Future Fighting Sioux goalie Gothberg invited to NHL Scouting Combine

Future Fighting Sioux and Fargo Force goalie Zane Gothberg has been invited to the NHL scouting combine. That is a nice honor for the future Sioux player. I am excited about UND getting an elite goaltender that have so desperately need.

[Fargo Force Blog] --- Future Force goalie Gothberg invited to NHL Scouting Combine The top 100 players available for the 2010 Entry Draft will meet in Toronto at the end of May for the annual NHL Scouting Combine.

To be recognized as a top 100 player available for the 2010 NHL Entry Draft is an impressive feat. Future Fargo Force goaltender, 1st round pick for the Force in 2009, Zane Gothberg has been invited to the NHL Scouting Combine. The Thief River Falls netminder was 16-7-1, boasted a .922 save percentage, 1.83 goals against average and three shutouts in his final year with the Prowlers. Zane Gothberg is a University of North Dakota recruit.

Sioux recruit Danny Kristo

Here is an interesting article on Sioux recruit Danny Kristo who is coming to UND in the fall of 2009. The article talks about Kristo being drafted by the Montreal Canadians and how the Les Habs are becoming a destination for players born and bred in the Gopher state of Minnesota. I can just imagine the Minnesota fans saying Montreal Minnesota's Pride on ice, LOL. Personally, I am really excited about Danny Kristo coming to the University of North Dakota and playing for the Fighting Sioux (or what ever name they come up with for the University of North Dakota Hockey team). Kristo is part of an incoming class of very talented and highly regarded recruits.

Les Habitants: America's Team on Draft Day
Last Friday night, the Montreal Canadians -- excuse me, les Canadiens de Montréal -- used their first pick in the NHL's annual Entry Draft to select Edina, Minnesota's Danny Kristo. It was a largely unremarkable pick, except for the fact that it was the third consecutive year in which the Habs drafted a Minnesotan with their initial selection (last year they nabbed St. Paul's Ryan McDonagh 12th overall and in 2006 they snagged Minneapolis-born David Fischer with the 20th pick).

"Just a coincidence," according to director of player personnel Trevor Timmins.

It's probably also a coincidence that the Kristo pick marked the sixth time this decade that Montreal has called an American-born player's name as their first pick (Ron Hainsey, Mike Komisarek and Christopher Higgins, drafted between 2000 and 2002, round out the Yankee half-dozen), and that the Habs took Americans with three of their five picks in this year's draft and with five of their nine picks last year (including first-rounders McDonagh and Max Pacioretty).

Coincidences aside, it's clear that the Habs aren't afraid to go south of the border for help of late (much to the chagrin of some of their fans and members of the local media). Upon being drafted last year, Pacioretty noted that it "seems like the Canadiens have a lot of confidence in U.S.-born players." Apparently so -- the "Bleu, Blanc et Rouge" has hardly (if ever) looked as red, white and blue as it might in the near future.

Here is what Danny Kristo had to say on committing to the University of North Dakota Fighting Sioux. Yeah you got to love a kid that is a big fan of T.J. Oshie, you're are not alone kid, many of us are big fans of the Oshie.

When asked about committing to the Fighting Sioux, Kristo’s face lit up. “I am finishing up my junior year in high school, so I still have one more year. But I am definitely going to go there.” Kristo also considered staying in his home state and playing for the University of Minnesota, but after visiting both schools chose North Dakota. Although he seemed very sincere in being willing to give Minnesota a real look, Kristo did admit that “I just always wanted to play for the Fighting Sioux. My idol growing up played there and I always wanted to be like him.”

The fact that Oshie has now signed a professional contract and will not return to North Dakota did nothing to lessen Kristo’s resolve to attend North Dakota. When asked what did he want to work on prior to getting to college, the winger answered, “in the off-season, I am going to work in the weight room, putting on a couple of pounds. On the ice, I want to get more explosive, work on my shot and on my skating — you can never be too good of a skater.”

Sioux recruits and where they were drafted.

According to the Grand Forks Herald; here is where the future Fighting Sioux were
selected.

Kristo went later in the second (No. 56) to Montreal.

Toews went in the third (No. 66) to the Islanders and Fienhage in the same round (No. 81) to Buffalo.

Sioux forward recruit Brett Hextall, who was not ranked by the NHL's Central Scouting Bureau, went 159th in the 6th round to the Phoenix Coyotes.

UND defensemen recruits Andrew MacWilliam 188th to the (Toronto Maple Leafs)
and Joe Gleason (Chicago Blackhawks) went 192nd respectively in the seventh round.

Future Sioux

There has been a lot of negativity lately around the blog sphere on how the Sioux exited the NCAA tourney. It should be expected since they stunk up the Pepsi Center, for what ever reason they got away from what got them there.

I was telling some friends at lunch on Friday that there is a lot to be positive about, the future looks bright, there are some nice blue chippers coming in next season. This past season UND earned a reputation of being a bunch of hard nosed players that played a tough brand of hockey. Some fans in the WCHA called UND a bunch of goons. I think that was a well deserved badge of honor.

If you think this years club was a bunch of goons you're going to like next years team.

Well let me expound on that here is Brett Hextall pounding Brock Palasty.

Phil's brother Mario Lamoureux can throw them as well and here is another example of Mario holding his own.

Here is a very bad video of future Sioux recruits Mike Cichy and Mario Lamoureux with 6 seconds left in the game scoring to ice the game.