Matt Cooke suspended two games.

This is the latest act that has gotten Matt Cook suspended from the NHL for two games for this hit on Artem Anisimov .

Matt Cooke won't be available for any sort of retribution Monday night when Pittsburgh comes to town to face the Rangers. The NHL on Sunday suspended the Penguins' Cooke for two games for his forearm to Artem Anisimov's face in the Pens' 8-3 win in Pittsburgh on Saturday.

If John Tortorella had his way, Cooke would have gotten the right sort of hockey justice after his needless hit in open ice 7:50 into the third period. Cooke somehow got only an interference minor despite delivering a head shot, one of the checks that the league's general managers and NHL disciplinarian Colin Campbell have been trying to make sense of this season.

Donald Brashear tried to get at Cooke, but the linesmen prevented anything drastic from happening. Ryan Callahan fought Cooke later in the third, so it seemed as if Cooke preferred the 5-9 Callahan to the 6-4 Brashear. Tortorella said that removing the instigator penalty in certain situations would alleviate some of the brash checking that goes on.
[Newsday.com]

Is two minutes enough?

Recently I said that I wanted to hear instances where refs blew a call or had an outright horrible performance while conducting their duties as an on-ice-officials shoot me an email. I have said that I am going to be on the refs this season like a laser. I believe there has to be changes in the way the college game is officiated there are too many controversial calls being made and way too many incidents where a lengthy suspension is warranted and nothing is happening.

Now I must give credit where credit is due. In the series that I watched at the REA this past weekend the quality of officiating was top notch and the UND and Miami game had the best officials in the WCHA officiating the game (Derek Shepherd and Marco Hunt). My friend Redwing77 would probably be upset with me if he heard me say that I thought Shep and Marco were the class of the WCHA, because they do work well together. There is also some leafy spurge to hand out to others.

That being said, this past weekend it sounds like maybe there was another play where maybe the ref could have given a player a penalty that had more teeth in it. On Friday night UAA defenseman Luka Vidmar suffered a torn MCL on his knee was severely injured when he was kneed by C.C. forward Brian McMilin. Now I must preface this with the statement I haven’t seen the play in question and I can’t find much written on the incident and there isn’t a video anywhere of the incident. Doyle Woody only makes a small mention of it in his game summary. (Now I can see why there is a void being filled by a fan run blog.)

Junior defenseman Luka Vidmar sat out the game after suffering a knee injury Friday. He will be evaluated when the Seawolves return home, but is expected to miss significant time. [Adn.com]

This was an email that I got from a UAA fan (I left their name out):

You said you wanted folks to email you with stories about how the refs screw up. Tonight in the UAA/CC game, Brian McMillin (for CC) was whistled for 2 minutes for kneeing.

The rule books states that if a player is injured it MUST be called a DQ. Here is the rule book interpretation:
SECTION 33. Kneeing What criteria should be used in determining whether to assess a minor, major or disqualification penalty for kneeing? RULING: A minor penalty should be assessed in most situations. When the knee is used in a flagrant or violent manner, a major penalty should be assessed. Whenever injury results from fouling an opponent with a knee, a disqualification penalty must be assessed. Kneeing penalties may be assessed as minor, major or disqualification penalties, even though physical contact with an opponent may not have occurred...

Luka Vidmar has a grade three MCL tear; he's done. Only a 2 minute penalty was called, even though Luca remained on his hands and knees for quite a while and was helped off the ice by the UAA trainer. The refs blew it. UAA should have had a 5 minute power play, and Brian McMillin should have been kicked out of the game. The league better step in and correct this for tomorrow night’s game.

I would have to say that I agree with that person, you would think if a person suffers an injury as the result of a kneeing play that person should at a minimum get a five, ten and a game misconduct if not a game disqualification. It would appear that the refs might have blown this call or it would appear from a bystander that more of a penalty is warrented in this instance.

Update: Apparently Michigan Tech was hosed with the quick whistle this past weekend down in Mankato. LGM informs me that Tech had an apparent legitimate goal waved off:

Tech player shot, as the puck hit Lee (Mankato goalie) the whistle was blown and then the puck rolled up and over his shoulder and in to the net... After review it was called no goal because the ref blew the whistle... Though the whistle had been blown as the puck was hitting the goalie.

That is almost as bad as the I tended to blow the whistle but didn't.

Insert your own caption

This picture was sent to me by LGM. This is a funny picture and it's this weeks version of "insert your own caption...

Time to Exhale: Sioux 5 - RedHawks 5 OT

They say a tie in hockey is like kissing your sister. I don’t know about you but I could do without the sister kissing. None- the- less, this is one time that I think a tie is an appropriate ending to a very good hockey game. Last night UND and MU game was like a 15 round title fight between to heavy weights that ended with the ref raising both hand of the combatants.

Watching the Fighting Sioux play this past weekend I can say that there is much to be excited about. Going forward I will save the negatives for another day, because the positives out weight the negatives this weekend. I have also seen a lot of negative energy percolating over on Sioux Sports after this game. I think we need to grab some perspective. Sure Brad probably wants a few of those goals back but there Is no "I" in team and the game tying goal was a defensive break down by the whole team.

After the game I went home and re-watched the game and a few of the goals were a result of Miami capitalizing on the defensive turnover and untimely forced errors. Miami is an aggressive team on the fore check and you have to play flawless hockey if you want to beat them. I would say UND and Miami play similar types of games.

If this season has proven anything College Hockey is wide open this season and I like the Fighting Sioux's chances this season. Championships are won in February, March and April. There is no award for playing good early in the season or before the first of the year. I know it sounds cliché’ but we need to put this in perspective. Currently, UND is sitting right around the 8th spot in the pairwise, so if UND can keep playing consistent it looks like UND is going to have to go on a hellish death march to make the tourney. Defensively UND is ranked third in the nation, that is nothing to sneeze at. UND has awesome specials teams, the Sioux are ranked 10th on the power play and 8th on the penalty kill. [College Hockey Team Rankings]

Kristo arrives

Holy Cow! That is how I would explain Danny Kristo’s play this weekend. After going scoreless in three straight games Kristo has 6 points in the least three games (4g-2a-6). Breaking it down further, Kristo has (3g-2a-5pts) against two teams that were ranked one and two in the rankings. It’s impressive because Kristo isn’t racking up stats against weak sisters of the poor he is scoring the nation’s big boys. Kristo is proving to be a big time player playing on the national stage.

If there is one thing that concerns me about Kristo is that he reminds me of some of the other players that play for a school that I won’t mention. Every goal he scores is like he has won the NCAA title or a Stanley Cup with his excessive celebration. Kristo is an elite player and he should act like he has scored before. I am not saying don't celebrate but raise your stick celebrate with your team mates and skate back to the bench.

Juniors coming up big

Junior forward Brad Malone(3g-8a-11pts) is starting to put together a pretty impressive season and had an awesome highlight shorthanded goal against the Miami. If the video of the goal is posted I will put it up to view.

Junior Forward Evan Trupp (4g-9a-13pts) is starting to impress me more and more every game. Trupper has four points in last three games and this past weekend he has three assists.

[Box Score]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1st Period (20:00)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

NDK-1 Mario Lamoureux (2-Checking from Behind) MIA 0x1 4:32
MIA 1 - 0 6x6 Reilly Smith (3) (Pat Cannone) 8:17
MIA (+): 18,20,9,26,6,G31 NDK (-): 25,10,9,27,3,G31
MIA-1 Vincent LoVerde (2-Tripping) NDK 0x1 9:54
MIA-2 Will Weber (2-Cross-Checking) NDK 1x2 11:56
NDK 1 - 1 6x5 PP Ben Blood (1) (Danny Kristo, Jason Gregoire) 13:52
NDK: 24,7,17,26,29,G31 MIA: 20,9,26,14,G31

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2nd Period (20:00)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

MIA-3 Alden Hirschfeld (2-Hooking) 2:17
NDK-2 Darcy Zajac (2-High-Sticking) 2:17
MIA 2 - 1 5x5 Carter Camper (7) (unassisted) 3:20
MIA (+): 11,14,6,20,G31 NDK (-): 26,7,25,3,G31
MIA-4 Chris Wideman (2-Hooking) NDK 2x3 6:52
NDK 2 - 2 6x5 PP Danny Kristo (4) (David Toews, Jake Marto) 7:23
NDK: 7,18,25,19,22,G31 MIA: 9,5,11,4,G31
NDK 3 - 2 6x6 Jason Gregoire (6) (Ben Blood, Brett Hextall) 7:59
NDK (+): 17,24,26,29,2,G31 MIA (-): 44,17,23,19,14,G31
MIA 3 - 3 6x6 Tommy Wingels (5) (Reilly Smith, Pat Cannone) 10:07
MIA (+): 9,18,20,4,26,G31 NDK (-): 10,13,27,20,4,G31
MIA-5 Steven Spinell (2-Cross-Checking) NDK 2x4 12:40
NDK-3 Brett Hextall (2-Hooking) MIA 0x2 14:28
NDK 4 - 3 5x6 SH Brad Malone (3) (unassisted) 16:00
NDK (+): 22,19,3,25,G31 MIA (-): 11,9,6,16,20,G31
MIA-6 Cameron Schilling (2-Interference) NDK 3x5 16:43
NDK 5 - 3 6x5 PP Danny Kristo (5) (Evan Trupp, David Toews) 17:46
NDK: 7,19,18,22,25,G31 MIA: 19,4,26,17,G31
MIA-7 Curtis McKenzie (2-Unsportsmanlike Conduct) 20:00
NDK-4 Darcy Zajac (2-Unsportsmanlike Conduct) 20:00

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3rd Period (20:00)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

MIA-8 Will Weber (2-Cross-Checking) NDK 3x6 0:33
NDK-5 Andrew MacWilliam (2-Tripping) MIA 1x3 7:28
MIA 4 - 5 6x5 PP Cameron Schilling (2) (Jarod Palmer, Reilly Smith) 9:27
MIA: 5,19,18,17,13,G31 NDK: 22,24,19,25,G31
NDK-6 Ben Blood (2-High-Sticking) MIA 1x4 11:26
MIA-9 Alden Hirschfeld (2-Cross-Checking) NDK 3x7 14:08
MIA 5 - 5 6x6 GT Reilly Smith (4) (Andy Miele, Chris Wideman) 17:19
MIA (+): 18,17,6,23,44,G31 NDK (-): 29,17,26,2,24,G31

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Overtime (5:00)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
End of Game

Redwings screwed again.

There must be a league wide conspiracy against the Detroit Redwing this season because this is the second goal in about two weeks that should have counted but didn't. I don’t know how they can say that Cleary is interfering with the goalie in this situation. I think this goal looked like it should have counted, what do you think?[props]

Sioux 4 Buckeyes 1

What a difference a week makes. The Sioux and Buckeyes decided the game on the ice and there wasn’t a ridiculous parade to the penalty box like last weekend in Denver. Last night the Fighting Sioux beat the tOSU Buckeyes 4-1 in the first game of the Subway Holiday Classic before a crowd of 11,251. This was one of those games that could have been very disastrous for the Fighting Sioux; OSU is a decent team but not a great team. This is also the same team that beat DU 4-0. The Buckeyes have a lot of young players with good upside, in my opinion Zac Dalpe is one of the better forwards in the CCHA and is leading the CCHA in points with (7g-7a-14pts). Their goalie Justin Carlson had a good game last night and made a lot of good saves. The Sioux could have blown this thing open if it wasn’t for his effort between the pipes .

+Positives+

I was impressed with the Fighting Sioux effort last night the defense is starting to adjust without Chay Genoway being in the lineup and I thought Corey Fienhage has made some strides forward after sitting out the first 9 games.

Brad Eidsness continues to be solid between the pipes for the Fighting Sioux. With the win Eidsness improved to (7-3-1 GAA 1.6323 and .931SV%) I have seen a lot of improvement in his game this season and I think he will only get better with experience.

Evan Trupp (4g-8a-12pts) who had two assists in last night’s game is becoming the player many thought he was capable of being. This kid has a lot of offensive creativity and is very exciting when he is killing penalties with Brad Malone.

Number one Miami up next for the Fighting Sioux

The task at hand tonight is not simple, however Miami is not unbeatable and I think UND can beat Miami tonight. Make no mistakes about it the Miami RedHawks are a good hockey team; they have a great defense and some good offensive players up front. The RedHawks have had trouble scoring goals and the Sioux are going to need to get a lead on them early. The Sioux are going to need to get on top of them with a furious fore-check. The Fighting Sioux cannot let up and no one can take shifts off or have players doing their own thing.

[Box Score]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1st Period (20:00)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

OSU-1 Chris Reed (2-Hooking) NDK 0x1 6:59
NDK-1 Brett Hextall (2-Hooking) OSU 0x1 11:13

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2nd Period (20:00)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

NDK 1 - 0 6x6 LL Darcy Zajac (3) (Corey Fienhage, Brett Bruneteau) 4:30
NDK (+): 11,4,13,20,9,G31 OSU (-): 11,16,27,20,3,G41
OSU-2 Kyle Reed (2-Tripping) NDK 0x2 10:24
NDK-2 Brad Malone (2-High-Sticking) OSU 0x2 14:22
NDK-3 Andrew MacWilliam (2-Tripping) OSU 0x3 16:20

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3rd Period (20:00)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

NDK 2 - 0 6x6 GW Brad Malone (2) (Evan Trupp, Derrick LaPoint) 4:24
NDK (+): 22,19,18,4,20,G31 OSU (-): 15,10,21,8,17,G41
OSU-3 Sergio Somma (2-Tripping) NDK 0x3 6:04
OSU 1 - 2 6x6 Zac Dalpe (9) (Peter Boyd, Sergio Somma) 8:18
OSU (+): 19,26,44,12,27,G41 NDK (-): 25,3,17,29,26,G31
NDK 3 - 1 6x6 Danny Kristo (3) (Chris VandeVelde, Jason Gregoire) 11:25
NDK (+): 7,29,17,20,4,G31 OSU (-): 20,12,27,11,16,G41
OSU-4 Matt Bartkowski (2-Tripping) NDK 1x4 13:12
NDK 4 - 1 6x5 PP Brett Hextall (3) (Jake Marto, Evan Trupp) 13:49
NDK: 26,25,19,7,22,G31 OSU: 20,17,11,21,G41
NDK-4 BENCH (2-Too Many Players) (Served by Brett Bruneteau) OSU 0x4 17:02

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
End of Game
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

NCAA Round Up: BSU is for real

Here is my latest column for the Illegal Curve.

Yesterday afternoon I saw one of the better played college hockey games of the seasons. The first game featured the upstart Bemidji State University Beavers of the CHA against the media darling Miami University RedHawks of the CCHA. Coming into the game it was one of the more talked about matchups of the season in college hockey. The game was a rematch of last season’s frozen four semi final from Washington D.C. in which the Miami RedHawks won 4-1. Yesterday the rematch went the BSU Beavers way as they won a hard fought 3-2 victory over the number one ranked team in the nation.

BSU overrated?

This season there has been a reoccurring theme; BSU has been ranked in the top ten the past three weeks and I have had many fans tell me that BSU was over rated and hadn’t played anyone and was unworthy of their high ranking. This past week all over the blogosphere and college hockey message boards I had read how Miami was finally going to show BSU that their record was over inflated and they would lay a smack down on the BSU Beavers. Now it’s the Beaver fans that are laughing. Yesterday’s 3-2 win by the Beavers is no fluke; the Beavers have an impressive 25-4-2 since January 24th, 2009. During that time the Beavers have beaten Notre Dame, Cornell, Minnesota and now Miami.

Are the Beavers still over rated?

Bemidji’s top line of Matt Read (10g-11a-21pts), Jordan George (6g-11a-17pts), Ian Lowe (4g-3a-7pts) is good enough to be on any teams top six in division 1 hockey. Matt Read leading the nation is points and is sixth in the nation in points per game. Read is also leading his team in total points.

Bemidji State are solid in net Dan Bakala (8-1-1, 1.6323 and .935 SV %) good for 6th nationally. The Beavers have a very good defensive core and tied with North Dakota for the top defensive team in the nation giving up an average of 1.69 goals per game. [College Hockey National Statistics]

So is BSU over rated? My answer is no until the Beavers are proven otherwise the evidence is there in the win column and statistically that they are a very good hockey team and just took down the number one rated team in the country. My question is; is Miami over rated? What do you think?

Check out more from Eric at twitter

Chorney's stache

Hockey players from around the NHL have been growing Mustaches for prostate cancer awareness and here former Fighting Sioux defenseman Taylor Chorney’s attempt at growing a mustache.

Movember (the month formerly known as November) is a moustache-growing charity event held during November each year that raises funds and awareness for men's health.

Eight Oilers players and three members of the team's training staff will be participating in the charity event this year and we will be tracking their moustache progress throughout the month.

Prostate Cancer Canada (http://www.prostatecancer.ca/) uses the Movember funds for the development of programs related to awareness, public education, advocacy, support of those affected and research into the prevention, detection, treatment and cure of prostate cancer
[NHL.COM]

More Friday reading.

Work can't end fast enough to get to the rink today. Here is some more reading till the games start. When the Subway Holiday Classic first started people used to refer to it as the Subway Holiday Cupcake Classic. This season’s match ups are anything but. Today I feel like a kid waiting for Christmas morning.

Two weeks ago, Bemidji men’s hockey head coach Tom Serratore said the eyes of the hockey community across the state were on the Beavers as they faced the Minnesota Golden Gophers at Mariucci Arena.

This weekend, the eyes of college hockey community across the nation will be on Bemidji State.

The Subway Holiday Classic hosted by the University of North Dakota will bring together the nation’s first (Miami), fourth (North Dakota) and sixth (BSU) ranked teams, along with 2009 NCAA Tournament participant Ohio State Friday and Saturday at Ralph Engelstad Arena.

The Beavers will face Miami at 4:07 p.m. Friday in a rematch of the 2009 Frozen Four national semifinal.

Saturday the Beavers will take on Ohio State at 4:07 p.m.

“Who would have thought when (UND head coach) Dave Hakstol was putting this deal together two years ago that you’d have three of the top six ranked teams in the country, plus Ohio State who has an abundance of talent?” said Serratore. “Beyond that, that you’d have BSU and Miami playing in a rematch game of the 2009 Frozen Four? This is going to be a great weekend for college hockey fans.” [Bemidji Pioneer]

Here is the Miami University Press Release for this weekends Subway Holiday Classic[Miami Hockey]

QUICK HITS
• Miami’s eight-game unbeaten streak is the longest in the country.
• Six of Miami’s 14 games have gone to overtime with the RedHawks holding a
1-1-4 record in such games. The mark in CCHA shootouts is 1-2.
• Miami trails only Bemidji State in the national statistics for scoring defense. The
Beavers have given up 20 goals in 12 games (1.67 gpg), while RedHawk opponents have 24 goals in 14 games (1.71 gpg).

SERIES BREAKDOWN: Miami has won all
three games it has played with Bemidji
State, including a 4-1 triumph in the
NCAA National Semifi nals last April 9. The
teams fi rst met for a two-game series in
Bemidji, Minn., during 2000-01..
The RedHawks have lost both
matchups with North Dakota in its history,
both during holiday tournaments.

Hey Beaver fans check this out...

I found this posted on the Miami Hawk Talk message board. Just for a little FYI or gee whiz reading because there is nothing else going on the day after Thanksgiving. I don't know if I would be that confident. BSU is a good hockey team that has a good coach and the Beavers are going to come out on fire ready to prove the nay sayers wrong and will be looking to avenge the loss from the 2009 Frozen Four as well. I expect a lot closer game than 6-2 tonight. Hey what the heck a little tongue in cheek never hurt right.

PS3 Prediction

#6 Bemidji State 2
#1 Miami 6

Well, Miami's somewhat dormant offense woke up in Grand Forks. The RedHawks scored 5 goals in 38:28 and forced BSU's starting goalie Dan Bakala to the bench before the second intermission.

The scoring started at 8:16 of the first period, when Carter Camper made a beautiful no-look-between-the-legs pass to Tommy Wingels, who then blasted a shot Bakala's glove side. Joe Hartman picked up the second assist and the 'Hawks had the 1-0 advantage. Andy Miele made it 2-0 just 8:04 later following great passes from Curtis McKenzie and Alden Hirschfeld. After one period, Bemidji had the lead in shots at 10-7 but Miami had the 2-0 lead.

The second period was The Justin Vaive Show. The big man scored on two different power play chances, the first at 9:57 (from Pat Cannone) and the second at 18:34 (from Jarod Palmer and Will Weber). In between the Vaive goals, Trent Vogelhuber found the back of the net (with assists going to Weber and Cannone) and Miami had a dominant 5-0 lead. After the second Vaive goal, Bakala was pulled in favor of Mathieu Dugas.

How bad were the Beavers? They scored Miami's final goal. Matt Read won a faceoff in his own end and the puck immediately went to Darcy Findlay, who skated in front of his own net. The problem was Findlay's stick bumped Dugas' pad and the puck trickled betweed the Quebec native's legs. For the record, Gary Steffes received credit for the unassisted tally. 6-0, Miami. BSU would avoid the shutout thanks to a Findlay goal at 7:08 and would make it look a tad more respectable thanks to a Brad Hunt goal at 8:16 while the Beavers had a 5-on-3 advantage. Still, it was a dominant victory.

Bemidji actually more shots on goal. The Beavers finished with 33 shots to Miami's 31.

Three stars:
1. Vaive (2 goals)
2. Cody Reichard (W, 31 saves)
3. Weber (2 assists)

BSU.....0 0 2 2
Miami...2 3 1 6

Subway Classic reading.

First off I want to wish everyone a happy Thanksgiving. Here are a few links of interest to the Subway Holiday Classic.

Subway Holiday Classic [Click to view]

Fighting Sioux defenseman Chay Genoway is still out and his status hasn't changed in the last 12 days. [Grand Forks Herald] For those who havent seen the play this is the hit that took out Genoway. [Click for Video]

This weekend's series could prove to be a defensive battle. [Grand Forks Herald]

Bemidji State players talk about Frozen Four rematch with Miami in Holiday Classic. [Bemidji Pioneer]

Sweep carries Beavers to No. 6 in national polls. [Bemidji Pioneer]

When talking about Miami University this story has to be mentioned. Ice hockey on brink of dynasty. [The Miami Student]

Facing 2 of nation's top D's, Miami hockey going for goals. [The Oxford Press]

Here is what former Fighting Sioux hockey player Hunter Bishop had to say about playing UND. [ohiostatebuckeyes.com]

Here is the link to the OSU Buckeyes media release for the Subway Holiday Classic. [click here] In reading their media guide OSU is averaging an unimpressive 1688 in attendance at home.

Subway Holiday Classic Preview [illusions of grandeur]

Thanksgiving Games (Sioux 7)

HAPPY THANKSGIVING to all the college hockey fans out their who read GOON'S WORLD. I know everyone's in the holiday spirit, and ready to eat copius amounts of turkey and pumpkin pie. We hope if you have the time (or tournament) that you will also gobble up some WCHA games or a Thanksgiving Holiday Tournament.


Current WCHA Standings

#..TEAM................GP..W-L-T...PTS
1 Colorado College.......8...6-1-1....13
1 Denver..................8...6-1-1....13
1 Minnesota-Duluth.....10...6-3-1....13
4 North Dakota..........10...5-4-1....11
4 Wisconsin..............10...5-4-1....11
6 St. Cloud State..........8...4-3-1....9
6 Minnesota...............10...3-6-1....7
8 Alaska-Anchorage......10...3-7-0....6
8 Minnestoa State.......10...2-7-1....5
10 Michigan Tech.........8...2-6-0....4


Holiday Classic (Grand Forks, ND)
Friday
#1 Miami (9-1-4 overall) vs #6 Bemidji St.(10-1-1 overall) (4pm)
Miami took 3pts at fellow CCHA member Western Michigan last week and Bemidji St. swept CHA rival Alabama-Huntsville.

What more could you want on Black Friday, than a clash of top ten teams in the top college arena? (More turkey and pie?) The Beavers will be looking to cook a bird on Friday afternoon, and it's not a turkey. BSU will look to further their ranking by basting the RedHawks in what is sure to be a game that's as hot as an oven. Miami will be looking to solidify their number one rank. The RedHawks have tied three of their last four games. Unlike Thanksgiving day, this Friday, both teams will be wanting more, the prediction, TIE.


Ohio State (5-8-1 overall) at #4 North Dakota (7-4-1 overall) (7pm)
OSU was swept by Ferris St. and UND was swept by Denver last week.

The Buckeyes have not played the Sioux since 1979, I think...(help me if you can)
The Sioux are now on a three game losing streak, ugh. I think the Buckeyes are what UND needs right now, a non-conference game that they should win. I'm going with my boys in Green & White tonight, SIOUX WIN.

Saturday
Ohio St. vs #6 Bemidji St. (4pm)
This game should go the way of the Beavers. We all know that Beavers gnaw on trees to build damns (industrial little fella's aren't they), and well, the Buckeye is a tree. The Beavers chew through the trees base and the tree falls over, thump, BEAVERS WIN.

#1 Miami at #4 North Dakota (7pm)
Ladies and Gentlemen, lets get ready to rumble. This is the heavy weight bout of the weekend in college hockey, RedHawks versus Sioux, this bout is scheduled to go three 20 minute rounds. The CCHA seems go be down as a whole this season, with only Miami and Mich St. as the powerhouses, Michigan and Notre Dame both have struggled this year. As always I have to pick my favorite team, SIOUX WIN.

(I bet DU would love to see Miami get swept in this tourney!)


College Hockey Showcase
Friday
Minnesota (4-7-1) at Michigan (5-7-0 overall)
Last week the Gophers were sweep at Mariucci by the UMD Bulldogs, and Michigan split with fellow CCHA member Bowling Green.

Most years this game would be between two ranked teams, not this year. Both UM's have struggled this season, when both were preseason picks for title contenders in their conferences. Both teams want to turn that M upside down for a W in this game.
I don't know who to go with in this game, both have talent, but haven't got the chemistry going yet. For the sake of the WCHA, I'm forced to cheer for the Gophers to win, to help out our conference as a whole. GOPHERS WIN.

#15 Wisconsin (7-4-1 overall) at #8 Michigan State (9-3-2 overall)
Last weekend the Badgers split with St. Cloud St., and the Spartans split with Notre Dame.

This should be the best game of the CHS Tournament, with both teams being ranked and looking for respect in their conference as well as Big Ten bragging rights. The Badgers haven't got a good winning streak going yet, and MSU had their 8-game unbeaten streak end last Saturday. I have to go with our conference, the Woo-cha, the big picture, BADGERS WIN.


Saturday
Minnesota at #8 Michigan State
Sparty is hot right now, and Goldy is not. SPARTANS WIN.

#15 Wisconsin at Michigan
In this battle between UW and UM, there is only one team wearing a W on their jersey, and that team will get the W. BADGERS WIN.


WCHA

Alaska-Anchorage at #5 Colorado College
Last weekend the Seawolves split at home with the Mavericks, and the Tigers swept Robert Morris at home.

UAA is win less on the road this year posting a 0-4-0 record. CC has done well in the World Arena this year, garnering a 6-2-0 record there. I'm not convinced the Tigers are one of the top teams in the country, after this week CC's schedule gets much tougher, so we'll have to wait and see. The Seawolves have played sporadically in most of their series, scoring 7 against DU, and then giving up 8 goals to MSU-M last week. You just don't know what Seawolves team is going to show up. I'm going CC one night and UAA the next, SPLIT.


St. Cloud State at #2 Denver
Last week SCSU split with home with UW, and DU swept UND in Denver.

This is the only series between the teams this year, last year SCSU won the series 3-1-0 (the 1 loss was in Denver). The Huskies have played well this year, a little inconsistent, but well. DU could be suffering from a UND hangover as well as looking ahead to CC next week. The Pioneers have all their star players back in the line up, so they should be up to full speed. The Huskies appear to be the sleepers in my book, they can't be taken for granted. If you look past them they will certainly steal your turkey and all your fixin's. I see a Huskies win on Friday, with the Pioneers getting their just desserts on Saturday, SPLIT.


Michigan Tech at Minnesota State
Last week the Huskies enjoyed a week of rest and relaxation, while the Mavericks split with the Seawolves in Anchorage.

The Huskies will look to move out of the basement and send Mankato into the 10-spot this weekend. If someone gets swept in this series, the sweep-ee will most likely be out of the running for home ice in the playoffs. (And yes I do realize that the playoffs are 4 months away.) The Mavericks are 3-3-0 at home and the Huskies are 1-3-0 on the road this year. These will be games three and four on the road for MTU in a six game road stretch. I'm going to say each team is into the Thanksgiving mood and give each other a win, SPLIT.


BYE WEEK - OFF
#14 University of Minnesota - Duluth



I'll end this little article with a Thanksgiving poem...

"May your stuffing be tasty
May your turkey plump,
May your potatoes and gravy
Have nary a lump.
May your yams be delicious
And your pies take the prize,
And may your Thanksgiving dinner
Stay off your thighs!"
– Anonymous

Wednesday press conference...

Interesting press conference, it would appear that last weekend's series results may have refocused the team. Darcy Zajc, Brad Eidsness were the players in today’s press conference. The thing that caught my attention was one of the reporters asked coach Hakstol about this being the first time your team has faced adversity. The response was this isn't the first time we have faced adversity, you haven't been in our lockerroom.' Coach Hakstol was asked Chay Genoway's status, it has not changed from Friday two weeks ago. Genoway is still out indefinitely and nothing has changed.

Also listen to Sioux Sports Today. [Click to listen]

Dusting off an old article: UND last WCHA team to be RedHawks.

I wrote this article for the Illegal Curve back on October 10th 2009.

On October 27th 2007 Miami Student writer Mike Zoller declared that Miami University hockey ‘was on the Brink of being a dynasty.’ While Miami Hockey is not a dynasty by definition (need to win a few NCAA titles), I am also going to hold off calling them a dynasty for now but Miami does have a good shot at being a title contender this season if they play up to their potential.

Since 2003-2004 the Miami RedHawks have compiled a 144-76-23 record and have made the NCAA tourney five out of the last six seasons. Last spring the RedHawks had the NCAA chapionship in their grasp, the RedHawks made it to the NCAA Championship game, took a 3-1 lead before losing the game in over time to the Boston University Terriers. [Box Score]

This is what I found in my Twitter posts this morning when I got up this morning.

MikeSwainey @goon48 All I know is Miami continues to knock off WCHA teams. IIRC, 5 straight wins against your league. But tomorrow's another day.

First off I wouldn’t be surprised tonight if SCSU loses to the RedHawks again tonight to make it six games in a row. Breaking it down further, Mike is right, Miami has done pretty well against WCHA foes as of late. Both DU and SCSU have both lost their last two games they have played against the Miami University RedHawks. Also, the Miami RedHawks beat UMD in last season’s Midwest regional at Mariucci Arena. Incidently, the last WCHA team to beat Miami University was the Fighting Sioux 3-0 in Lefty McFadden Invitational on October 8th 2005 when Jordan Parise held off a Miami surge and got a shutout against the RedHawks.

Here is the last 6 games that Miami has played against WCHA teams.

October 8th 2005 UND 3 Miami 0
October 6th 2006 Miami 5 DU 2
December 27, 2007 Miami 2 SCSU 1 O.T.
March 27, 2009 Miami 4 DU 2
March 28, 2009 Miami 2 UMD 1
October 09, 2009 Miami 3 SCSU 2 O.T.
October 10, 2009 Miami 2 SCSU 0

Breaking it down further, Mike is right, Miami has done pretty darn good job against the WCHA teams as of late. Both DU and SCSU have both lost their last two games they played to the Miami University RedHawks. Also, the Miami RedHawks beat UMD in last season’s Midwest regional championship game at Mariucci Arena. Incidentally, the last WCHA team to beat Miami University was the Fighting Sioux 3-0 in Lefty McFadden Invitational on October 8th 2005 when Jordan Parise got a shut out against the RedHawks. The Fighting Sioux might have to stop that streak if the Huskies can't stop them tonight.

Non Conference scores from last night

Last night the WCHA went 7-1 in non conference play. Last season the WCHA’s non conference play was their Achilles heal, last night SCSU was the only team in non conference play from the WCHA to lose.

UND 5 Merrimack College 2
MTU 5 NMU 3
C.C. 4 Northeastern 2
UMD 4 LSSU 3
MSU-M 3 BGSU 2
DU 5 VMU 4
UAA 5 Mercyhurst College 3
Miami 3 SCSU 2 O.T.

CHA 2-0 in Non Conference play last night.

UAH 3 Notre Dame 2 (this one makes me happy)
BSU 3 AFA 1 the battle of the Serratore brothers

Check out more from Eric of mvn.com, on my twitter,

Head Shots

Really good article by MSU-M beat writer Shane Frederick on head shots in the WCHA.

Already this season there have been three notable high or blindside hits.

Wisconsin’s Craig Smith got a game-disqualification and an additional one-game suspension from his school for a frightening check from behind into the boards that knocked Geoff Irwin out of commission for two games with a shoulder injury.

Alaska-Anchorage’s Jade Portwood broke Minnesota freshman Nick Leddy’s jaw with a shoulder check, putting Leddy out for six weeks. There was no penalty on the hit, and Portwood was not suspended, despite Gophers coach Don Lucia’s plea for punishment.

And then there was the check from behind that St. Cloud State’s Aaron Marvin laid on North Dakota’s Chay Genoway. Genoway was knocked out for at least three games, and Marvin was suspended one game by the Western Collegiate Hockey Association for the hit, which has been replayed over and over again on YouTube.

“It still happens and it’s a mystery to me,” WCHA commissioner Bruce McLeod told the Associated Press last week. “We’ve beefed up that rule and our officials know to always err on the side of safety. They are doing the best they possibly can ... We’re trying to emphasize that there’s no tolerance for it, but it hasn’t stopped it from happening.”
[Mankato Free Press]

I can’t believe that Bruce McLeod would actually make that stupid statement. McLeod can’t be that oblivious to the situation, he and his officials are part of the problem. The reason players are still hitting other players in the head and they don’t respect their opponents and your disciplinary system is a joke. There is no real repercussion or any meaningful discipline for the leagues hockey players that hits another player with questionable and egregious hit.

Let me break this further, if you’re a player in the WCHA what’s stopping you from taking a run at a top player like Jordan Schroeder. What are the consequences if you hit another player with a hit to the head and injure him? Seriously! All you’re going to get is a one game suspension max, isn’t that really a zero sum gain?

Daniel Briere suspended two games.

Flyers forward Daniel Briere is the last to be punished by the Colin Campbell's wheels of justice. The hit to the head is at the end of the video. All levels of hockey are trying to eliminate hits to the head. It would appear that some are not getting the message. The thing that really stuck out with me is that Briere makes more in two games than a lot of people make the whole year. You can also see the hit better on this clip. It's a dirty hit

TORONTO -- Philadelphia Flyers forward Daniel Briere has been suspended for two games, without pay, as a result of a late hit on an unsuspecting opponent -- Avalanche defenseman Scott Hannan -- during NHL Game #335 in Colorado Monday night, the National Hockey League announced today.

The incident took place at 9:06 of the second period, immediately following Hannan's goal.

Under the terms of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, and based on his average salary, Briere will forfeit $67,357.52. The money goes to the Players' Emergency Assistance Fund.

Briere will miss games Nov. 25 against the New York Islanders and Nov. 27 at Buffalo. He will be eligible to return Nov. 28 at Atlanta.

Coach Hakstol on last weekend.

Check out what the head coach Dave Hakstol had to say about the weekend series. No excuses the team didn't deal well with adversity.

Tuesday reading.

Moving forward there is lots to be positive about if you’re a Fighting Sioux hockey fan.

A lot has been made this season about Junior Marc Cheverie play and how good he has been and he is currently ranked 1st nationally with 6-0-0 record a SV% of .961 and a GAA of 1.1940. Not to take anything away from Marc Cheverie but Fighting Sioux goaltender Brad Eidsness isn’t having too bad of a season as well. Currently Eidsness is ranked 5th in the nation with 6-3-1 record a 929 SV % and a GAA of 1.69. [USCHO.COM]

The good numbers don't end there. UND is also Ranked 19th nationally in offense 3.08 goals per game and 3rd nationally in defense 1.75 goals per game. [USCHO.COM]

UND is also ranked 14th nationally on the power play and ranked 10th on penalty killing.

Georges Laraque suspended for five games fot hit on Niklas Kronwall

Maybe WCHA commissioner Bruce McLeod and Greg Shepherd could learn a thing or two about the NHL disciplinary procedures. This is what happens when you take a player out you pay for it with a suspension. Like I said in an earlier post I thought the NHL should suspend Georges Laraque for this dirty hit on Niklas Kronwall.

The National Hockey League announced on Monday night that Montreal Canadiens forward Georges Laraque has been suspended for five games without pay, and will forfeit $38,860.10 in salary for an incident that took place during a game against the Detroit Red Wings last Saturday.

At 8:52 of the first period, Laraque was involved in an incident where he deliberately extended his knee and, through his actions, caused an injury to Detroit defenseman Niklas Kronwall. Laraque was assessed a minor penalty for tripping on the play.

"Mr. Laraque's actions were dangerous and caused a significant injury to his opponent," said NHL Senior Executive Vice President of Hockey Operations Colin Campbell.

Laraque will miss Montreal's next five games – Nov. 24 against Columbus; Nov. 25 at Pittsburgh; Nov. 28 against Washington, Dec. 1 against Toronto and Dec. 3 at Buffalo. He will be eligible to return on Dec. 4 against the Boston Bruins. [NHL.COM]

Christmas comes early Pouliot traded to the Habs.

RWD game me a heads up on this trade. I am excited about this trade because I have never been impressed with Benoit Pouliot, the kid was a waste of a uniform who put up little if any effort and I wondered why the Wild keep coming back with him in the lineup, now if the Wild can get rid of their other first round mistake James Sheppard the kid has shown nothing to date that leads me to believe that he will ever be anything more than a fourth line player. I don't think he has even earned the right to play on the Wild's fourth line in my humble opinion. If he is lucky he MIGHT score 5-10 goals this season. As a self confessed Montreal Canadians’ hater I guess it will take some time for me to get used to this move. I think that Guillaume Latendresse might be able to add some grit in front of the opposition net.

The thing I like about Wild general manager Chuck Fletcher is that he isn’t sitting around making excused like the former Wild GM Doug Risebrough did. I actually like the fact that this season Fletcher has went out and got Chuck Kobasew, Andrew Ebbett. It shows that Fletcher isn’t going to sit around and just let people wear a uniform.

The Minnesota Wild and Montreal Canadiens traded underachieving forwards Monday afternoon.

Montreal sent power forward Guillaume Latendresse to the Wild in exchange for forward Benoit Pouliot.

Latendresse, a 6-foot-2, 230-pound left wing, has just 2 goals and 3 points on this season after a 26-point season in 2008-09. In his first three season, Latendresse had put together back-to-back 16-goal seasons in his first two years in the League.

"Guillaume is a young, talented forward who has averaged 15 goals per season in each of his first three NHL seasons,” Wild GM Chuck Fletcher said. “At just 22 years old, he will add size and a scoring punch to our roster.”

Pouliot, Minnesota's first-round pick, No. 4 overall, in the 2005 Entry Draft, has just 2 goals and 4 points in 13 games this season. The 6-foot-3, 199-pound left wing has 9 goals and 18 points in 65 NHL games, spread across parts of four seasons.

Pouliot is presently out of the lineup with an upper-body injury. He last played on Nov. 13. Latendresse, meanwhile, has been relegated to third- and fourth-line duty for the Canadiens. He has not seen more than 9 minutes of ice time since Nov. 5. [Wild.Com] Props to [Mike Russo]