Goon's World

Friday, December 30, 2011

UND vs Harvard

UND Forward Lines

29 Brock Nelson–10 Corban Knight (A)–7 Danny Kristo
11 Derek Rodwell–27 Carter Rowney–15 Michael Parks

21 Brendan O’Donnell–16 Mark MacMillan–13 Connor Gaarder
8 Dan Senkbeil – 28 Stephane Pattyn–14 Taylor Dickin

UND defensive Parings

24 Ben Blood (A) –20 Joe Gleason
2 Andrew MacWilliam (A)–5 Nick Mattson
18 Dillon Simpson – 22 Andrew Panzarella

UND Goalies

32 Aaron Dell
31 Brad Eidsness
35 Tate Maris

UND Hockey Stats

Scratches: Forbort, Lamoureux, Grimaldi
Referees: Jonathan Morrison, Brian Thul Linesmen: Tom Lund, David Spivey

Harvard Forward Lines

21 Marshall Everson–19 Alex Killorn (A) –16 Alex Fallstrom
63 Colin Blackwell–26 Luke Greiner–22 David Valek
13 Tommy O’Regan–18 Mike Seward–10 Eric Kroshus
17 Rence Coassin–12 Colin Moore–11 Daniel Moriarty (A)

Harvard Defense Pairings

5 Dan Ford–9 Danny Biega
8 Patrick McNally–6 Ryan Grimshaw (C)
44 Max Everson–7 Danny Fick

Harvard Goalies

34 Steve Michalek
30 Raphael Girard

Harvard Stats

Official Press release - UND Athletics undertakes re-branding initiatives

GRAND FORKS, N.D. – University of North Dakota Athletics Director Brian Faison announced today the rebranding of several organizations and media and Internet platforms affiliated with UND Athletics.

The rebranding initiative is a result of the retirement of the Fighting Sioux nickname and logo, as directed by the North Dakota State Board of Higher Education. The transition process for both is to be substantially completed by Dec. 31, 2011. Beginning on that date, UND’s varsity athletics teams will operate without an official nickname or corresponding logo until at least Jan. 1, 2015, as mandated by the North Dakota State Legislature.

Organizations

• The Fighting Sioux Club, the official fundraising arm for UND Athletics, has been renamed the North Dakota Champions Club.
• Sioux Crew, which promotes student involvement and attendance at UND Athletics events, has been renamed NoDak Nation.
• The Sioux Boosters club has been renamed the UND Boosters, and the weekly fan luncheons have been renamed the UND
Fan Luncheon.
• The Sioux Kids Club will retain its name for the duration of the 2011-12 season due to contractual obligations with sponsors.
• The Sioux-Per Swing golf tournaments have been renamed the North Dakota Champions Golf Tour.
• The Sioux-Per Gala has been renamed A Night of Champions: UND Athletics Auction and Gala.

MEDIA

• The Fighting Sioux Sports Network (television) has been renamed the UND Sports Network, and the Fighting Sioux Radio
Network has been renamed the UND Radio Network.
• UND’s weekly television show, Sioux Sports Extra, has been renamed UND Sports Extra, while the weekly Fighting Sioux
Coaches Show (radio) has been renamed the UND Coaches Show.
• All television and radio network opening and closing billboards have been revised to reflect the changes.

INTERNET

• UND Athletics’ official website, FightingSioux.com, has been renamed UNDSports.com

Friday afternoon Links.

There are two days left in 2011 (or about 1 1/2 days) and there is one more series to close out the year before we ring in 2012.

Roman Augustoviz from the Red Star Sickle and gives his spin on the Fighting Sioux Nickname debate. [Roman Empire]

According to Kevin Pates of the Duluth News Tribune, the much maligned University of Minnesota athletic director Joel Maturi has turned down a request to be interviewed for the commissioner of the National Collegiate Hockey Conference. [Rink and Run]

This week in the WCHA by Jim Rich is here. [Click to listen]

Inside Hockey has the series preview; North Dakota vs. Harvard Series Preview

According to Brad Schlossman, Mario Lamoureux tried to talk coaches into letting him play tonight, but he was unsuccessful. Mario's out tonight.

Here is the link to the Harvard Crimson site that has the ins and outs of Harvard hockey. [click to view]

Joe Pasiley has his Friday reading: Previews and recaps [click to view]

According to North Dakota MHockey - Junior forward Corban Knight will return to the lineup tonight against Harvard.

Former Fighting Sioux defenseman Taylor Chorney has been suspended by the AHL for three games for an illegal check. [The AHL]

BReynolds from the Wilderness has this final blog post on the Cody McLeod hit on Jared Spurgeon. This article may make your blood boil or not. [SBNATION]

Michael Russo had Brendan Shanahan explain his troublesome decision to not suspend Av's ~~hack~~ forward Cody McLeod.

Colorado's Cody McLeod faced no discipline for his five-minute boarding major and game misconduct in Monday's Wild loss.

In an interview with the Star Tribune on Wednesday, NHL disciplinarian Brendan Shanahan explained his decision. He said the NHL's hockey operations and player safety departments looked at the check extensively.

"McLeod actually sort of reaches out with his hand almost in what appears to us to be an effort to gauge the distance and almost to let him know, 'I'm here,'" Shanahan said. "Spurgeon digs in, applies the brakes and gets run into."

Thursday, December 29, 2011

Matt Kassian works Darcy Hordichuk X2

The Minnesota Wild have been pushed around a lot as of late so the Minnesota Wild called up Matt Kassian from the Houston Areos to send a message. The Wild Forward Matt Kassian absolutely destroyed Edmonton Oilers forward Darcy Hordichuck twice.

At least three Wild players -- including Marek Zidlicky, Pierre-Marc Bouchard and most recently Jared Spurgeon -- have been run at in recent games. Yeo has been talking about players standing up for teammates. Just a week ago, in a very physical loss in Edmonton, the Wild got pushed around a little. For this rematch -- the sixth and final game between the two teams -- Kassian got the call. [Star Tribune]

Goon's Weekly Picks 12/29 - 12/31

Thu 12/29/11
Michigan State vs Michigan Tech 4:06 p.m. ET GLI (Detroit, MI)
Western Michigan at St. Cloud State 7:07 p.m. CT (TV-Charter)

Fri 12/30/11
Michigan/B.C. vs Michigan Tech 4:06/7:36 p.m. ET GLI(TV-Champ:FCSa)
Niagara at Minnesota 7:07 p.m. CT Mariucci Classic (Minneapolis, MN)
Western Michigan at St. Cloud State 7:07 p.m. CT (TV-Charter)
Bowling Green at Bemidji State 7:37 p.m. CT (TV-LPT)
Harvard at North Dakota 7:37 p.m. CT (TV-FSSN,FCSc)
Quinnipiac at Nebraska Omaha 7:37 p.m. CT
USA Under-18 Team at Minnesota State 7:37 p.m. CT Exhibition
Air Force at Colorado College 7:37 p.m. MT
Union at Denver 7:37 p.m. MT

Sat 12/31/11
Quinnipiac at Nebraska Omaha 2:07 p.m. CT
Norestrn/Princeton at Minnesota 6:07 p.m. CT Mariucci 3rd/Champ
Denver at Air Force 6:05 p.m. MT
Bowling Green at Bemidji State 7:07 p.m. CT (TV-LPT)
Harvard at North Dakota 7:07 p.m. CT (TV-FSSN,FCSc)
USA Under-18 Team at Wisconsin 8:07 p.m. CT Exhibition
Union at Colorado College 7:07 p.m. MT

Michigan State vs Michigan Tech - MSU Win
Western Michigan at St. Cloud State - Split
Minnesota vs. Niagara - UMN Win
Bowling Green at Bemidji State - BSU Sweep
Harvard at North Dakota - UND Sweep
Quinnipiac at Nebraska Omaha - Split
Air Force at Colorado College - C.C. Win
Union at Denver - DU Win
USA Under-18 Team at Minnesota State - MSU Win
Michigan/B.C. vs Michigan Tech - Michigan/B.C. Win
USA Under-18 Team at Wisconsin - Badgers Win
Princeton/Northeastern vs. Minnesota - UMN Win
Denver at Air Force - DU Win
Union at Colorado College - C.C. Win

Last Week 6-1 Record for the season 67-48

RADIO: 96.1 The Fox • WEBCAST: http://www.undsports.com/
TV: Fighting Sioux Sports Network, Fox College Sports Central, MidcoSN3,
DirecTV 617 (Friday), DirecTV 623 (Saturday)

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Adam McQuaid works Raffi Torres like a clown

This is the proper response for someone that hits one of your fellow players in the head, this is called sticking up for your fellow players, instead of waiting for the refs to make the call. Nothing pleases me more than watching Adam McQuaid work Raffi Torres like a punching bag.

Let's not kid ourselves, Raffi Torres is notorious for racing all over the ice, taking unneeded runs at guys, many times Torres hits players with dirty hits like this hit on Brent Seabrook last spring during the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Mark Fistric hit on Shea Weber

Right now there is a major debate by the hockey pundits to ban fighting in hockey but as Greg Wyshynski of Puck Daddy mentioned, none of the players Sidney Crosby, Jeff Skinner, Simon Gagne, Shea Weber are not out of hockey because they were hurt in a fight. They were hit in the head, some of them were hit with dirty hits like this. Ironically, the above embedded video didn't result in a suspension but it probably caused a concussion to Shea Weber.

Also, Shea Weber is out with an apparent concussion and his agent Jarrett Bousquet is less than pleased that Mark Fistric wasn't suspended for this hit. In watching the video, it find it puzzling as well.

“We want what’s best for Shea long-term. We want to get it right and make sure it doesn’t happen again, and Nashville wants to exercise on the side of caution, as do we. From my point of view I’m surprised that there’s not been more about this Fistric hit. I’m surprised he’s not suspended. I’m surprised that it has not been reviewed. If the NHL wants to protect their stars, then they have a chance here to right the wrong and get some consistency. If they do want to protect their players, then hits like that have to be suspensions.

“To me it looked like Fistric jumped. The puck had clearly gone past (Weber), because he was ready to look back for the puck. I can’t believe that this hasn’t been looked into closer and examined closer.” [The Tennessean]

I am confused, and I am not sure what is even worthy of a suspension anymore? Isn't Weber's head the the principal point of contact in this check? I have watched the video a few times and it would appear that the head is the principle point of contact. According to Stu Hackle there have been 28 concussions during the month of December.

North Dakota vs. Harvard Series Preview

Cross Posted at INSIDE HOCKEY.

The University of North Dakota entertains Harvard University at Ralph Engelstad Arena this weekend.

Game Times: 7:37 pm Friday and 7:07 pm Saturday.

Television: TV: Fighting Sioux Sports Network, Fox College Sports Central, DirecTV (

Ch.

617 Friday and 623 Saturday).

Radio: The games can be heard at 96.1 the Fox.

Internet: FightingSioux.com

Tickets: There are still tickets available for this series according to the UND Ticket Site.

Records and Rankings: UND – 9-8-1 overall, 7-7-0 WCHA; Ranked 18^th in the USCHO poll. North Dakota was idle this past weekend.

Harvard 4-3-3 overall, 3-3-2 ECAC; Unranked in the latest USCHO poll. Harvard was idle this past weekend.

Series History: UND is 3-1-0 against Harvard and swept the Crimson at Harvard (10-1, 4-3) in 2008.

Players to Watch:

For UND: Forwards Danny Kristo (9g-11a—20pts), Corbin Knight (6g-15a—21) and Brock Nelson (14g-8a—22pts). Goaltenders Aaron Dell .895 save percentage and a 2.80 goals against average. Brad Eidsness .918 save percentage and 2.43 goals against average.

For the Crimson: Defenseman Danny Biega (3g-11a—14pts), Patrick NcNally (3g-9a—12pts), Forwards Alex Killom (6g-6a—12pts), Alex Fallstrom (3g-6a—9pts). Goaltender Steve Michalek 4-2-2 .898 save percentage 3.10 goals against average.

Key Numbers:

1 – Aaron Dell has one shutout so far this season.

2 – Harvard’s Dany Biega is second in the nation for points per game by a defenseman.

2 – Harvard’s Patrick NcNally is second in the nation for points per game by a rookie.

7 – UND has 7 conference wins so far this season.

8 – Harvard has 8 conference points so far this season.

9 – UND has 9 wins over all so far this season.

9 – Brock Nelson has 9 power play goals for UND to lead the nation.

10 – The Harvard Crimson have played “only” 10 games so far this season.

11 – Harvard’s Dany Biega with 10 assists is leading the nation in assists per game with 1.40.

14 – UND has 14 conference points so far this season.

22 – UND is ranked 2^nd in the Pairwise Rankings.

25 – Harvard is ranked 25^th in the Pairwise Rankings

Other games in the WCHA: Minnesota State vs. USDT U18 team (Friday), Michigan Tech vs. Michigan State on (Thursday) and Michigan/Boston College (Friday) at Great Lakes Invitational, Minnesota vs. Niagara (Friday) and Northeastern/Princeton (Saturday) in Mariucci Classic, Denver vs. Union (Friday), Denver at Air Force (Saturday), Bowling Green at Bemidji State, Colorado College vs. Air Force (Friday) Union at Colorado College (Saturday), Quinnipiac vs. Nebraska Omaha, Western Michigan vs. Saint Cloud.

Opinion: Big Sky Should Admit North Dakota Mistake, Let Fighting Sioux Go

Image via WikipediaIf you haven't seen this, it's worth a read.

Bill Bradley, SacStateSports.com ---- The problem is UND’s entry to the Big Sky hasn’t gone as planned – at all. From its botched entry in the league to its continued controversy over the Fighting Sioux nickname, UND has transitioned into the Big Sky like a child going kicking and screaming.

Which is why the Big Sky Conference needs to say, “No thanks. We made a mistake. Thanks for playing. Go find another conference.” The premier league in the Football Championship Subdivision and a competitive mid-major group in basketball doesn’t need the long road trips and headaches UND will bring.North Dakota was supposed to join with South Dakota as a package deal. It was all set to make the Big Sky a 14-team league, Big Sky Commissioner Doug Fullerton said this fall. However, at the last minute South Dakota got a better offer from a more geographic-friendly league, the Missouri Valley Conference.

That made sense, but the Big Sky, which also wanted UND because of its reputation as a research institute, didn’t withdraw the invite to the Fighting Sioux, which were making the transition from Division II to Division I FCS. The UND regents accepted, making UND the only member of the Big Sky in the Central time zone.

I posted his on Sioux Sports. I love the Fighting Sioux nickname, and there is no way that the school will ever be able to replace the Fighting Sioux nickname with anything that I consider to be acceptable, but I don't see any way UND can keep the name "unless" the Spirit Lake Tribe wins it's law suit against the NCAA. I also would love nothing more than to see the NCAA lose their law suit, I think they deserved to have that happen to them because I think they are a bunch of hypocrites. I am not holding my breath but I hope the Tribe wins. That being said I think it's time to move on before we end up on the outside looking in. Do we really want to call the Big Sky's bluff?

Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Av's Hack McLeod will not be suspended

This tweet is from Mike Chambers of the Denver Post. Let me be clear, my beef is not with the Denver Post but with the NHL. NHL Senior Vice President of Player Safety is a fraud and is no better than his much maligned predecessor Colin Campbell. BReynolds from the Hockey Wilderness has done a great job of laying out the argument where the NHL has gone wrong. This latest ruling by the Lack of Player Safety is a joke. Am I upset with the ruling, you bet I am.

Next time out the Minnesota Wild should go out and run the top player of their opponents through the end boards because the NHL is not serious about eliminating these types of hits from the game of hockey, and why not, everyone else is doing it to the Wild and getting away with it.

Wayne Simmonds KOs Eric Brewer

Check out this fight, between the Philadelphia Flyers forward Wayne Simmonds and the Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Eric Brewer.

Weise hit on Plante - no suspension.

This is the hit that Vancouver forward Dale Weise put on Edmonton defenseman Alex Plante. The NHL has ruled that this was a shoulder to shoulder hit, and I concur. The head coach of the Edmonton Oilers Tom Renney wasn't very pleased with the hit and said that a suspension might be in order.

Asked about the hit by Vancouver forward Dale Weise on Edmonton d-man Alex Plante in Monday night’s game, Edmonton Oilers head coach Tom Renney suggested a suspension might be in order.

“Pretty tough hit. Maybe a little sabbatical,” Renney said.

“He came pretty hard. He had a pretty full head of steam up. And he was after one thing, and that was to hurt and hit the kid.”

The day after the McLeod hit on Spurgeon

I don't like this hit one bit and these types of dangerous hits need to be eliminated from the game of hockey. Even today after watching the hit some more, I am not changing my opinion one bit. The hit is dangerous, senseless and unnecessary.

You have a player like Cody McLeod that is at best a third line player in the NHL taking out a top defensive player for the Wild. Again, the refs rescued the offending player McLeod before anyone from the Minnesota Wild could get to McLeod to have him answer for that Bush League hit.

To also suggest that Spurgeon is responsible for being plastered into the boards is also ridiculous. I have also seen Avalanche fans defending this hit and Cody McLeod.

According to Michael Russo, after the game Wild Coach Mike Yeo was unimpressed with the McLeod hit. Yeo went so far to suggest that the Av's players were targeting Spurgeon during the game.

"I didn't like the hit one bit," Wild coach Mike Yeo said.

Yeo didn't have an update on Spurgeon immediately after the game, but he did have a strong opinion. He said he felt the Avalanche might have been targeting Spurgeon. "They hit him from behind two shifts before that," he said. "And I thought that one could have been called, too. I thought that one was dangerous. So twice ... five minutes into the game?"

The next time the Wild play the Avalanche this hit has to be answered for and Wild need to respond appropriately. I also predict that McLeod will get nothing in the way of a suspension from the National Hockey League.

Monday, December 26, 2011

McLeod hit on Spurgeon

Here is the picture of the Cody McLeod hit on Minnesota Wild Defenseman Jared Spurgeon. This the link to the video of the hit. Thoughts on the hit? Suspension to McLeod?

Cal Clutterbuck goal against the AV's

On the score sheet it will read; Cal Clutterbuck (10) Wrist Shot - Assists: M. Koivu (21) & D. Heatley (15). What a great effort by Koivu and Heatly down low to get the puck to Clutterbuck who shot the puck past the Av's goalie Semyon Varlamov. That is the 10th goal of the year for Cal Clutterbuck. I am sure that Adrian Dater head spun because his favorite Wild Player Cal Clutterbuck has scored.

Av's Hack McLeod boards Spurgeon

Enough is enough, these kind of hits make my blood boil and they are unnecessary, the NHL needs to through the book at Avalanche forward Cody McLeod for his ridiculously stupid and dangerous hit on Wild Defenseman Jared Spurgeon. There is no reason this hit shouldn't command at least a 2-4 game suspension.

In the last 13 days the Minnesota Wild have seen Lennart Petrell's drive Marek Zidlicky into the boards, Zach Bogosian plant Pierre-Marc Bouchard into the boards and now this. Enough is enough.

No big shock here - Hudson Fasching commits to the Golden Rodents

Image via WikipediaAccording to the Roman Empire highly touted recruit Hudson Fasching has committed to the Golden Gophers, this should not be a big shock to anyone because Fasching is very close to his family and has two younger sibling are sick with a rare cell disorder.

Roman Empire --- Shortly before noon, Hudson Fasching tweeted the words Gophers coach Don Lucia and his staff wanted to hear or read: "Committed to the Minnesota Golden Gophers."

Fasching, 16, plays for the under-17 U.S. national team in Ann Arbor, Mich. He is 6-3, 190 and was a highly coveted forward.

He has two goals and four assists in 14 USHL games this season. Fasching, who lives in Burnsville, was one of the top players on the Apple Valley High School team until deciding to join the national program last fall..

Sunday, December 25, 2011

Brad Marchand gets the hat trick

Brad Marchand has had a nose for the net as of late and has been on fire scoring nine points in the last five games (6g-3a—9pts). In his last game out against the Florida Panthers Marchand scored five points (3g-2a—5pts). This Brad Marchand hat trick against the Florida Panters is a thing of beauty.

Merry Christmas from Goon's World

First off, I want to wish everyone of you a Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah and or a Happy Holidays.

Yesterday my good buddy Redwing77 touched on a few things in his post yesterday and it has been an amazing year. There were some high points and some low points. But the past year wasn't uneventful to say the least. I think we are all waiting to exhale.

This past summer the formation of the National Collegiate Hockey Conference had people talking about college hockey during the month June, July and August. I look forward to watching the UND Hockey compete in the new NCHC to start the 2013-2014 season.

To quote Redwing77, “We also had to endure Goon's team, the Bruins, winning the Stanley Cup. And they're on a roll again.” He is right; it was an amazing run for the Boston Bruins. During last summer Stanley Cup playoffs, the Boston Bruins won three game sevens, to win their first Stanley Cup in 39 years

The Boston Bruins are looking to make a run again this season, after starting out the season with a dismal record of 3-7-0 the Boston Bruins have gone an impressive 20-3-1 and have won six games in a row and are in my opinion the best team in the NHL right now.

While the Fighting Sioux didn’t win it all, they did have what most would qualify as a very successful season. The Fighting Sioux won the MacNaughton Cup and the Broadmoor Trophy and made it to the Frozen Four before losing 2-0 to the Michigan Wolverines.

While you will never be able to please all of the fans in the Fighting Sioux Hockey fan base and there will always be those distracters that say that Hakstol will never be successful until one of his teams finally wins an NCAA championship. No matter what, you can't ignore that UND has been a major player on the NCAA Division I hockey scene since Dave Hakstol took over the reigns of one college hockey’s most historic programs.

Coach Hakstol has led his team to five Frozen Fours in seven seasons and has won Two MacNaughton Cups and Three Broadmoor Trophy in just seven seasons. The Fighting Sioux have also won two Broadmoor Trophies in a row.

I have no idea what to expect from the Fighting Sioux hockey team during the second half of the season, they look like a solid defensive team that could make a lot of noise during the second half of the season, if the Fighting Sioux can get Corbin Knight and Roco Grimaldi healthy. The all freshman line of Brendan O’Donnell, Mark MacMillian and Michael Parks appears as if they are on the verge of breaking out. We will just have to wait and see how things shake out. I will continue to cover the progress of the Fighting Sioux UND hockey team for Inside Hockey as well.

Recently, I redesigned Goon’s World and I hope you like the new layout. You will maybe recognize the back drop; it’s a snap shot of the score board at the Ralph taken during a game in January 10^th, 2009, where the Sioux pasted the Gophers 6-1.

So during this Christmas season enjoy your family and I wish everyone a healthy and happy 2012.

Saturday, December 24, 2011

Merry Christmas to ALL of the Goon's World Readership! (RW77)

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah and Happy Holidays to everyone who reads this site (and those who don't but they won't know won't they?)!

It's been a crazy year and already we're almost to the end of 2011. We have already seen Fire Hakstol threads for consecutive years (He's getting close to the all time record for Fire Coach Threads... I think if he continues for 2 or 3 more seasons, he'll tie or set the record with Tim Whitehead of Maine and one other I'm forgetting).

We've seen CHL vs. NCAA debates, bolting and dismissals of players out East, the capitulation and resurrection (in the span of what... 2 weeks?) of a DI hockey program.

We also had to endure Goon's team, the Bruins, winning the Stanley Cup. And they're on a roll again. I only hope my Red Wings can keep up (so far they're alright).

On a down note: Goon's World Readership hasn't had to endure as many Redwing77 rants as they are used to. That's ok, my New Year's Resolution is to garner as much comment section hate mail as Goon has. :)

Ok, now for the message:

The World is not a great place right now. We have terrorists in power, gaining power, or on the cusp of getting power in the Middle East. We have apathy towards terrorists if not outright sympathy growing around the World. We have political leaders who are drunk on power and care little for their constituency. And the list can go on and on and on. But one thing everyone needs to know:

This is the time of year where you have to set aside those differences, those troubles, those worries. This is the time that you spend with people you love and care about. The time to settle differences among family members and come together because that's all we've got in this World. Some use religious rhetoric to justify but I'm a secular man. I argue that if religious reasons help you bring about togetherness, then Go Church Go. If it doesn't, then I hope something else does bring about the same feelings.

My thoughts are for those who do not have a warm home to come to, no family to be together with, those who cannot be with friends and/or family due to obligations of a greater variety (such as defending our country), and for those who live in environments where you live by Carpe Diem every day because driving to the border in every direction will bring you closest to those who want you dead (See Israel). Most of all, I think about those who have died to give us these togetherness moments and try not to be angered by all these Americans who do not understand or try to damage or destroy their memory.

But here's to all of us who do understand. Here's to our families and our friends. Here's to a new year where hopefully progress will be made to alleviate or marginalize our enemies and their stances. Martin Luther King Jr. had a dream. We all can have one too.

Good luck. God Bless. Happy Holidays everyone.

Friday, December 23, 2011

Crabb from Bozak

I thought this was a nice give and go from two former college hockey players. Joey Crabb is a former Colorado College Tiger and Tyler Bozak is a former Denver Pioneer. The Toronto Maple Leafs are a fun team to watch and resemble a WCHA all-star team with Phil Kessel, Matt Frattin, Joey Crabb, Tyler Bozak, Jake Gardiner, Jay Rosehill dotting their roster. Former Denver Pioneer Joe Colborne has also played 9 games for the Toronto Maple Leafs as well.

NHL Network remains exclusive home of IIHF WJC

Image via Wikipedia Here is the hockey schedule for the WJC tourney that starts the day after Christmas. All of the games will be on the NHL Network. That's channel 215 on DirecTV.

2012 IIHF World Junior Championship - NHL Network-U.S. Broadcast Schedule
Dec. 26 - Jan. 5

Date	Game	Time (EST)
Mon., Dec. 26	Canada vs. Finland	3:30 p.m.
	USA vs. Denmark	8 p.m.
Tues., Dec. 27	Denmark vs. Czech Republic	8 p.m.
Wed., Dec. 28	Finland vs. USA	3:30 p.m.
	Czech Republic vs. Canada	8 p.m.
Thurs., Dec. 29	Canada vs. Denmark	8 p.m.
Fri., Dec. 30	Czech Republic vs. USA	3:30 p.m.
	Finland vs. Denmark	8 p.m.
Sat., Dec. 31	USA vs. Canada	8 p.m.
Mon., Jan. 2	Quarterfinal #1	5:00 p.m.
	Quarterfinal #2	9:00 p.m.
Tue., Jan. 3	Semifinal #1	5:00 p.m.
	Semifinal #2*	9:00 p.m.
Thur., Jan. 5	Bronze-Medal Game	3:30 p.m.
	Gold-Medal Game	8:00 p.m.

Benoit Pouliot scores a highlight goal against the Panthers

Check out this goal by Bruins forward Benoit Pouliot, some are saying it's will be a candidate for goal of the year. Pouliot was signed as a free agent by the Bruins in the off season and had to fight to stay in the line up. Pouliot has started to catch fired the last month and has points in four of his last five games. Pouliot-Zach has been playing on a line with Richard Peverley and Chris Kelly.

Where are they now Joe Finley...

Image via WikipediaHere is a nice article talking about former Fighting Sioux defenseman Joe Finley and his journey this season as Finley finally is healthy and made his NHL debut with the Buffalo Sabres a few weeks ago.

Dan Peters, AHL On The Beat ---- When Joe Finley came into training camp this season with the Rochester Americans on a try-out basis, he was simply attempting to earn an American Hockey League contract.

Plagued by injuries in the first two years of his professional career, the 24-year-old Finley had suited up for just eight AHL contests with the Hershey Bears over that span, while also appearing in 43 games in the ECHL.

After playing four years at the University of North Dakota, Finley suffered a forearm injury early in 2009-10 which ended his season, and followed that up with a knee injury last season, prompting him to be out of commission for three months.

Selected in the first round (27th overall) of the 2005 NHL Entry Draft by the Washington Capitals, the 6-foot-8, 260-pound blueliner chose to battle it out and earn a contract with the Buffalo Sabres organization rather than go to a different team, where he may have been given a contract immediately.

Lennart Petrell will not be suspended

I think this was a bad hit, I think Petrel should have been at least suspended because it was a dangerous hit, but I am not surprised that that hit didn't garner a suspension. I also said this last night.

While Lennart Petrell's hit On Marek Zidlicky might not have appeared to be malicious, it's unnecessary, it's a dangerous hit and it's also a hit that has to be removed from the NHL.

It's hits like this that can cause serious injury, to include unneeded and unnecessary concussions.If a player is going to check an opposition player and he sees number, that player has to pull up and not make the hit. The fact that the fans are booing that hit is also aggravating. I predict that there will be no suspension from this hit because Zidlicky didn't appear to be hurt.

Thursday, December 22, 2011

Lennart Petrell's questionable hit On Marek Zidlicky

While Lennart Petrell's hit On Marek Zidlicky might not have appeared to be malicious, it's unnecessary, it's a dangerous hit and it's also a hit that has to be removed from the NHL.

It's hits like this that can cause serious injury, to include unneeded and unnecessary concussions.If a player is going to check an opposition player and he sees number, that player has to pull up and not make the hit. The fact that the fans are booing that hit is also aggravating. I predict that there will be no suspension from this hit because Zidlicky didn't appear to be hurt.

Gaustad crushes Liles

You want to get off of the track when the train is coming. Check out Buffalo's Sabres forward Paul Gaustad as he absolutely blows up Toronto defenseman John-Michael Liles during tonight's game.This is a text book example of a league body check.

WCHA at the mid point.

Image via Wikipedia

2011-2012 WCHA STANDINGS

		WCHA Games							Overall
		GP	W	L	T	Pts	GF	GA	W	L	T	GF	GA
1	Minnesota	14	11	3	0	22	51	28	14	5	1	83	41
	Minnesota Duluth	14	10	2	2	22	59	32	12	3	3	73	44
3	Colorado College	14	9	5	0	18	59	48	11	5	0	67	50
4	Nebraska Omaha	14	7	4	3	17	46	43	9	8	3	62	60
5	Denver	14	6	5	3	15	47	45	8	7	3	59	55
6	North Dakota	14	7	7	0	14	39	37	9	8	1	51	50
7	Michigan Tech	14	6	7	1	13	41	43	9	9	1	54	55
	St. Cloud State	14	5	6	3	13	43	41	7	9	4	64	62
9	Bemidji State	14	5	7	2	12	36	46	9	9	2	55	56
10	Wisconsin	14	4	8	2	10	40	50	7	9	2	57	59
11	Alaska Anchorage	14	3	10	1	7	29	54	6	10	2	46	63
12	Minnesota State	14	2	11	1	5	37	60	5	14	1	55	75

This is the standings at the half way point of the season in the WCHA. Below is how I picked the league to finish in the 2nd Annual WCHA blogger poll.

1. Denver University (-4)
2. Colorado College - (-1)
3. North Dakota - (-3)
4. Minnesota - (+4)
5. Nebraska-Omaha - (+1)
6. Wisconsin - (-4)
7. Minnesota-Duluth - (+7)
8. Alaska-Anchorage - (-3)
9. St Cloud St - (+2)
10. Bemidji St - (+1)
11. Michigan Tech - (+4)
12. Minnesota St - (=)

This is how the WCHA fan Bloggers picked the league to finish. So how did we do at the halfway point? Obviously this is a body of work that is meant to reflect the "whole" season and there are 14 games left so a lot can happen between now and then .

	Team (1st Place Votes)	Points
1.	Denver (10)	196
2.	Colorado College (4)	179
3.	North Dakota (2)	175
4.	Nebraska-Omaha	141
5.	Minnesota-Duluth (1)	140
6.	Minnesota	124.5
7.	Wisconsin	100
8.	St. Cloud State	92
9.	Alaska-Anchorage	68.5
10.	Bemidji State	52
11.	Michigan Tech	30
12.	Minnesota State-Mankato	28

Malone vs. Malone

English: Ryan Malone of the Tampa Bay Lightnin...

Image via WikipediaFormer Fighting Sioux forward Brad Malone who now plays for the Colorado Avalanche will be playing his cousin former SCSU Huskies Ryan Malone's team the Tampa Bay Lightning tonight.

Mike Chambers, Denver Post ---- [Brad]Malone is the cousin of Avalanche rookie forward Brad Malone.

“Pretty excited, obviously, because he’s one of those guys growing that up I looked up to,” Brad Malone said. “Any opportunity to skate with him in the summer is pretty exciting, so to now go up against him here is pretty special.”

Brad Malone, 22, began his pro career with the Lake Erie Monsters of the American Hockey League. He was called up Dec. 8 and made his NHL debut the following night at Edmonton. He has played left wing on the Avs’ third line in the past three games, and has an assist in each of the last two. His helper in Thursday’s 3-2 win over St. Louis was on Jay McClement’s game-winning goal. The kid remains in the lineup, even though Brandon Yip is back from a groin injury, and Malone will unquestionably stick around for a while — at least until Chuck Kobasew (head) and David Jones (groin) — and possibly Peter Mueller (head) — return from injuries.

Penguins' Goon Engelland suspended for three games

NHL Senior Vice President of Player Safety Brendan Shanahan threw the book at Deryk Engelland. I think this is the right decision and yesterday I said, "In my opinion you can expect a 2-4 game suspension would be the proper call." Shanahan had no choice in this case, you can not leave your feet to check a player and hit them in the head.

NEW YORK -- Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Deryk Engelland has been suspended, without pay, for three games for an illegal check to the head of Chicago Blackhawks forward Marcus Kruger during NHL Game #488 in Pittsburgh on Tuesday, Dec. 20, the National Hockey League's Department of Player Safety announced today.

Under the terms of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, and based on his average annual salary, Engelland will forfeit $9,189.18. The money goes to the Players' Emergency Assistance Fund.

The incident occurred at 8:55 of the first period. No penalty was assessed on the play.

Engelland will miss games Dec. 23 at Winnipeg, Dec. 27 vs. Carolina and Dec. 29 vs. Philadelphia. He will be eligible to return Dec. 31 at New Jersey.

Goon's World Extras

Friday, December 30, 2011

RADIO: 96.1 The Fox • WEBCAST: http://www.undsports.com/ TV: Fighting Sioux Sports Network, Fox College Sports Central, MidcoSN3, DirecTV 617 (Friday), DirecTV 623 (Saturday)

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RADIO: 96.1 The Fox • WEBCAST: http://www.undsports.com/
TV: Fighting Sioux Sports Network, Fox College Sports Central, MidcoSN3,
DirecTV 617 (Friday), DirecTV 623 (Saturday)