Re: LSSU Lakers 2018-19
To give this some context, I'm going to post as a MSU fan. There is certainly a lot of bitterness on our part about the leagues. A large part of it is simply because it has been very hard to generate excitement around this team in large part because of the conference. It's not necessarily due to the other schools so much as it is the lack of familiarity. It's going to take a ton of time and effort to build up the same amount of connection as we had in the old WCHA. We lost our 5 biggest "rival schools" in the conference shift. We lost UMD, UND, St Cloud, MN, and UNO (I could even make an argument for WI as well). All of which we have a much larger natural connection to Mankato than any school in the conference (including Bemidji). I know and work with grads of each and every one of those schools which lends itself to having a bigger connection to the conference. I can't say the same of any school in the current conference. Additionally, I know this can't be measured, but the buzz in the arena is not near what it was a few years ago.
Yes, we have had a lot of success in the WCHA as it stands today. I think most Mankato fans truly believe that we would have had just as much in the NCHC (maybe not in terms of the volume of wins, but overall success). The realignment also coincides with our hiring of Mike Hastings. He was hired one year before the conferences shifted, meaning we had one year in the old conference under his tutelage. With virtually the exact same roster as the year before we went from 12 to 24 wins, so there is reason to believe we would be successful regardless.
All that being said, I sense the tide MAY be changing from the fans perspective. We are getting our old rivals to come in for non-conference games now. Granted, it's not the same as it being in the same conference as them, but we're playing them none the less. I was very impressed by the announced attendance this last weekend. It was over 8,000 for you guys. That's not something we would have been able to reach a few years ago. I think the level of competitiveness in the WCHA is also getting better. If that keeps happening, maybe the fan sentiment will start changing.
the
Point being, there are logical reasons that there is that sentiment. Some conferences are just better fits for given schools. Up until this point, the NCHC has been a better fit in many people's minds.
Originally posted by Deman
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Yes, we have had a lot of success in the WCHA as it stands today. I think most Mankato fans truly believe that we would have had just as much in the NCHC (maybe not in terms of the volume of wins, but overall success). The realignment also coincides with our hiring of Mike Hastings. He was hired one year before the conferences shifted, meaning we had one year in the old conference under his tutelage. With virtually the exact same roster as the year before we went from 12 to 24 wins, so there is reason to believe we would be successful regardless.
All that being said, I sense the tide MAY be changing from the fans perspective. We are getting our old rivals to come in for non-conference games now. Granted, it's not the same as it being in the same conference as them, but we're playing them none the less. I was very impressed by the announced attendance this last weekend. It was over 8,000 for you guys. That's not something we would have been able to reach a few years ago. I think the level of competitiveness in the WCHA is also getting better. If that keeps happening, maybe the fan sentiment will start changing.
the
Point being, there are logical reasons that there is that sentiment. Some conferences are just better fits for given schools. Up until this point, the NCHC has been a better fit in many people's minds.
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