Bylsma's alma mater's hockey team in trouble

by ahtrap on Mar 13, 2009 3:21 PM EDT

Now you may be wondering why I'm linking to some random story about some obscure school's hockey program possibly facing the axe in these troubled economic times, but as it turns out, there is not only one good reason, which I already knew about, but a second Penguins related link, as well as personal reminiscences to be had here, so indulge me, if you will.

Bowling Green State University is a small school located just south of Toledo, Ohio, and unless you like in the area, or happen to be into Mid-American conference sports or CCHA hockey, it's possible that it's one of those schools that just never popped up on your radar. But, it just happens to be where Dan Bylsma went to school, and played his hockey (1989-92), a fact that I learned when I looked the guy up on Wikipedia just after he was hired.

Now, I'm from just outside Ann Arbor, and Michigan and Bowling Green are both in the CCHA, so I did wonder if I'd ever seen Bylsma play, as I went to a few games at Yost Ice Arena while growing up...don't recall ever seeing BG play before I started attending Michigan myself, so not until 1993, after he graduated....

The other connection, if you'll follow the link, is apparent when you look at the pic associated with the first paragraph...a pic of Brian Holzinger, 1994 Hobey Baker award winner at BG, who apparently must have had a stop in Pittsburgh at some point...

Anyway, the reason BG hockey means something to me is because they were the first team I ever remember winning an NCAA hockey championship. They got theirs in 1984, with now longtime BC coach Jerry York at the helm, I was 8, and that was the beginning of a CCHA golden age, with league members winning 7 of the next 15 NCAA championship.

Between that, and remembering watching Holzinger play at Yost, it's sad to contemplate this program biting the dust...and even more so thinking about what has happened to a once proud, and even dominant program to bring it to this point.

Just thought I'd share...

(edit: altered the title...just curious if it might draw a couple of extra eyeballs with some Pens specific link in the title...call it market research or something...)

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Comments

Man I love when people dig up stuff like this. Had you not posted this I honestly wouldn’t have known the program was on the outs, so thanks for that.

I’m familiar with Bowling Green as a school (mainly for college football than anything else) but wasn’t aware their hockey program was highly regarded as well. I also read in many articles following Bylsma’s hiring that he was a BG grad.

It’s sad to think that a hockey program in Michigan runs a chance of getting cut from a school. I mean, it’s not like it’s a start-up program in Florida or something. I know the economy sucks and all but if people like you have memories with the school then there are plenty more who share the same.

But if there’s one thing I learned while working in the Athletics offices of my alma mater it’s that people may love a sport but they only care about a program if it makes money.

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by FrankD on Mar 13, 2009 3:52 PM EDT reply actions

just for the record, BG is in Ohio…but point taken, as another Michigan based program in the CCHA, Ferris State, made noises a few years back about shuttering their hockey program, too, and that was in a better economy, though without the backrgound the BG program had….

If hockey can’t survive in its natural environments….I still remember the shock of the North Stars heading south, the bizarreness of Minnesota, pretty much synonymous with hockey, suddenly being without an NHL rep…one that went to Dallas freaking Texas, of all places…

by ahtrap on Mar 15, 2009 9:14 PM EDT reply actions

Shortly after that move from Minnesota they won a Cup too. Talk about a kick in the jock.

Yeah guess I didn’t know exactly where Bowling Green is, although I know they have that “seriously, we’re not Syracuse” orange and even that whole Cleveland Browns look with the brown jerseys from watching them on Saturdays.

But I digress.

Why must hockey be the sport sacrificed at these schools? Don’t they have a track and field team they can cut first?

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by FrankD on Mar 15, 2009 9:43 PM EDT up reply actions