What would UVM need to do to compete for a HE title every season?
To realistically answer your question "every season" isn't likely, nor totally realistic. However, it shouldn't be out of the question that a great class/group of players puts themselves in a position to do so every 3-4 years while being consistently in the "oh so boring" 6th place on down cylces or on average. But, considering Hockey East is a multi-bid league, it's not a matter of having to win the league every year, it's getting yourself in position for NCAA bids or going on a conference tourney run to the Garden.
But really...it starts with getting a new coach who can
cliche alert change the culture, because the Fabreezing over Sneddon's garbage heap of a team dynamic and how he is as a human can't block the stench anymore. That's on UVM who waits until things are absolutely at rock bottom before making a change, and usually 2-3 years too late. See Mike Gilligan, Tim Bothwell, or even Hougton the old field hockey coach (5 years of not a single conference win and in her lame duck year the team went 0-19). But, better late than never and whoever comes in is going to need to be given some leeway with the roster because he's got a garbage pile of talent currently there, and based on results I think it's safe to assume most of the gazillion verbal commits they have are not really up to standard.
You also need a coach that understands modern hockey, and plays a style that will win but develop players. Two things Sneddon hasn't done since 2009 and that's honestly because just like college basketball, college hockey has changed a ton via influence from changes in the pro game, is more counted on to be a NHL feeder program as more top level guys are going to college even if just for 1-2 years (because it's way more fun playing hockey in Burlington than it is Rimouski, Quebec, at least I think. More "big city slams ferda boys" one would imagine)...so I think that will help elevate the talent who might want to come here. That or you gotta go full on Cornell which is like Virginia basketball of college hockey, but even they've tweaked their style to adjust...they're just committed to it and it works (they haven't won the national title, yet though).