INCH Power Rankings

1. Boston College
2. Union
3. Minnesota
4. Minnesota Duluth
5. Ferris State
6. Michigan
7. Boston University
8. Miami
9. Denver
10. North Dakota — North Dakota was a season-worst three games under .500 after Bemidji State, this weekend’s WCHA first-round playoff opponent, shut them out Nov. 20 in Bemidji. Since that afternoon, NoDak has gone 16-5-2. 20-12-3 (16-11-2 WCHA) LAST WEEK: W vs. Minnesota State, 4-2; W vs. Minnesota State, 3-0. THIS WEEK: vs. Bemidji State (WCHA First-Round Series)
11. UMass Lowell
12. Cornell
13. Maine
14. Michigan State
15. Merrimack
16. Colorado College
17. Western Michigan
18. Harvard
19. Air Force
20. Notre Dame

Dropped out: Northern Michigan
Bubble-licious: Colgate, Quinnipiac

As always I include the INCH Power Rankings  because I find them amusing and this week they didn’t disappoint, this week the boys at INCH have Union number two in their power rankings. Yeah!!!

The question is will Union be able to make it out of the first round of the NCAA tourney this season or not. What do you think?

UND and C.C. post game press conference...

This from last night's press conference. Here is the link to the DU post game press conference as well. [Click to view]

Sioux Smoke RMU 8-0

After the game last night I said that my blog post should read one sentence, “Robert Morris in not a good hockey team.” Today in reviewing the game film from last night’s game, it wasn’t so much that Robert Morris isn’t a very good hockey team, by WCHA standards they aren’t very good, however, it was a matter of the Fighting Sioux playing a flawless game plan and the Sioux just blew the Colonials off of the ice, you can use other clichés if you would like to explain last night blowout win for the Fighting Sioux… With the win, the Fighting Sioux improve their record to 15–5–2 overall, in nonconference play Sioux have a record of 4-2-2.

Sioux get some puck luck

Last night’s game was one of those contests where everything went right for the Sioux and the RMU Colonials not so much. I think it would be an accurate statement if I said the Fighting Sioux got a lot of puck luck as well. Everything went the Sioux’s way last night. The first Fighting Sioux goal was shot by Corbin Knight and that went in off the RMU defenseman in front of the net, the second goal was by Fighting Sioux forward Brock Nelson who going hard to net while being tied up by a RMU defenseman and the puck went off Brock Nelson’s foot, there was no distinct kicking motion and the rout was on…

Dude we got a Dell

There have been a lot of positives that Sioux can take out of last night’s game. The Sioux goaltender Aaron Dell got his second straight shutout of the season and has played 164.51 minutes of shutout hockey, the shutout last night was his third of the season and the fourth of his short Fighting Sioux hockey career. The line on Aaron Dell is 14-4-1 1.97 and a save percentage of 9.18 and is 7-0-1 in his last 8 games.

Goon’s Three Stars of the game
1)Aaron Dell, UND no goals against
2)Corban Knight, UND ( 2g-1a-3pts)
3)Jake Marto, UND ( 1g-2a-3pts)

RWD's favorite beat writer Brad Schlossman [UND Hockey Blog]

Pseudo USCHO reporter and writer; Nelson tallies two goals for Fighting Sioux

Timothy Boger; Nelson, Forbort keep rolling as UND rolls RMU

Division 1 College Hockey Stats
Matt Frattin leading the nation in goals with 19
Chay Genoway is 5th in the nation for points by defenseman (4g-16a-20pts)
Fighting Sioux goalie Aaron Dell is 8th in the nation in GAA 1.97
UND is ranked 5th in the nation for goal scoring 82 goals 3.73
UND is ranked 13th in the nation defensively 53 goals against 2.41

KRACH, PWR

[Box Score]

Fighting Sioux Hockey Family loses Perry "NAKO" Nakonechny

I just got home from my vacation to find out that Former Fighting Sioux hockey player Perry Nakonechny has passed away after a long courageous battle with cancer. This is the message on Perry's Caring Bridge page.

Perry died this afternoon just after 12:00. His breathing eased and a tear slipped from his eye. We were with him as he left the pain of this world and entered the kingdom of heaven. Now we hold him in our hearts

Perry is a great guy and he will be missed by many people that have been touched by his infectious personality. Please remember Perry in your thoughts and prays.


Remembering the 'consummate teammate' Former Sioux player Perry Nakonechny dies at age 47 [Grand Forks Herald]

Where does Wheeler compare?

The Bruins blog asks the question, 'how does former Minnesota Gopher and Boston Bruins RFA Blake Wheeler compare to other players taken in the 2004 draft.' First comparison is former Fighting Sioux hockey player Travis Zajac. I actually didn't know that Blake Wheeler had six more points in his first two season in the NHL. Wheeler's total (45-38=83 points) compared to Travis Zajac who went (42-34=77). However, I don't see Wheeler getting 62 points playing in the Boston Bruins line up next season, just a hunch.

First you rule out the extreme cases of guys who really cashed in on their second contract. Travis Zajac spent two years playing NCAA hockey, and after entering the NHL at 21 saw his point totals go from 42 to 34 to 62. That earned him a four-year extension worth an average of a little more than $3.887 million per season. As a centerman, his contributions are automatically more valued, and then he sky-rocketed from supporting player to leading man just in time for his entry-level contract to expire.

The Bruins blog also looked at former Fighting Sioux and current Buffalo Sabres forward Drew Stafford and Wheeler and Stafford had the same exact amount of points their first two season in the NHL.

That brings us to two players whose production and compensation are more in line with Wheeler should receive. Buffalo’s Drew Stafford played three years of college like Wheeler, and in his first three full NHL seasons produced 38, 45 and 34 points. After that second full season, he worked out a two-year deal worth $1.9 million per season.

Chay Genoway returning another season. Yeah!

Today Fighting Sioux fans every where are celebrating this morning's good news. I mean seriously this is really good news for the Fighting Sioux hockey team, because they get their all-American defenseman for another season. I would say that the return of Chay Genoway makes the UND Fighting Sioux hockey a much better puck moving team defensively. There is going to be a press conference at 13:00 hours today. This is one of the final pieces to the puzzle for the 2010-2011 season. I would believe that Chay Genoway is going to be one of the top candidates and possibly one of the front runners (top three) for the Hobey Baker Memorial Awards as well.

Grand Forks, ND --- Chay Genoway has decided to return to UND for his senior season with a medical redshirt that has recently been granted.

The free agent could have pursued free agent NHL offers, but for the second summer in a row, has decided to leave them on hold in order to play for the Sioux.

Genoway got off to a great start in 2009-10, scoring 10 points in the first nine games of the season, but suffered a concussion on an illegal hit from Aaron Marvin in mid-November. He never played again the rest of the season, bothered by post-concussion problems. [Grand Forks Herald]

Coming up: Sioux and Huskies.

I posted this video in hopes that it will fire up Sioux fans for next week's series. I would also hope the memories of this painful series back in November will fire up the Fighting Sioux hockey team as well. Because face it the sky is not falling yet, but there is no room for error if the Fighting Sioux want to get home ice for the WCHA playoffs and make the NCAA tourney.

This is kind of where the UND Fighting Sioux's season took a turn for the worse. Listen to these two guys, I wonder how many complaints they got for making light of Marvin hit on Chay Genoway? Also, the refs threw SCSU a life line with this waved off goal that should have counted.

Press conference and coaches show.

Click here to listen to the Fighting Sioux coaches show. I guess I would call this week’s Fighting Sioux coaches show was interesting because Chay Genoway filled in for the coaches who were missing in action.

Chay Genoway filled in for the coaches. First thing that stuck out was that Chay Genoway was recruited by Cornell. Cornell has a lot of players from out west. Chay said that he played against the Nash Brothers and some of the other guys on the team.

Chay was asked if he was recruited to Michigan Tech. Chay said, no he wasn’t recruited by Tech. Tim or Chay didn’t know of anyone on the team or recently who was recruited by Tech.

Chay says still struggling with a lot of things, doesn’t feel like it’s getting much better, the systems have lightened up a bit. Chay really hasn’t thought about a medical red shirt, but there will a time when they come a point, where they might consider it, it’s coming up on ten weeks since he has last played (2 ½ months). Chay, said that we haven’t jumped any conclusions will just trying to get better. Chay really hasn’t looked into the details of it of medical redshirt but has been told he might be eligible.

Frattin back with the Fighting Sioux

The Fighting Sioux got some good news today as it was announced that Junior forward Matt Frattin has re-enrolled in school and will make a return to the Fighting Sioux line up. Frattin. Frattin was dismissed from the team last August after getting arrested for DWI in Grand Forks, ND.

This news was also on UND beat writer Brad Schlossman's twitter.com feed. This is pretty good news for UND, who have at times been offensively challenged.

Schlossman - Hakstol says Frattin returned to campus in good shape. "It's very apparent to me that he's done - not a little bit of work - a lot of work."
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Schlossman - Frattin will travel to Chicago, but Hakstol says it's too early to know whether he will play.
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Schlossman - Hakstol on Frattin: "To this point, he's done all the right things. It's one day at a time. He's eligible to play."
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Schlossman - Matt Frattin has re-enrolled at UND and will be at media day Thursday morning

Here is the offical press release.

GRAND FORKS, N.D. - University of North Dakota head men's hockey coach Dave Hakstol announced today that junior forward Matt Frattin has enrolled in spring classes at UND and has resumed practicing with the Fighting Sioux.

A native of Edmonton, Alberta, Frattin is immediately eligible for NCAA competition.

Frattin was dismissed from the team in August due to a violation of team rules.

In 42 games with the Sioux last season, Frattin scored 13 goals and added 12 assists for 25 points. A fourth-round draft pick (99th overall) of the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2007, Frattin has 40 points (17 goals, 23 assists) in 85 career games at UND

Pension Plan Puppets has also picked up the story. To answer the blogger’s question, yeah its good news for Frattin because life has given him a second chance and it's time to make hay with the opportunity.

Coach Hakstol weighs in on the move: Here is what coach Hakstol had to say about Fratting being given another chance.

To this point, he’s done all the right things,” Hakstol said. “He’s eligible to play. I’m approaching it one day forward at a time. He needs to continue doing a good job day by day. If he continues to do the right things day by day, there will be another opportunity for him.

“I’m really impressed with the way Matt has handled everything right from Day One. He had other options. He probably chose the most difficult path in deciding to return to the University of North Dakota. He decided to do whatever it took.”

Frattin, a fourth-round pick of the Toronto Maple Leafs, had 13 goals and 25 points last season. He was the team’s third-leading goal scorer behind Ryan Duncan and Chris VandeVelde.

During the past few months, Frattin has been working out and skating near Edmonton.

“It’s tough to do things on your own, but he found a way,” Hakstol said. “It’s very apparent to me that he’s done. . . not a little bit of work. . . but a lot of work. He’s in very good condition judging by the two practices we’ve had — which were pretty competitive practices.”

Frattin is expected to address the media on Wednesday morning.

When Frattin was dismissed following a driving under the influence arrest, UND said that his status may be revisited. He has been reinstated for two main reasons.

“The program comes first,” Hakstol said, “and this is about having a good outcome for a good, young man that needed to get himself back on track.”
[Grand Forks Herald]

More Merrimack Links.

Here is what Mike McMahon had to say about the Sioux in his blog post this morning. Sounds like the Sioux are going to be in for a very physical series this weekend.

Scouting The Sioux
To put it bluntly, North Dakota is an excellent hockey team. They have a lot of team speed that will challenge the Warriors, who will almost certainly utilize a trap in an attempt to bottle it up and shut down a very impressive Sioux offense, which scored an eye-popping 3.40 goals per game last season. Merrimack has been able to do this in the past to speedy teams — they beat UNH on their home sheet (Olympic size) last season — but doing so against an unfamiliar North Dakota team will prove to be a challenge.

Brad Eidsness was impressive in net as a freshman last season (2.56, .906) guiding the Sioux to a WCHA Championship and an NCAA Tournament berth. In some UND games I caught on television last season (and watching them in Manchester at the NCAA’s) I was impressed with forward Evan Trupp, who scored 20 points as a sophomore (7-13–20) last season. He’s small (5-8, 164) but shifty and always seemed to be around the net.

As for the Warriors, don’t expect them to try and skate with the Sioux – they can’t – so defense will be a priority. I’d expect to see Merrimack sit back in the neutral zone and wait for their opportunities to attack on offense, sending one forechecker to force the pucks to the walls and create turnovers. The key is that the Warriors will need to capitalize when they get chances, because there might not be very many.

Also, hitting guys tends to slow them down. If MC can force pucks to the walls, they’ll also be able to bang some bodies. I’d expect a very physical, defensive Merrimack team for two games this weekend.

And remember, this is a non-conference games in a WCHA rink. Not as bad as the CCHA, for sure, but expect the Warriors to have to kill somewhere in the neighborhood of 14 penalties in the two games is my guess.
[Warrior Rink Rat]

Fighting Sioux sign major recruit.

Fighting Sioux hockey beat writer Brad Elliott Schlossman is reporting that the Sioux have gotten a verbal commitment from Brock Nelson of Warroad Minnesota. This is a nice pickup for Coach Hakstol and the Fighting Sioux that recently received a verbal commitment from Thief River Falls High star Goalie Nate Gothberg. Make that two highly talented high players from the local areas with the acquisition of Warroad High School's Brock Nelson.

Brock Nelson grew up admiring his uncles, Dave and Eddie Christian.

So, when it came time to pick a college, the Warroad (Minn.) High standout followed their paths.

Nelson, a high school senior and a standout hockey forward, has verbally committed to UND for either the fall of 2010 or 2011.

“I’ve always followed them,” Nelson said of the Sioux. “My uncles played there and they’ve always been my favorite.”

Nelson said he also was considering Bemidji State and Nebraska-Omaha.

At 6-foot-4, 185 pounds, Nelson has great size to go along with a strong skill set. He scored 45 goals and racked up 76 points for the state runner-up Warroad Warriors a year ago.

“We should be pretty good again, but we’ll have to contend with (Zane) Gothberg and Thief River Falls,” Nelson said, referring to the UND goalie recruit.

Nelson scored the game-winning goal of the section championship on Gothberg to send the Warriors to state last season.

Nelson currently is playing in the Minnesota high school elite league, which features most of the best prep players in the state. Nelson is the second-leading scorer in the league with five goals, seven assists and 12 points in six games. His team, Great Plains, is 4-1-1.

“He just has a knack with the puck,” Warroad coach Albert Hasbargen said last season. “He seems like he’s got stickem tape on both sides of his stick blade. He’s a kid who can find the twine, something you don’t coach.” [Grand Forks Herald]

Watkins still doubtful

According to Brad's blog Matt Watkins is doubtful for this weekend's regional but they are going to do everything they can to get him playing. Matt Watkins is a major cog on the team and kills penalties and is a great leader on the ice. I hate leg checks I have seen them end the career of one of my favorite hockey players and I think that Lamb should have been given a game for his leg check on Watkins. I guess if his name was Bruess he would have been given a game.

The main news you are all probably wondering about is forward Matt Watkins. Coach Dave Hakstol said that he didn't have any new updates on Watkins and that the situation is still the same was it was on Saturday. On Saturday, Hakstol said that Watkins was doubtful to play in the regionals, but they were going to "work like hell" to get him ready. The fact that UND plays on Saturday instead of Friday has to help a little bit. Watkins is on the ice, as you would expect

.