Linkorama. (Jeff Dubay sighting)

On this snowy day in Grand Forks there is really not very much happening today in the hockey world.

Sean Avery reported to the Hartford Wolf Pack.

Former Boston Bruin Joe Thornton returned to Boston to play his old team. Incidentally, the Boston Bruins got spanked by the Sharks 5-2. Bruins forward Chuck Kobasew was also injured during last night's game.

A group of Spirit Lake tribal members plans to ask the tribal council to hold a reservation wide referendum on UND’s Fighting Sioux nickname.

The Central Knights Hockey team blew a 4 goals lead to lose 6-5 to Warroad.

Minnesota Wild coach Jacques Lemaire was taken out in practice by Antti Miettinen, I wonder how long it it will be before they call for coaches to wear helmets and full equipment?

We have a Jeff Dubay sighting! According to Roman Augustoviz: Ex-KFAN radio personality Jeff Dubay is now a columnist for GopherIllustrated.com. Here is Jeff Dubay's column is on the Gophers hockey team’s struggles. Clink on the link for Puffy's column latest article. Goon's World hopes Jeff continues make progress in his recovery.

While I have pointed out that a bad February doesn't always mean gloom and doom, the Gophers do have two legitimate concerns that are a result of their recent slide. They are now in a somewhat precarious position in the WCHA standings and home ice for the first round is far from a lock. The other concern is their PairWise ranking has put them on the bubble for the NCAA tournament. These are major concerns but not reason for panic. There are still plenty of games left to remedy both situations. While anything is possible at this point, I expect the Gophers to finish in the top five of the WCHA and top 13 of the Pairwise. That should be enough to get to the Final Five in St. Paul and the West Regional of the NCAA tournament on their home ice. Am I sure? No way. But they will show us soon enough.

Friday Linkorama...

Last weekend UND's 3-1 win over UAA was a game of firsts.

• There were plenty of firsts to be had last Saturday when North Dakota beat Alaska Anchorage 3-1 in the fourth consecutive weekend split for the Sioux. Sophomores Brad Malone and Matt Frattin each scored for NoDak, snapping a pair of notable droughts in the process. Frattin hadn’t scored in 14 games, while Malone had gone 32 games since last lighting the lamp. There were also special teams milestones, as Malone’s goal was the first shortie of his career, and Frattin’s goal was the first power-play goal of his career.

This could be seen as a play on words Maine's Darling was suspended for a “violation of team rules.” I guess Scott isn't going to be the darling of the Maine Black Bears anymore eh? Actually, Scott Darling has been nothing short of awesome in the net this season for the Black Bears so his absence will probably hurt the Maine Black Bears tonight.

Lets put this feat into perspective it is an understatement to say that the Fighting Sioux hockey players can eat. Joe Finley ate an unprecedented 50 wings at Buffalo Wild Wings. That is a lot of red meat folks.

Jones no light weight himself, can put down 6 soft shells from the Red Pepper. I might have to try that.


This weekend's match up
No. 20 North Dakota @ Minnesota Duluth
Overall Records: UND — 4-6-0 (4-4-0 WCHA). UMD — 4-4-3 (1-4-2 WCHA).
Head-to-Head: UND leads the overall series, 128-70-8.

I find it hard to believe that Gophers Sophomore goalie Alex Kangas has only had one shutout for his college hockey career. Kangas got his first collegiate shutout last Sunday when he beat the real Huskies 3-0.

According to Maverick Hockey Luv super pest and former Purple Cow hockey player John Kalinski will be making his NHL debute against the Buffalo Sabres. Maybe Drew Stafford can welcome him to the NHL?

Check out this post.

So for the Sioux fans that are making the trip to Duluth this weekend Running with the Dogs does a pretty good job breaking down the places to eat and drink while attending Bulldog hockey games in Duluth, Minnesota. Talking about running the Gauntlet. Yikes! Just for the record, Little Angie's and Grandmas Saloon are great choices for eating and the Comfort Inn and Suites is a great place to stay.

Also, it sounds like some of the Duluth fans have gotten antsy with the way things are going in Duluth. A few of the fans/posts have gotten impatient with former Sioux player and Assistant coach Scott Sandelin's.

More on League Realignment

Here are a few perspectives on league realignment. My opinion is that it is coming much like he shootout and there is really nothing so called hockey purist can do about it. The status quo is no longer good enough and there will be changes. Like or not realignment will be coming soon.

Here is what Chris had to say on Western College hockey Seems that Chris kind of predicted this back in February of 2007.

Here is what the Blog that Yost Built had to say on the matter, one of his suggestions is adding Alaska Fairbanks to the WCHA. Yikes get those frequent flyer miles going.

Alternate ideas:
WCHA adds Bemidji, Huntsville, and UNO
CCHA adds Alaska Anchorage

or

WCHA adds Bemidji and Alaska Fairbanks
CCHA adds Huntsville

The Sun Star Sports isn't all that crazy about the idea. Geographically speaking Huntsville Alabama is a long way from Fairbanks, Alaska. According to Google Maps if you drove an automobile from Fairbanks to Huntsville it would be 4096 miles. Yep, I agree that would be a brutal trip even by airplane. So playing in the WCHA might be a better fit for the Nanooks.

Bronco Hockey Blog thinks that Wayne State was short sited in dropping their hockey program. In a way I agree but I also don't blame them because a lot of promises were made but they never came to fruition.

According to by Adam Wodon the Managing Editor of the College Hockey News said that realignment isn't imminent. Well we will just have to see.

Linkorama from the UND and C.C. game

Here are a few things from last nights game. First off, the Sioux win is a result of a good hockey team that started slow and is finally finding its identity, not because of a C.C. let down from the DU series. That has to be one of the most condescending things I read today.

UNDER REVIEW talks about the good and the bad from last nights game.

Sioux Yeah Yeah! Calls the win Huge. I agree that it was a big time win.

According to Brad Elliott Schlossman the Sioux are really beat up on the blue line.

This is the WCHA on the win last night.

North Dakota 3, Colorado College 1
The Fighting Sioux got three goals from three different players as they defeated Colorado College 3-1 in Colorado Springs. Darcy Zajac scored the game's first goal 10minutes in and UND led 1-0 after one. The Sioux extended their lead to 3-0 after two on goals by Brent Davidson and Brett Hextall. Bill Sweatt broke up the shutout with CC's only goal with under two minutes to play. Brad Eidsness made 29 saves in the win for North Dakota. Richard Bachman stopped 26 shots for CC.

Orwick's Huge Win in the Mountains.

Uncaged on their first loss of the season. The Tigers are having trouble scoring goals this season. With the players they have returned and with the new rules you think the Tigers would thrive under that system.

Eye of the Tigers described UND's goals as "dirty". Dirty Goals win games in my opinion. Nice to see the Sioux with some grit.

Here is what Adam Wodon from College Hockey News has to say on the UND win last night.

Here is what SabresProspects.com had to say on two of UND's players.

In NCAA play, Brad Eidsness made 29 saves as visiting North Dakota defeated #1 Colorado College, 3-1. Eidsness, who moved to 3-2 on the year, made many great saves to earn the W and should be back between the pipes when the two clubs play it back on Saturday. Freshman defenseman Corey Fienhage did not travel with the club for the weekend set.

Sunday night Linkorama

*Last night I got home from the Sioux and Badgers game and wanted to catch the end of the Minnesota Wild and the Phoenix Coyotes When I realized that the game was on NHL Center Ice the game and a few others were not on. Please tell me what the hell I am paying for?

*Former Gophers goalie Jeff "long island tea" Frazee was called up by the New Jersey Devils after all world goalie Martin Brodeur hurt his elbow. Frazee's call up was a matter of convenience as Frazee was the closest to NJ.

Goaltender Jeff Frazee has been recalled from Trenton of the ECHL on an emergency basis and is practicing with the Devils today. "He was the closest," Lamoriello said.

*Wild Defenseman Brent Burns was hurt during pre game warm ups during the Wild and Coyotes game. The Wild are getting thin as Nolen, Gaborik and Burns are hurt. According to Mike Russo Burns should be ready to go on Tuesday night.

*Former Gopher Thomas Vanek is on fire and scoring a lot of goals.

The Sabres' $50 million man has been on the money from the first drop of the puck. He's scoring even-strength goals (five). He's scoring short-handed (two). He's scoring on the power play (four). He's scoring game-winners (two), including Saturday's just 1:12 into the game.

*Former Fighting Sioux Star Drew Stafford is 12th on the Sabres in scoring through 11 games.

Linkorama...

Former Gopher Phil Kessel is on fire right now for the Bruins and has been playing on the top line with Marc Savard. Since being benched in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. Kessel has come up huge.

Phil Kessel is all grown up, and the Bruins need to re-sign this budding star
Mike McMahon --- BOSTON
Phil Kessel is turning into the sniper that the Bruins need him to be. In last night's 2-1 shootout loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins, Kessel was both the Bruins' only goal scorer in regulation as well as the shootout (which saw the B's fall 2-1 in six rounds).

It all started last spring, when Kessel was benched by head coach Claude Julien after Game 1 of a playoff series against the top-seeded Montreal Canadiens. Kessel was labeled as soft. But after being reinserted into the lineup in Game 5, he was the most dominant player on the ice, period.

The move undoubtedly lit a spark under the 21-year-old forward, and the momentum has carried over.

Joe Finley's favorite dance partner Blake Wheeler has seen his role diminish with the Bruins. I kind of figured it would be a slow learning curve for a guy that has been slow to develop in college after being selected 5th over all in the first round of the NHL draft.

It's become grind for Wheeler
By Fluto Shinzawa --- BUFFALO
Blake Wheeler is learning how challenging life as an NHL rookie can be. As his ice time diminishes, rookie plays a different role The 22-year-old forward had a lights-out training camp. In his first regular-season appearance, his first shot found the back of the net.

More recently, Wheeler has been put into the role of a grinding energy guy, with less ice time to do his work.

"It's just a different role," he said. "Obviously, when you're out there more often, you have a bigger impact and it's easier to find a groove out there.

"Whichever role you're put in, you've got to find the best way to excel in it. It's just a different role, so you have to find a new way to try and contribute every night."

Goon goes Five Hole...

Here is an article I wrote for Sean Leahy's Going Five Hole

Games to watch this weekend.

Series one: 2-0-0 Minnesota Golden Gophers travel to the Madison to play the 0-4-0 Wisconsin Badgers. The Badgers are reeling after losing a couple of high scoring games to the Denver Pioneers 6-5 and 7-4. Minnesota, on the other hand, opened the season with a home and home series against the SCSU Huskies. These games were much closer; both games ended up being one goal games 3-2 and 2-1. Minnesota is lead in net by Alex Kangas 2-0-0 with a goals against average of 1.50 and a .942 save percentage. Wisconsin on the other hand has used two goalies with little success; sophomore Scott Gudmandson has a record of 0-2-0 with a goals against average of 6.03 and a save percentage of .824. Senior goalie Shane Connelly has been equally unimpressive with a record of 0-2-0 goals against average 5.59 and save percentage of .874.

Wisconsin, normally known for its defensive systems, has given up 23 goals in the first 4 games. This in itself is puzzling since the Badgers have three defenseman that were taken in the first round of the NHL draft; Jake Gardiner 2008, Brendan Smith and Ryan McDonagh 2007 and Jamie McBain who was taken in the second round of the 2006 NHL draft. This should not be happening to a defensive corp. that is this talented.

Minnesota on Defense has two impressive new comers in Aaron Ness and Sam Lofquist who will make major contributions for the Gophers this season. Also, much-heralded freshman forward Jordan Schroeder was one of the best players on the ice for the Gophers this past weekend.

Prediction: Minnesota and Wisconsin split this weekend’s series records mean nothing during the border battle week.

Goon's World makes an appearance on the Illegal Curve...

Here are the questions that I answered for Kyle of the hockey blog the Illegal Curve.
1. Is Colorado College as good as advertised?

I do believe that C.C. is the class of the WCHA and the Tigers should be as good as they were advertised to be. The C.C. Tigers return a nice core of experienced forwards are lead up front by Chad Rau, Scott McCulloch and Bill Sweat.

While the C.C. Tigers are a strong team; there also has to be some questions that will need to be answered. This was the same team that was beaten three games in a row during the league and NCAA playoffs to end the 2007-2008 season. The Tigers were also beaten in the North West Regional against the defending NCAA champion the Michigan State Spartans in the Tigers OWN building.

In goal Richard Bachman went 25-9-1 as a rookie with a .931 save percentage with a goals against average of 1.85. One question will be if he Richard Bachman can keep up the pace that he set last season. I think the Tigers are the consensus pick to win the MacNaughten Cup a second year in a row. Also, starting off the season the C.C. Tigers could realistically go 7-0 in October because they have a relatively light schedule, until they meet the pesky Denver Pioneers on October 31st and November 1st. This might sounds silly but check out this schedule; the Tigers start off their season with CHA bottom feeder Alabama Huntsville, them play Michigan Tech, followed by Clarkson before meeting their cross state rival in Denver University.

While C.C. might be the class of the league I believe that UND and DU aren't far behind them either and they Tigers will have to earn every win they get. In the WCHA there are no give me games anymore.

2. Is the WCHA so deep this year that it was merited that Ryan Duncan did not receive a single vote for pre-season player of the year? Who would your top 3 candidates be for the award?

My top three candidates for that award are Chad Rau C.C. 28g-14a-42pts, Ryan Duncan UND 12g-18a-40pts and Garrett Roe SCSU 18g-27a-45pts. In my opinion I believe that they are the top three players in the WCHA. If you break the numbers down further you will see that Duncan top returning point getter for players in the WCHA; comparing the two seniors you can see that Duncan has 65g-68a-133pts as compared to Chad Rau who has 55g48a-103pts, Duncan has 10 more goals and 20 more assists. The numbers are what they are, I have heard a lot of fans of other WCHA teams say that Duncan is one of the most overrated in the WCHA and has great career stats because he played on the same line as Jonathan Toews and T.J. Oshie. I guess this season we will see if those claims are true.

3. How good do you think David Toews can be for the Fighting Sioux this season?

Dave Toews seems to be flying under the radar and not getting a lot of attention, he certainly doesn’t have the hype of his brother and frankly I think that is a good thing. I have not yet seen him play as of yet because he was injured before the exhibition game against the Manitoba Bison. I know he was impressive when he was at Shattuck St Mary’s he played in 51 games scoring 44 goals 56 assist for 100 points I think that is a pretty good season not Zach Parise numbers but impressive. Some have said that he wasn’t even the best player on his team but Sioux fans are happy to have him... Incidentally Toews will not travel to Boston this week for the games against the University of Massachusetts or Boston University because of an injury.

4. Just how good is the young talent the Golden Gophers having coming through the door this season?

The new players for the Gophers are going to have to pick up the slack on a team that was challenged in the goal scoring department. The Gophers lost the following players to graduation/NHL signings Forwards: Blake Wheeler (NHL -- 15-20-35 1st) Ben Gordon (15-14—29 2nd), Mike Howe (7-14—21 3rd), Evan Kaufmann (9-10—19 5th) and Tom Pohl (1-5--6) and defenseman Derek Peltier (4-17—21 5th). That means the Gophers have one player from last years team that was in the top 5 scoring returning to the line up Jay Barriball (6-15-21). There are 13 freshman players that are going to have to step up and make a contribution or the Gophers could face another season sitting in the bottom of the standings in the WCHA. It will be interesting to see who steps up from the freshman class that is lead by my choice for Rookie of the Year in the WCHA; Aaron Ness selected 40th overall in the second round of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft by the New York Islanders. Included in that freshman class is Jordan Schroeder considered one of the top players eligible for the 2009 NHL Draft according to the Hockey Futures.

5. Any chance that Minnnesota State can surprise people again like they did last season?

The Mavericks are going to surprise anyone because they are threat to finish in the top 5 and make the NCAA tourney. I believe last year the Mavericks should have been in the NCAA tourney and would have been if they had beaten the UNO Mavericks just once. The Mavericks have one of the best goalies in Senior Mike Zacharias 18-13-4 2.08 gaa and a .924 save percentage who is one of the best goaltenders in the WCHA and a potential All American in my opinion.

Contrary to what some MSU-M fans think; Troy Jutting is a solid coach that gets the most out of his players. Jutting’s teams are hard nosed and play a very physical brand of hockey. The Mavericks are a team that should not be over looked and will beat you up physically. Offensively the Mavericks are lead by senior captain Mick Berge and junior Trevor Bruess both players are skilled offensive players.

6. Is Denver netminder Marc Cheverie as good as advertised?

I have never had the chance to see Marc Cheverie play in person or on television. In looking at Cheverie on paper he has respectable numbers, and was highly regarded before he got to Denver. From last season the Cheverie line is: 5 games played record 1-0-0, 1.70 gaa and a .925 save percentage. DU like UND has an untested starting goaltender and both teams will be in a world of hurt if they don’t get consistent play in the net. The jury is still out on March Cheverie, it will be interesting to see how he ranks against the other goalies in the league.

7. Do you think the new rules will have an immediate impact?

This is really the elephant in the room, the 64,000.00 question. The WCHA officials are not known for their consistent officiating, and had a number of serious gaffs last season directly involving the out comes of two games, the same official Randy Schmidt was involved in both games. It will be interesting to see if Schmidt has been fired by the league or if he will resurface again. I think any improvement in the calling of obstruction will be welcomed by the fans. The WCHA has become the Western Obstruction League, where teams clutch and grab each other up and down the ice leading to low scoring and boring games. The NHL has gotten it right and NCAA hockey can as well.

It will be interesting to see if the officials in the WCHA can call the games more closely like they claim they will. Personally, I don’t think there are enough qualified officials in the WCHA to properly officiate the game like they say they are going to. I have heard fans saw they expect the games to be called more closely then revert back to the old ways of calling the games.

8. Can you give us a surprise team and a disappointing team?

I think that MSU-M is going to the team that no one wants to play and gains home ice for the WCHA playoffs. I have seen Wisconsin picked as low as 6th or 7th in a poll or two and if that happens they would qualify as being a disappointment.

9. Who do you see as winning the Final 5?

I see DU, C.C., Minnesota State University Mankato, SCSU and UND making the Final Five with DU or UND winning it all.

Linkorama: (WCHA focused)

Former SCSU Husky was the latest victim of the Philadelphia Flyers goon squad. It seems the Flyers are up to their old tricks early in the season again as they have another one of their goon's checking someone from behind. Hitting someone from behind is a gutless act that needs to be rewarded with more severe punishment. Someone is going to end up in a wheel chair...

Cullen absence 'precautionary'Submitted by chipalexander on 09/28/2008 - 19:13
It was an unsettling moment for Canes coach Peter Laviolette and the Hurricanes players -- center Matt Cullen taking a big hit and then being pulled from the game.

Cullen was blindsided by the Flyers' Nathan Guenin in the first period and did not play the rest of the game. Cullen missed several games last season because of vision problems after a pair of concussions.

"They checked his head for concussion symptoms and everything seemed positive and clear,'' Laviolette said. "It was more precautionary than anything else.''

It appears that there is a little news coming out of the Devils Camp during the training camp. First off Goon's World would like to wish Barry Tallackson a speedy recovery as he just had heart surgery. The Devils are expecting more out of former Gopher Paul Martin.

Devils Doings
September 28, 2008, 12:28 AM ET [23 Comments]

Its been a while since the Devils so much buzz for our hockey fans, here are some of the recent tid bits and my random thoughts...

Barry Tallackson had successful heart surgery for an irregular heart beat. We all wish him well and a speedy recovery.

I like Bryce Salvador and the attitude he is bringing to our back line. I think this is a critical year for Paul Martin and he needs to elevate his game - I think he will.

Bruins Fans check out this blog...

If you're a serious Bruins fan check out this blog Hub Hockey. This blog also has a face book page as well...

Linkorama: the shoot out...

I have been reading the various posts around the college hockey world and here is a run down of some of the opinions on the CCHA going to the shoot out to decide conference games.

Here is what Gandalf from Sixty Minutes. No Alibis. No Regrets. Had to say on the matter.

have any issues w/ a game of hockey ending as a tie. If two teams battle it out for 60+ minutes and the score is tied, so be it. I remember when college football had ties. In the early 90's the Badgers (who had sucked for how long before Barry turned things around) tied Ohio State. At the time that was a big deal, then a few seasons later someone got the idea to eliminate them and add the horrible OT format college football has now. While the shootout is better than that joke, if ties have been good enough for all these decades why is it such a big deal now?

Here is what Brad Elliot Schlossman had to say on the matter.

The CCHA is the first conference to do it and possibly the only one to use it this season. WCHA commish Bruce McLeod has previously said that the WCHA will not be using it this year.

Shootout results will not be used when compiling the NCAA tournament. They will still be considered ties. Shootout victories will impact CCHA standings, though. Point system is: two points for a win, one point for a shootout loss.

Three players will be used in the shootout. Home team gets to decide if it wants to shoot first or second. If tied after the first three players, the coach has to go to different guys in sudden death. We'll call this the Jonathan Toews rule.

Will this system carry over to other conferences eventually?

Chris from Western college hockey had this to say... I would say that we probably can mark him down as not being for them?

This was almost a foregone conclusion after the NCAA rules committee approved shootouts to decide regular season games. Shootouts are a topic that has been beaten to death, but while they are gimmicky, this should make CCHA hockey even more exciting this year.

The Blog that Yost Built had this opinion... Hum, I like what he has to say.

I'm mixed on the addition of shootouts. I like them in the NHL because they're exciting as hell and there are a possible 164 points during the regular season, so a few extra aren't going to make a huge difference. In the CCHA there are only 56 points available and last year a .500 record earned Ferris State the #5 overall seed. It's easy to see how being good in shootouts could give a team a significant boost in the conference standings.

My preferred method would have been a 10-minute 4-on-4 overtime, and if it's tied after that, it's tied. I bet you would get a winner more often than not and it doesn't really deviate too much from the game as a whole. That said, shootouts are really exciting and there's no chance I'd turn one off. I'm just not sure they have a place in a 28-game season.

Here is what the Bronco Hockey Blog had to say...

It is perfectly OK for a game to end in a tie, no one is cheated, the fans aren't lacking for excitement, and the current overtime system doesn't need fixing. There is no need to settle a close game with something that doesn't even closely resemble a team effort. I hope this "experiment" fails miserably

Colorado College Hockey had this to say...

Every hockey fan has an opinion on the shootout in the NHL and especially college hockey. Well now the arguments will increase as CCHA has decided to implement the SO to decide their games for 08-09. It will be interesting to see if 1) it draws the "excitement" that those in charge want (without being a ratings gimmick) and 2) if other conferences follow in line before the season starts. Time will tell, all the details from CCHA here

This is what UNDER REVIEW had to say about the shootout...

I’m just not sure it’s fair for a team to play great for 65 minutes and then lose a point to an opponent because they can score without a defense in front of the goalie. But I will admit I do get caught up in watching shootouts in the NHL and I will be interested in seeing how this plays out in the CCHA.

I am curious how the stats will be implemented for the CCHA. How will the shootout win look in the CCHA standings, as a win, a tie or something else? In other words will the CCHA still show wins, losses and ties, with ties including both shootout wins and losses. If not, will a second set of CCHA team stats need to be tracked (including stats for possible non-conference teams playing a CCHA team that agrees to play a under the shootout format) so the PWR RPI can be calculated? How will individual stats be determined? Will shootout stats count towards a player’s individual records or will they be excluded?

At the end of the day I will concede my purest hat and consider that shootouts could be an exciting addition to college hockey. Can’t wait to see how it works in the CCHA.

Linkorama: draft postmortem.

The draft is over and we are now completely in the summer mode. Now we can concentrate on rumor innuendo and really bad golf shots.

Lets Go DU had this interesting tid bit on the Bruins first round draft choice.

Maguire added that Colborne, who will attend the University of Denver this fall, is at least three years away from making the NHL. Draft guru Bob McKenzie, another of the TSN cognoscenti, categorized Colborne as "a home run or a strikeout," and added that Colborne's speech and mannerisms are very reminiscent of Thornton.

By the view of Boston general manager Peter Chiarelli, Colborne is likely a couple of years away from cracking the lineup, but he and his staff are impressed by the big kid's hard shot and ability to put the puck in the net.

"I think the comparison to Joe is fair, in a sense," noted Chiarelli, commenting a few minutes after selecting Colborne. "He's big and rangy, like Joe. But Joe is more of a passer, and this kid is a pretty good finisher . . . he really snaps off a hard wrist shot, with a really impressive release."

Chiarelli said he tried to move up in the draft, with an eye on acquiring one of the top handful of picks, but his talks were all but finished by Thursday night. His target all along, said Chiarelli, was Colborne.

Great a Joe Thornton Reference we all know how that worked out for Boston, they liked him so much that the traded him to the Sharks. Even with the Thornton comparision I am very happy that Joe is a member of the Boston Bruins and they can take him as soon as they would like. :)

The College Hockey Recruit Exchange says that no uncommitted players were drafted in this years entry draft.

Though five ranked North American players from the Final CSS Rankings were college eligible yet uncommitted, none were drafted. Anders Lee was the highest ranked skater on that list, but the fact that he hasn't committed to a college yet may have scared away some NHL clubs who may be under the impression that Lee would rather pursue a carreer in football.

It wold appear that the future Wisconsin Badgers defenseman had a really good draft.

Remarkably, four Wisconsin defensemen were taken in the top 43 picks of the draft — Jake Gardiner, the only first rounder at No. 17 overall, Cody Goloubef (No. 37), Patrick Wiercioch (42) and Justin Schultz (43). Of those, only Goloubef played for the Badgers last year.

So you can bet your bottom dollar that it's going to continue being really fun to watch the Fighting Sioux play the Badgers, defensive systems, defensive systems. Shall we say that the Wisconsin coach Mike Eaves is a defensive guru and with Bill Howard starts from the goaltender out.

Linkorama Boston College Eagles.

Here is a pretty good blog from a Boston College Eagles fan: B.C. Interruption he seems to have a pretty good analysis of Boston College Hockey. This is the only B.C. Hockey blog that I have found this season.

History vs. the Eagles

Unbelievably, Thursday’s game marks the 7th time out of the last 10 years that the Eagles and Sioux have faced one another in the National tournament. The teams traded national titles in 2000 and 2001. BC has won the last two meetings, both in the national semifinal. This is North Dakota’s fourth consecutive Frozen Four appearance (longest current active streak). The last team to make four consecutive trips to the Frozen Four? BC from 1998-2001.

2007 – Boston College 6, North Dakota 4 (Frozen Four)

2006 – Boston College 6, North Dakota 5 (Frozen Four)

2005 – North Dakota 6, Boston College 3 (East Regional Final)

2001 – Boston College 3, North Dakota 2 OT (National Championship)

2000 – North Dakota 4, Boston College 2 (National Championship)

1999 – Boston College 2, North Dakota 1 (West Regional Final)

More Linkorama.

Here is an interesting article on the NCAA hockey tourney from ESPN. I think the EZAC has a lot to prove this weekend.

2. Which conference has the most to prove?
Let's see … the WCHA has won five of the past six national championships. Hockey East has had at least one team in the title game in 10 of the past 11 years. The Central Collegiate Hockey Association has the No. 1 overall seed, Michigan, and the defending champion, Michigan State. For the purposes of this argument, we'll exclude Atlantic Hockey and College Hockey America and leave them at the kids' table.

That leaves the ECAC. The league hasn't won a title since Harvard in 1989. And if you remove Cornell from the discussion, the last team to win a game, any game, in the NCAA tournament was St. Lawrence back in 2000. It took the Saints four overtimes to send Boston University home in the longest game in NCAA tourney history. To be fair, Cornell advanced to the Frozen Four in 2003 and has won five NCAA games in this decade. But where's the rest of the conference?

Clarkson was a No. 1 seed last year and lost to UMass in the first round. This year, the Golden Knights are a No. 3 seed and will face St. Cloud State in Albany. That seems eminently more winnable than Princeton's 4-versus-1 matchup against the Fighting Sioux on Saturday in Madison. Either way, the conference needs to find a way to advance a team or two if it wants to shed its second-tier status behind the three big leagues.