Appert withdrew from the DU search with a raise from RPI.
Anyone attend red vest golf tournament Monday? Maybe some of the administrators there gave a glimpse into who they’re zeroing in on?
I can’t find anything about the tournament on the dp.com web page or social media. They probably didn’t have it and thought nobody will notice. Chalk up another failure to marketing and the external affairs bozo.
careful, anti-macneill posts tend to get deleted on here
I think bob Willis runs the red vest
I didn’t see any Marketing surrounding that event, big shocker there. Inside sources I know seem to think they are zeroing in on Killer Miller.
if they hire Miller they better make sure he keeps carle and mcmillen as his assistants
that’s not how it works.
carle knows miller well so he’d probably be more inclined to stick round at least
Why is this twitter account getting all hot, bothered and triggered about an anonymous comment? You mad bro?
Miller is all about defensive play. That’s what he has always coached.
if it works and they win that’s cool with me; the NJ devils won multiple cups with the nz trap
Norm Bazin is frontrunner according to the twitterverse: https://twitter.com/JeffCoxSports/status/997155273897803776
Although Norm Bazin is my current favorite among the purported candidates, I don’t see it happening, due to salary issues. How the heck is a program such as Lowell able to pay him 500K per year??? I know we have the endowed coaching fund to bolster the funding for a hockey coach, but I doubt that DU would want to get into a bidding war with Lowell where the bidding starts at 500K. Salary aside issues aside, I think he would be a great “get” for DU.
pay him whatever it takes – he’s won a national coach of the year award and will make this transition seamless! have to guess monty was making OVER $500K if he turned down nhl jobs last summer, just slide that over to bazin
Bazin is from Western Canada, coached in New England as well the Front Range so his recruiting scope is pretty vast and would be good for DU
Nick–I appreciate this blog very much, and all you do. So thank you! However, it does seem strange for you to look down on anonymous people citing sources, when your sources who told you that a decision would be made today or tomorrow were apparently wrong. Minor annoyance…resume speculation now.
Nothing wrong with Lowell…but you have to think that DU can present some serious advantages over Lowell—history of 8 national titles, recruiting advantages, great facilities, cool city, and a first-class athletic department that is very committed to hockey success.
New England will NEVER be a pipeline for Denver, too many schools out east
Bazin could be the one to change that!
Blue Horseshoe Loves Peter Mannino
Anyone attend red vest golf tournament Monday? Maybe some of the administrators there gave a glimpse into who they’re zeroing in on?
I can’t find anything about the tournament on the dp.com web page or social media. They probably didn’t have it and thought nobody will notice. Chalk up another failure to marketing and the external affairs bozo.
careful, anti-macneill posts tend to get deleted on here
I
I think bob Willis runs the red vest
I didn’t see any Marketing surrounding that event, big shocker there. Inside sources I know seem to think they are zeroing in on Killer Miller.
if they hire Miller they better make sure he keeps carle and mcmillen as his assistants
that’s not how it works.
carle knows miller well so he’d probably be more inclined to stick round at least
Why is this twitter account getting all hot, bothered and triggered about an anonymous comment? You mad bro?
fake news: https://twitter.com/DAWhitton/status/997206230845280259
OK, so LetsGoDu allows people to comment here anonymously. But Nick has a problem with it, so he threatens to “make fun of” anonymous commenters on Twitter. Dude, c’mon. Being a dick to the people that actually read the blog and take the time to comment and foster discussion here is….how should I say…not smart? Love the blog, but you’re coming across as petty. Except for the occassional troll, we’re all DU fans. No need to get all weird on us.
“Demanding” things of you? Where is the demand in my comment? I’m merely “suggesting” that you not be a dick to the DU fans that read the blog. But hey, beggars can’t be choosers, so you can do what you want.
(For those not following, you have to read the twitter feed, because comments from here are apparently discussed there.)
If you’re posting on-line, your comments are open for examination. Especially if they’re silly or objectionable. I find it funny that you’re not brave enough to put your name to a comment and then take issue wirh it when called to the carpet.
How brave you are, Eric J. Burton. If you are ever so misfortunate to be called to the carpet on Nick J. what’s his name’s Twitter feed, your courage will be remembered and honored. Though I find the initialization of your middle name to be a little cowardly, if I’m being totally honest.
Miller is all about defensive play. That’s what he has always coached.
if it works and they win that’s cool with me; the NJ devils won multiple cups with the nz trap
Norm Bazin is frontrunner according to the twitterverse: https://twitter.com/JeffCoxSports/status/997155273897803776
Although Norm Bazin is my current favorite among the purported candidates, I don’t see it happening, due to salary issues. How the heck is a program such as Lowell able to pay him 500K per year??? I know we have the endowed coaching fund to bolster the funding for a hockey coach, but I doubt that DU would want to get into a bidding war with Lowell where the bidding starts at 500K. Salary aside issues aside, I think he would be a great “get” for DU.
pay him whatever it takes – he’s won a national coach of the year award and will make this transition seamless! have to guess monty was making OVER $500K if he turned down nhl jobs last summer, just slide that over to bazin
Bazin is from Western Canada, coached in New England as well the Front Range so his recruiting scope is pretty vast and would be good for DU
Nick–I appreciate this blog very much, and all you do. So thank you! However, it does seem strange for you to look down on anonymous people citing sources, when your sources who told you that a decision would be made today or tomorrow were apparently wrong. Minor annoyance…resume speculation now.
Nothing wrong with Lowell…but you have to think that DU can present some serious advantages over Lowell—history of 8 national titles, recruiting advantages, great facilities, cool city, and a first-class athletic department that is very committed to hockey success.
New England will NEVER be a pipeline for Denver, too many schools out east
Bazin could be the one to change that!
Blue Horseshoe Loves Peter Mannino
fake news: https://twitter.com/DAWhitton/status/997206230845280259
OK, so LetsGoDu allows people to comment here anonymously. But Nick has a problem with it, so he threatens to “make fun of” anonymous commenters on Twitter. Dude, c’mon. Being a dick to the people that actually read the blog and take the time to comment and foster discussion here is….how should I say…not smart? Love the blog, but you’re coming across as petty. Except for the occassional troll, we’re all DU fans. No need to get all weird on us.
“Demanding” things of you? Where is the demand in my comment? I’m merely “suggesting” that you not be a dick to the DU fans that read the blog. But hey, beggars can’t be choosers, so you can do what you want.
(For those not following, you have to read the twitter feed, because comments from here are apparently discussed there.)
If you’re posting on-line, your comments are open for examination. Especially if they’re silly or objectionable. I find it funny that you’re not brave enough to put your name to a comment and then take issue wirh it when called to the carpet.
How brave you are, Eric J. Burton. If you are ever so misfortunate to be called to the carpet on Nick J. what’s his name’s Twitter feed, your courage will be remembered and honored. Though I find the initialization of your middle name to be a little cowardly, if I’m being totally honest.