"It's nothing related to my groin or hip or torso," Gaborik said afterward. "We'll see how everything is in the morning. I collided with one of their players, but it's nothing major. It happened with about five minutes left and the game was pretty much over."
[Blue Shirt Banter]
James Sheppard and Benoit Pouliot will be back in the lineup after being forced to sit with us lowly know-it-all scribes the other night.
Coach Todd Richards wants more from both players. He wants physicality, skating, crashing the net and battling.
Sheppard was real good this morning talking: "It gives me a chance to react and make a positive from a negative."
He said watching from upstairs was like watching a video game, which is what I always say. You don't appreciate the lack of time and space the guys have on the ice from up in the pressbox. Everything's in slow motion, but it does give you a good ability to watch and see how plays develop.
I asked Richards about "why Pouliot?" It does seem the underachiever is finally showing some life, but that isn't enough for Richards. He said when he goes into the corners, he better no longer turn away from bodies and better start finishing checks. Funny, but I pointed that out in LA that Pouliot cost the Wild the winning goal bailing out on a check, and I got a bit lambasted for that observation. But he's been a lot better lately. A lot more physical. [Russo's Rants]
Nature Abhors a Vacuum
Apparently, the idea of an 11-team league is too great a temptation to resist.
Word came to me recently that Mercyhurst was interested in joining the CCHA. At first I thought this absurd, until I remembered the lesson learned from the offseason Big Ten talks, of Wisconsin playing with the idea of jumping ship to the CCHA.
So I did some poking around by e-mail.
According to Aaron Kemp, associate director of athletics and director of compliance at Mercyhurst College, the Lakers are “exploring membership opportunities with the CCHA” but have “not submitted a formal application to the league.”
Kemp added that Mercyhurst is “very happy with the Atlantic Hockey Association and [is] proud to be affiliated with its member institutions.”
CCHA commissioner Tom Anastos said that he doesn’t know whether or not Mercyhurst will submit an application, and that since it takes the CCHA “the better part of a year to review an application and complete [its] due diligence before admitting a new member,” the league is going ahead with an 11-team schedule for 2010-11.
That schedule will likely include some clustering of some kind, said Anastos, and the Big Ten certainly may factor into it. “Having the BT teams clustered together is certainly an option we are looking at,” said Anastos, “as it will maximize competition between Big Ten schools and allow for more content to be available to air on the Big Ten Network.”
Anastos said that such scheduling isn’t money-driven, that it’s about content and exposure for the CCHA and college hockey.
As for Alabama-Huntsville after the 2010-11 season — a drum that I apparently can’t avoid beating — Anastos said, “Never say never.” [USCHO]
Warroad (Minn.) High School power center Brock Nelson recently committed to the University of North Dakota, and the Fighting Sioux can really count this one as a coup in smuggling the emerging star out of state right from under the noses of the Minnesota Golden Gophers.
Nelson, who is currently playing this fall in the Midwest Elite League until the local high school season starts in about six weeks, is one of Red Line's favorite early line sleepers for the 2010 Draft. Not many scouts outside of Minnesota have ever heard of him, and he didn't blossom until last season, so he's never been a part of the whole U.S. select process. So he may suffer from underexposure for now, but that won't last much longer.
Nelson, 6-2/205, with a great stride and powerful shot, also has a very strong bloodline in the sport. His uncle is Dave Christian, one of the key scoring cogs on the 1980 U.S. Olympic gold medal-winning squad. Christian is also a former UND All-American and won a national championship with the Sioux before launching an NHL career that spanned over 1000 games and nearly 800 points, so he likely had some influence on young Nelson's decision. [USA Today]
The editorial raised a second issue, suggesting that the arena’s own special effects contribute to this suspension of civility.The problem is that Jacobs is anti-logo and has been for some time and he probably looked at this as another opportunity to pile on and spew his anti Fighting Sioux logo rhetoric. I think Jacobs should stick to running the newspaper albeit poorly and writing stories about birds. So in this instance we can say a swing and a miss Mike.
Hodgson, and most of those who commented on Thursday’s editorial, rejected this idea. The in-your-face video highlights that the arena presents after the opposing team is introduced are standard fare in most arenas, I’m told.
Perhaps so.
But the reaction to the highlights reel raises an issue particular to UND, one related to the name and logo. UND’s opponents won’t respect the name and logo if their players aren’t respected here. The chants and taunts at UND hockey games show a lack of respect, and invite reciprocation.
I’ve been in several college rinks and half a dozen professional arenas, but it’s been a few years since I’ve been to a hockey game outside Grand Forks, so maybe I’m not in a position to know — but I still think it’s not sportsmanlike to taunt an opponent. [Grand Forks Herald]
[Randy L. --- East Grand Forks, MN]
I wonder why so many commenters seem to missing the fact that this "topic" is actually 2 separate issues. The first is the vulgarities and message of the crowd chants, and the second is are choices of individuals in settings outside the game (in the concourse, outside the venue, etc.). There is no reason the crowd can't get loud, raucous, and in the face of the opposing team and fans without being physical or vulgar. Do chants, sing songs, show the opposing player in the penalty box with a smart-aleck sign behind him. All of those things can easily be accomplished "cleanly" but still be intimidating. Some of the earlier posters who defend the hockey history and experience are right in the sense of the atmosphere. If you dont' like it rowdy at a Divison 1 college hockey game, don't go. But that same atmosphere doesn't have to be truly offensive. Chant "Shoot the Gophers" - it doesn't have to be F***, does it? It's the same message.
NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly had informed him that Mike Richards would not face any discipline for his hit on David Booth of the Florida Panthers last night. [Puck Daddy]
Here is what the Sioux have done the last five years in Anchorage. [props]
2004-05 Season Split in Anchorage
2005-06 Season Split in Anchorage
2006-07 Season Were swept in Anchorage
2007-08 Season Didn't play in Anchorage
2008-09 Season Swept in Anchorage
2009-10 Season Split in Anchorage
CHN: Big and slow -- that's been the knock on UAA, and it looked like it Friday in a 5-0 loss. But the Seawolves were able to slow down North Dakota in this one, and use their strengths to their advantage this time. The Sioux only mustered 23 shots on goal in losing for the first time this season. UAA got two goals in the second, and didn't allow one until the closing minutes. “We gave up that first goal in the first minute of the period,” UND coach Dave Hakstol said. “We spent a majority of the second killing three minor penalties that happened right in a row. That killed any type of a chance we had at gaining momentum. It allowed (Anchorage) to build momentum and keep it.”Positives +
“I thought it was a late hit and I thought it was a dirty hit,” Panthers general manager Randy Sexton said. “He tracked him from behind and you could see it clear he put his shoulder right to his face, to his head, and then he followed through.”
Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren defended Richards and called out Sexton, saying, “Randy should watch more hockey games.”
“It was a good hit,” Holmgren said. “I don’t see how they can (suspend him). Mike was doing his job. He was back tracking, he caught up to the play. His feet never left the ice. David Booth turned his head or it would have been a shoulder on shoulder hit. It’s a physical game and sometimes these things happen.
“Everybody in the league knows Mike isn’t a dirty player. He’s a player every team in the league covets.” [Courirer post]
Blues forward T.J. Oshie had an emergency apendectomy this morning and will be out of the lineup indefinitely, a source has told the Post-Dispatch.
Oshie went to the hospital Friday night, following the Blues’ 3-1 victory over Minnesota at Scottrade Center. He played 17 minutes, 33 seconds in the game.
The recovery time for the surgery varies from person to person. Blues goaltender Chris Mason had a similar surgery last season and missed approximately two weeks. [Stltoday.com]
A UND fan would naturally think nearly all of their upperclassmen are significant. Big surprise.Further investigation revealed that of the fore mention players only one of them (Davidson) didn’t register a point during the game. If my math is correct that is five points for the insignificant upperclassmen of the Fighting Sioux. I am pretty sure that if Alaska native Evan Trupp played for the Seawolves he would be one fo their top players. PWND!
But yes ...
Darcy Zajac is insignificant.
Brent Davidson is insignificant.
Jake Marto and Evan Trupp are .5 insignificant each.
Derek Lapoint is insignificant.
That equals 4 significant upperclassmen. And I actually undercounted UAA's significant upperclassmen. I probably should have said 11. But I left off the goaltenders and underrated a couple of other guys. I was sandbagging.
UND, in conjunction with Ralph Engelstad Arena, says its willing to take suggestions to avoid some of the unfortunate incidents that happened at the rink during last weekend's series against Minnesota.
Discussions already have started with students, season-ticket holders, event staff and security personnel in this process.
"We have one of the best men's hockey programs, the best collegiate hockey facility and the best college hockey fans in the country, but there were events during last weekend's home hockey series that point to a need for change," UND athletic director Brian Faison said. "The vast majority of the nearly 12,000 people in the building both nights created an electric atmosphere.
"We don't want our fans to dampen their enthusiasm for Fighting Sioux hockey one decibel, but what I am asking them to do is direct their passion in a more positive manner." [UND Hockey]
The transition from a “grind-it-out” style to a more offensive-centric formula will signal a shift in of coaching tactics from Schafer. Throughout Schafer’s tenure at Cornell, the program built a reputation for superior goaltending, defensive-minded forwards and oversized defensemen who controlled the neutral zone and shut down top-line scorers.
The approach to winning games included systematically wearing down the opponent through relentless cycling, capitalizing on the best opportunities, and playing a trap game in the third period.
With stronger league competition and national contenders like North Dakota and Boston University on the schedule this year, Schafer understands that to win, the team must run four lines that consistently threaten to score. Without a checking line, the team may sacrifice the best counter-punch to top scorers, but it gains a level of offense perhaps unseen in Schafer’s 15 years on East Hill. A hybrid approach, balancing the need for strong defense with the need to score more goals, makes Cornell a legitimate threat to make a deep run this year. [Cornell Sun]
