The Worst Seasons in the Past 25 Years Part 31: Miami
Welcome to the Worst Season in the Past 25 Years, a series in which r/CollegeHockey reviews the worst season for all 60 Division I teams over the summer to alleviate the crushing boredom known as the off-season and take a horrific tour down memory lane.
If you are interested in writing an entry for your team, please let me know via PM. I’ll be posting entries on weekdays at approximately at 6 pm Eastern time and will be going in alphabetical order. If an entry is not posted at that time, assume that “real life” has gotten in the way and that I am not able to post. If I am aware in advance that I will not post at 6 pm on a particular day, I will announce it in prior posts as a heads up.
And now.../r/CollegeHockey presents the Miami RedHawks! Miami started their program in 1978, enjoying a couple of seasons as a DI independent. In 1980, Miami became members of the CCHA, having an occasional NCAA berth until the 2000s. Towards the end of the CCHA, Miami were very successful, amassing 3 regular season titles, 1 conference trophy, and back-to-back Frozen Fours. Since joining the NCHC in 2013, the RedHawks have one conference title.
The worst season for the RedHawks in recent memory is…
2016-2017 Record: 9-7-20 (W-D-L); NCHC: 5-5-14 (W-D-L; 7th/8th)
Wins: @Providence, Maine, Bowling Green, Colorado College, @Ohio State, St. Cloud (x2), @North Dakota, Western Michigan
Ties: OSU, Maine, @Denver (x2), CC, @Nebraska Omaha, @Minnesota Duluth
Losses: @Providence, Bowling Green, @Western Michigan (x2), UNO (x2), @Cornell (x2), @UND, @UNO, WMU, @St. Cloud (x2), Denver (x2), @Minnesota Duluth (x2), North Dakota (x2), @UMD (x2)*
*NCHC quarterfinals
Biggest Beatdown: Miami 2 - Nebraska Omaha 6
Head Coach: Enrico Blasi
In his eighteenth season at the RedHawks’ helm, Blasi blazed his team to his singular single-digit win season thus far. Anthony Lewis and Kiefer Sherwood had the most goals, with 14 a piece; Lewis also had the most assists, with 25. In goal, Ryan Larkin had a save percentage of .910 and a GAA of 2.77.
Miami go their season underway with an exhibition against the University of Waterloo. The following weekend, the RedHawks went to the East Coast, splitting a series with the Providence Friars. Two ties then followed, against Ohio State and Maine. Miami also got a win over Maine. The month ended with a split series against Bowling Green.
November kicked off Miami’s conference schedule. Two series were dropped, away to Western Michigan and at home against Nebraska Omaha. The series at Denver led to two draws. December began with another series to another Eastern team, this time it was Cornell. The Big Red won both games (good, good). A home series with Colorado College garnered a tie and a win. On New Year’s Eve, Miami defeated Ohio State.
The new year began with a sweep of St. Cloud. The following weekend saw a split series away to North Dakota. A trip to Omaha only managed to get a tie. The home series with WMU ended in a split. February began with a bye week, followed by being swept by St. Cloud on the road and Denver at home. A trip to Duluth did get one tie, however. North Dakota were not generous for their second series, beating Miami both times. In the NCHC quarterfinals, Duluth defeated the RedHawks in two games.
The RedHawks’ seasonal form had a dip since moving to the NCHC. Whether or not this is a long term decline, we will see in due time. Hopefully Miami improves, however, and challenge for the NCHC title like they did in the 2014-2015 season.
For Week 7 of this series, we will look at the worst seasons in recent memory for the following school: Michigan, Michigan State, and Michigan Tech. Once again, if you are interested in doing the entry for your favorite school, shoot me a PM. Your school, name, and date will be added at the end of each post to serve as a reminder. So far, the following people have inquired about a spot:
| School | Username | Tentative Date |
|---|---|---|
| Northeastern | u/therevengeance | 8/2 |
| Penn State | u/saucysalesman | 8/8 |
| RPI | u/Nicholas1227 | 8/16 |
| Union | u/azurearmor | 8/22 |
| Vermont | u/LocksTheFox | 8/23 |
Finally, a shoutout to u/saucysalesman who inspired the idea of this series for doing one for football over at r/cfb. Additionally, thanks to r/CollegeBasketball for the idea of the sub-par MS Paint logos for each school.
Previous Entries in the Worst Seasons Series:
Posted Jul 18, 2017, 9:54 PM UTC