Things slow down when you retire. Mornings are meeting for coffee and talking smart with the rest of your retired buddies. Or so I hear. In the summer you golf or now play pickleball I guess. In the winter you hang out at Menards, Home Depot or Scheels. The afternoons require a nap or at the very least a session of daydreaming. Mostly I dream about coaching again, but I do occasionally have some other thoughts. So here we go.

Two Boys Divisions

I hate to say we told you so, but the Wisconsin Hockey Coaches Association (WHCA) has been pushing for two divisions for decades. In the twenty years prior to finally moving to two divisions in 2020, only eight small schools (enrollments under 1,000) had made it to Madison out of the 160 that qualified. Since 2020, four small schools made their first ever trip (Oregon, Somerset, Lakeland and Baldwin) and four schools made their first trip in over twenty years (Northland Pines, Tomahawk, Menomonie and River Falls) and three teams made their first trip in over a decade (New Richmond, Mosinee and Rice Lake). Technically a couple of those schools did have enrollments just over 1,000, but I will allow us to call them small schools.

The creation of a two-division state tournament for boys has clearly opened a road to Madison for small schools that had been all but closed. The downside was that it came at the expense of four large schools. Trying to predict the strength of any given sectional bracket is pointless. I think the constant jockeying of football conferences has proven it to be a dog chasing its tail.

Division one, section one is right now the strongest sectional in the state. It annually boasts a handful of the state’s top ranked division one teams. Ten years from now that could be completely different. Former CFM head coach Tony Menard had an interesting proposal, that would re-seed teams after the first round of games. A formula that would combine sections 1-2 and 3-4 would help limit travel if that is still a legitimate concern. Superior girls drove four hours to their sectional final. One major change that is overdue would be to use a mathematical formula to replace coaches voting in the seeding process.

He's Back…He’s Gone

And I am not talking about Donald Trump. Tom Shafranski, who served as WIAA hockey administrator from 2003 to 2021, returned very briefly after a three-year hiatus, to replace LeVar Ridgeway. Then, after a cameo return, Shafranski announced he will retire in February. Shafranski’s brief return was a bit of a red flag for hockey coaches as his previous tenure as hockey administrator was often confrontational and contentious. His return was a curious move following what many believed was a more productive and interactive connection with Ridgeway. Upon hearing of Shafranski’s return, I reached out to him with a few questions.  He was delighted to hear from me, or maybe I reminded him that he really didn’t want back in that hockey hornets’ nest. No imminent word out on who will take over as hockey administrator.

Capital Ice Center Concerns

I hate to say it part two, is that the WHCA, and I was on that train, was so desperate to leave the Alliant Energy Center, that we vacated, even though a better option did not exist. The Capital Ice Arena has one distinct advantage, the excitement and energy of the full house atmosphere. Fusion assistant coach Jon Zevenbergen gave the experience a positive review, “Overall the experience was great,” he said.  “The staff at the arena was courteous and professional, made the team feel it was a special event.”

Unfortunately, that is where the positives of the CIA begin and end. Most everything else from parking, to viewing, to ice conditions, to grandparents being left out in the cold, drew some negative criticism. Adjustment to game times was helpful with the traffic flow into and out of the arena, but the distribution of tickets left many fans out in the cold. There appears to be no feasible parking solution.

WHCA president BJ Brandt supports the new venue and the electricity the full house has generated. “The game atmosphere that the new venue provides is everything we want for our student athletes,” said the Wausau West head coach. “We are looking forward to working with the WIAA and the venue together to make it an even better experience for players, coaches, fans and families of the athletes.  Bob Suter's Capitol Ice Arena has been a positive change.”

With all due respect to the late Bob Suter, the Capital Ice Arena is not the answer, but with no better solution readily available the WIAA moved forward. “The Cap Ice contract has been renewed with a long-term contract,” Shafranski recently divulged, “as we've been very pleased with the service, facility and accommodations the great folks at Cap Ice have provided.”

When I pressed on the length of the CIA contract I got no answer. It appears that the potential that the new rink at Cornerstone in Green Bay presents will not be on the WIAA radar anytime soon.  

Saturday Night Live

I believe, if my memory serves me, the Saturday night boys Division I championship game between Notre Dame and Brookfield last March, was the first ever hockey game in prime time. For decades, no exaggeration, the WHCA (Wisconsin Hockey Coaches Association) has asked why the championship game could not be played in the evening. Our basic response was something like the network won’t pre-empt Wheel of Fortune. The blame was clearly laid on the television network. I do know the networks have restrictions on how much programming they can pre-empt. Now I discovered that the WIAA initiated this request to move the Division I game to the evening and the network agreed. I can only ponder as to whether the WIAA ever bothered to ask in the past. Seems odd that it would suddenly be acceptable after all these years. Let’s hope it continues!

It reinforces my belief that previous WIAA hockey liaisons did not have hockey’s best interest as their priority. That changed under the watch of Stephanie Hauser and LeVar Ridgeway.  As one coach put it, “The new regime are better listeners.” It now remains to be seen who will take over in the light of Shafranski’s retirement.

I am still offended, and some of the coaches agree, a 9:30 AM championship game is embarrassing. One Division II coach simply said, “Game times need to be better.” If you are driving down from Rice Lake, you will have to leave at 5:30 in the morning, Superior 4 AM. Just more fuel in the argument for splitting the boys’ and girls’ tournament. Bring eight Division I and four Division II boys’ teams and move the girls to a different weekend. More on that later.

Do Your Job

Bill Belichick’s Patriots made “do your job” famous on their way to earning Super Bowl titles. The WIAA’s purpose listed on their website says, “to organize, develop and control an interscholastic athletic program.” Their organization is clearly evident, but develop is defined as; grow or cause to grow and become more mature, advanced, or elaborate. There is definite room for improvement in that category.  And their control is arbitrary based on the difficulty of monitoring and enforcing potential regulations.

The Wisconsin Hockey Coaches Association, from both the boys’ and girls’ side, needs to present a united front. When a productive and actively involved president is brought on board they should stay in that position until there is a viable new candidate. In the past presidents have too often been nominated and elected without a real desire or time to dedicate to the position. The current leadership of BJ Brandt and Mark Thorn have been highly involved and have developed a cooperative relationship with the WIAA. Thorn has since stepped down, Emily Clark (Hayward) and Matt Szypura (Hudson) have assumed the intern role until the girls coaches formally elect new leadership this Spring.

In the past sitting in on the Coaches Advisory Committee meeting was akin to being scolded by your second-grade teacher. Ideas from the coaches were routinely dismissed without legitimate discussion. It is pointless to create an advisory group and then ignore their advice. Proposals that show the promise to grow the game of hockey and take steps to rein in the co-op catastrophe need to be seriously considered.

Dan Bauer is a free-lance writer, retired teacher & hockey coach in Wausau, WI. You can contact him at drbauer13@gmail.com.