Tag: Mike Hastings

Wisconsin approves contract extension for men’s basketball head coach Greg Gard

Wisconsin approves contract extension for men’s basketball head coach Greg Gard

The University of Wisconsin Athletic Board approved a contract extension for men’s basketball head coach Greg Gard on Friday.

The extension is a procedural move and was done for all of the organization’s winter coaches. It extends Gard’s contract through May 31, 2029. He remains one of the highest-paid coaches in the sport.

Related: An updated look at Wisconsin basketball’s 2024-25 roster after Chucky Hepburn’s departure

Gard will enter his 10th season manning the sidelines for the Badgers during the 2024-2025 campaign. Since taking over for Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductee Bo Ryan, Gard has led Wisconsin to six NCAA Tournament appearances and was named Big Ten Coach of the Year in 2020 and 2022.

Wisconsin Athletic Director Chris McIntosh previously expressed a vote of confidence in Gard after the conclusion of the team’s 2023-24 season.

The Cobb, Wisconsin native boasts the third-highest winning percentage (.635) in program history, trailing only the aforementioned Ryan (.737) and Walter Meanwell (.712).

The Badgers has experienced a seismic shift in personnel over the past few weeks. Chucky Hepburn, AJ Storr, Tyler Wahl and Conor Essegian are among eight Badgers to depart Madison via graduation or the transfer portal.

Gard is firmly in place to guide the program through a turbulent offseason.

Alongside Gard, the UW Athletic Board approved the extensions of five other winter head coaches — Marisa Moseley (women’s basketball), Yuri Suguiyama (swimming and diving), Mike Hastings (men’s hockey), Mark Johnson (women’s hockey) and Chris Bono (wrestling).

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Wisconsin Badgers hockey season comes to an end at NCAA Tournament

Wisconsin Badgers hockey season comes to an end at NCAA Tournament

The Wisconsin Badgers men’s hockey team lost to Quinnipiac 3-2 in overtime in the first round of the NCAA tournament in Providence, Rhode Island, on Friday night.

After finishing the year 26-11-2 through the regular season and conference tournament, the Badgers were back in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2021.

Unfortunately, they were unable to knock off the defending champion Bobcats, falling in the extra period Friday.

At the end of the day, although they didn’t advance in the tournament, it’d be hard to look at the team’s first season under new head coach Mike Hastings as anything but a resounding success.

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WATCH: Badgers men’s hockey coach talks about #1 ranking

Hastings isn’t too caught up in number-one ranking

The Badgers men’s hockey team is out to a 9-1 start and they are the number-one ranked team in the nation, but head coach Mike Hastings isn’t overly caught up in where they are in the polls.

Wisconsin will face off with #11 Michigan State for two games on the road this weekend (Friday and Saturday) and they will have an opportunity to extend their lead in the Big Ten standings.

To this point in the first season under new head coach Mike Hastings, the Badgers have gone on the road and beaten Minnesota (top-ranked team in the nation at the time) twice and then beat Michigan (fourth-ranked at the time) twice at home, amongst other impressive feats.

They’re out to their best start in over two decades.

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Badgers men’s hockey puts together historic weekend

Badgers get the best of rivals on the road

When the Badgers hired Mike Hastings (Minnesota State) to become their head coach this offseason, they were looking for a quick turnaround following their 13-23 season in 2022-2023. What they didn’t realize was how quick they’d figure things.

Wisconsin went on the road to face #1 ranked Minnesota on the road Thursday and Friday night, beating the Gophers on both occasions.

After getting down 1-0 in the first 15 seconds of Thursday’s matchup, the Badgers responded quickly and got the win 5-2. They continued their momentum Friday, eeking out a 3-2 win, sweeping Minnesota on the road for only the fifth time in 23 years.

With leaders like Mathieu De St. Phalle and Cruz Lucius out on the ice, it’s possible that this Wisconsin squad could be in for a special year, now sitting at 7-1 through eight games.

Game 1 Highlights:

Game 2 Highlights:

 

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WATCH: New chapter for Badgers men’s hockey

Badgers hockey set for 2023 season

The upcoming 2023 men’s hockey season is almost here and a new chapter for the Badgers will come this year as head coach Mike Hastings takes over. Wisconsin is coming off of an incredibly disappointing season where they went 6-18.

The 2022 campaign was the second straight that the Badgers only won six games and they moved on from head coach Tony Granato, replacing him with Minnesota State’s head coach Mike Hastings (2012-2023).

While at Minnesota State, he produced a 299-109-25 overall record and led the team to the Frozen Four on many occasions including a National Championship appearance in 2021.

Hastings will look to keep the good times going in Madison this year and turn around a Wisconsin program that has struggled recently.

LOOK: Badgers Men’s Hockey schedule released

Can Badgers right the ship with new coach in 2023?

The 2023 Badgers men’s hockey season gets underway on Oct. 7 and the full schedule was released on Monday. The upcoming campaign will be the team’s 75th as a program while Mike Hastings takes over as head coach.

Hastings came to Wisconsin this offseason after spending the last 11 seasons as the head coach of the Minnesota State men’s hockey team. During his time with the Mavericks, he led them to eight NCAA tournament appearances, including two trips to the Frozen Four (2021, 2022) while making the championship game in 2022.

After going 13-23 last year, the Badgers will look to right the ship in 2023 with their new head coach.

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Wisconsin hockey hires Minnesota State HC Mike Hastings

On Thursday evening, Wisconsin AD Chris McIntosh announced the hiring of Minnesota State HC Mike Hastings:

On Thursday evening, Wisconsin athletic director Chris McIntosh announced the hiring of Minnesota State head coach Mike Hastings as the new head coach of the Badgers’ men’s hockey team.

In Wisconsin athletics’ statement, McIntosh highlighted Hastings’ history of success including finishing with a winning record in all 25 of his seasons as a head coach. Hastings has spent the last 14 seasons with Minnesota State and has led them to three straight NCAA Tournaments and back-to-back Frozen Four appearances in 2021 and 2022. He also took the Mavericks to the NCAA title game in 2022.

Wisconsin fired previous head coach Tony Granato earlier this month following struggles during his tenure with only two winning seasons in his seven years with the Badgers. It is definitely disappointing to see the former Badger leave the program, but it is exciting to see McIntosh working to restore the tradition of success to Wisconsin men’s hockey with this hiring.