After one of the worst seasons in the storied history of the Wisconsin men’s hockey program, head coach Tony Granato will be back behind the bench.
On Friday afternoon, the UW Athletic Board met to discuss the contract situations of all of the winter sports coaches. Typically this results in each coach adding an additional year to their contract, which keeps it on a five-year rolling plan. There has been speculation among fans since the hockey season ended that Wisconsin should search for a new men’s hockey head coach after Tony Granato presided over one of the worst seasons in program history in 2021-22.
Hell, I called for Granato’s job back in November and the rest of the season did nothing to change my mind.
Statement from Director of Athletics Chris McIntosh pic.twitter.com/j1WLdZ8Gpt
— Wisconsin Hockey (@BadgerMHockey) April 22, 2022
Granato, however, did receive a standard one-year extension through June 30, 2027 and will be behind the bench for the Badgers this fall when the puck drops on a new season. He will be doing so without the services of associate head coach Mark Strobel, however, who resigned on Monday after five years in Madison. Strobel played for the Badgers from 1991-1995.
Other coaching news today — Wisconsin assistant Mark Strobel has resigned after five seasons.
— College Hockey News (@chnews) April 18, 2022
What, if anything, this means for the program is unclear. As a former player, it doesn’t seem likely that Strobel was forced out or asked to resign and since there haven’t been any rumblings of an imminent replacement it doesn’t seem like Granato had someone else he preferred for the job.
Guess we’ll see how things go next season!