This program will go no further with this coaching staff

than it has gone in the last couple of years. Go back and listen to Jackson's recent appearance on Adam Wodon's College Hockey News podcast. To me it screams about how disconnected he has become from the current game. He complained about losing skill over "three or four years." Well what the hell are you doing about it? It's one thing to lose a player or two and struggle the next year, but three or four years? Recruit better.

He compared the situations of his to Red Berenson's and Jerry York's, and how people whispered to players about the pending end of their tenures and the struggles in the last few years. Well, what do you think it happening here? And what did those programs do over most of the last few years of those coaches time? Very little.

What's most frustrating is he clearly thinks the criticism he receives about his offense is unfair. He challenges anyone to watch his team and tell him they don't play to score. Did he even watch what his team did this weekend in two must win games? They scored one goal and it took them almost 3/4 of the 3rd period of a tie game to get their first damn shot on net. Maybe he is coaching them to be offensive, but if so, it clearly isn't working. His reasoning that his teams are playing to score largely seems centered on how much rubber Bishel faces. Maybe his teams don't play 5 man defense as well as some are thinking. Michigan's game winning goal today surely illustrates something different to me.

He clearly is as frustrated with the state of the game off the ice today as many of us are -- me included. But as the head coach you don't get to be frustrated with portals and NIL and agents you need to steer clear of.

He trots out the same tired excuses about how young the team is. Yet plenty of teams win when they rely on freshmen. Yes, the freshman class is doing well. Far better than the last few years. But it is not enough. And the program's track record of getting better sophomore, junior or senior years out of freshmen who show promise is spotty. To be generous.

When the same problems sink this team game after game and year after year something has to change.

Maybe Notre Dame can't compete in hockey any more than they can in the cesspool that is college football or men's basketball. If that's true, so be it. But if it is not, Notre Dame needs to do something quite a bit different than what they are doing now. I really hope Jackson decides to make this his last behind the Notre Dame bench because this program will go nowhere as it is presently being run.