Redwings screwed again.

There must be a league wide conspiracy against the Detroit Redwing this season because this is the second goal in about two weeks that should have counted but didn't. I don’t know how they can say that Cleary is interfering with the goalie in this situation. I think this goal looked like it should have counted, what do you think?[props]

Sioux 4 Buckeyes 1

What a difference a week makes. The Sioux and Buckeyes decided the game on the ice and there wasn’t a ridiculous parade to the penalty box like last weekend in Denver. Last night the Fighting Sioux beat the tOSU Buckeyes 4-1 in the first game of the Subway Holiday Classic before a crowd of 11,251. This was one of those games that could have been very disastrous for the Fighting Sioux; OSU is a decent team but not a great team. This is also the same team that beat DU 4-0. The Buckeyes have a lot of young players with good upside, in my opinion Zac Dalpe is one of the better forwards in the CCHA and is leading the CCHA in points with (7g-7a-14pts). Their goalie Justin Carlson had a good game last night and made a lot of good saves. The Sioux could have blown this thing open if it wasn’t for his effort between the pipes .

+Positives+

I was impressed with the Fighting Sioux effort last night the defense is starting to adjust without Chay Genoway being in the lineup and I thought Corey Fienhage has made some strides forward after sitting out the first 9 games.

Brad Eidsness continues to be solid between the pipes for the Fighting Sioux. With the win Eidsness improved to (7-3-1 GAA 1.6323 and .931SV%) I have seen a lot of improvement in his game this season and I think he will only get better with experience.

Evan Trupp (4g-8a-12pts) who had two assists in last night’s game is becoming the player many thought he was capable of being. This kid has a lot of offensive creativity and is very exciting when he is killing penalties with Brad Malone.

Number one Miami up next for the Fighting Sioux

The task at hand tonight is not simple, however Miami is not unbeatable and I think UND can beat Miami tonight. Make no mistakes about it the Miami RedHawks are a good hockey team; they have a great defense and some good offensive players up front. The RedHawks have had trouble scoring goals and the Sioux are going to need to get a lead on them early. The Sioux are going to need to get on top of them with a furious fore-check. The Fighting Sioux cannot let up and no one can take shifts off or have players doing their own thing.

[Box Score]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1st Period (20:00)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

OSU-1 Chris Reed (2-Hooking) NDK 0x1 6:59
NDK-1 Brett Hextall (2-Hooking) OSU 0x1 11:13

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2nd Period (20:00)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

NDK 1 - 0 6x6 LL Darcy Zajac (3) (Corey Fienhage, Brett Bruneteau) 4:30
NDK (+): 11,4,13,20,9,G31 OSU (-): 11,16,27,20,3,G41
OSU-2 Kyle Reed (2-Tripping) NDK 0x2 10:24
NDK-2 Brad Malone (2-High-Sticking) OSU 0x2 14:22
NDK-3 Andrew MacWilliam (2-Tripping) OSU 0x3 16:20

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3rd Period (20:00)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

NDK 2 - 0 6x6 GW Brad Malone (2) (Evan Trupp, Derrick LaPoint) 4:24
NDK (+): 22,19,18,4,20,G31 OSU (-): 15,10,21,8,17,G41
OSU-3 Sergio Somma (2-Tripping) NDK 0x3 6:04
OSU 1 - 2 6x6 Zac Dalpe (9) (Peter Boyd, Sergio Somma) 8:18
OSU (+): 19,26,44,12,27,G41 NDK (-): 25,3,17,29,26,G31
NDK 3 - 1 6x6 Danny Kristo (3) (Chris VandeVelde, Jason Gregoire) 11:25
NDK (+): 7,29,17,20,4,G31 OSU (-): 20,12,27,11,16,G41
OSU-4 Matt Bartkowski (2-Tripping) NDK 1x4 13:12
NDK 4 - 1 6x5 PP Brett Hextall (3) (Jake Marto, Evan Trupp) 13:49
NDK: 26,25,19,7,22,G31 OSU: 20,17,11,21,G41
NDK-4 BENCH (2-Too Many Players) (Served by Brett Bruneteau) OSU 0x4 17:02

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
End of Game
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

NCAA Round Up: BSU is for real

Here is my latest column for the Illegal Curve.

Yesterday afternoon I saw one of the better played college hockey games of the seasons. The first game featured the upstart Bemidji State University Beavers of the CHA against the media darling Miami University RedHawks of the CCHA. Coming into the game it was one of the more talked about matchups of the season in college hockey. The game was a rematch of last season’s frozen four semi final from Washington D.C. in which the Miami RedHawks won 4-1. Yesterday the rematch went the BSU Beavers way as they won a hard fought 3-2 victory over the number one ranked team in the nation.

BSU overrated?

This season there has been a reoccurring theme; BSU has been ranked in the top ten the past three weeks and I have had many fans tell me that BSU was over rated and hadn’t played anyone and was unworthy of their high ranking. This past week all over the blogosphere and college hockey message boards I had read how Miami was finally going to show BSU that their record was over inflated and they would lay a smack down on the BSU Beavers. Now it’s the Beaver fans that are laughing. Yesterday’s 3-2 win by the Beavers is no fluke; the Beavers have an impressive 25-4-2 since January 24th, 2009. During that time the Beavers have beaten Notre Dame, Cornell, Minnesota and now Miami.

Are the Beavers still over rated?

Bemidji’s top line of Matt Read (10g-11a-21pts), Jordan George (6g-11a-17pts), Ian Lowe (4g-3a-7pts) is good enough to be on any teams top six in division 1 hockey. Matt Read leading the nation is points and is sixth in the nation in points per game. Read is also leading his team in total points.

Bemidji State are solid in net Dan Bakala (8-1-1, 1.6323 and .935 SV %) good for 6th nationally. The Beavers have a very good defensive core and tied with North Dakota for the top defensive team in the nation giving up an average of 1.69 goals per game. [College Hockey National Statistics]

So is BSU over rated? My answer is no until the Beavers are proven otherwise the evidence is there in the win column and statistically that they are a very good hockey team and just took down the number one rated team in the country. My question is; is Miami over rated? What do you think?

Check out more from Eric at twitter

Chorney's stache

Hockey players from around the NHL have been growing Mustaches for prostate cancer awareness and here former Fighting Sioux defenseman Taylor Chorney’s attempt at growing a mustache.

Movember (the month formerly known as November) is a moustache-growing charity event held during November each year that raises funds and awareness for men's health.

Eight Oilers players and three members of the team's training staff will be participating in the charity event this year and we will be tracking their moustache progress throughout the month.

Prostate Cancer Canada (http://www.prostatecancer.ca/) uses the Movember funds for the development of programs related to awareness, public education, advocacy, support of those affected and research into the prevention, detection, treatment and cure of prostate cancer
[NHL.COM]

More Friday reading.

Work can't end fast enough to get to the rink today. Here is some more reading till the games start. When the Subway Holiday Classic first started people used to refer to it as the Subway Holiday Cupcake Classic. This season’s match ups are anything but. Today I feel like a kid waiting for Christmas morning.

Two weeks ago, Bemidji men’s hockey head coach Tom Serratore said the eyes of the hockey community across the state were on the Beavers as they faced the Minnesota Golden Gophers at Mariucci Arena.

This weekend, the eyes of college hockey community across the nation will be on Bemidji State.

The Subway Holiday Classic hosted by the University of North Dakota will bring together the nation’s first (Miami), fourth (North Dakota) and sixth (BSU) ranked teams, along with 2009 NCAA Tournament participant Ohio State Friday and Saturday at Ralph Engelstad Arena.

The Beavers will face Miami at 4:07 p.m. Friday in a rematch of the 2009 Frozen Four national semifinal.

Saturday the Beavers will take on Ohio State at 4:07 p.m.

“Who would have thought when (UND head coach) Dave Hakstol was putting this deal together two years ago that you’d have three of the top six ranked teams in the country, plus Ohio State who has an abundance of talent?” said Serratore. “Beyond that, that you’d have BSU and Miami playing in a rematch game of the 2009 Frozen Four? This is going to be a great weekend for college hockey fans.” [Bemidji Pioneer]

Here is the Miami University Press Release for this weekends Subway Holiday Classic[Miami Hockey]

QUICK HITS
• Miami’s eight-game unbeaten streak is the longest in the country.
• Six of Miami’s 14 games have gone to overtime with the RedHawks holding a
1-1-4 record in such games. The mark in CCHA shootouts is 1-2.
• Miami trails only Bemidji State in the national statistics for scoring defense. The
Beavers have given up 20 goals in 12 games (1.67 gpg), while RedHawk opponents have 24 goals in 14 games (1.71 gpg).

SERIES BREAKDOWN: Miami has won all
three games it has played with Bemidji
State, including a 4-1 triumph in the
NCAA National Semifi nals last April 9. The
teams fi rst met for a two-game series in
Bemidji, Minn., during 2000-01..
The RedHawks have lost both
matchups with North Dakota in its history,
both during holiday tournaments.

Hey Beaver fans check this out...

I found this posted on the Miami Hawk Talk message board. Just for a little FYI or gee whiz reading because there is nothing else going on the day after Thanksgiving. I don't know if I would be that confident. BSU is a good hockey team that has a good coach and the Beavers are going to come out on fire ready to prove the nay sayers wrong and will be looking to avenge the loss from the 2009 Frozen Four as well. I expect a lot closer game than 6-2 tonight. Hey what the heck a little tongue in cheek never hurt right.

PS3 Prediction

#6 Bemidji State 2
#1 Miami 6

Well, Miami's somewhat dormant offense woke up in Grand Forks. The RedHawks scored 5 goals in 38:28 and forced BSU's starting goalie Dan Bakala to the bench before the second intermission.

The scoring started at 8:16 of the first period, when Carter Camper made a beautiful no-look-between-the-legs pass to Tommy Wingels, who then blasted a shot Bakala's glove side. Joe Hartman picked up the second assist and the 'Hawks had the 1-0 advantage. Andy Miele made it 2-0 just 8:04 later following great passes from Curtis McKenzie and Alden Hirschfeld. After one period, Bemidji had the lead in shots at 10-7 but Miami had the 2-0 lead.

The second period was The Justin Vaive Show. The big man scored on two different power play chances, the first at 9:57 (from Pat Cannone) and the second at 18:34 (from Jarod Palmer and Will Weber). In between the Vaive goals, Trent Vogelhuber found the back of the net (with assists going to Weber and Cannone) and Miami had a dominant 5-0 lead. After the second Vaive goal, Bakala was pulled in favor of Mathieu Dugas.

How bad were the Beavers? They scored Miami's final goal. Matt Read won a faceoff in his own end and the puck immediately went to Darcy Findlay, who skated in front of his own net. The problem was Findlay's stick bumped Dugas' pad and the puck trickled betweed the Quebec native's legs. For the record, Gary Steffes received credit for the unassisted tally. 6-0, Miami. BSU would avoid the shutout thanks to a Findlay goal at 7:08 and would make it look a tad more respectable thanks to a Brad Hunt goal at 8:16 while the Beavers had a 5-on-3 advantage. Still, it was a dominant victory.

Bemidji actually more shots on goal. The Beavers finished with 33 shots to Miami's 31.

Three stars:
1. Vaive (2 goals)
2. Cody Reichard (W, 31 saves)
3. Weber (2 assists)

BSU.....0 0 2 2
Miami...2 3 1 6

Subway Classic reading.

First off I want to wish everyone a happy Thanksgiving. Here are a few links of interest to the Subway Holiday Classic.

Subway Holiday Classic [Click to view]

Fighting Sioux defenseman Chay Genoway is still out and his status hasn't changed in the last 12 days. [Grand Forks Herald] For those who havent seen the play this is the hit that took out Genoway. [Click for Video]

This weekend's series could prove to be a defensive battle. [Grand Forks Herald]

Bemidji State players talk about Frozen Four rematch with Miami in Holiday Classic. [Bemidji Pioneer]

Sweep carries Beavers to No. 6 in national polls. [Bemidji Pioneer]

When talking about Miami University this story has to be mentioned. Ice hockey on brink of dynasty. [The Miami Student]

Facing 2 of nation's top D's, Miami hockey going for goals. [The Oxford Press]

Here is what former Fighting Sioux hockey player Hunter Bishop had to say about playing UND. [ohiostatebuckeyes.com]

Here is the link to the OSU Buckeyes media release for the Subway Holiday Classic. [click here] In reading their media guide OSU is averaging an unimpressive 1688 in attendance at home.

Subway Holiday Classic Preview [illusions of grandeur]

Thanksgiving Games (Sioux 7)

HAPPY THANKSGIVING to all the college hockey fans out their who read GOON'S WORLD. I know everyone's in the holiday spirit, and ready to eat copius amounts of turkey and pumpkin pie. We hope if you have the time (or tournament) that you will also gobble up some WCHA games or a Thanksgiving Holiday Tournament.


Current WCHA Standings

#..TEAM................GP..W-L-T...PTS
1 Colorado College.......8...6-1-1....13
1 Denver..................8...6-1-1....13
1 Minnesota-Duluth.....10...6-3-1....13
4 North Dakota..........10...5-4-1....11
4 Wisconsin..............10...5-4-1....11
6 St. Cloud State..........8...4-3-1....9
6 Minnesota...............10...3-6-1....7
8 Alaska-Anchorage......10...3-7-0....6
8 Minnestoa State.......10...2-7-1....5
10 Michigan Tech.........8...2-6-0....4


Holiday Classic (Grand Forks, ND)
Friday
#1 Miami (9-1-4 overall) vs #6 Bemidji St.(10-1-1 overall) (4pm)
Miami took 3pts at fellow CCHA member Western Michigan last week and Bemidji St. swept CHA rival Alabama-Huntsville.

What more could you want on Black Friday, than a clash of top ten teams in the top college arena? (More turkey and pie?) The Beavers will be looking to cook a bird on Friday afternoon, and it's not a turkey. BSU will look to further their ranking by basting the RedHawks in what is sure to be a game that's as hot as an oven. Miami will be looking to solidify their number one rank. The RedHawks have tied three of their last four games. Unlike Thanksgiving day, this Friday, both teams will be wanting more, the prediction, TIE.


Ohio State (5-8-1 overall) at #4 North Dakota (7-4-1 overall) (7pm)
OSU was swept by Ferris St. and UND was swept by Denver last week.

The Buckeyes have not played the Sioux since 1979, I think...(help me if you can)
The Sioux are now on a three game losing streak, ugh. I think the Buckeyes are what UND needs right now, a non-conference game that they should win. I'm going with my boys in Green & White tonight, SIOUX WIN.

Saturday
Ohio St. vs #6 Bemidji St. (4pm)
This game should go the way of the Beavers. We all know that Beavers gnaw on trees to build damns (industrial little fella's aren't they), and well, the Buckeye is a tree. The Beavers chew through the trees base and the tree falls over, thump, BEAVERS WIN.

#1 Miami at #4 North Dakota (7pm)
Ladies and Gentlemen, lets get ready to rumble. This is the heavy weight bout of the weekend in college hockey, RedHawks versus Sioux, this bout is scheduled to go three 20 minute rounds. The CCHA seems go be down as a whole this season, with only Miami and Mich St. as the powerhouses, Michigan and Notre Dame both have struggled this year. As always I have to pick my favorite team, SIOUX WIN.

(I bet DU would love to see Miami get swept in this tourney!)


College Hockey Showcase
Friday
Minnesota (4-7-1) at Michigan (5-7-0 overall)
Last week the Gophers were sweep at Mariucci by the UMD Bulldogs, and Michigan split with fellow CCHA member Bowling Green.

Most years this game would be between two ranked teams, not this year. Both UM's have struggled this season, when both were preseason picks for title contenders in their conferences. Both teams want to turn that M upside down for a W in this game.
I don't know who to go with in this game, both have talent, but haven't got the chemistry going yet. For the sake of the WCHA, I'm forced to cheer for the Gophers to win, to help out our conference as a whole. GOPHERS WIN.

#15 Wisconsin (7-4-1 overall) at #8 Michigan State (9-3-2 overall)
Last weekend the Badgers split with St. Cloud St., and the Spartans split with Notre Dame.

This should be the best game of the CHS Tournament, with both teams being ranked and looking for respect in their conference as well as Big Ten bragging rights. The Badgers haven't got a good winning streak going yet, and MSU had their 8-game unbeaten streak end last Saturday. I have to go with our conference, the Woo-cha, the big picture, BADGERS WIN.


Saturday
Minnesota at #8 Michigan State
Sparty is hot right now, and Goldy is not. SPARTANS WIN.

#15 Wisconsin at Michigan
In this battle between UW and UM, there is only one team wearing a W on their jersey, and that team will get the W. BADGERS WIN.


WCHA

Alaska-Anchorage at #5 Colorado College
Last weekend the Seawolves split at home with the Mavericks, and the Tigers swept Robert Morris at home.

UAA is win less on the road this year posting a 0-4-0 record. CC has done well in the World Arena this year, garnering a 6-2-0 record there. I'm not convinced the Tigers are one of the top teams in the country, after this week CC's schedule gets much tougher, so we'll have to wait and see. The Seawolves have played sporadically in most of their series, scoring 7 against DU, and then giving up 8 goals to MSU-M last week. You just don't know what Seawolves team is going to show up. I'm going CC one night and UAA the next, SPLIT.


St. Cloud State at #2 Denver
Last week SCSU split with home with UW, and DU swept UND in Denver.

This is the only series between the teams this year, last year SCSU won the series 3-1-0 (the 1 loss was in Denver). The Huskies have played well this year, a little inconsistent, but well. DU could be suffering from a UND hangover as well as looking ahead to CC next week. The Pioneers have all their star players back in the line up, so they should be up to full speed. The Huskies appear to be the sleepers in my book, they can't be taken for granted. If you look past them they will certainly steal your turkey and all your fixin's. I see a Huskies win on Friday, with the Pioneers getting their just desserts on Saturday, SPLIT.


Michigan Tech at Minnesota State
Last week the Huskies enjoyed a week of rest and relaxation, while the Mavericks split with the Seawolves in Anchorage.

The Huskies will look to move out of the basement and send Mankato into the 10-spot this weekend. If someone gets swept in this series, the sweep-ee will most likely be out of the running for home ice in the playoffs. (And yes I do realize that the playoffs are 4 months away.) The Mavericks are 3-3-0 at home and the Huskies are 1-3-0 on the road this year. These will be games three and four on the road for MTU in a six game road stretch. I'm going to say each team is into the Thanksgiving mood and give each other a win, SPLIT.


BYE WEEK - OFF
#14 University of Minnesota - Duluth



I'll end this little article with a Thanksgiving poem...

"May your stuffing be tasty
May your turkey plump,
May your potatoes and gravy
Have nary a lump.
May your yams be delicious
And your pies take the prize,
And may your Thanksgiving dinner
Stay off your thighs!"
– Anonymous

Wednesday press conference...

Interesting press conference, it would appear that last weekend's series results may have refocused the team. Darcy Zajc, Brad Eidsness were the players in today’s press conference. The thing that caught my attention was one of the reporters asked coach Hakstol about this being the first time your team has faced adversity. The response was this isn't the first time we have faced adversity, you haven't been in our lockerroom.' Coach Hakstol was asked Chay Genoway's status, it has not changed from Friday two weeks ago. Genoway is still out indefinitely and nothing has changed.

Also listen to Sioux Sports Today. [Click to listen]

Dusting off an old article: UND last WCHA team to be RedHawks.

I wrote this article for the Illegal Curve back on October 10th 2009.

On October 27th 2007 Miami Student writer Mike Zoller declared that Miami University hockey ‘was on the Brink of being a dynasty.’ While Miami Hockey is not a dynasty by definition (need to win a few NCAA titles), I am also going to hold off calling them a dynasty for now but Miami does have a good shot at being a title contender this season if they play up to their potential.

Since 2003-2004 the Miami RedHawks have compiled a 144-76-23 record and have made the NCAA tourney five out of the last six seasons. Last spring the RedHawks had the NCAA chapionship in their grasp, the RedHawks made it to the NCAA Championship game, took a 3-1 lead before losing the game in over time to the Boston University Terriers. [Box Score]

This is what I found in my Twitter posts this morning when I got up this morning.

MikeSwainey @goon48 All I know is Miami continues to knock off WCHA teams. IIRC, 5 straight wins against your league. But tomorrow's another day.

First off I wouldn’t be surprised tonight if SCSU loses to the RedHawks again tonight to make it six games in a row. Breaking it down further, Mike is right, Miami has done pretty well against WCHA foes as of late. Both DU and SCSU have both lost their last two games they have played against the Miami University RedHawks. Also, the Miami RedHawks beat UMD in last season’s Midwest regional at Mariucci Arena. Incidently, the last WCHA team to beat Miami University was the Fighting Sioux 3-0 in Lefty McFadden Invitational on October 8th 2005 when Jordan Parise held off a Miami surge and got a shutout against the RedHawks.

Here is the last 6 games that Miami has played against WCHA teams.

October 8th 2005 UND 3 Miami 0
October 6th 2006 Miami 5 DU 2
December 27, 2007 Miami 2 SCSU 1 O.T.
March 27, 2009 Miami 4 DU 2
March 28, 2009 Miami 2 UMD 1
October 09, 2009 Miami 3 SCSU 2 O.T.
October 10, 2009 Miami 2 SCSU 0

Breaking it down further, Mike is right, Miami has done pretty darn good job against the WCHA teams as of late. Both DU and SCSU have both lost their last two games they played to the Miami University RedHawks. Also, the Miami RedHawks beat UMD in last season’s Midwest regional championship game at Mariucci Arena. Incidentally, the last WCHA team to beat Miami University was the Fighting Sioux 3-0 in Lefty McFadden Invitational on October 8th 2005 when Jordan Parise got a shut out against the RedHawks. The Fighting Sioux might have to stop that streak if the Huskies can't stop them tonight.

Non Conference scores from last night

Last night the WCHA went 7-1 in non conference play. Last season the WCHA’s non conference play was their Achilles heal, last night SCSU was the only team in non conference play from the WCHA to lose.

UND 5 Merrimack College 2
MTU 5 NMU 3
C.C. 4 Northeastern 2
UMD 4 LSSU 3
MSU-M 3 BGSU 2
DU 5 VMU 4
UAA 5 Mercyhurst College 3
Miami 3 SCSU 2 O.T.

CHA 2-0 in Non Conference play last night.

UAH 3 Notre Dame 2 (this one makes me happy)
BSU 3 AFA 1 the battle of the Serratore brothers

Check out more from Eric of mvn.com, on my twitter,

Head Shots

Really good article by MSU-M beat writer Shane Frederick on head shots in the WCHA.

Already this season there have been three notable high or blindside hits.

Wisconsin’s Craig Smith got a game-disqualification and an additional one-game suspension from his school for a frightening check from behind into the boards that knocked Geoff Irwin out of commission for two games with a shoulder injury.

Alaska-Anchorage’s Jade Portwood broke Minnesota freshman Nick Leddy’s jaw with a shoulder check, putting Leddy out for six weeks. There was no penalty on the hit, and Portwood was not suspended, despite Gophers coach Don Lucia’s plea for punishment.

And then there was the check from behind that St. Cloud State’s Aaron Marvin laid on North Dakota’s Chay Genoway. Genoway was knocked out for at least three games, and Marvin was suspended one game by the Western Collegiate Hockey Association for the hit, which has been replayed over and over again on YouTube.

“It still happens and it’s a mystery to me,” WCHA commissioner Bruce McLeod told the Associated Press last week. “We’ve beefed up that rule and our officials know to always err on the side of safety. They are doing the best they possibly can ... We’re trying to emphasize that there’s no tolerance for it, but it hasn’t stopped it from happening.”
[Mankato Free Press]

I can’t believe that Bruce McLeod would actually make that stupid statement. McLeod can’t be that oblivious to the situation, he and his officials are part of the problem. The reason players are still hitting other players in the head and they don’t respect their opponents and your disciplinary system is a joke. There is no real repercussion or any meaningful discipline for the leagues hockey players that hits another player with questionable and egregious hit.

Let me break this further, if you’re a player in the WCHA what’s stopping you from taking a run at a top player like Jordan Schroeder. What are the consequences if you hit another player with a hit to the head and injure him? Seriously! All you’re going to get is a one game suspension max, isn’t that really a zero sum gain?

Daniel Briere suspended two games.

Flyers forward Daniel Briere is the last to be punished by the Colin Campbell's wheels of justice. The hit to the head is at the end of the video. All levels of hockey are trying to eliminate hits to the head. It would appear that some are not getting the message. The thing that really stuck out with me is that Briere makes more in two games than a lot of people make the whole year. You can also see the hit better on this clip. It's a dirty hit

TORONTO -- Philadelphia Flyers forward Daniel Briere has been suspended for two games, without pay, as a result of a late hit on an unsuspecting opponent -- Avalanche defenseman Scott Hannan -- during NHL Game #335 in Colorado Monday night, the National Hockey League announced today.

The incident took place at 9:06 of the second period, immediately following Hannan's goal.

Under the terms of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, and based on his average salary, Briere will forfeit $67,357.52. The money goes to the Players' Emergency Assistance Fund.

Briere will miss games Nov. 25 against the New York Islanders and Nov. 27 at Buffalo. He will be eligible to return Nov. 28 at Atlanta.

Coach Hakstol on last weekend.

Check out what the head coach Dave Hakstol had to say about the weekend series. No excuses the team didn't deal well with adversity.

Tuesday reading.

Moving forward there is lots to be positive about if you’re a Fighting Sioux hockey fan.

A lot has been made this season about Junior Marc Cheverie play and how good he has been and he is currently ranked 1st nationally with 6-0-0 record a SV% of .961 and a GAA of 1.1940. Not to take anything away from Marc Cheverie but Fighting Sioux goaltender Brad Eidsness isn’t having too bad of a season as well. Currently Eidsness is ranked 5th in the nation with 6-3-1 record a 929 SV % and a GAA of 1.69. [USCHO.COM]

The good numbers don't end there. UND is also Ranked 19th nationally in offense 3.08 goals per game and 3rd nationally in defense 1.75 goals per game. [USCHO.COM]

UND is also ranked 14th nationally on the power play and ranked 10th on penalty killing.

Georges Laraque suspended for five games fot hit on Niklas Kronwall

Maybe WCHA commissioner Bruce McLeod and Greg Shepherd could learn a thing or two about the NHL disciplinary procedures. This is what happens when you take a player out you pay for it with a suspension. Like I said in an earlier post I thought the NHL should suspend Georges Laraque for this dirty hit on Niklas Kronwall.

The National Hockey League announced on Monday night that Montreal Canadiens forward Georges Laraque has been suspended for five games without pay, and will forfeit $38,860.10 in salary for an incident that took place during a game against the Detroit Red Wings last Saturday.

At 8:52 of the first period, Laraque was involved in an incident where he deliberately extended his knee and, through his actions, caused an injury to Detroit defenseman Niklas Kronwall. Laraque was assessed a minor penalty for tripping on the play.

"Mr. Laraque's actions were dangerous and caused a significant injury to his opponent," said NHL Senior Executive Vice President of Hockey Operations Colin Campbell.

Laraque will miss Montreal's next five games – Nov. 24 against Columbus; Nov. 25 at Pittsburgh; Nov. 28 against Washington, Dec. 1 against Toronto and Dec. 3 at Buffalo. He will be eligible to return on Dec. 4 against the Boston Bruins. [NHL.COM]

Christmas comes early Pouliot traded to the Habs.

RWD game me a heads up on this trade. I am excited about this trade because I have never been impressed with Benoit Pouliot, the kid was a waste of a uniform who put up little if any effort and I wondered why the Wild keep coming back with him in the lineup, now if the Wild can get rid of their other first round mistake James Sheppard the kid has shown nothing to date that leads me to believe that he will ever be anything more than a fourth line player. I don't think he has even earned the right to play on the Wild's fourth line in my humble opinion. If he is lucky he MIGHT score 5-10 goals this season. As a self confessed Montreal Canadians’ hater I guess it will take some time for me to get used to this move. I think that Guillaume Latendresse might be able to add some grit in front of the opposition net.

The thing I like about Wild general manager Chuck Fletcher is that he isn’t sitting around making excused like the former Wild GM Doug Risebrough did. I actually like the fact that this season Fletcher has went out and got Chuck Kobasew, Andrew Ebbett. It shows that Fletcher isn’t going to sit around and just let people wear a uniform.

The Minnesota Wild and Montreal Canadiens traded underachieving forwards Monday afternoon.

Montreal sent power forward Guillaume Latendresse to the Wild in exchange for forward Benoit Pouliot.

Latendresse, a 6-foot-2, 230-pound left wing, has just 2 goals and 3 points on this season after a 26-point season in 2008-09. In his first three season, Latendresse had put together back-to-back 16-goal seasons in his first two years in the League.

"Guillaume is a young, talented forward who has averaged 15 goals per season in each of his first three NHL seasons,” Wild GM Chuck Fletcher said. “At just 22 years old, he will add size and a scoring punch to our roster.”

Pouliot, Minnesota's first-round pick, No. 4 overall, in the 2005 Entry Draft, has just 2 goals and 4 points in 13 games this season. The 6-foot-3, 199-pound left wing has 9 goals and 18 points in 65 NHL games, spread across parts of four seasons.

Pouliot is presently out of the lineup with an upper-body injury. He last played on Nov. 13. Latendresse, meanwhile, has been relegated to third- and fourth-line duty for the Canadiens. He has not seen more than 9 minutes of ice time since Nov. 5. [Wild.Com] Props to [Mike Russo]

Poll Monday (Sioux 4th)

USCHO.com Division I Men's Poll
[November 23, 2009]
1 Miami (37) 9-1-4 983 1
2 Denver ( 9) 8-3-1 938 3
3 Mass.-Lowell ( 2) 8-2-1 864 4
4 North Dakota 7-4-1 794 2
5 Colorado College 9-2-1 792 7
6 Bemidji State ( 2) 10-1-1 690 8
7 Cornell 5-2-0 648 5
8 Michigan State 9-3-2 632 6
9 Quinnipiac 10-1-0 622 13
10 Massachusetts 8-2-0 587 11
11 Yale 3-2-2 417 9
12 Alaska 8-3-1 401 10
13 Notre Dame 6-5-3 381 14
14 Minnesota-Duluth 9-4-1 378 20
15 Wisconsin 7-4-1 292 15
16 Boston College 5-3-2 250 17
17 Ferris State 9-3-2 247 NR
18 Vermont 4-4-1 188 17
19 Nebraska-Omaha 5-4-3 109 12
20 Colgate 6-3-4 70 NR
Others Receiving Votes: St. Cloud State 64, Michigan 63, RIT 20, Princeton 18, Union 16, New Hampshire 12, Northern Michigan 10, Rensselaer 8, Merrimack 2, Providence 2, St. Lawrence 2
-----------------
USA TODAY/USA Hockey men's poll
[Nov. 23, 2009]
Rank School (first-place votes) Record Points Last week's rank
1 Miami University (Ohio) (26) 9-1-4 502 1
2 Denver (6) 8-3-1 479 3
3 Massachusetts Lowell (2) 8-2-1 440 4
4 North Dakota 7-4-1 374 2
5 Colorado College 9-2-1 364 7
6 Bemidji State 10-1-1 290 8
7 Michigan State 9-3-2 270 6
8 Cornell 5-2-0 256 5
9 Massachusetts 8-2-0 240 11
10 Quinnipiac 10-1-0 234 13
11 Yale 3-2-2 144 9
12 University of Alaska (Fairbanks) 8-3-1 137 10
13 Minnesota Duluth 9-4-1 94 NR
14 Notre Dame 6-5-3 86 14
15 Boston College 5-3-2 42 NR
Others receiving votes: University of Vermont, 30; Ferris State University 27, University of Wisconsin 25, University of Michigan 11, University of Nebraska Omaha 10, Colgate University 5, Rochester Institute of Technology 3, St. Cloud State University 1.

Analysis: Five WCHA teams in the top 20 this kind of looks like it’s shaping up to be one of those season where the WCHA might get five teams in the big dance. That could change because the WCHA teams will commit fratricide against their fellow conference foes with WCHA schedule. I know it's early so we will have to see how the season shakes out.

I am kind of surprised that C.C. is still behind UND in the polls. Again the polls mean nothing at the current time, but they are fun to talk about. The Bemidji State University Beavers receives two first place votes in this week's poll after they pounded UAH I am sure we will hear how BSU has played a weak schedule and doesn’t deserve to be ranked so high. This weekend we will see how the Beavers stack up against two CCHA teams.

Marc Savard returns to the Bruins

This is very good news for the Boston Bruins who are starved for goal scoring. Also, it helps me because I get one of my fantasy hockey players back in my hockey pool. Of course sitting in 8th place in a 10 team league isn't all that impressive.

Marc Savard, out of the lineup since Oct. 17 against Phoenix, will be back in uniform tonight after recovering from a broken left foot. Savard will center the No. 1 line between Marco Sturm and Byron Bitz.
[Bruins Blog]

INCH Power Rankings

As always I include the INCH Power Rankings for those looking for a good laugh on Monday Morning.

1. Miami
2. Denver
8-3-1 (6-1-1 WCHA) LAST WEEK: W vs. North Dakota, 1-0; W vs. North Dakota, 3-2. THIS WEEK: vs. St. Cloud State, vs. St. Cloud State
3. UMass Lowell
4. North Dakota 2 The losses at Denver marked the first time the Sioux suffered a weekend sweep since dropping a pair to Michigan Tech Dec. 15-16, 2006. "Hopefully it doesn't happen again," NoDak forward Chris VandeVelde told the Grand Forks Herald's Brad Schlossman. 7-4-1 (5-4-1 WCHA) LAST WEEK: L at Denver, 1-0; L at Denver, 3-2. THIS WEEK: vs. Ohio State, vs. Miami (Subway Holiday Classic; Grand Forks, N.D.)
5. Colorado College
6. Cornell
7. Bemidji State
8. Michigan State
9. Quinnipiac
10. Massachusetts
11. Yale
12. Alaska
13. Minnesota Duluth
14. Notre Dame
15. Vermont
16. Wisconsin
17. Boston College
18. Ferris State
19. Nebraska-Omaha
20. Colgate
Dropped out: Princeton
Bubble-licious: St. Cloud State, Merrimack, RIT