NH men’s hockey team penalized for violations
July 23, 2009
DURHAM, N.H. (AP)—The University of New Hampshire men’s hockey team has beenpenalized by the NCAA for recruiting violations.
The NCAA’s Division I Committee on Infractions announced Thursday the teamhas been placed on two years’ probation. A number of recruiting restrictionswere among the penalties agreed to by the NCAA enforcement staff, the universityand individuals involved.
The penalties resulted from nearly a thousand impermissible e-mail messagessent by an associate head coach to 30 prospective student-athletes in the fallof 2007 and the spring of 2008.
Gophers look close to home for assistant coaches (CBS Interactive U-WIRE)
July 10, 2009
(CSTV U-WIRE) MINNEAPOLIS—While many student-athletes end their career with a program after graduating, some Minnesota athletes are still looking for ways to help their teams.
This fall, three former Gophers plan to return to their athletic programs at Minnesota, but this time, as assistant coaches.
Some head coaches at Minnesota see advantages to keeping their former athletes around the program even after they’re done competing as Gophers.
“The learning time for them is very short they know exactly how I want things done,” women’s track head coach Matt Bingle said. “They can step right in and help right away with the way they’ve been taught about how I deal with issues and those types of things.”
Senior Liz Roehrig finished competing for Minnesota track and field this past spring and will be volunteering her time as an assistant coach in the fall. Roehrig said she wants to give back to the Minnesota program that helped her develop so much as an athlete. She said she hopes to be able to help everyone take a step forward and get a little bit better at a time.
“I know how they work and how they train,” Roehrig said. “I’ll know them better and be able to coach them how they need to be coached.”
Roehrig served as a team captain during her last two years at Minnesota and showed early signs of being a great leader, Bingle said.
“She’s helped out a lot of the younger girls and helped them learn the ropes and how to deal with being a Division I athlete,” Bingle said.
Grant Potulney also acted as an early leader for the men’s hockey program while competing for Minnesota. He was named team captain his sophomore year and held that honor until graduating in 2004, after helping the team win two national titles.
“One of the reasons why we recruited him was that we thought he was a good player but an even better leader,” head coach Don Lucia said. “All the players looked up to Grant. When he walks into a room he just commands respect.”
Potulney began volunteering his time as an assistant coach for the hockey program this spring and was named interim coach when Mike Hastings resigned after just one year.
“Right now I’m just trying to suck in as much information as I can and give whatever sort of feedback I feel can help the program,” Potulney said.
Lucia said Potulney will be a strong candidate to replace Hastings, and the team plans to have someone hired full-time for the position by the end of next week.
“I don’t know anywhere that would be as special to me as coaching at Minnesota,” Potulney said. “It’s just the energy that these young men have and the will to get better.”
The passion that players have when competing for the Gophers must be paralleled by their coaches, women’s head soccer coach Mikki Wright said .
“The number one qualities that we’re looking for in a successful coach are that you have to be loyal, and you have to have a passion for it every single day,” Wright said.
The women’s soccer program recently hired former Gopher Krystle Kallman as a new assistant coach for the fall. Kallman graduated this past May after playing her senior season with Minnesota.
As an athlete, Kallman helped Minnesota to their most successful season in history, but head coach Mikki Wright said she made an even bigger impact as a leader.
“I’d like to accomplish more as a coach than I did as a player to keep the program consistently doing well and striving for the next level,” Kallman said.
Wright said there was no question that Kallman would make a great coach because she possesses the passion and loyalty that coaches must have.
Though these athletes already possessed qualities that would make them good coaches, some transitions will be made as they rework their relationships with former teammates and coaches.
Roehrig and Kallman will both be coaching their former teammates, and Kallman will also be working with her younger sister who will be playing her third season with Minnesota.
Neither Roehrig or Kallman said they were nervous about changing their relationships, and Wright said that the transition should not be difficult.
“I think it’s harder for an outsider to come in and get to know them as people, to gain their trust and to develop a relationship,” Wright said. “It’s so much harder to do that than it is to just alter your relationship.”
More Sports News from The Minnesota Daily.
Determination fuels ex-Wolverine's NHL goals (CBS Interactive U-WIRE)
July 4, 2009
(CSTV U-WIRE) ANN ARBOR, Mich.—The bench door opens at Buccaneer Arena, home of the Des Moines Buccaneers, and out skates a 15-year-old carrying a bucket of pucks. He glides over to his usual spot between the center hash marks, about 12 to 15 feet from the net.
He pours the bucket of pucks onto the ice and zeroes in on his target. The youngster fires away at the four corners of the net, concentrating on his quick release and keeping his head up. After a few rounds, then 15-year-old Aaron Palushaj skates a few laps around the freshly resurfaced ice rink.
After about 30 minutes, his teammates and some of the coaches trickle onto the ice. A strenuous two-hour practice soon follows. But afterwards, the now ex-Wolverine grabs the same bucket of pucks. Positioning himself on the face-off dot in the left circle, Palushaj shoots at the far side corners of the net until, finally, coach Regg Simon has to kick him off the ice.
But if it were up to Simon, he'd let the Northville, Mich., native keep at it all night.
When Palushaj arrived in Des Moines in the summer of 2005, Simon quickly realized he had acquired a special young player.
“Desire — he has an intangible not many players have,” Simon said. “I’ve never been around a kid who was legitimately the first one on the ice and legitimately the last one off everyday. … If I had to hedge a bet on someone who was going to will their way to the NHL, it would probably be him.”
On April 3, Palushaj came one step closer to proving Simon right. Palushaj signed a contract with the Peoria Rivermen, the American Hockey League affiliate of the NHL's St. Louis Blues.
Palushaj sat down with Michigan coach Red Berenson prior to making a final decision — one that would mean forfeiting his final two years of NCAA eligibility.
Berenson has historically been opposed to players leaving the University early if they are not ready for the next level. But Palushaj said the two are still on “good terms," even after his premature departure from the maize and blue.
“He was disappointed, but you don’t just leave to play in Peoria,” Palushaj said. “It’s a chance to play in the NHL and play for St. Louis. He understands where my heart’s at.”
A self-made family
For the past few weeks, Palushaj has been stationed in St. Louis, training with the Blues’ strength and conditioning coaches to become stronger and improve his skating. But Palushaj wouldn’t really consider that work — especially with an opportunity to impress the St. Louis coaching staff at the Pro-Orientation Camp which begins on July 8.
Working 30 to 40 hours a week as a 12 year-old — that’s real work. Just tell that to Tom Palushaj, Aaron's father.
In 1972, the elder Palushaj emigrated from his native country of Albania to the United States. Aaron’s mother, Rita, had traveled to the United States just three years earlier.
As a teenager, Tom endured long hours to support his family of 11. He and his brothers eventually became entrepreneurs in the restaurant industry, opening Archie’s in Livonia and the Lyon Grill in South Lyon.
“They're a self-made family, and it’s a good home," Simon said. "Aaron probably grew up with inspiration around him all the time.”
Lightin’ the lamp
Natural goal scorers have a distinguishing attribute about them — the puck always seems to find their stick and eventually the back of the net.
A soft touch around the crease, an endless array of moves that leave netminders scratching their heads and an uncanny ability to score anywhere in the offensive zone makes them a goalie’s worst nightmare and a coach’s best weapon. It's what every coach, at any level, looks for.
And it didn't take long for Simon to recognize the offensive talent he had on his bench.
“(Aaron) was just a punk when he showed up (in Des Moines),” Simon said. “He was a real young kid, fresh out of Midget Minor in the Honeybaked (AAA) system. He was underdeveloped physically but most kids are at that age, but you knew he had the body to grow. … The determining factor of having him on that team was that he just always scored goals.
"Even as the second-youngest player in our camp (in 2005), he still scored.”
As a rookie, Palushaj had to prove to Simon and the rest of the Buccaneer coaching staff that he belonged in the lineup. Whether it was in off-ice workouts, practices or the weight room, he needed to show that he was driven and committed in his new environment. And he did.
But his second year in the United States Hockey League was a different story.
“He definitely played more of a leadership role,” Simon said. “Aaron also had a little bit of pressure on him to perform well because he was a highly recruited player at Michigan.”
The more experienced Palushaj played on the first and second line for the whole season while registering 67 points and finishing second in scoring. The same kid who used to pour endless buckets of pucks onto the ice had solidified himself as one of the top Wolverine recruits for 2007.
Hockey IQ
Size is a luxury in hockey.
And for Palushaj, his 5-foot-11, 175-pound frame makes him an average-sized player. It's clear Palushaj’s not going to be one of the biggest skaters on any team he plays on in the future.
But being big is not really one of the components that characterizes an exceptional hockey player.
Without a size advantage, he has developed an intangible ability that can't often be taught and few players truly posses: outstanding hockey IQ.
And while Palushaj’s hockey IQ is superior to many players, it’ll need to develop even further according to Peoria coach Davis Payne.
“The developmental timeline for him is very steep,” Payne said. “Playing in the AHL against guys who have been playing pro or who have played in the NHL is a definite step up. His competition will be tougher which will force his level of play to come up and with that, the developmental curve will be forced to steepen.”
Palushaj in Peoria
This upcoming season will be Palushaj’s first full year with the Rivermen, and while he is looking to cement a permanent place in the lineup, he will also hope to revert back to his old ways: simply putting the puck in the back of the net.
Still, it wasn’t as if Palushaj didn’t score at Michigan. He had 23 goals in his 82 games in Ann Arbor. But he was just more of a shoot first, pass second kind of player.
“I’m a goal scorer,” Palushaj said. “But my first year at school — the first powerplay unit was me, (Max) Pacioretty, (Chad) Langlais, (Kevin) Porter and (Chad) Kolarik. Playing with those guys, you’re really intimidated — going into college as a 17-year old and you’re playing with guys that put up 55 points in a season in NCAA.”
Payne mentioned that he would like Palushaj to drive to the inside of the ice more and play to his offensive strengths. Whether that includes passing the puck to an open teammate in the slot, rifling a snap shot from 20 feet out or sliding the puck back door on the powerplay, Payne wants offense and plenty of it.
“There’s something that goes on inside their brain that says, 'Hey, I need to make a difference when I’ve got the puck,’” Payne said. “We want guys thinking that they need to score, they want to score, they love to score. We want Aaron to continue to be one of those guys.”
More Sports News from The Michigan Daily.
NHL draft comes calling for 5 Gophers (CBS Interactive U-WIRE)
July 3, 2009
(CSTV U-WIRE) MINNEAPOLIS—More University of Minnesota hockey players saw their dreams of becoming professionals become a closer reality this weekend.
Five Gophers were drafted in the 2009 NHL Draft last Friday and Saturday, including two players drafted in the first round.
Incoming freshman Nick Leddy was taken 16th overall by the Minnesota Wild. A few picks later, the Vancouver Canucks landed sophomore Jordan Schroeder with the 22nd pick.
“You look forward to this your whole life,” Schroeder said. “Getting an opportunity to go up on stage is a good feeling.”
On the second day of the draft, incoming freshmen Zach Budish (Edina, Minn.), Josh Birkholz (Maple Grove, Minn.) and Seth Helgeson (Faribault, Minn.) were drafted. All four of the incoming freshmen draftees, including Leddy, have signed letters of intent to play for the Gophers in 2009.
Leddy (Eden Prairie, Minn.) was named Mr. Hockey in 2009 , helping lead Eden Prairie High School to a Class AA championship . The defenseman said he was speechless when he saw his draft position and is thrilled to be drafted by the hometown team.
“Of course they’re my favorite team because I’m from Minnesota,” he said. “It’s an unbelieivealbe feeling to be drafted by [the Wild].”
Leddy said he will try to jump to the professionals as soon as he’s ready. While that could be as early as 2010, Gophers head coach Don Lucia said he thinks Leddy will need to become stronger to play in the NHL.
“He’s got potential, but he’s got to get stronger physically, and he’s got to prove to be a player at our level before he’s ready for the next level,” Lucia said.
The coaches don’t do anything to convince the players to stay at the college level, Lucia said. He said he hopes the players stay to receive an education but understands that he can’t stop them when they’re ready for the next step.
“When you’re ready to play in the NHL, I’ll drive you to the airport so you can get on the plane and go,” he said.
Looking toward next season, Lucia said the Gophers will try to use some of the incoming freshmen to fill the void left by players such as forward Ryan Stoa and Justin Bostrom leaving. The team will also turn to Schroeder as a primary offensive target, he said.
Schroeder, who was named National Rookie of the Year by College Hockey News and Inside College Hockey , had to wait until after his freshman year to be drafted. Players must be 18 before Sept. 15 of the draft year to be drafted. Schroeder said he took summer classes to accelerate his schooling to play a year in college to help show NHL teams that he’s ready for the professional level.
“Playing college a year early and being able to prove that I could play in college had a big impact,” he said. “It gives teams a good sense of how ready I am.”
Schroeder said he is glad to be drafted by the Canucks because they always have a team pushing to make the playoffs.
With the most recent draft class, Minnesota has now had 23 players drafted in the NHL draft in the past four seasons.
Lucia said players wanting to play for the NHL or the American Hockey League is something he has to deal with year after year, but he said college hockey is a good way to help them prepare for the next step.
“You have to be ready physically and you have to be ready mentally, because once you leave here it’s strictly business,” Lucia said.
More Sports News from The Minnesota Daily.
