Ode to the Bruins and Kessel with a hat trick

Former Gophers star/player Phil Kessel scoring a hat trick against the LA Kings. One could say that Kessel's hat trick is very good news since the Boston Bruins haven't really been scoring a lot of goals to start the season. However, there is hope in Boston as the Bruins recently went 3-2 in a western road trip. Incidently the Bruins will not leave the eastern time zone the rest of the season.

A weak attempt at Humor

Lastly, some fans think they are so funny (especially New Jersey Devils Fans), first off even though two former Sioux hockey players play on the Devils I am not a fan of their team; not to mention I think the Devils are going to be a punching bag in the east and have a down season. Sioux7 sent me this poem about the Boston Bruins.

Ode to the Boston Bruins

The Boston Bruins,
Their Stanley Cup dreams are in ruins.
One cup in thirty-five years,
Has caused many tears,
Fans drown their sorrows in beers
As the players get jeers,
And the cup still avoids them.

Their players are all washed-up jocks,
They're even worse than the sox!
In the playoffs they choke,
And all their fans' hearts are broke.
Half the team is on coke,
The franchise is a joke.
So the cup still avoids them.

Each year the results are the same,
And Peter Chiarelli is the person to blame.
There are thirty-five more
Years of failure in store.
They can't even score,
From the cup they won't pour.
'Cause the cup still avoids them.

Hockey East on the Decline?

I found this post in my email from the hockey list last night: I wonder if this has anyone concerned on the east coast? Actually I had to take a double take to make sure it wasn't a miss print.

Hockey East did NOT fare very well last night. In eight games, Hockey East went 1-7 with the lone victory coming from Merrimack (4-2 over Niagara). There were some very surprising results too, such as New Hampshire losing an exhibition to New Brunswick and BU falling to Robert Morris. -Deron

Friday, October 12, 2007
Non-Conference
Vermont 1 at Miami 2 (L)
Providence 1 at St. Lawrence 4 (L)
Niagara 2 at Merrimack 4 (W)
Maine 0 at Denver 2
Massachusetts 1 at Clarkson 2 ot (L)

IceBreakerBoston College 3 vs. Michigan 4 ot (L)

Nye Frontier Classic

Robert Morris 3 vs. Boston University 2 (L)

Exhibition

New Brunswick 4 at New Hampshire 3 (L)

I believe the most stunning loses are New Hampshire losing to a Canadian University and Hockey East power house Boston University losing to Robert Morris.

Toews Score his first NHL Goal

I just watched this goal for the first time, man what a move. One could say that this is probably the first of many goals to come during his NHL career. Now I see what everyone was ranting and raving about.

Ballard and Backes Part 2.

These two guys are probably not going to be sending each other Christmas Cards or be going out to dinner any time soon. Incidently that was their second fight in two seasons of hockey. Last April Ballard and Backes got into a good tussel stay tuned to see how this match up shakes out.

Steve Downie is a hack

This was a significant incident that happened while my computer was in the Geek Squad shop. This incident is probably the first of many with this guy; its just the type of player Steve Downie is, a 20 game suspension although probably steep won't stop thugs like guy from striking again. This is the same guy that attacked a fellow teammate. I still believe that Jack Johnson should have been cheered in Vancouver instead of booed for his elbow on Downie.

This is the latest black mark for the National Hockey League Boulerice crosschecks Kesler, Flyers vs Canucks Oct 10, 2007
I can see another 10-20 game suspension.

Goon Back up and Running.

The Computer has landed

Finally I get my lap top computer back from the Best Buy Geek Squad tonight. This was after not having a computer for one day short of a month. I sent my computer in on the 14th of September 2007. I should be back up and running in the next couple of days. I have like 1500 emails to clean out of my inbox and my outlook express locked up on me. I don't know what it is with computers and me.

Sioux win exhibition game (by Sioux 7)

On Sunday night UND started the season, un-officially, with win over the U. of Manitoba. The Sioux trailed after the first period, 2-1, since Phil Lame-a-reaux failed to stop the first two shots that the Bisons took. Hopefully he gets that bad karma off of him that first period. In the second period the Sioux took control and would eventually run away with the game in the third period, winning 9 to 3. Rylan Kaip the new captian had a hat-trick in this game, to bad it doesn't officially count in the statistics columns since it is an exhibition game.

Next Saturday the #1 Sioux host the #2 Spartans of Michigan State. This should be a good game, not to often do #1 and #2 play each othere in the offical season opener. I have not gotten a new magic 8-ball since I broke my last one, but I'll take a stab at the final out come of this weekends game, Sioux win, 4-2.

USCHO preseson poll (by Sioux 7)

I know that poll was released a few days ago, but the Goon and I have been out duck hunting for the past 5-days.

The preseason poll from USCHO features 6 teams from the WCHA, they are:

1. North Dakota
5. Minnesota
11. Colorado College
13. Denver
15. Wisconsin
17. St. Cloud State

UND got 13 first place votes and Minnesota got 1 first place vote. This poll really shows the strenght of the conference as a whole. Six out of ten teams ranked in the top 20, not to bad. They only other conference with that many ranked teams is the CCHA with:

3. Michigan State
4. Miami (Ohio)
8. Notre Dame
10. Michigan
16. St. Lawrence
19. Ohio State

Hockey East has five teams in the poll.

2. Boston College
6. New Hampshire
9. Boston University
12. Maine
20. Vermont

The ECAC has three teams in the poll.

7. Clarkson
14. Quinnipiac
18. Cornell

The CHA and Atlantic Hockey do not have any teams ranked in this preseason poll.
(Remember this most likely be the last year of the CHA, since Wayne State will be dropping their mens hockey program.)

The breakdown of how many from each conference is not to shocking. Consider that the CHA and AH have gotten very little love from any pollsters in past years and that they haven't faired to well in non-conference games.

I wonder how close this ratio will be to the teams that make the NCAA tourney come March...5-WCHA, 5-CCHA, 4-HE, 2-ECAC...

WCHA to add teams, maybe? (by Sioux 7)

Wayne State University in Detroit announced today that they will be dropping their mens ice hockey team. This disaster will affect the remaining 4 teams in the CHA immeasurably, there will be no auto-bid to the ncaa tourney, and won't really be a league with only four teams, Niagara, Robert Morris, Huntsville-Alabama, and Bemidji State. Without a conference these fledgling D-I programs need to find a home or they might suffer the fate of WSU.

Bemidji State already plays a fair number of games against WCHA schools, for the 2007-2008 season they play: St. Cloud (2), Mankato (2), Duluth (2), CC (1), Denver (1), and UND (2). Looking at there schedule they could almost be considered an honorary member. It would make sense for them to join the WCHA for many reasons: location, they are literaly surrounded by the WCHA schools; track record, they have beaten WCHA teams, and they were outstanding at the D-3 level previously; college hockey, everyone needs teams to keep playing at the D-1 level, if teams fail that reflects on hockey as a whole, not just one team.

I hope the WCHA can look past itself and see the big picture and let BSU join our league. Some will complain that strains the recruiting and scheduling, but that can be overcome. Scheduling can be made to have more home-and-home series, with teams that are geographical close, so everyone can see these team every year. Recruiting, hey, the coaches should do what they have always done, that shouldn't be a factor.

As for Robert Morris and Niagara, since they are in Pennsylvania and New York respectively some of the east coast leagues should add these programs to their leagues. Huntsville-Alabama, uff-da, what to do with them... they are all by themselves down south. Is Omaha the closest D-1 team to them? I'm not sure, but maybe the WCHA could coherse UNO from the CCHA and the CCHA take on Huntsville... just a thought. Then would have 12 teams in the W and we could have a North-South subdivision or West-East one, still play everyone but change the playoff format.

College hockey needs these teams to keep playing, nobody, should be happy to see a team dissappear of the landscape.

Coaches Poll (by Sioux 7)

Today the Grand Forks Herald newspaper released its 37th annual WCHA pre-season poll.

Rank School Points

1 UND (7) 79
2 Minnesota (3) 74
3 Colorado Coll. 55
4 Denver 53
5 Wisconsin 52
6 St. Cloud St. 43
7 Michigan Tech 41
8 Minn.-Duluth 23
9 MSU-Mankato 19
10 Anchorage 11

The numbers in the ( ) represent first place votes and the other is the total points.

The poll also includes voting for pre-season rookie of the year and player of the year.

Pre-season Rookie of the Year

Kyle Turris, UW, 9
Evan Trupp, UND, 1

Pre-season Player of the Year

Ryan Duncan, UND, 5
T.J. Oshie, UND, 3
Taylor Chorney, UND, 1
Kyle Okposo, Minn., 1


This early pre-season poll does show some similarities to my earlier preseason predictions. Of course, it is not very often that a team predicted to finish first does win the league. The season doesn't get underway for a little over a week yet, but it is getting closer, we are almost into the month of October.

On a side note:

The Goon and Sioux 7 will be enjoying bird hunting this upcoming weekend along with UND's homecoming festivities. We'll be shooting ducks and other various fowl that are in season. And I be able to comfirm that "actual condition" of said "downed computer".

Going Down? by Sioux 7

Just a little FYI for all the dedicated GOON'S WORLD readers. The Goon's computer has gone down, I'm not sure if it was a standing 8-count or a TKO, but the Goon's computer is out of commission for a little while. I will keep everyone updated when I get more info from the Goon.

WCHA - Preseason Predictions - (by Sioux 7)

With the season bearing down on us, UND's first "game" which is an exhibition match is October 7th, just over 3 weeks away. But before that skates are sharpened, the sweaters doned, and the puck drops let me enlighten (or guessing as the case maybe) what the final standings will be in the WCHA this season.


Coming in at the bottom this year will be...Alaska. I believe there motto is "The Last Frontier" unfornately I think in hockey it is "The Last Place Frontier".

10 - Alaska-Anchorage Seawolves

Just avoiding the doubious distinction of finish last will be...Duluth. The license plates in Minnesota reads "Land of 10,000 Lakes" for the Bulldogs of Duluth it could be "Rink of 10,000 Loses" this year. They suffered a big blow when Matt Niskanen and Raymond Mason left early :(

9 - Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs

Moving up the preseason poll the "middle of the pack" is a little harder to estimate. Coming in at the 8-spot will be...Colorado. So much for the high peaks of the mountains, I think the Tigers are headed for the low lying valleys this season. The scoring by committee only goes so far, sooner or later you need a figure-head to lead the masses. The Tigers this year will be more roar than bite.

8 - Colorado College Tigers

Going to Vegas you want to get 7's but in a preaseason poll, but who knows it might be lucky in the end. Blowing on the dice and comin' up 7 is...Minnesota State. Maybe the bad luck Vikings purple has rubbed off somehow on the Mavericks. They have moments of being a contender, and then suddenly, BAM, down goes MSU. The Mavericks might go into a flat spin this year and goose (Jutting) will suffer a head injury, it will be sad, but they will find a new wingman.

7 - Minnesota State Mankato Mavericks (hey, I just notice but these guys could be 3-M)

Completing the bottom half of this years preaseason bracket and having to go on the road for the first round of the playoff will be...Wisconsin. The badgers did get a nice recruit in Turris, but the wall is gone (Elliott). Without him the badgers ship will leak water like a rusty bucket and they will not be able to fill that void completely, thus they won't win the close ones like they us too. TheBadger might suffer from the cold season leading the furry critter to "hibernate" a few times this winter season.

6 - Wisconsin Badgers

The "middle" teams in the WCHA will be the... Huskies. This will create a little more animosity between the 2 teams when they end up in a tie for 4-5 spot. SCSU lost there cork stopper too, with Geophart leaving, they do how ever have some fire power up front with Nodl and Dey. The MTU have it the other way, they have two exceptional goalies in Teslak and Nolan. These great work/sled dogs will do just work hard and be rewarded in the end with a juicy bone, home ice advantage.

4-tie - Huskies of Michigan Tech and St. Cloud State

The trey spot will belong to a team from the Rocky Mountain state...Denver. I'm not sure what has really led me to this finishing spot for this team. But, I do know that the Gwaz-man always seems to find a way to win games in the regular season. On a side note, what does a bird symbol have to do with being a pioneer, how about a covered wagon or something more Pioneer-ish?

3 - Denver Pioneers

The team coming in on the duece will be the "first loser" in the division, "the other big ten (11)" school...Minnesota Twin Cities. The gphers will have their usual high powered offense this year, but the back half of the ice will be their downfall. They have lost a group of defensemen that will be near impossible to replace in a season, and the goalie, Frazee, will have to stand on his head and make timely saves for the gophers to make a run in the playoffs. If the gophers collapse in the late season again look for the head-gopher to go down his gopher-hole and dissappear.

2 - Minnesota Twin Cities Golden Gophers

That leaves that top spot in the league for the remaining team (remember you are reading this on Goon's World) THE ONE THEE ONLY... FIGHTING SIOUX. Not that I'm biased, which I am, but the Sioux return a large portion of the team from last year. The most notable loss was Toews leaving early for the NHL. The offense will still be potent with Oshie and Duncan (Hobey Baker) and the starting goalie is back as well as most of the d-men.

1 - North Dakota Fighting Sioux

Interesting Read: Make or Break Season for the NHL

Ted Starky has some interesting points on the NHL and and some of the issues that could plague it's future success...

Sports Commentary

The National Hockey League is set to kick off its 90th season with a new look, a new defending champion, and some new stars in new locations.

This year will be a make-or-break season for the league, as after two seasons of trying to repair the damage from the 2004 lockout, the NHL now needs to make positive inroads into raising the sport's profile again. Record-low ratings have left the league with one year to convince NBC to extend its no-fee rights deal at the end of the season to remain on network television. After three years of mostly negative national press, the NHL urgently needs to cast itself in a more positive light to try and regain the sport's standing that was mostly lost in the work stoppage.

Of course, the league also has been plagued with some bad luck, as for three straight seasons, the league’s marquis showcase event has featured a small-market Canadian team against one from a sunbelt U.S. city, not exactly the formula for big U.S. television ratings. Big-market clubs like the Rangers and Flyers haven’t always performed up to expectations, and of the league’s marquis franchises, only Detroit has appeared in a conference final since the lockout ended. The league's partnership with Versus also took a hit when the network failed to land either an NFL or MLB package that would make it must-carry basic cable, and has left the league on a network that few of heard of and fewer will chase down to watch the league's top games.

Some of that could be changing this season, as New York and Philadelphia loaded up in the free-agent market, with stars such as Chris Drury, Scott Gomez and Daniel Briere, respectively, heading to those two teams, which should help boost those sagging TV numbers. Another NHL ratings stronghold in Pittsburgh likely will keep improving as the Penguins should be even better after an improbable run into the playoffs, meaning more chances for the league to showcase Sidney Crosby deeper in the spring.

League-wide, every team is changing this year to the form-fitting Reebok Edge jerseys, which have garnered some decidedly mixed reviews from fans and critics, but likely will bring a windfall in merchandising money as fans looking to update their collection will need to purchase a pricer version of an NHL sweater, which include several new designs that should sell well.

The NHL is also in a rare position of not having to face the most daunting problems in pro sports, as the other major sports are facing serious questions about the very integrity of the game. A renegade referee put the NBA in the spotlight this summer, as the legitimacy of some of its contests were put in serious doubt thanks to one official's tie with the mafia. The NFL has one of its stars set to be sentenced in December for running a dogfighting ring, and other players also face serious legal implications in the upcoming months. And baseball has its most hallowed record in the possession of a player largely regarded as a cheat, and the appearance of rampant steroid use for both sluggers and pitchers.

In the end I think the NHL success relies on its television package and marketing scheme. Face it; Versus is a decent television channel however, it is not a top tier television channel like TSN, Rogers Sport Net, FSN, ESPN or even CBC for that matter. The NHL has to get back on the ESPN network where it will be more visible. Also, maybe the NHL needs to stop trying to sell hockey to people that will never be interested in hockey. Hockey is a regional game that is played in the north country.

The Media Experts Predictions on Bochenski and Kessel

I found this on Hockey Buzz a few weeks back and apparently the Ultimate Pool Guide making some predictions about former Fighting Sioux forward Brandon Bochenski might have a off year.



The Hockey News Ultimate Pool Guide 2007-08:

The increase in points for Phil Kessel is the second highest increase projected by the magazine (the first being Scott Gomez). The magazine lists Brandon Bochenski as a candidate to crash and burn this year (the piece is warning poolies about this).

Player projections: (for Kessel and Bochenski)
Kessel, 54 pts, 20 goals (+ 25 pts from last year)
Bochenski, 40 pts, 18 goals (+16 pts from last year)

I think that Bochenski is going to turn some heads with his play for the Bruins this season. I believe All It's going to take is Brandon getting a decent amount of playing time on a line with talented line mates. Last year on the right line Bochenski proved that he could score timely goals.

Jeremy Reich whoops Adam Mair

I found this video over on the Ghosts of the Garden This is what I would classify as a pretty good hockey fight, two guys come together and decide to square off.

The combantants in this incident and settle their difference like men, there is no turtling or hiding behind the refs, one of the players doesn’t whack the other with his stick or stick out his knee like a gutless puke named Ulfie Samuelson, these two players drop their gloves and have at it. When the fight is over the incident is settled and the players move on. This is why I like NHL hockey, the game of hockey polices itself, end of story.

This should get you in the mood for NHL hockey

Although Rick Jeanneret would probably be considered a homer by many fans, I really love listening to him, except the May Day May call, that one really sucked for me as a Bruins fan. My favorite Rick Jeanneret moment is the one where he says; tis the season fla La, La, La Fontaine.

Classic Commodore fights

This afternoon I was on line and I came across a bunch of Mike Commodore fights that are posted on You Tube. This first video is a pretty good fight between Brendan Witt and Commie. As I think to the days of Mike Commodore I will never forget the fight that Commie had with Alex Brooks, now that was a pretty one sided fight. Commie ended up re-arranging Brooks nose.

Commodore and Eager

Commie works Hollweg

I can't stand Janssen

Thorburn vs Commodore (great fight)

Commie Smokes Cheecho train

Commie can score too

Rick Jeanerette describes Commie's goal against Buffalo

Commie smacks Ovechkin

Hakstol Inks 5-Year Contract

Head coach Dave Hakstol will continue to be "The Man" at the reigns of UND hockey for the next five years.

From USCHO,
"Hakstol’s current contract is set to expire at the end of June next year. The new contract gives him a base salary of $210,000 a year, with incentives of up to 25 percent of the base if he and the team attain goals such as making the Frozen Four."

I think the numerous fans and pontificators might now let up on calling for his head on a platter. He has taken UND to the Frozen Four the last 3 seasons, his first 3 seasons as head coach. Not to shabby in my opinion, how many coaches have made 3 appearances in the frozen four, much less 3 in a row to start your head coaching career?

This should continue to add stability in an already solid program.

Here is a point that has to change

WCHA Dominant?

WCHA went 8-9-1 against HE last season (this includes holiday tourneys and NCAA play). BC, Maine and UNH beat the WCHA teams they saw last season, UML, Merrimack, Providence and UVT lost to/tied the WCHA teams they saw.

I saw this over on USCHO tonight, I guess I hadn't thought about it that much, however, he is right. I guess the Sioux are going to have to carry the torch for the WCHA to get the league's honor back. One way to start that would be to sweep the UNH Wild Cats in December when they come to the REA and to beat B.C. and Northeastern University when they make the trip out this October.

The Chickens finally come home to roost

For Sioux fans this day took a long time in coming.
This has been covered a bit on the college Hockey Blog sphere and when I first saw it, the incident kind of sounded like an urban legend, it was almost like it was too good to be true. Sioux fans and other hockey fans are already asking; where do we get the You Tube Video of this incident? We want proof for closure. As a rabid Sioux fan, of course I was hoping it was true because I felt it was a long time in coming. Now finally this incident can be put to bed as justice has finally been served.

It took a couple of seasons but Matt Greene finally got a shot at Oilers prospect Geoff Paukovich and made the most of it.

Here's the deal, back in 2004-05 in the WCHA Final Five, Paukovich playing for the Denver Pioneers crushed Greene's teammate Robbie Bina of North Dakota with an ugly hit that broke Bina's neck. (Bina has since returned to play). Greene, the Fighting Sioux's captain, exchanged words with Paukovich telling him their would be a day of reckoning at a later date. (Note:this would be the politically correct translation of what was said!).

As you all know you can't fight in College hockey but you can in a conditioning camp.
Paukovich now an Oilers prospect showed up at Clare Drake Arena the other day for the U. of A. Conditioning Camp, and Greene of course is an Oilers regular. Greene was late for a session, and the two were slated to be on the same team, when he saw Paukovich in a drill. Greene immediately skated over to Paukovich and told him the day of reckoning had arrived and proceeded to according to onlookers..make short work of Paukovich. The one-sided tilt lasted 15-20 seconds. The two shook hands after the fight. Classic!

Bob Stauffer
Team 1260

For college hockey fans that aren't very familiar with the incident in question this link kind of put the whole incident in perspective from more of a journalistic point of view.

This article put it all in perspective as well...

The incident
The moment came early in the second period with Denver controlling the puck while the referee had his arm in the air ready to blow the play dead as soon as North Dakota touched the puck. It’s a scene played out in rinks around the globe often, but on this afternoon in the heat of the battle, something went wrong.
As the puck came free along the boards, sophomore defenseman Robbie Bina reached to touch it thus triggering the whistle and stopping the play. But when the 5’8 180 lb Bina played the puck, he was simultaneously hit from behind by Paukovich, crashing heavily into the boards.

“It was a delayed penalty touch up and Bina got hit from behind, that’s it,” Greene bluntly stated, clearly still bothered by the memory. “He was two feet off the boards and got hit from behind and it was a delayed penalty call, so as soon as Robbie touches the puck, which he did, the whistle blows and that’s it. I don’t want to point fingers or anything, but from where I was sitting, it didn’t look like it needed to happen.”

Bina lay motionless for a period of time before being carried off the ice, the extent of his injuries not immediately known. Oiler VP of Hockey Operations Kevin Prendergast, who was in attendance that night, wasn’t aware of the severity of the injury until it came up in casual conversation with Hockey’s Future a day or two later back in Edmonton.

“The way he went into the boards, his stick slammed so loudly that I thought it sounded worse than it was,” said Prendergast. “Clearly, I was wrong.”

The result to Bina was a broken neck and possibly the end of his playing career. On the other hand, for the momentary lapse of judgment, Paukovich was given a one-game suspension by the NCAA and another from his coach. However, it should be pointed out that at the time of the incident, the only penalty given to the Denver forward was a two-minute minor for boarding. Whether it was the blown call by the ref, the hit itself or something else, North Dakota’s captain reacted immediately.

“It’s tough, you know, you’ve got your buddy lying on the ice and you can’t do anything about it,” Greene said with frustration in his voice. “If I would have done anything about it I would have had three minutes more in penalties than Paukovich had for breaking the kid’s neck plus a game misconduct and it was at a time when we were dealing with single elimination games for the rest of the year.”

“It was tough to swallow, Robbie’s one of my best friends on the team but regardless of being a teammate or not, you never want to get too personal with things. But when you see a guy every day in classes and then you see him take a hit like that, it kind of messes with your mind,” he added. “I was frustrated, but there wasn’t much you could do about it in that game.”

Paukovich, who was genuinely and deeply regretful for his actions, says his memory of the incident is still largely a blur but clearly recalls Greene’s reaction.

“I was kind of in a daze but… he was pissed” the rookie described. “He and I had some words and that kind of set the stage for the National Championship game. He wasn’t a very big fan of mine after that, that’s for sure.”

Bina missed the rest of the tournament schedule, but was in attendance providing emotional support for his team all the way to the NCAA finals held in Columbus. The prognosis for the diminutive forward is still unclear and at last contact Bina was still wearing both a neck brace and a never fading smile, a trait Greene admires immensely.

“His personality through the whole thing has been unbelievable, a guy that had every reason to be down with just the fact that we were playing in the National Championship game and he was in the stands wearing a neck brace where he would have been playing,” praised Greene. “He never lost the smile off his face, he always came around happy and was always cracking jokes and even now when I go for lunch with him, he’s a great guy.”

Paukovich struggled emotionally after the hit and although he played his way through to the end of the year, some say he was clearly not the same player on the ice.

“That really bothered Geoff in a big way, it’s going to take him some time to recover emotionally,” Denver head coach George Gwozdecky said during an Edmonton radio interview on the TEAM 1260 in April. “He was able to play for us in the Frozen Four and played pretty well but you could tell he was being very careful.”

“It wasn’t a deliberate thing, he’s a very physical player but he’s not a dirty player,” defended Prendergast. “The incident was unfortunate but he didn’t mean to injure him. We talked to him after the game and you could see it in his eyes that it had rattled him, when you see a kid taken off the ice on a stretcher it affects you.”

The Goon's perspective on the incident

This is what I wrote on Siouxsports.com

The Hit on Robbie Bina was right across the ice from my seat in the club level, I saw the whole incident as it unfolded, and it was by far one of the dirtiest plays that I have ever seen in all of my days of watching college hockey. I have witnessed a few incidents like this in the NHL but not in the college game. The fact the Don Adam only called a two minute penalty should have been the end of that refs career as an on the ice official. Also if you watched the film of the hit you will see Pauko smirking in the box.

The fact that it took so long for a wrong to be righted is puzzling to me, Paukovich should have been challenged the minute he stepped out of the penalty box at the Final Five. I look at Paukovich as being just as bad as Todd Bertuzzi, Ulfie Sammuelson or a Claude Lemieux. They are disgusting players and all will get or got what was coming to them. Live by the sword and die by the sword.

Sweet Throphy

SCSU's Only Throphy

I came across this page while I was on line. That is an awesome throphy in my opinion. It's a shame that UND couldn't play for the DQ cup since they owned all of the Minnesota teams last season. Someone even suggested that the Sioux should have been the rightfull owners of the DQ cups since the Sioux only lost one game to the four teams that competed for the DQ cup. Here is the break down UND went 3-1 against the Minnesota Gophers, 1-0-1 against UMD Bulldogs, 5-0-1 against the Minnesota State State University Mavericks and 3-0-1 against the champion Saint Cloud State University Huskies. Also add two wins against the Bemidji State Beavers and UND was 12-1-3 against the teams that have addresses in Minnesota.

Anyone see Mean Girl?

WCHA Blog Reviews of the Road Trip.

WCHA Road Trip Town No. 4 – Minneapolis
I was checking out this article on Cardinal's WCHA blog and I was wondering if anyone else has seen the humor in this article? Maybe it is just me? Ryan Cardinal is a gopher fan from Minneapolis and ranked his home town 4th. Actually for the Twin Cities I think that a grade of "B" is too low. I don't see any reason to act objective in this situation. Most of us would agree Minneapolis is a great city even with the Gophers and there are a lot of amenities that the small towns do not offer.

But I digress; I guess that 4th place is better than the 9th place ranking that my home town of Grand Forks, ND received, I guess I am not blaming him because there are times that I wonder why I decided to stay here after I graduated from college. There was a reason people let Grand Forks after they graduated. Don't get me wrong; Grand Forks is a nice college town with a great hockey progam to follow but there isn't much to do up here unless your a hunter, like to watch hockey and or are a dirt track racing fan, I happen to be a fan of all three. By the way did I say that I was also a big race fan as well. That can be solved by moving somewhere else and buying a satellite dish. Personally I would have just skipped reviewing my own town.

City Experience (Grand Forks, ND)

Grand Forks really suffers in this area in my opinion, since there isn’t a whole heck of a lot to do aside from watch hockey games. The one staple that I try to incorporate into the trip is a visit to the Columbia Mall, which makes for a good time-killer.


Summary on the Grand Forks Road Trip

I personally rank Grand Forks as one of my favorite roadtrips, but it’s not because of the city. It gives you everything you need to make the trip solid, but it really suffers in terms of other things to do aside from watching hockey and it’s long distance from most other WCHA cities.

Overall Grade: C+

Here is Ryan's review on the Twin Cities Road Trip and the UofMN.

This week, its city No. 4: Minneapolis, Minn., which is home to the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers.

Access

This review as a whole is a bit different for me since I’ve lived in the Twin Cities area my whole life and therefore have never had a chance to ‘visit’ the area. However, as I’ve stated before, I’ve been to all the other WCHA towns, so I feel that I can compare the Minneapolis area to these towns.

Minneapolis is probably the easiest city to get to in the WCHA. It’s about an hour away from St. Cloud and Mankato, two hours from Duluth, and a little over four hours from Madison and Grand Forks. The drive from most of these areas is pretty painless, although the Twin Cities area can certainly generate its share of traffic as you get closer to either downtown.

With the 35W bridge disaster, it’s a little tougher to navigate the area around the Minnesota campus, but it’s still manageable, especially at night (when hockey games generally are) as opposed to rush hour.

The Twin Cities also features an international airport with several flights a day to the Denver / Colorado Springs area, among others.

Bars

As is the case with most big schools in major cities, there are plenty of options for having some fun before and after the games. There are obviously many bars in the Minneapolis / St. Paul area, but I think you’ll find that you won’t need to leave the U of M campus to find a good time.

Before the games, there are three places that most fans venture to that are all in the same general area. Sally’s Saloon and Eatery is the biggest hangout of the three. Like the others, it’s just a few blocks from Mariucci Arena and is a typical sports bar. It gets very busy before the games but is big enough to accommodate the hockey crowd. However, it can get very packed if the campus has another event going on that day. The menu is limited on gamedays but is still very solid. It’s a tad spendy, but the atmosphere is what keeps people coming back over the years.

Down the street a bit you’ll find Big Ten Restaurant & Bar. This place gets packed as well, but mainly because it’s very small compared to Sally’s. Big 10 is known for their subs, which are excellent. They have a much better selection of beet on tap, if that’s your thing.

Stub and Herbs is the other of the mainstays for pregaming. Featuring both an upper and lower level, there’s nothing overly special about it, but they have a lot of room and your traditional bar food.

If you’re looking to have some fun at night, The Library is the most popular bar on campus after dark. It gets very packed with the ‘hip and trendy’ crowd, but they have good specials on the weekend and the “scenery” is nice. And yes, it’s about two blocks away from the infamous Blarney Pub and Grill.

Finally, if you’re looking for a late-night snack after your do some bar-hopping, Burrito Loco, which is adjacent to The Library, is where you’ll want to go. They are open well past bar close and it is the place to go for after hours food.

City Experience

There are quite a few things to do in the Twin Cities area. In the fall, Viking and Gopher football games could kill some time on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon. The Wild start up in early October, which would make for a good time in St. Paul on a Thursday or Sunday. Out-of-towners like to frequent the Mall of America as well if they’ve never been to the Twin Cities area.

Hotels

There are not too many options near Mariucci Arena. The best bet for visitors is the Radisson that is right by the three bars / restaurants I mentioned earlier. It’s well over $100 a night though, which could be problematic.

There is a Days Inn down the street a bit that could be a more viable option for the money-conscience.

If readers have other suggestions here, please feel free to chime in via the comments section, since this is one area that I don’t deal with too often in Minneapolis.

Ticket Cost / Availability

As anyone who has visited the Twin Cities to watch a Gopher game, you know that this is a potential issue. Gopher games are all essentially sold out before tickets go on sale to the public. Scattered single seats and standing-room tickets can be had when tickets go on sale in mid-September each year.

However, buying tickets from scalpers out front has always been a popular route of attack, and now that scalping tickets is legal in Minnesota, this is likely to be an increased course of action for folks looking for seats. The standard ticket is $30, but unless the Gophers are playing someone like North Dakota or Wisconsin, you can likely pay under face-value from scalpers to get in if you play your cards right.

As with any roadtrip though, it’s nice to have tickets in-hand before leaving.

Summary

As I said before, I’ve never “visited” Minneapolis since I live here, but I think it has all the ingredients to be a great roadtrip town: the hockey will almost always be good because of the quality of Minnesota’s teams each year, it’s easy to get to the area and it’s centrally located, and there are plenty of places to hangout around Mariucci. Lodging could be a slight issue if you don’t want to have to drive at all, but finding a decent place isn’t an issue at all. And finally, tickets to Gopher games aren’t going to fall into your lap, but with some many resources online to find tickets, it really shouldn’t be too tough to have them with you before you depart.

Overall Grade: B

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Again the first time that I read this article I thought it was hilarious. Ranking ones city that they live in, hence, making the title of Road trip even more funny to me. That's not to say that this isn't a good article because it was. I enjoyed the article. This is what I put for a response in the comments: -- am not sure how it can be a road trip if all your doing is getting in your car and drivin to the rink? :)--

Looking at the ranking I believe that 4th is a little low for the University of Minnesota and Minneapolis, MN. Just my HMO; when looking at Minneapolis one thing there is not a shortage of is bars; there are an enormous amount of great bars and eating facilities in the Minneapolis and St Paul area. In fact I would rank it as one of the best in the country.

A must read by Elliot Olshansky; break down of the 2007 NCAA field

I thought this was an interesting article by that was written by
Elliot Olshansky of CSTV. The article broke down the teams that made the NCAA playoffs last season. This is what Elliot had to say about the three WCHA teams that made the NCAA tourney last spring. I think you will find it to be an interesting read.

North Dakota - It takes a special group of players to make a pact to stay in Grand Forks, as several of the Sioux's top stars did. Losing Jonathan Toews will hurt -- as will the departure of Brian Lee, even if some in Grand Forks won't admit it -- but in the WCHA, losing a couple of first-round draft picks is par for the course among the upper-echelon teams. The more important thing is that Ryan Duncan, T.J. Oshie, Robbie Bina and Taylor Chorney are back to lead seven of North Dakota's top 10 scorers, and it's unlikely that the string of bad luck that struck the Sioux in the early portion of the 2006-07 campaign will return. VERDICT: Better

While some of the media pundents have said UND isn't going to be as good this season as they were last year. Elliot Olshansky recognizes that UND still has the good core nucleus of a great hockey team that in my opinion will have one of the best defensive corps in the NCAA, the only weakness I see for UND is the goaltending; Philippe Lamoureux is going to have to keep his emotions in check if the Fighting Sioux are going to go far in the NCAA playoffs.

St. Cloud State - It's hard to imagine the Huskies being any better than they were last season with Bobby Goepfert now trying to carve out a professional career in the Anaheim Ducks organization, but then again, Jase Weslosky looked good in most of his appearances last season. More importantly, the high-scoring freshman duo of Andreas Nodl and Ryan Lasch is back for a sophomore campaign, although the early signing of Andrew Gordon will take its toll, as will the graduation of Dan Kronick. Bob Motzko has shown himself to be talented at getting the most out of his team, but there's only so long you can hold off the Wisconsins, Denvers and Colorado Colleges of the world. VERDICT: Worse

St. Cloud was a good hockey team last year that fizzled in the NCAA tourney yet again. Without Bobby in goal they just got worse. While SCSU wasn't very deep on the forward position the future looks very bright for the Huskies if their young goaltender Jase Weslosky 6-gp 5-1-0 gaa 2.67 save %.899 can carry the load. They do return Andreas Nodl who had 16 goals 30 assists for 46 points.

Minnesota - It's hard to be better than the best, which is what the Gophers were, statistically, heading into the NCAA tournament. It's also hard to be better when you've lost your three top defensemen, the forward expected to move back to the blueline to help compensate and the program's all-time leader in goaltending wins. On the other hand, the Gophers' losses at forward are minimal, except that Jim O'Brien could have been expected to take major steps forward this year, and that Mike Carman is not eligible to play until the second semester. Given that the Gophers' strength last season was offensive dominance and the ability to control the puck, if the re-worked defensive corps can hold the blueline effectively, Minnesota should not be too far off. In the meantime, though, the Gophers have a few things to prove. VERDICT: Worse

The Gophers return a good share of their offensive talent, however, they no longer have Alex Goligoski on the blue line quarterbacking the power play. Goligoski was one the best defensive players in the NCAA last season and would have fit nicely in the Gophers defensive scheme. While the Gophers still have some teeth in their line up they are going to have to score a ton of goals to offset having arguably one of the biggest head cases in net Jeff Frazee...

Found this on Sioux Sports

Check out this link Lammy Is a Sieve

Here is a link that some one posted Siouxsports.com. There is the old statement about living in glass houses and not throwing stones. What can I say, you have to love the Gopher fans they are creative.



While we are on the subject of Sieves: Bina goes downtown

You also can't spell sieves without Briggs... reliving the gift...

Former Fighting Sioux player Andy Schneider invited to Ducks Rookie camp

I found this on line and haven't seen a lot written about it. Former Fighting Sioux defenseman Andy Schneider used to be part of the Pittsburgh but was hurt last season didn't play and is now looking for a team to call home. Goon's world wishes Andy good luck and hopefully he can be the next Fighting Sioux hockey player to make the NHL.

Link to the Roster

The Ducks will host Rookie Games versus the San Jose Sharks on Sept. 8 at 7 p.m. and Sept. 9 at 5 p.m. at Anaheim ICE. The two-game weekend set at the Ducks practice facility will highlight top prospects from both National Hockey League (NHL) clubs.

Featured players on Anaheim’s roster include 2007 NHL Entry Draft first-round selection Logan MacMillan (19th overall), 2005 NHL Entry Draft first-round selection Bobby Ryan (second overall), as well as Drew Miller and Ryan Carter, who both appeared with the Ducks in the 2007 Stanley Cup Final. A 17-year-old (7/5/89) center from Charlottetown, PEI, MacMillan appeared in appeared in 68 games with Halifax (QMJHL), collecting 20-35=55 points. Ryan recorded 43-59=102 points with Owen Sound (OHL), finishing eighth overall in OHL scoring. After making their professional hockey debuts with Portland (AHL) this season, both Miller and Carter joined Anaheim for the postseason, making their NHL debuts during the club’s Stanley Cup championship run

The Goon's WCHA goalie Rankings

Here is how I rank the top ten returning WCHA goalies for the up coming season.

1. Michale-Lee Teslak MTU .916 save % and 2.00 gaa
2. Rob Nolan MTU .910 save % 2.26 gaa
3. Peter Mannino DU .919 save % 2.29 gaa
4. Phil Lamoureux UND .913 save % 2.42 gaa
5. Shane Connelly UW .952 save % 1.11 gaa
6. Jeff Frazee UM .903 save % 2.35 gaa
7. Mike Zacharias MSU-M .892 % 3.02 gaa
8. Alex Stalock UMD .889 save % 3.16 gaa
9. Jon Olthuis UAA .883 save % 3.83 gaa
10. Jase Weslosky SCSU .899 save % 2.67 gaa

First off Connelley is no Brian Elliot but he does have the same goalie coach that Elliot had. The MTU tandem of Teslak and Nolan are the two headed monster that most teams would love to have on their team but dread having to face them. Jeff Frazee is going to get a sun burn on the back of his neck from the red light going off all season after the Gophers lost one of the best defensemen in the WCHA, David Fischer and Brian Schack are no where near the talent of Alex Goligoski.

Fall is on its Way...

Summer coming to an end

You can see the begining of fall coming but you can also feel the beginnig of the fall season in the air, I say this literally, as the farmers are harvesting their wheat and barley fields. My alergies have been killing me all week and I can't wait to it rains again to knock down some of this dust.

Incidently I was watching the weather channel this morning and I say 47 degrees as a low temperature, the drop of the puck is 44 days away. Summer is almost over and hockey season is on it's way. Here are a couple of things that I noticed while reading a recent College Hockey News article. Summer Session: North Dakota

Head Coach: Dave Hakstol
2006-2007 record: 24-14-5 (13-10-5 WCHA) Third consecutive Frozen Four appearance
Key Returnees: Robbie Bina D SR., Kyle Radke D SR., Philippe Lamoureux G SR., Ryan Duncan F JR., T. J. Oshie F JR., Matt Watkins F JR., Taylor Chorney D JR. Joe Finley D JR., Chay Genoway D SO.
Key Losses: Jonathan Toews (early departure), Brian Lee (early departure), Chris Porter, Erik Fabian

When the 2006-07 season began there were many question marks surrounding the Fighting Sioux. Such questions early were about the scoring and some questions surrounded Philippe Lamoureux and if he could be an everyday goaltender. Those questions were answered early with the offense, but it was the second half that Lamoureux proved to be an everyday goaltender.

About the 2006-07 season, head coach Dave Hakstol said, "It was extremely competitive and very exciting."

Hakstol also mentioned that "The parity was extremely competitive," meaning that there were many teams that he felt could win it all during tournament time.

The team made the Frozen Four again by defeating Minnesota in one of the greatest NCAA regional games that was ever played. Although it lost to Boston College in the semis, Sioux fans can still be happy about the team's performance.

The season ended when Ryan Duncan won the Hobey Baker award. Duncan was part of the second half surge that helped the Fighting Sioux throughout that part of the year.

"There were a lot of factors for our good second half," Hakstol said. "The development of the underclassmen improved, the transition went well and we found an identity that helped us late in the year."

As for the 2007-08 season, the Fighting Sioux look to be loaded on all cylinders, even despite losing underclassmen Jonathan Toews and Brian Lee. Although the Sioux only have four seniors on the roster, there is plenty of leadership on the team with eight juniors on the 2007-08 roster.

As far as the recruiting class goes, Hakstol said, "It is a very solid class with a good core of guys."

Overall there are six members of the class of 2011. "There are high expectations about this freshman class," said Hakstol. "They have all contributed on their teams in the past."

With four USHL players and two BCHL players on the list of recruits. And another newcomer worth notice is former Alaska-Anchorage forward Shea Hamilton who will look to establish himself as a role player.

"This is no different than any other year," Hakstol said about the teams expectations. "Our No. 1 goal is to be there in March and April. We have a good core coming back, and we want to come with a good start right out of the gates."

Even though the Sioux lost two players to the NHL, this team is still loaded. Expect this team to look towards a fourth consecutive Frozen Four appearance.

Early season prediction: anywhere from first through fourth in the WCHA

First off from everything that I have heard around town and through the Blog Sphere is that Shea Hamilton will not be joining the Fighting Sioux because he was dismissed from the team last spring for undisclosed reasons. Apparently the news media wasn't given the press brief on that one or they just have a case of ADHD.

Also, what is up with the prediction: way to go out on a limb on that prediction. Come on the Sioux will finish anywhere from first place to fourth place. If the Sioux don’t finish in first or second in the WCHA this season I would believe the Sioux will have unachieved as a team.

Ecklund from Hockey Buzz gives Porter Some love.

Ecklund from Hockey Buzz had some nice things to say about former fighting Sioux hockey player.
Check it out the article

a guy that you may not had heard of

Chris Porter.
Chris is a Left Wing from UND, who was drafted by Chicago two drafts ago yet has been unable to come to terms with the Hawks, so as of this past Wednesday he became a UFA.

Chris is a solid two-way player who has displayed great leadership in his college career, and according to one source, "He is getting some pretty impressive contract offers from a few teams..."

Is the NHL coming back to ESPN?

Look who’s talking: ESPN, NHL

For hockey fans that were upset with cable sport network ESPN after they decided not to cover the NHL after the lock out. Finally; have been given a glimmer of hope. Please God let this be true. In other words there is hope for the hockey fans that long for the NHL to be on ESPN again. OK boys; now let get this done and make it happen.

League approaches net about bringing games back as soon as ’08-’09

The NHL and ESPN are in discussions about bringing the league’s games back to ESPN2 as soon as the 2008-09 season.

Multiple sources described the conversations as preliminary. The two started talking the week of July 16 when the NHL approached ESPN about NBC’s nine-game regular-season schedule, plus the playoffs. NBC holds the rights to air the coming season as part of a revenue-sharing agreement, and the network holds a one-year option for the 2008-09 season.


A return to ESPN could boost the league’s profile on the network’s news shows. Some
say coverage of the league by ESPN has fallen considerably since the network’s contract expired. It’s not certain that NBC would exercise that option, given the sport’s tepid ratings on the network. Regular-season ratings on NBC averaged a 0.9 during the 2006-07 season and a 1.0 during the 2007-08 season over nine telecasts.

The key to this whole scenario is Versus, which holds cable exclusivity to all of the league’s games through 2011 and is paying the league a rights fee in excess of $70 million annually. Sources close to the Comcast-owned network, however, indicated that Versus would be willing to waive that clause, but only if it gets something in return — either a lower rights fee, a stronger schedule or a deal extension.

Sources say the conversations are happening at the highest levels and include NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and ESPN executive vice president of content John Skipper.

The talks with ESPN mark a turnaround from three years ago, when Mark Shapiro, then-executive vice president of programming and production, publicly questioned the value of having the league on TV — remarks that still make league executives bristle. The arrival of Skipper in October 2005 could allow both sides to overcome that, as sources close to the league believe that Skipper values hockey more than Shapiro.

The NHL has faced immense criticism from hockey fans and media for its relationship with Versus, which is in about 71 million homes and sometimes difficult to locate. The first year of the NHL’s relationship with Versus was marked by complaints over the network’s limited distribution in markets such as Buffalo and Anaheim, as well as in hotels around the country.

Ever since, owners and team officials privately have pushed for a return to ESPN, which is in 92 million homes and a staple in bars, restaurants and hotels across the country, but few believed such a move would happen because of Versus’ cable exclusivity.

A return to ESPN could boost the league’s profile on the network’s news shows. According to an ESPN study of its 1 a.m. “SportsCenter” program, the show featured 29 fewer minutes of NHL coverage in March 2007 than in March 2004, the last year ESPN aired NHL games. That amounts to a 28 percent decline in hockey’s allotment of airtime, ESPN ombudsman Le Anne Schreiber wrote in May.

The move would mark a change at Versus, as well, which is open to giving up its cable exclusivity if it can tap into ESPN’s marketing prowess. Over the past two years, Versus executives have complained privately that ESPN ignored their network. They are hoping for a situation that mirrors the NBA, where ESPN and TNT push viewers to each network’s games.

The league’s talks with ESPN come as it is negotiating with cable and satellite operators for carriage of its planned NHL Network and its out-of-market Center Ice package. Cable sources describe the negotiations as progressing smoothly, with the league taking a page from Major League Baseball by tying carriage of its planned channel with the renewal of Center Ice.

Some well-placed cable sources were skeptical that the league would be able to launch a 24-hour U.S. channel by this fall, given that the NHL hasn’t appointed anybody to run the channel yet and the NHL season begins in just three months.

Sources close to the league say that will not be a problem because it will rely heavily on an NHL Network that already exists — Canada’s version. The U.S. channel will have a look and feel similar to the Canadian one. The planned channel will have 50 live games in 2007-08. Most of the content will be identical to what appears in Canada, although it will be repackaged with some U.S.-based programming, sources said.

An internal team of five to seven people also has been assigned to work on the channel when it arrives in the U.S. The team will be led by Jody Shapiro, former vice president of business development at NBA TV, and Patti Fallick, group vice president of NHL Productions.

The league has hired Ascent Media Network Services to manage and distribute the channel. A subsidiary of publicly traded Ascent Media Group, the company has offices in Stamford, Conn., from which it will maintain the new network’s satellite signal, advertising insertions and other aspects of NHL Network. The company currently works with YES Network and the NFL Network.

The league wants the widest distribution possible for the new network and wants to stay away from sports tiers. It will continue to pursue the strategy used by MLB during its Extra Innings negotiations in hopes of avoiding sports-tier placement, but executives with several of the biggest cable operators have said they would only carry the NHL Network on a sports tier

One of the biggest complaints I have heard about the television channel Versus is that no one seems to gets the sports channel, its usually part of an extended cable package. In addition, compared to other sports channels Versus is unavailable to a lot of house holds in the USA for what ever reason. In the USA we don’t have the luxury of having all the sports channels like Canada does to watch the NHL on a nightly basis. For instance Canada has TSN, Rogers Sports Net as well as CBC on the Saturday night during the season and nightly through out the NHL playoffs.

It’s hard for People to be fans of a sport that aren't able to watch except for a couple nights a week. That is why I purchased the hockey package NHL center ice so I could watch the hockey teams that I wanted to see play. That is tough if you’re trying to sell a product to household in the USA. While I do get Versus on my cable package a lot of people I know or have talked to don't get Versus, so they were able to watch the NHL. For instance Sioux7 who lives in Fargo, ND was not able to see this season at his house on his cable package and had to go to a bar if he wanted to watch the game. I don't know about you but I am allergic to cigarette smoke and I don't want to sit in a smoky bar to watch a hockey game.

UAA Hockey Fan Blog: Looks at the WCHA race.

UAA Hockey Fan Blog: Donald looks at the teams

Although I do enjoy reading Donald's rants on a regular basis; I actually have to repectfully take issue with what Donald said. I am sure he is also not going to be happy that I picked his Seawolves to finish last in the WCHA again this season. Maybe we can have a blogger summit on our picks and where our teams will end up by season end.

University of North Dakota

I definitely underestimated UND last season. I guess what I really missed badly was the performance of Hobey Baker winner Ryan Duncan. I didn't even mention the guys name in my preview. I certainly wouldn't have pegged them as a Frozen Four participant. But there's definitely something to be said for their continued excellent 2nd half performances. It was a trait of the team under Dean Blais and it has continued under Dave Hakstol. Goal tending in my mind is a big question in Grand Forks. Lamoureux played 37 games last season and would have played more but for an early season injury. Consider me a Lammy skeptic. There'll be a lot of pressure on him to play a lot of games this coming season and while he had good numbers I'm attributing much of that to team defense and limiting quality shots. Lots of folks would disagree with me about Lammy. They have a bit of a tougher schedule this year as well, though that isn't reason enough to downplay their chances. This squad has the potential to finish in the top half of the league (lots of people expect them to win the league) but I believe last year was exceptional and unlikely repeatable. I'm not sure they'll be an NCAA participant. Sue me

While I have never been a big fan of Lamoureux (I think for a goalie he is too emotional and excitable) I don't think he is a bad goalie either. I am actually a Grieco guy and I hope that he can recover from a few bad performances after looking good against the SCSU Huskies.

Also, I do think that Lamoureux's deficiencies can be over looked by the fact that UND returns if not the top defensive unit in the conference, one of the top two or three defensive units. The only team I think that might be better than UND's is Michigan Techs defensive unit. Wisconsin is good but they no longer have the stone wall Brian Elliot between the pipes.

UND will be a participant in the NCAA tourney this season. Just a hunch...

Goon's WCHA Pre-Season poll

Goon and Abby watching TV.


I know it's like 8 day short of two months before the college hockey season begins but since I was at home from work today watching/parenting my new born daughter and being there was a break in the action I decided that now is good to get my pre-season WCHA poll out there.

While this poll might be out a little early I can already see the beginning of the change of seasons. Just around the corner is the North Dakota resident Duck hunting opener is only 5 weeks away. In anticipation of that historic opener the other night I went out with my buddy and his kid to scout for waterfowl and get the dog in the water. I can hardly wait. I am ready to put the golf clubs away for the winter, clean up the shot gun and cheer the Sioux to another run at an NCAA title. Well maybe not just yet but soon enough, I really like fall golf because the courses aren't as crowded.

1.) Sioux
2.) Gophers
3.) SCSU
4.) DU
5.) UW
6.) C.C.
7.) Tech
8.) MSU-M
9.) UMD
10.) UAA

The past three season the Sioux have pretty much proved that winning the league title is nice but is not as important as doing well when the playoffs start. I have watched a few UND teams win the league title only to get bounced in the NCAA tourney. Don't get me wrong, while league titles are nice to have, Frozen Fours and NCAA titles are what I believe is the key to success in any college hockey program. In Dave Hakstols first three seasons UND has finished secon, third and third respectively. Not too bad of a job for the young Fighting Sioux coach. I do however, expect that one of these years the Sioux will realize greatness again and win the NCAA title under Hak's watch.

Sioux the Favorites

While I believe that UND returns the most of all the teams in the WCHA winning the league title is not a given and if the Sioux finish a little lower it should not be a shock to anyone. The WCHA top to bottom is the toughest league in all of college hockey. The battle tested Sioux have the experience but seem they seem to do better when they are in second through fifth place. This season I would like to see the Sioux get off to a better start before the second half so they don't have to expend as much energy making a run at number 8.

Jim we hardly knew you. Gophers lose another player to the NHL.

Earlier this week there was an article posted in a Ottawa Citizen that stated that Gopher Forward Jim O'Brien was going to forgo his last three years of college eligibility and sign a professional contract with the Ottawa Senators. Gopher coach Don Lucia even went on record and said that There is nothing to that story," Lucia said. "Everybody else is coming back Well I guess even the head coach was in the dark: its official, Senators Sign 2007 First-Round Pick Jim O'Brien

OTTAWA - Ottawa Senators general manager Bryan Murray announced today that the club has signed centre Jim O’Brien to an entry-level contract. He will be at the Senators training camp, starting on Sept. 13.

O’Brien, who recently attended the Senators’ development camp in late June and early July, was the club’s first pick, 29th overall, in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft in Columbus, Ohio. He was still recovering from April 30 surgery to fix an injury to his left shoulder and was unable to take part in any on-ice sessions during the camp.

In his freshman year with the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers in 2006-07, the 18-year-old was the youngest player in all of Division I college hockey. After scoring seven goals and adding eight assists in 43 games with the Golden Gophers, O’Brien then added seven points (three goals and four assists) in seven games as the United States captured the silver medal at the 2007 IIHF World Under-18 Championship in April. Team USA lost 6-5 in the final to Team Russia.

Minnesota took the 2006-07 WCHA regular-season conference title with 18 wins, seven losses and three ties. After defeating the North Dakota Fighting Sioux 3-2 for the WCHA Broadmoor Trophy Championship on March 17, Minnesota would eventually go on to lose 3-2 in overtime to the Fighting Sioux in the NCAA West regional final on March 25.

Prior to joining the Golden Gophers, O’Brien spent two seasons with the U.S. national team development program in Ann Arbor, Mich. In 2005-06, he recorded 17 goals, 24 assists and 76 penalty minutes in 51 games with the under-18 squad. O’Brien had three goals and one assists in six games as Team USA beat Finland 3-1 for the gold medal at the 2006 IIHF World Under-18 Championship. In 2004-05, O’Brien suited up with the under-17 team, posting 34 points (16-18) and 51 penalty minutes in 54 games.

Bochenski selling Women's Cloths.

I found this story on the Cardinal's WCHA Blog and when I first read the story I thought you have to be kidding. Former Fighting Sioux Brandon "Bucks" Bochenski who now is a member of the rough and tumble Boston Bruin's owns a store for high end women's clothing with his fiancé Jen. Yeah, OK... I got to thinking why not? Good luck to Bochenski and his wife on their business venture.

Bochenski is owner of women’s clothing boutique.

Brandon, who will be tying-the-knot early this month to Jen, his fiancé, has had his hands full with wedding planning. And the young winger is still boarding flights back to the Hub of Hockey to run children’s street hockey clinics, and making calls to season ticket holders. He even appeared as a special guest at the Bruins recent Launch Party.

And when Brandon is back home in the suburb of Woodbury, Minnesota - a short ride from Minneapolis and St. Paul - this big-bad Bruin is the proud owner of Elodie (pronounced: el-o-DEE), a designer women’s clothing boutique.

Yes you read that correctly.

“It was originally Jen’s idea, obviously, to do designer women’s fashion,” Bochenski chuckled.

However, Jen didn’t have to twist Brandon’s arm to get him in on the deal. Bockenski, who studied business while playing hockey at the University of North Dakota, has always wanted to start a company of his own.

“I always enjoyed business in school," said Bo. "I thought that being an entrepreneur and starting something from scratch like this would be fun.

"I obviously had other envisions of what the company would be (laughs), but I get the same basic structure here, so it’s fun.”

The future Mr. and Mrs. Bochenski are no slouches when it comes to running a business either; they both did their homework before starting up. They knew the competition they would get from other popular female clothing stores in the area would be stiff, so they intentionally tailored their shop to high-end designer fashion - a true niche market -- just like you learn about in Intro to Business.

Brandon also understood the importance of both timing and location.

The 1,200 square foot shop only took a month to really take-off, as Brandon and Jen officially opened the door in mid-November of 2006 - just in time for the holiday rush. And now with the summer and warmer weather, Elodie is reaping the benefit of its location in an outdoor mall (similar to those prominent to Florida, Phoenix, and California).

The name on the other hand, wasn’t as strategically picked.

“Well, Jen originally wanted a name that had meaning, but it ended up with no meaning,” explained Brandon. “It just sounds nice and memorable. She found the word on the internet actually.

"It is a French name, and we figured it kind of went along with that high-end, New York style of the store.

"So it sounded fancy and it wasn’t taken,” joked Brandon.

Hot stove league: Phil the thrill Kessel highlights

I was on youtube tonight looking around and I didn't realize how many high light goals that Phil Kessel had in his short hockey career. It is amazing some of the goals this kid has scored and the impact he has had on the game of hockey. Love him or hate him he is an amazing talent. Now that he is a Boston Bruins I can dig his work. The first one is a goal where Phil picks the pocket of a Sabres defender and makes Ryan Miller look sick.

In this clip Kessel wins a shoot out earlier during last season ending three games on three chance in the shootout. Check it out

This one is a thing of beauty Kessel from behind the net against Ole the Goalie

The goal in question. I kind of wonder many hockey message avatars ended up with the picture of Phil Kessel cupping his ear after scoring a goal in madtown.

First NHL goal for Kessel against the Sabres

It's Official, Paukovich gone...

This had been rumored but I guess this makes it official, this is a press release from the Edmonton Oilers Web Page

OILERS SIGN THREE
BRODZIAK, ROY & PAUKOVICH INK CONTRACTS


The Edmonton Oilers have signed centre Kyle Brodziak and defenceman Mathieu Roy to two-year contracts and left winger Geoff Paukovich to a three-year entry level contract.

The 6’2”, 198-pound Brodziak split the 2006-07 season between the Oilers and the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the American Hockey League. Brodziak, 23, appeared in six games for the Oilers last season and scored one point, netting his first career Oilers/NHL point with a goal versus the St. Louis Blues on March 17th. With Wilkes-Barre, Brodziak scored 24-32-56 with 44 PIM in 62 games, tying for second on the Penguins’ scoring list. He was second in goals and fourth in assists. The Oilers 9th choice in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft, Brodziak has scored 1-0-1 with 6 PIM in 16 career games with Edmonton since making his NHL debut in 2005-06.

Roy appeared in 16 games with the Oilers in 2006-07, scoring his first two NHL goals and registering 30 penalty minutes. After beginning the season with the AHL’s Hamilton Bulldogs, the 6’2”, 214-pound blueliner was recalled to the Oilers on two occasions during the season and scored his first career Oilers/NHL goal at San Jose on January 10th. The 23-year-old (he turns 24 on August 10th) native of St-Martin De Beauce, Quebec scored his second goal on March 29th at St. Louis. With Hamilton, Roy scored 6-12-18 with 40 PIM in 31 games.

Paukovich begins his professional career with Edmonton following three seasons of collegiate hockey with the University of Denver Pioneers, where he was a teammate with fellow Oilers draft pick, Glenn Fisher. The 6’4”, 208-pound native of Englewood, Colorado played in 39 of the Pioneers’ 40 games in 2006-07, scoring 17 points on eight goals and nine assists. He was second on Denver with 65 penalty minutes and finished his career 11th on the Pioneers’ all-time penalty list with 257 minutes. Paukovich was a member of Denver’s NCAA national championship team as a freshman, scoring a career-high 12-10-22 in 41 games in 2004-05.

Significant WCHA Player Defections

Here is a break down of the significant WCHA players that have forgone their college elgibility to move to the professional/junior hockey ranks. For the most part all of the teams in the WCHA with the exception of MTU and Collerado College have had players forgo their college elgibiligy and move on to the professional ranks. This is not to say that other teams didn't lose players for various reasons. For instance MTU dismissed Phil Axtell from the team for undisclosed reasons, and according to the UAA fan blog Nate Lawson has left school.

Edmonton: Signed F Geoff Paukovich* (Denver)
Anaheim: Signed F Ryan Dingle* (Denver)
Calgary Hitman (WHL) Keith Seabrook* (Denver)
St. Louis: Signed D Erik Johnson* (Minnesota)
Pittsburgh: Signed D Alex Goligoski* (Minnesota)
Ottawa: Signed D Brian Lee* (North Dakota)
Chicago: Signed F Jonathan Toews* (North Dakota)
Los Angeles: Signed D Joe Piskula* (Wisconsin)
Chicago: Signed F Jack Skille* (Wisconsin)
Washington: Signed F Andrew Gordon* (St. Cloud State)
St. Louis: Signed D Steve Wagner* (Minnesota State)
Vancouver: Signed F Mason Raymond* (Minnesota Duluth)
Dallas: Signed D Matt Niskanen* (Minnesota Duluth)
Idaho: Signed F Jay Beagle* (Alaska Anchorage)

Are there any more players leaving early?

It kind of makes you wonder with roughly 60 days until the college hockey season begins if there are going to be any more player defections in the WCHA this summer. There is a rumor circulating around the blogsphere that Gopher underclassmen Jim O'Brienis thinking about leaving school and signing with the Senators. Some of these players I can see leaving but this one kind of puzzles me since O'Brien he is barely 18 years old. In case anyone forgot this kid he did leave an impression on the WCHA goalies and he did seem to be around the action that was in front of the net.

O'Brien to Sign?

Look for Ottawa's top 2007 draft pick, Jim O'Brien, to sign with the Senators and forego the balance of his college career. O'Brien, a 6-2 centre drafted 29th overall, was the youngest player in college hockey last season, as a 17-year-old with the University of Minnesota. A source says O'Brien, now 18, is leaning toward turning professional.

The Player Sioux Fans love to Hate, Geoff Paukovich Signs with the Oilers

Much to the chagrin of Fighting Sioux hockey fans Lets Go DU is reporting that DU bad boy Geoff Paukovich is forgoing his senior year of college to sign an professional contract with the Edmonton Oilers.

For Sioux fans this is a bitter sweet moment because we will never get to see Pauko get his due, at least in the college ranks. Geoff Paukovich will be remembered most for his dirty hit on beloved Sioux defender Robbie Bina that nearly left Bina paralized during the 2005 semi final game of the WCHA Final Five. It's not an understatement to say that he won't be missed in Grand Forks, ND.

Most Sioux fans will remember Geoff Paukovich for his being on the wrong end of a vicious cup check from Sioux tough guy Mike Prpich.

Goon's World would like to wish Geoff good luck in the professional ranks. My advice to Paukovich is to clean up his act and play hockey straight up, because if you cheap someone at the next level you won't be able to hide behind the refs and turtle, someone along the way will come to collect...

Dog Days of Summer

Dakota
It seems that this time of year ("the dog days of summer") is where the hockey happenings come to a screeching halt. For the most part that is true. There are roughly 2 months and three days till the puck drop on the Fighting Sioux's run to championship number "8".

Currently I am experiencing a serious void that every summer brings. Summer is the three months of every year that means no hockey and a few outrageous restricted free agent National Hockey League signings. Now I am not a person to complain a lot, I bitch just as much as the next person but not excessively, but seriously, what do I have to complain about? I am still above ground at least I think I am, I have played a fair amount of some really bad golf this summer. Add to that, I have also experienced the addition of a new family member to my family and watched three World of Outlaws shows, I know it's not hockey but it does fill the void.

Burke Fails to Match the Oilers offer sheet on Penner

While this long hot summer has gone on there have been some interesting developments in the professional hockey world. The one that caught my eye the most was the Edmonton Oilers signing Ducks free agent Dustin Penner to an outrageous and silly offer sheet for 5 years and 4.3 million per year. The Ducks Executive Vice President/General Manager Brian Burke decided not to match and wasn't very happy with the move. Seriously folks, not matching the contract was a smart move by Burke.

Brian Burke's comments on the deal

will not be announcing whether or not we will match the offer sheet to Dustin Penner. I’m coming back to Anaheim on Sunday and conferring with ownership.

Kevin Lowe has been in Penticton. I certainly think this could have waited until Monday. I think it was a classless move, timing-wise. I was not notified of this until Dustin Penner’s agent faxed it in. I would have thought Kevin would have notified me.I thought that was gutless.

I have no problem with offer sheets. They’re part of the CBA [Collective Bargaining Agreement]. But in my opinion, Edmonton has offered a mostly inflated salary for a player, and I think it’s an act of desperation for a general manager who is fighting to keep his job.

Offer sheets are a part of the CBA and I have no problem with that. If you can identify a player and pay him appropriately and make him an offer, that’s fine. At some point, the deals you make, the offers you extend, whether the team matches it or not, impacts all 30 teams, including your own. It’s a five-year deal for a lot of money. I’ll let you guys evaluate the deal. It should be pretty clear why I’m irate.

Seriously folks lets break this offer sheet down; that is a lot of cash 21.25 million dollars for a second tier player. Are you kidding me? This a second year professional player that scored 29 goals in 2006-07, adding 16 assists for 45 points in 82 games. Would someone please tell me why we lost a whole season of hockey squabling about the CBA because the owners in the NHL said they were suffering finacially. Kevin Lowe and the Oilers in two swift moves this summer have put the NHL down the slippery slope again of over paying free agent hockey players.

From the HockeyBuzz.com Daniel Tolensky's blog

Penner will be tied for the 75th highest paid player in the league next year with Bobby Holik, Tomas Kaberle, Mike Modano, Mattias Norstrom and Henrik Lundqvist.
-----snip-----
Does Penner's name really look out of place on this list?


Scott Hartnell - $25.2 mil ($4.2 x 6)
Brenden Morrow - $24.6 mil ($4.1 x 6)
Derek Roy - $24 mil ($4 x 6)
Nathan Horton - $24 mil ($4 x 6)
Ryan Whitney - $24 mil ($4 x 6)
Dustin Penner - $21.5 mil ($4.3 x 5)
Jason Blake - $20 mil ($4 x 5)
Michael Nylander - $19.5 mil ($4.875 x 4)
Cory Sarich - $18 mil ($3.8 x 5)
Michael Handzus - $16 mil ($4 mil x 4)

I would have to say that Penner looks to be over paid. Even from the perspective of a Sioux fan there is no way Penner belongs in the that group of free agents as Parise and Blake, in fact he isn't even close to being worth as much if any thing Zach should have held out for more money.

The Last of the Sioux Free Agents Signed.

The List of Fighting Sioux UFA's

Matt Jones Phoenix Coyotes Re-signed with the Coyotes
Jason Blake NY Islanders Signed with Toronto
Matt Greene Resigned with the Edmonton Oilers
Zach Parise New Jersey Devils re-signs with New Jersey
David Hale Re-signed with the Calgary Flames
Brandon Bochenski Re-signed with the Boston Bruins

Zach's contract

Zach Parise signed a 4 year, $12.5 million contract with the New Jersey Devils on August 1st. Now I am not saying that 12.5 million dollars is chump change because it is not, however, I actually kind of shocked because I thought his contract would have been more money based on the season he had this past year Parise had 31 goals and 31 assists.

Football the last year of the NCC (by Sioux7)

As well as being a hockey fanatic, I'm also a big college football fan. I've always liked the big D-I games on Saturday afternoons. I have also followed some I-AA as well, like Montana, and it hurts to say it, but NDSU as well. Since UND's last season in the NCC is going to get underway in a few weeks, I decided to post the schedule, so without further adeiu,

Aug 23rd 8:00 pm Humboldt State
Sep 8th 7:00 pm Southern Utah
Sep 15th 2:00 pm Central Washington
Sep 22nd 7:00 pm Western Washington
Sep 29th 2:00 pm Augustana
Oct 6th 4:00 pm Minnesota State
Oct 13th 2:00 pm Nebraska-Omaha
Oct 27th 2:00 pm Minnesota-Duluth
Nov 3rd 2:00 pm St. Cloud
Nov 10th 3:00 pm South Dakota

(BOLD are home games)

I remember going to the last game every played at the old Memorial Stadium, which I loved. It has tormented me for years that we play in the "Alerus" indoor stadium. Football is best when played OUTSIDE, not in a d*%# dome. Look at all the D-I major and even mid-major teams, they all play outside. I would like to see UND move back to the old Memorial Stadium, I would go the games every Saturday, like I use too.

With the upcoming move to I-AA, they want to have stadiums that seat 15,000+ The old stadium has seating for 10,000, but they could easily add seating at one end or add on to the seating on the East side of the stadium. Don't add lights to the stadium either, afternoon is best, especially on a sunny fall day in good ol' North Dakota.

The NCC conference will be no longer exist at the end of the season. UND and USD are going onward and upward a division, forcing the other teams to jump to other conferences. Nebraska-Omaha is going to join the MIAA, which is a good conference and with the addition of UNO, the MIAA will most likely be the new best conference, after the official fall of the NCC. All the other teams, MSU-Mankato, Minnesota-Duluth, Augustana, and St. Cloud St will all join the NSIC (Northern Sun Interathletic Conference). That will create a new twist in there league, 14 teams, they are almost forced to split the conference into a North/South or East/West format, with 7-teams in each.

The landscape in D-II football is changing, but after this season, I don't know how much of it I will follow anymore... on to D-I ready-or-not.

Hot Stove Hockey: A trip down Memory Lane

The
Wild Puck Banter had a clip from the 2003 Stanley Cup Playoffs that sent the Av's to the golf course and Patrick Roy into retirement. Unfortunately there won't be any great hockey moments this season because the Wild brass have decided to nickle and dime the fans by going on a shoe string budget and failing to pick up any key free agents.

New addition to the Goon's World Team

Goon's Wife and Abby Jo
I have been slacking, the dog days of summer. I guess you could say that there is a good reason for the lack of posting right now. Add to the fact that there really is nothing of note going on right now in the hockey world as far as news goes. I guess there is one exception; the Edmonton Oilers have been over inflating the price of RFAs.

Whew! I guess I can say that it has been a busy and emotional week. First off I got news last weekend that a good friend of mine passed away a week ago this last Friday. So I traveled to Bemidji to attend his funeral on Thursday, that was a tough one as my friend was only 34 years old. I guess that puts things into perspective that there are lot more important thing in life than sports. Fast forward to Friday morning: My wife and I added a new member to our family as we adopted a new born baby girl. My wife and I named our new addition to our family Abby Jo. Whew... Everyone keeps telling me that my life will change forever, today is the first day the baby has been home so I guess I will give you an update later in the week.

I will warn everyone right now (this is for family members and my jokester friends) my daughter will NOT wear anything that has a Green Bay Paker, a Minnesota Gopher, a cheesy "M" or a dirty Bison any where on it. Any thing with Sioux, Beavers, Mavericks, Wild and Vikings is acceptable though.

NEW RULES... (by Sioux 7)

I've read some articles this summer about some possible new rules changes in college hockey.

The one I liked the best is switching to a 2 ref and 1 linesman system. Which keeps the number of zebras on the ice to 3. The NCAA is going to be more like the NHL then, in terms of referee's. I think this will help eliminate some of the hooking and holding (clutch and grab) done by some teams in the league. Thus making the game move along faster and we can see the speed and talent some of the kids really have.

Some of the other rule changes they have mentioned is the goalie trapezoid. Where the only place they can play the puck behind the goal line is in that "box" area. Another is the touch up icing call. Now it is an automatic icing and they might change it to like the NHL, where it is a race to the puck.

Last, but not least, is overtime, and all sorts of options. One they mentioned is doing OT for 5-minutes and then a shoot-out. Second was 5-on-5 OT for 5-minutes, then a 4-on-4 for 5-minutes and then a shoot-out. Personally this is one of my hot buttons, I'm too much of a purist and like ties. Yes, the shoot-out is fun to watch in the NHL, but not for college. They have 82 games in the NHL, college has between 30-40 games, depending on your schedule and playoffs. In my opinion they could actually drop a few games from the NHL schedule to give the players a little more rest and thus perform better. If two teams play 65 minutes and it is tied, call it a TIE, not got to a shoot-out or some other "different odd-ball way" to decide a winner. The only option I'm open to is extending OT like a playoff game. After the 3rd period, take a 15-minute intermission, and then put 20-minutes up on the clock and start period number 4, and keep on going until their is a winner.