Jean-Philippe Lamoureux steals the show

Whew, one could imagine that the Fighting Sioux should be well rested going into next weekend's series with the Minnesota Gophers. Maybe they were already thinking about next weekend's series as they look uninterested in playing hockey.

The Sioux scored two quick goals chased the UAA starter Bryce Christianson from the net and then basically took the rest of the game off and barely escaped with a 3-1 win. The Sioux were out shot 36-12 by the Seawolves. Tonight win was all UND's goal tender Jean-Philippe Lamoureux as he made numerous saves stole a game that the Sioux had no business winning. The Sioux also benefited from a goal that was waved off after a lengthy review. I am actually surprised that it was waved off. I wonder if we will be seeing another apology letter from the WCHA home office. UND has now won 7 WCHA games in a row.

It would be an understatement to say that they were they were out worked for 2/3 of the game by the pesky UAA Seawolves.

Scoring Summary

First Period

North Dakota-1 T.J. Oshie (Ryan Duncan, Robbie Bina) 3:45
North Dakota-2 Matt Watkins (Chris VandeVelde) GWG 8:23

Second Period

Alaska-Anchorage-1 Merit Waldrop (unassisted) 4x4 12:41

Third Period

North Dakota-3 Chris VandeVelde (T.J. Oshie, Ryan Duncan)

Goaltender(s)
Alaska-Anchorage-1 Jon Olthuis (50:51 N) 2 3 4 9 (1 GA)
Alaska-Anchorage-2 Bryce Christianson (08:23 L) 1 1 (2 GA)
North Dakota-1 Jean-Philippe Lamoureux (60:00 W) 9 15 11 35 (1 GA)

A look at the numbers: Why the doom and gloom?

I was looking at the National stats for the Fighting Sioux hockey team and UND is really doing pretty well. I hear a lot of people saying UND isn't very good this season or they haven't played that well. I have hear some say that the goaltending has not been as good or that the fighting Sioux haven't been very consistent. What kind of measuring stick are we measuring the Sioux by? What are we using for a gauge. I think UND is getting better at the right time and has played the toughest schedule per the strength of schedule. Remember the Sioux are not playing a bunch of cup cakes they are playing a first rate schedule week in and week out. As a team you will see that UND is pretty balanced.


Points Per Game:
37.) T.J. Oshie (STL) North Dakota JR F 23 11-13-24 1.04
45.) Ryan Duncan North Dakota JR F 24 10-14-24 1.00

Assists Per Game:
16.)Robbie Bina North Dakota SR D 24 18 0.75

Power Play Goals:
14.)T.J. Oshie (STL) North Dakota JR F 23 0.26 6

Short-Handed Goals:
9.) Ryan Duncan North Dakota JR F 24 0.08 2

Points Per Game (Defensemen):
5 Robbie Bina North Dakota SR D 24 2-18-20 0.83
7 Taylor Chorney (EDM) North Dakota JR D 24 2-17-19 0.79
10 Chay Genoway North Dakota SO D 21 5-11-16 0.76

Goals Against Average:
1.) Jeff Zatkoff (LAK) Miami JR 1298:20 32 1.48
2.) Richard Bachman (DAL) Colorado College FR 1204:39 32 1.59
3.) Billy Sauer (COA) Michigan JR 1401:56 39 1.67
4.) Michael-Lee Teslak Michigan Tech JR 693:44 20 1.73
5.) Matt Climie Bemidji State SR 972:39 29 1.79
6 Jean-Philippe Lamoureux North Dakota SR 1407:30 43 1.83

Save Percentage:
1.) Richard Bachman (DAL) Colorado College FR 507 32 .941
2.) Jeff Zatkoff (LAK) Miami JR 482 32 .938
3.) Billy Sauer (COA) Michigan JR 576 39 .937
4.) Michael-Lee Teslak Michigan Tech JR 282 20 .934
5.) Carter Hutton UMass Lowell SO 230 17 .931
6.) Ben Scrivens Cornell SO 419 31 .931
7.) Billy Blase Yale SO 387 29 .930
8.) Jean-Philippe Lamoureux North Dakota SR 567 43 .930

Scoring Offense: Games Goals G/GM
1.) Miami 27 116 4.30
2.) Michigan 25 99 3.96
3.) Boston College 23 85 3.70
4.) Robert Morris 21 75 3.57
5.) New Hampshire 22 76 3.45
6.) Boston University 23 78 3.39
7.) Michigan State 26 88 3.38
8.) Colorado College 25 83 3.32
9.) North Dakota 24 79 3.29

Scoring Defense: Games Goals G/GM
1.) Miami 27 41 1.52
2.) Michigan 25 43 1.72
3.) Notre Dame 29 59 2.03
4.) North Dakota 24 49 2.04

Scoring Margin: Games GF GF/G GA GA/G Margin
1.) Miami 27 116 4.30 41 1.52 2.78
2.) Michigan 25 99 3.96 43 1.72 2.24
3.) Boston College 23 85 3.70 53 2.30 1.39
4.) North Dakota 24 79 3.29 49 2.04 1.25

Sioux beat UAA 3-1

Tonight UND won a game in which the opposition scored first. UND spotted the Seawolves a 1-0 lead then scored the next 3 goals and cruised to a 3-1 win. Jean-Philippe Lamoureux was steady in another win and has now only given up 12 goals in 7 games. Actually in the last 4 out of 5 games has only given up 1 goal.
Box Score
First Period

Alaska-Anchorage-1 Shane Lovdahl (Jared Tuton, Tommy Grant) 14:17
North Dakota-1 T.J. Oshie (Andrew Kozek, Ryan Duncan) 18:27

Second Period

North Dakota-2 Evan Trupp (Chay Genoway, Joe Finley) GWG PPG 16:22

Third Period

North Dakota-3 Andrew Kozek (T.J. Oshie, Taylor Chorney) 7:21

Classic Implosion.

Sioux fans you have to check out this blog post over at UAA Hockey Fan Blog while I get what Donald was trying to say and he is entitled to this under the 1st ammendment, the comments that come after are down right funny.

All Star Weekend.

Hockey fans don't forget to watch the NHL's All-Star Game on Sunday, January 27th at 5pm CT on Versus. Watch the following former NCAA College hockey players take on the world's best.

Eastern Conference
Timothy Jr. Thomas Vermont
Martin St. Louis Vermont
Rick DiPietro BU

Western Conference
Shawn Horcoff Michigan State

Is there a bigger hack than Steve Downie?

In the latest Downine caper; hack Steve Downie claws/scratches David Clarkson in a fight the other night. The first gutless move by Downie was that he left his face shield on during the fight, that should an automatic 2 minute minor, second Clarkson but you also gougne Clarkson with your finger nails. It would be an understatement to say that Downie is a piece of work. Good to see Clarkson get in a couple of good shots.

Random thoughts.

UND recruit David Toews is ranked 27th in the latest ISS Top 30 2008 prospects for January. I know I am very excited to see another Toews playing for the Sioux.

Top WCHA freshman Scorers

Garrett Roe Freshman 15 games 8g-11a-19 pts
Tyler Bozak Freshman 16 games 8g-8a-16 pts
Kyle Turis Freshman 14 games 4g-8a-12 pts
Matt Frattin Freshman 18 games 2g-7a-9 pts

Schmidt suspended.

Adam Wodon The college hockey news is reporting that Randy Schmidt has been Suspened for at least a week This is a good start folks, unfortunately Schmidt still has a job he should be fired.

WCHA commissioner Bruce McLeod has acknowledged that league referee Randy Schmidt has been removed from his assignment for this weekend's game, and is currently on official suspension.

Speculation began because Schmidt did not officiate any games last weekend, following a pair of incidents for which the WCHA sent out letters of apology for mistakes made by the officials during games Schmidt was involved in.

"He wasn't scheduled to work last week, but he was scheduled to work this week," McLeod said. "He's under a suspension right now, and now we deal with it and make a final decision on the long term. ... He was taken off this weekend's series."

Also WCHA Todd Anderson Also got himself in trouble this past weekend.

McLeod had another officiating incident this past weekend, when referee Todd Anderson grabbed Minnesota-Duluth forward Michael Gergen by the jersey in order to discuss something with him. According to the Duluth News-Tribune, McLeod was at the game and told Anderson that it was unacceptable for him to have grabbed a player. But Anderson was not further reprimanded.

The Vegas Lines are up.

Here are the latest odds on College Hockey, as of 12/26/07. The order is
Team Name, @ = 12/26 odds, was = opening odds (10/13)
Boston College @ 15/1 was 3/1
North Dakota @ 5/1 was 7/2
Michigan State @ 6/1 was 4/1
Miami, Ohio @ 5/2 was 5/1
Clarkson @ 9/1 was 7/1
New Hampshire @ 10/1 was 8/1
Minnesota @ 12/1 was 10/1
Notre Dame @ 18/1 was 12/1
Michigan @ 7/2 was 15/1
Boston University @ 25/1 was 18/1
Maine @ 25/1 was 25/1
Quinnipiac @ 30/1 was 25/1
Colorado College @ 6/1 was 30/1
Wisconsin @ 18/1 was 30/1
Denver @ 5/1 was 30/1
Michigan Tech @ 25/1 was 40/1
St. Cloud State @ 40/1 was 40/1
Massachusetts @ 25.1 was 40/1
St. Lawrence @ 50/1 was 40/1
Dartmouth @ 60/1 was 50/1
Cornell @ 80/1 was 60/1
Ohio State @ 100/1 was 60/1
Vermont @ 100/1 was 75/1
Northeastern @ 40/1 was 75/1
Air Force @ 80/1 was 75/1
Lake Superior State @ 75/1 was 75/1
Harvard @ 100/1 was 85/1
Providence @ 75/1 was 100/1
R.P.I. @ 125/1 was 100/1
Mass-Lowell @ 125/1 was 100/1
Connecticut @ 125/1 was 100/1
Mankato State @ 125/1 was 100/1
FIELD (all others) @ 50/1 was 75/1

Miami 5/2 right as if they actually played anyone.
Michigan is a good bet as well as UND and BC.

What is a Seawolf?

This week in WCHA hockey the Fighting Sioux are playing the University of Alaska Anchorage Seawolves. When I ask people I know what a Seawolf is; no one has any clue what a Seawolf is? I can't for the life of me find the definition on the internet of what a SeaWolf actually is. I did fine one place on the internet where a Killer Whale is also known a Seawolf.

-------Edit----------
Per Mr. Burns post: A Seawolf is UAA’s athletics teams were originally known as the Sourdoughs, but the university adopted the Seawolf moniker in 1977 when it elevated its program to the NCAA Division II level.

The name Seawolf represents a mythical sea creature that, according to Tlingit Indian legend, brings good luck to anyone fortunate enough to view it. The exact nature or shape of the Seawolf, however, is left to the imagination, thus the creature has been depicted in many forms throughout the years.

The Seawolf logo of today was designed and introduced in 1985 by Clark Mishler & Associates in cooperation with a university committee. It represents an adaptation of a more traditional Alaska totemic-like characterization of the mythical Seawolf.

Tim Gleason vs Tim Jackman

Former MSU Mankato Maverick and current New York Islander Tim Jackman fights with Carolina Hurricane Tim Gleason. Jackman left Makato after the 2001-2002 season forgoing his final two years of college eligibility. Lets score it as a draw. Tim Jackman's NHL numbers are as follows: 59 games 2 goals 5 assist 7 points and 93 minutes in penalties. Seems Tim has a high penalties minutes for 59 NHL games.

This weeks match-ups (Sioux 7)

This week in the WCHA, in my opinion, is the start of the race for home ice in the first round. Lets take a look at the match-ups that have the most riding on them.

1. The "Border Battle" or The "Battle to get to .500" - Minnesota at Wisconsin

It is different this year, both teams have identical records in the WCHA, 6-8-2, and are tied for 5th place with each other and St. Cloud. Obviously getting a sweep in this series will go a long way for trying to grab that last home ice playoff spot. The trick is trying to predict the outcome, UW should have gotten 3-out-of-4 points from DU, and well UM just took 3pts from UMD... since DU has been the better team for most of the season, so I'm going with UW taking 3pts this weekend.

Odd question of the series, do Badgers hybernate over the winter? (just wondering)


2. St. Cloud vs MSU-Mankato

This too is a big series, SCSU is in that menage a trois with UM and UW. Mankato is also in the hunt, only 4pts back of the 5th place tie. If the Huskies can coral the cows for two games, it would help to keep the pack on pace for a home ice playoff spot. However, if the Mavericks can stampede the dogs, they would be tied with them for either 6th or 7th place depending on what MTU does. Since it is a what I like to call a ho-ho series (home and home), I will say each ho team will win, thus a split.


3. Colorado College at Michigan Tech

CC has a big point lead, where they are not likely to fall from the top 3 or from the top spot, but you never know... MTU has the luxury of being at home and having two games in hand on the teams right ahead of them, UM, UW, SCSU. It the Dogs can beat up the Cats for two games and get 4pts, they would have the inside track for home ice (having 2-games in hand). CC has been still playing very well, but they only beat Bemidji and Air Force by one goal each. Hmm, they could be do to be swept, plus, if I'm not mistaken, it is the Winter Carnival at MTU. Also, MTU had last week off to prepare for this series, so this is my "upset special" the Huskies will need to put down the snow shovels and pick up their brooms as they mush all over the kitty kats.


4. Ache-orage at North Dakota -- do you like the spelling :)

AA has not won a WCHA game since 12/8/07 at UMD. They did play UW tough last weekend, a 2-1 L, and a 4-4 T, not to bad. Unfortunately, it seems as if UND has gotten on its hot streak in the second half, just like the past couple of years. As the Goon stated the Sioux have won 5-games, all WCHA games, in a row now. The Seawolves are trying to dodge harpoons this year and the Sioux are hot right now, Sioux Sweep Seawolves.


Duluth is playing a pair of games at U-Mass-Lowell this weekend, and Denver has a bye week.


If there are 4 sets of sweeps this weekend it will help to clear up the play off picture. If it is splitsville, it just makes next weeks game that much more important.

Commodore and Malone

I just found this fight on line tonight when I was looking for a replay of Mike Commodore's goal. If your a Sioux fan you have to love this fight. Two WCHA boys duking it out, great conference representation; Mike Commodore UND v Ryan Malone SCSU and of course I score the fight in Commies favor.

This weeks picks: Misc Ramblings/Rants

FRIDAY
Colorado College at Michigan Tech
Minnesota at Wisconsin
St. Cloud State at Minnesota State
Alaska-Anchorage at North Dakota

Non-Conference:
Minnesota-Duluth at Mass.- Lowell

SATURDAY
Colorado College at Michigan Tech
Minnesota at Wisconsin
Minnesota State at St. Cloud State
Alaska-Anchorage at North Dakota

Non-Conference:
Minnesota-Duluth at Mass.- Lowell

Picks last week 8-2
For the Year 82-52

~A fan from Mankato last week made the comment, "that Kaip is nothing more than a goon", however, in looking at the numbers that said goon has one more goal that Mankato's top scoring forward. That same forward had the misfortune of deciding to fight Kaip on Friday night's game.

~UND has won 5 WCHA games in a row for the first time since 2004.

~LGM's favorite UND goalie has given up 8 goals in the past 5 games.

Interesting Perspective: Canada and the NCAA

Here is an interesting perspective on the CIS schools joining the NCAA. Sounds like not all involved think it will be a great idea nor will their schools see or make a lot of the big dollars that some of the big schools in the major college sports are enjoying. DUH! I also don't think it is going to be all doom and gloom like some are suggesting. Sure there will be more competition for the top Canadian athletes but I also think top hockey schools like Michigan, Minnesota, UND, Wisconsin, Michigan State are still going to get the pick of the top recruits. So what if they have to work a little harder. Somethings in life are worth the extra effort.

Newbould said a school such as the University of British Columbia, which has spearheaded the push to join the NCAA, would dwarf every Division II college in terms of enrolment, but that wouldn't necessarily guarantee success. “The competition is really good,” he said. “Any Canadian school coming to the States is going to have to work hard.”

The biggest difference, he said, would come in how scholarships are awarded. While NCAA scholarships allow for compensation for room and board in addition to tuition and fees, they are limited in number by sport-specific caps. And aside from marquee Division I sports such as football and basketball, teams are under tight financial constraints.

In Division II, for instance, scholarships are limited to the equivalent of 36 a team in football and 13.5 in men's ice hockey. In some sports, such as men's volleyball, where only 4.5 scholarships are available for each team, many CIS programs would have more athletes receiving scholarships than Division I NCAA programs.

UBC athletic director Bob Philip has said a big motivation for joining the NCAA would be to keep more athletes in Canada. An estimated 1,500 Canadians are competing at U.S. colleges.
But competing in Division II would not necessarily help ease that drain, Newbould said.

“The kids are not getting a free ride coming down from Canada in Division II, and very few in Division I do,” he said. “It sounds more glorious than it is in that sense.

“A baseball player's only going to get one-third of a scholarship. Basketball and football in Division I, sure, that's the big time. TV, full rides, everything – but even the other Division I sports, it's not that way. A lot of students that are going to school on an athletic scholarship, they're still paying a portion of their education.”

Even if UBC opts to join Division I after a few years, as the pilot program would allow, Newbould said there's no guarantee a Canadian school could woo a top athlete away from the U.S. juggernauts. UBC's current athletic budget is small, even by the standards of top-spending Canadian universities, and would be minuscule compared with the big machines fielding top Division I teams.

Former SCSU Husky Tim Conboy on his first NHL game

This is a funny story about Tim Conboy's first NHL game. This story is like it was straight out of the movie Slap shot. SCSU hockey writer Kevin Allenspach interviews Tim Conboy on his first NHL game.

On his first time on NHL ice: "It was during a TV timeout that they first sent me out there," Conboy said. "There was a faceoff in our zone and so I skate down and take my position. (Colorado enforcer) Scott Parker looks over at me and he says 'Conboy, we're gonna go.' I'm like, 'No, I'm not going to fight you. This is my first NHL game.' He's like 'It doesn't matter, we're gonna go.' He even moved over to where he was lined up next to me and said 'We're gonna go, whether you like it or not.' We were winning 1-0 but they were out shooting us pretty bad at that point. It actually helped (having the fight) because I got five minutes in the box to settle down my nerves. I re-cooped a bit and was fine after that."

On the fight: "I didn't do too bad, but he clearly won," Conboy said. "I got a few licks in, but all I can say is I'm alive to talk about it and I don't have any broken bones. The rest of the game went pretty well, but it was bittersweet. I'd have given up anything I did for a win."

On where he goes from here: "It's out of my hands whether they'll bring me back soon or ever, but I'm going to use this experience as something to strive for," Conboy said.

Ole

While most Sioux fans that I know hate that song, Sioux fan's whoop it up after the sweep in Mankato Saturday night. OLE!

Western Michigan and Bowling Green Brawl

This past Friday night Western Michigan and Bowling Green had an all out brawl after Bowling Green's scored a 2nd empty-net goal. Now there will be those that say, "oh there is no room in hockey for fighting". Yep notice you don't hear on person booing. All 10 combantants were suspened for the next game.

Kessel in the shoot out

Wow, Phil Kessel in the open one on one with the goalie, my money is on Phil Kessel. Check out Chara's impersonation of Brian Rolston.

Burish vs Laperriere

Here is a pretty decent fight between Former Badger Adam Burish vs Av's goon Ian Laperriere. This fight took place in the game between the Chicago Blackhawks and the Colorado Avalanche on Jan 18, 2008.

Over on Hockeyfights.com I scored the fight as a slight edge to Laperriere. On could say that the former Wisconsin Badger Adam Burish has been racking up the penalty minutes, Burish has been in an impressive 8 fights and is leading his team in penalty minutes with 120.