Get off the ice!

Simple answer. Dave was the program and he knew how to handle the parents (boards included). Now the nuance. Once he reached his goal (Sam Lafferty), he left. It took a couple years to fall apart but it was inevitable. It wasn’t a sustainable model for success. Plus, after winning a national championship, the expectations were too high. Too small an area to have success without a “salesman” to bring in outside talent. Dave also kept track of AAA tryouts and targeted the last cuts. Plus, you don’t have a Sam Lafferty and a core of really good local talent at every age group.