Pick your head line; Sioux _____ the Gophers

Fill in the blank, last night the Sioux ____ the Gophers; A.) pummel B.) smoke C.) destroy D.) pound. E.) run over.

Yeah I have to admit that I am enjoying last night’s melt down at the Ralph Englestad Arena being replayed this morning in the Twin Cities media as their beloved Golden "Chokers" Gophers have laid yet another egg at the REA. Recently the Gophers have been God awful in the Ralph Englestad Arena, what was once referred to as Mariucci West by Gopher fans is now a house of horror for the Gophers and they have gone an unimpressive record of 1-5-1 their last seven games there. Again, am I enjoying myself, yeah me and 11,500 other Sioux fans that witnessed last night massacre at the REA. The 100 plus Gophers fans In attendance were heading for the exits about half way through the second period.

Last night was the perfect night, before Sioux fans could take their seat; Danny Kristo was scoring the game winning goal on Alex Kangas. The Sioux never looked back and the Sioux off to the races as they made the Gophers look like they were a bunch of road cones/pylons on I-94.

Check out some of these head lines from the morning papers

Pioneer Press; Gophers pummeled 6-0 by North Dakota in WCHA playoff opener

Goal Gophers; Melt Down at the Ralph

Star Tribune; U forgets to show up in 6-0 loss to North Dakota

Gopher Puck Live; Gophers No-Show In Grand Forks Yet Again

Breaking down the numbers

Current Pairwise Numbers; College Hockey News, Sioux Sports

10- the number of assists that Darcy Zajac has this season
9- the number of goals that Brad Malone has
8- the number of power play goals Danny Kristo has
7- the number of Sioux players with 20 points or more
6- the number of penalty minutes Jason Gregoire has in 37 games
5- the number of NCAA titles Minnesota has
4- the number of goals David Toews has this year
3- the number of shut outs Brad Eidness has in his career
2- the number of goals that Derrick LaPoint has this season
1- the number of short handed goals, Frattin, Hextall, LaPoint, Trupp, VandeVelde

More Stats

The UND Fighting Sioux are ranked third nationally in team defense.

The Fighting Sioux are ranked 5th nationally in penalty killing

Danny Kristo is ranked 19th nationally in power play goals.

Jason Gregoire is ranked 5th nationally in game winning goals

Danny Kristo is ranked 8th nationally for Points Per Game (Rookies)

Sioux run Gophers out of the building 6-0

The Fighting Sioux are peaking at the right time and have won 8 games in a row, tonight Brad Eidsness was rewarded for his good play and got his third shutout of his Fighting Sioux hockey career. The thing that makes this win so much more enjoyable is that it was against our heated and hated rival the Golden Gophers. The Sioux have now shut out the Minnesota Golden Gophers two of the last three times they have played in the Ralph Englestad Arena. The Sioux have now hung six goals on the Gophers three out of the last five times they have played in the REA. I am beginning to expect the Sioux light the Gophers up at home every time they play.

I also think my new favorite song is Chelsea Dagger, because I heard it so much tonight… I don’t know if Alex Kangas will want to hear it again this season. The Sioux cannot take the foot off the gas they must keep playing that song. I don't know if I could explain in words how big of a thrashing tonight's game was. It was a slaughter at the OK Corral, tonight’s win was a text book old fashion ass whooping. The Sioux literally skated by and around the Gophers all night like they were standing still and putting up little resistance.


Frattin the Ringer

When Matt Frattin was kicked off of the team last summer for his run in with the law I didn’t think much of his dismissal but in retrospect, the loss of Frattin during the first half of the season was more significant and had a bigger impact than I had originally thought. When Frattin returned to the team in January it took a few weeks for Matt to get his legs and touch back but now he is scoring some high light goals at big times.

It would not be an understatement to call Frattin a power forward, Frattin is a very strong skater with a howitzer of a shot. The past two weekend he has been unbelievable. On Frattin’s second goal of the game he blew by the Gopher defenders like they were skating in slow motion. Also, Frattin has been destroying people since his return to the lineup. Tonight Frattin absolutely lit Aaron Ness up at the blue line.

Links to the game

Sioux make it look easy in beating U 6-0 [Star Tribune]

The Gophers had no such excuses for not showing up for the first period. No. 5-ranked North Dakota scored early, late and short-handed in the first 20 minutes. By hockey's rules, the two teams had to return for two more periods, and the Sioux rolled to a 6-0 rout in the opener of this best-of-three, first-round WCHA playoff series.

It was the worst postseason loss for the Gophers since Wisconsin beat them 7-1 in the 1990 WCHA title game.

Official box score [Click to open]

Sioux blitz Gophers 6-0, take opening game of WCHA playoff series [Fighting Sioux]

Notes: UND's defense pairing of juniors Derrick LaPoint (Eau Claire, Wis.) and Jake Marto (Grand Forks) combined for a +7 and four assists. LaPoint, who was playing in his 100th career game, had a career-high three assists and is now a +15 and has eight points (1g, 7a) during UND's current eight-game winning streak ... Eidsness has allowed two goals or fewer in every game during the winning streak. He also joined Karl Goehring (1997-01) as the only Sioux goalies to win 20 games in each of their first two seasons ... Kristo extended his career-best point streak to eight games. He has six goals and five assists during that time.

Friday afternoon Links

Game day is almost here we are about 6 hours from the drop of the first puck. The hated Golden Gophers are coming to the Ralph and we can expect the Gophers to give up a fight. Also, this is the last chance for Gophers fans to watch their team before the Sioux send them off to the golf courses.

In addition, it's a sweet moment for Sioux fans, because this is the last time we will seen Gopher Hacks; Brad "the Hack" Schack, Tony "dad can I be captain" Lucia, Ryan "I am a hack too" Flynn and Mike "Jersey Pop" Carmin. I think of all the senior classes of the Gophers I think I despise this one the most. As an opposition fan I think this is a group of players I depise the most. There are no classy players like former Gophers Thomas Vanek or Jordan Leopold.

Check out Don Lucia and Paul Allen on KFAN. Lucia is on with PA at the end of the show.

Patrick C. Miller of the Boards Room has a great blog post.

Here is the TV schedule this weekend's series thank God I have tickets.

Friday

* Fox College Sports Central (FSN North broadcast)
* Midcontinent Communications
* Fighting Sioux Sports Network
* DirecTV 617 (FSN North broadcast)

Saturday, 7 p.m.

* Fox College Sports Central (FSSN broadcast)
* Midcontinent Communications
* Fighting Sioux Sports Network
* DirecTV 617

Sunday (If necessary), 7 p.m.

* Fox College Sports Central (FSSN broadcast)
* Midcontinent Communications
* Fighting Sioux Sports Network
* DirecTV 617

Follow UND Hockey beat writer Brad Schlossman on Twitter

Follow UMN hockey beat writer Roman Augustoviz

Here is Ryan Cardinals appearance on KFAN this morning.

Here is the pre game write up from enemy territory; Ryan Cardinal from GPL.

Dave Hakstol the coach of the Fighting Sioux was on yesterday with Paul Allen.

This is Gopher beat writers blog Roman Augustoviz thinks the Gophers are going to win in three games. I think he is living in denial.

The Gophers have been an inconsistent bunch this season. Lethargic, disinterested in some games, looking outmatched.

But in others, they seem to be a team capable of beating anyone. If they bring their A game -- and what better time to do it -- they will shock the world, OK shock Grand Forks -- and advance to the Final Five.

Cross posted at the Sin Bin.

Don't Fire Don Lucia, Fire Tony

The rumor mill has been saying that Don Lucia's job as head hockey coach isn't secure. When I read that on Sioux Sports last year I thought it was silly. My opinion at the time was that Don Lucia had earned a very secure position at the University of Minnesota.

Compared with the other major sports I thought that Lucia had the most secure job of any of their coaches. After all, Lucia has a couple national titles. The other programs at Minnesota have been uniformly disappointing.

This year when the rumors inevitable surfaced I had to wonder. It's not that I thought that the Gopher's record put him in jeopardy. It was the effort on the ice that was lacking, not necessarily a lack of wins.

It's not that the Gophers don't have talent. Judging by the NHL draft picks on the team they have plenty of that.

We know Don Lucia can coach. He's been successful everywhere he's been. So what's wrong? Is it the leadership on the team that's lacking. Is it that the coach put his son on the team that's demotivating the team?

I went to the archives and found that Don Lucia's coaching record prior to Tony Lucia joining the team is 203-86-26. That gives him a winning percentage of 69%

Lucia's record since Tony joined the team is 84-57-21. That's a winning record of only 58%.

The best season for the Gophers since Tony joined the team was his Freshman year. They went 31-10-3 that year. Chris Porter was able to end their season with an overtime goal.

Since Tony's freshman year the Gopher's record has really tanked. They're only 52-47-18 for that period for a winning percentage of 52%.

This year the Gophers named Tony Lucia as one of their captains and things went further downhill. Right now they're sitting at 17-17-2. If the Sioux have a good weekend we can end their season and give Don Lucia his first losing season in Minnesota.

We know Don Lucia can coach. We know the Gophers have talent. Maybe I'm putting the blame in the wrong place, but I'll predict that next year the Gophers, without Tony Lucia improve and the talk about firing Don Lucia goes away.

Maybe it's not Tony that's hurting this team. But he's the coaches kid and a captain. I think it's fair to consider him first.

College Hockey News says Sioux in three

Here is the prediction from the College Hockey News, they say Fighting Sioux in three games, I hope UND would end it faster than that. I would rather be sitting home relaxing rather than sweating out the results of a hockey game.

NO. 7 MINNESOTA AT NO. 4 NORTH DAKOTA
This season: 1-1-2; Oct. 16 at North Dakota (UND won 4-0), Oct. 17 at North Dakota (3-3 tie), Jan. 15 at Minnesota (3-3 tie), Jan. 16 at Minnesota (UM won 5-1)

This weekend: The key number to remember this weekend is three. The first team to score three goals will be in the driver's seat to get the win. North Dakota has won seven games in a row and over that span, goaltender Brad Eidsness has yet to allow an opponent more than two goals in a game. Minnesota, meanwhile, when scoring three goals in a game this season is 16-2-2.

"We're going to have our chances. Now the thing is, can we convert on our chances?" said Gophers head coach Don Lucia. "When we score some goals, we win. If we're only scoring 1 or 2, we haven't."

For its part, the Gophers will need a tremendous effort from goaltender Alex Kangas. Say what you want about his inconsistent play, but he is 2-0 in playoff series — sweeping SCSU last season and playing at a historic level in Mankato two years ago. Minnesota has been playing better defense in front of him down the stretch, finishing fourth in the league in goals against this season.

"I think our seniors have played well down the stretch, but we need to have some other players step up," said Gophers head coach Don Lucia. "Alex is going to have to play well and we're going to have to play well defensively."

The teams played four times this season, with each team winning and tying on their own home ice. Ralph Engelstad Arena has been a house of horrors for the Gophers of late, as they own a 0-3-1 record there over the last two years, having been outscored 19-7 in that same span. Keep in mind, the No. 7 seed has won this series in each of the last two seasons. That same team has also advanced to the Final Five championship both times. If the Gophers are going to get back to the NCAA Tournament, they're going to need to follow that same path.

Prediction: North Dakota in three

Sioux and Gophers (time for talk is over)

This weekend the University of North Dakota Fighting Sioux 20-11-5 overall and 15-10-3 5th PWR play the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers 17-17-2 overall and 12-14-2 23rd PWR in the WCHA in a best 2 out of 3 game playoff series at Ralph Englestad Arena. The series winner will play in the Red Baron WCHA Final Five on March 18th – 20th at the Xcel Energy Center.

Series Record

THE ALL-TIME SERIES: UND trails the all-time series 125-131-14 (.489) but is 67-53-8 (.555) all-time against the Gophers on home ice. The UND Fighting Sioux are 6-0 all time against the Gophers in Grand Forks, ND and the last time the Sioux and Gophers met in the playoffs in Grand Forks, ND was in 1986-87, when the Sioux took the WCHA series with a pair of 5-3 wins. During Coach David Hakstol tenure as head coach the Sioux have a 12-7-3 against the Gophers.

Surging Sioux

The UND Fighting Sioux have went on another Dave Hakstol text book second half surge; the Sioux have currently won 7 straight hockey games and are 7-1-0 in February and March. Ironically the second half surge commenced when Brett Hextall returned from a lower leg injury in February 12th against the SCSU Huskies.
Below is a year-by-year comparison of UND's pre and post-Christmas records:

Year Before After
2004-05 13-7-2 (.636) 12-8-3 (.587)Frozen Four
2005-06 12-7-1 (.625) 17-9-0 (.654)Frozen Four
2006-07 7-10-1 (.417) 17-4-4 (.760)Frozen Four
2007-08 8-6-1 (.567) 20-5-3 (.768)Frozen Four
2008-09 9-8-1 (.528) 15-7-3 (.660)NCAA playoffs
2009-10 9-6-3 (.583) 11-5-2 (.667)?

In Hakstol we trust

Under head coach Dave Hakstol the Fighting Sioux have gone 25-12 in the playoffs (WCHA and NCAA), that is eight more wins than any other WCHA team. That includes a 16-7 record in the WCHA playoffs, a victory total that also tops every WCHA team.

The Sioux are 16-3 (.842) in the playoffs at the new Ralph Engelstad Arena, including a 14-3 record in the WCHA playoffs and a pair of wins in the 2006 NCAA West Regional. [Fighting Sioux]

What does this mean?

I was thinking about this up coming series last night, honestly, I really don’t know what to think and I don't have any prediction. Seriously, I am not into making grandiose predictions nor do I have delusions of grandeur either. This weekend really is a crap shoot, the Sioux for the most part are already in the NCAA tourney. There is lots to play for, the team that wants it the most will be rewarded.

The 2009-2010 season for the Fighting Sioux has had many ups and downs, the injury to Chay Genoway in November, getting swept by the Denver Pioneers at home back in January were both major downers. I like many Sioux fans were ready to stick a fork in the Fighting Sioux after that series.

Since the sweep at the hand of the Denver Pioneers the Fighting Sioux have gone an impressive 7-1-0 run, during that time period they Sioux have beaten the SCSU Huskies, C.C. Tigers and the UMD Bulldogs and finally the hapless MTU Huskies. Before that brutal schedule all of those teams were ahead of the Fighting Sioux in the standings but the MTU Huskies. The Sioux over took two of those teams and finished on single point behind the SCSU Huskies.

Win with class

Most Sioux fans that I know including myself hate the “Golden Rodents”, they are our heated and hated rival, nothing brings a smile to my face more than a win against the Golden Rodents, except maybe a finely struck golf shot or shooting a double during duck hunting season. Gopher fans drive us nuts and say some of the stupidest things, you will hear comments like 25 year old Canadians, UND is a bunch of goons or Manitoba’s Pride on Ice. Unfortunately, my brother in law was one of them (former Golden Gopher Hockey player) and a lot of my family members are fans of the hated Gophers as well, It’s the old saying you can chose your friends but you can chose your family members. But I digress and none the less, let’s keep some perspective and let’s also remember it’s only a hockey game. We don’t need anymore ugly incidents before, during or after the hockey games. Don't be that fan.

Let’s remember to keep our heads about ourselves and don’t get into senseless or needless fist fights. Let’s think twice before we get into confrontations with opposition fans, again hockey is only a game folks. I learned along time ago that alcohol makes people braver and there is always someone tougher than you. No one needs to get killed over a hockey game, no one needs to get arrested and no one needs to throw knuckles. Be the better person and walk away. If you find your self getting into a situation remove yourself from it. Also, show some respect for your neighbors at the game. Please don’t ruin our experience at the game because you decided to be an ass. Let’s Go Sioux lets end the Gophers season this weekend.

Links to the Story:

Ryan Cardinal's break down of the series on Gopher Puck Live.

MHKY Notes: Sioux, Gophers battle in opening round of playoffs

Friday Hockey Game to Air on FSN Alternate Channel [Gopher sports]


Cross Posted at the Sin Bin.

Weekend Match-Ups (by Sioux 7)

Here we are spring has sprung us into the 1st round of WCHA playoffs. We have a full slate of playoff games, 5 WCHA series to play this weekend. I’ll do one more TOP TEN list to end the season.

10 – Number of teams in the league (it’ll be 12 come October)
9 – Points separated the top 5 teams
8 – Points the MTU Huskies got this season
7 – Where Minnesota has finished 2 of the last 3 seasons
6 – How many drinks I had at last Friday’s game
5 – Teams that will make it to St. Paul next weekend
4 – WCHA teams that will for sure get into the NCAA
3 – Maximum number of games in the opening playoff series
2 – Leads blown by MTU last weekend
1 – Goals UW put in their own net last weekend


FINAL 2009-2010 WCHA STANGINGS

TEAM………………......W-L-T….PTS
1 Denver--------------19-5-4….42
2 Wisconsin-----------17-8-3….37
3 St. Cloud State------15-9-4….34
4 North Dakota--------15-10-3…33
5 Minnesota-Duluth----16-11-1…33
6 Colorado College-----12-13-3…27
7 Minnesota-----------12-14-2…26
8 Minnesota State------9-17-2…20
9 Alaska-Anchorage-----9-17-2…20
10 Michigan Tech-------4-24-0….8


Michigan Tech at #1 Denver (season series DU wins 2-0-0)
Last weekend the Huskies were swept in Grand Forks by the Sioux, and the Pioneers and Tigers split their series.

The Huskies scored first in both their games last weekend, but could hold off the Sioux. The Pioneers got back on track Saturday after losing Friday to their arch-rival Tigers. These teams just played each other a couple of weeks ago (Feb 19-20), with DU sweeping that series in Denver. In theory this should be a two game sweep for DU. But, with just sweeping them it is hard to win over anybody four times in just three weeks. It wouldn’t surprise me if a game went to OT, but DU is just too much for the Huskies, especially if it was to go three games. DU in 2


Alaska-Anchorage at #3 Wisconsin (season series UW wins 2-0-0)
Last weekend the Seawolves hosted the Bulldogs and split their series, and the Badgers and Gophers split a pair in Minneapolis.

Interesting tidbit, the Badgers have not won more the three games in a row this season, and have not lost two games in a row. This time of year, you need to string together more than three wins in a row if you want to get a title. The Seawolves on the other hand have only won back to back games once, and that was against Michigan Tech. If the Badgers stay true to form, they will win on Friday, since they lost on Sunday to the Gophers (UW had already wrapped up 2nd place on Friday). But to the Seawolves credit, they have beat some good teams this year, except those wins have come in Anchorage. UAA has only made the Final 5 once, and they upset the Badgers to do it, back in 2004, but this is 2010. I’m going with UW in 2.


Minnesota State at #7 St. Cloud State (season series MSU-M wins 1-0-1)
Last weekend the Mavericks took 3-points from the SCSU Huskies, and now they meet again this weekend.

SCSU is now on a three game winless streak, and is 3-4-2 in their last 9 games, not the best way to head into the playoffs. The Huskies recent skid has cost them a number one seed in the NCAA tournament. Meanwhile, the Mavericks would like to keep spoiling the Huskies NCAA tournament seeding. With a couple more wins the Mavericks could make an appearance at the Final 5. I like it when teams play each other on back to back weekends, it really builds a rivalry. Like they say familiarity breeds contempt. With the outcome last weekend it, I’m leaning toward the Mavericks in this series. However, now SCSU has something to play for, last weekend they might have figured they had third place wrapped up and were taking the weekend off, so to speak. I’m going to take SCSU in 3.


Minnesota at #5 North Dakota (season series tied 1-1-2)
Last weekend the Gophers and Badgers split in Minnesota, and the Sioux swept the MTU Huskies in Grand Forks.

The Sioux come into the playoffs riding a season long 7 game winning streak. The Gophers come in going 5-5-0 in their last 10 games. FSN had an interesting fact, that the UM has never won a playoff game in Grand Forks, they are 0-9. The Gophers last playoff game in Grand Forks was in the NCAA West Regional where they lost to Holy Cross. The Sioux have been playing good hockey and look to keep build up momentum this weekend by extending their winning streak, and ending the Gophers season. UND is a pretty solid lock in the NCAA tourney, while the U of M needs to run the WCHA playoff table and get the auto-bid to make the NCAA tourney. The Sioux are hot right now and playing one of their rivals should give The Ralph a great playoff atmosphere. Sioux in 2.


#15 Colorado College at #14 Minnesota-Duluth (season series UMD wins 3-1-0)Last weekend the Tigers split with the Pioneers, and the Bulldogs split with the Seawolves in Alaska.

The Tigers and the Bulldogs, both started off the season hot, and now both have gone cold. CC is 1-5-0 in its last six games, and is 4-10-0 in the WCHA in 2010. The Bulldogs haven’t fared much better going 2-4-0 in their last six games. Both teams have a chance to get back on track this weekend and back into the NCAA mix. Right now these teams are mirror images of each other. Whoever wins this series will most likely be in Thursday’s play-in game in St. Paul, unless some of the top teams’ faulter. Both teams have/had good offenses, and this could be the highest scoring playoff series in the league, which should make it entertaining to watch. I’m going to go with the home team in this series. UMD in 3.

McLeod = Campbell

In reading this Colin Campbell’s statement yesterday, I am beginning to wonder if Bruce McLeod isn’t a Colin Campbell clone or cut from the same mold?

"No one likes when a player like Marc Savard goes down the way he did. No one likes when a player like David Booth goes down the way he did. But we have to be consistent. I know Matt Cooke is a repeat offender, he's been suspended twice in the last year. I can't suspend Matt Cooke for being a repeat offender, I have to find a reason. Right now our rules say that shoulders to head are legal. Matt Cooke did not jump, and did not do anything that we found illegal in his actions even though again you don't like what happened. I know it's not something that Boston fans, or hockey fans would like to hear. They want justice. We feel we have to be consistent and do what we feel is right and hopefully we've gone to a place in our meetings today that we can eradicate plays like this in the future."

- NHL Sr. VP of Hockey Operations, Colin Campbell
[Stanley Cup of Chowder]

NHL not serious about protecting it's players.

I was driving around town when I found out that the disgusting waste of human life Matt Cooke was not suspended by the NHL for the hit above. You have got to be kidding me? Think about this for a moment; the NHL just spent three days meeting in Boca Raton, Florida discussing head shots and wanting to elimiate them from the NHL and then this ruling from Colin Campbell comes down.

Seriously, is your head spinning yet? Mine is. I am not sure how I can write this blog post without using colorful and profane language to describe how feel about that disgusting piece of camel dung that is Matt Cooke. If you watch any amount of NHL hockey you will know Matt Cooke is a cheap shot artist that skates up and down the ice taking liberties with opposition players. When Challenged to a fight for his thuggery Matt Cooke will turtle and or will only fight European and other more skilled players not known for their fighting skills.

I hold Cooke in the same low regard that I held former thug Claude Lemieux and eventually they get what is rightfully coming to them, live by the sword you die by the sword. Eventually, someone is going to come to collect on the bill that past due and Matt Cooke won’t be able to duck out or turtle this time. This is what I hope happens to Mister Cooke, check out this beat down that Claude “the Fraud” took.

Some examples of Matt Cooke's thuggery

The Matt Cooke knee on Eric Cole

Cooke Cheaps Anisimov - 2 Game Suspension

Wednesday Links and Pontifications

Check out what Andy Baggot had to say about the head coach of the Fighting Sioux. Baggot is the beat writer for the Wisconsin Badgers hockey team and he picked Coach Hakstol as his coach of the year candidate.

COACH OF THE YEAR

Dave Hakstol of North Dakota. The very young Fighting Sioux lost their best all-around player after seven games (senior defenseman Chay Genoway), missed their leading scorer for a prolonged stretch midway through the season (senior center Chris VandeVelde) and looked dead in the water after losing five of six heading into Valentine's Day. They've won seven straight since then and are gearing up for another deep run into the playoffs. There's a lot of good coaching woven into those details.

Some profound words from the Minnesota Golden Gophers head hockey coach. Seriously, if any hockey teams gets four or five goals on the board its very hard for any team that is trailing to come back and beat the Opposition. UND has the top ranked defense in the WCHA as well.

Lucia said the most important thing to win is a tight defense and not giving up more than two goals. "If North Dakota gets four or five on the board," Lucia said, "it will be awfully difficult for us to win. We want to go up there and play a great road game.

"Our feeling is that if it is 0-0 after the first period, we are happy. As long as we can keep that game tight into the third, or maybe even into overtime. Based on history I wouldn't be surprised if the games are going into overtime this weekend. Good starts are going to be extremely important and then all 18 guys and the goaltender have to play well and I think they will be prepared to do that." [Goal Gophers]

This is what Todd D. Milewski had to say about the Fighting Sioux in his weekly blog post on USCHO.COM, its really not how you start its about how your team finishes at the end of the season.

* I mentioned a while back that I didn’t think North Dakota was a top-10 team at that point. Times sure change, don’t they? Look at the Sioux now: Winning five in a row against the likes of St. Cloud State, Minnesota-Duluth and Colorado College alters the landscape. [USCHO.COM]

Since the refs in the WCHA don’t wear their numbers on the back of their uniforms anymore, that is a discussion for another day, here is the official roster from the WCHA league office.

This weekend: Here is my prediction on who will be the on ice officials for the series between Minnesota and UND series is Derek Shepherd and Marco Hunt with Papa Shepherd sitting in the press box looking on. You can’t spell nepotism without Shepherd and McLeod.

Supervisor of Officials: Greg Shepherd.

Referees: 3-Derek Shepherd; 4-Todd Anderson; 5-Justin Brown; 7-Don Adam; 8-Tom Sterns; 9-C.J. Beaurline; 10-Peter Friesema; 11-Tim Walsh; 12-Butch Mousseaux (R-L); 14-Brian Thul; 15-Marco Hunt; 17-Craig Welker; 18-Max Battimo; 20-Brad Albers; 22-Bill Mason; 23-Matt Ulwelling (R-L); 24-Jon Campion; 25-Mike McCreary; 27-Jonathan Morrison; 29-Scott Bokal; 31-Brett Klosowski; 33-Brad Shepherd.

Linesmen: at UAA: 36-Kent Asplund; 73-Scott Sivulich; 74-Steve Glines; 75-Travis Jackson. at CC & DU: 52-Scott Staudte; 57-Bob Keltie; 67-Greg Rockenback; 80-Butch Mousseaux; 82-Stephen Stankevich; 86-Gary Pedigo; 88-Tim Swiader. at MTU: 35-Dan Juopper; 85-Sean Jacques; 98-Damon Beirling. at UM, UMD, MSU, SCSU: 38-Joe Harris; 44-Chris Olson; 45-Jerome Krieger; 50-Tony Lancette, Jr.; 53-Rick Nelson; 55-Jeff Schultz; 61-Luke Huggett; 62-Jarod Moen; 68-Chris Perrrault; 80-Tony Czech; 90-Matt Anderson; 91-Sterling Egan; 96-Eric Whisler. at UND: 37-Tom Lund; 71-Brian Novlesky; 76-Brandon Schmitt; 77-Mike Eslinger; 78-Nathan Freeman; 79-Matt Ulwelling; 83-Justin Hills; 84-Phil Stodgell; 92-Andy Carton. at UW: 34-Ed Moberg; 38-Dan Carey; 42-Dan Dineen; 51-Mike Gulenchyn; 65-Matt Gerlach; 87-Brad Roethlisberger. (R-L) Referee & Linesman.

Here is the Bracket Analysis, Breakdown, Comparison from Adam Wodon of College Hockey News. I have to think we have a date with Boston College in the future.

4-5. Boston College, North Dakota
These two have been so intertwined in the NCAAs over the last 10 years, it's only fitting they currently sit 4-5 — which would set up a regional final matchup if things stayed the same. It doesn't look like North Dakota can flip any comparisons with teams above it that would allow it to move up. But it's possible, if it plays and defeats Wisconsin next week, that it could grab that one, which could then be enough to surpass Boston College despite losing the individual comparison with BC. So that will be an interesting drama — whether BC has to go West, or North Dakota has to go East. But it looks like the stars are aligned for these guys again, just not at the Frozen Four like usual.

The latest verious of USCHO Bracketology has the Fighting Sioux going to the Northeast Regional.

Northeast Regional:

Ferris State vs. Boston College
Michigan State vs. North Dakota

Getting serious about headshots starts now

Elliotte Friedman has a really good point about eliminating head shots in the NHL. I think hockey in general should take the same approach. This is a serious issue and we literally have hockey players getting their brains scrambled from hits to the head.

Rob DiMaio played 18 years in the NHL, his career ending in 2006 after a borderline hit by Guillaume Latendresse. DiMaio was an aggressive player – had to be to keep his job – yet averaged less than one penalty minute per game. He’s got a good perspective on this issue.

“If you really want to eliminate head shots, you have to make the penalty so severe that players will really think about it,” he said. “You can’t have them thinking, ‘Well, if I hit this guy and I get suspended, it will be for only one game.’”

Boy, do I agree with that 100 per cent.

If the GMs really want to eliminate the Richards/Booth and Cooke/Savard hits, Step I must be Fear of God. Simply tell players that anyone who does it is getting a long-term suspension. (What’s long-term? You could start at eight games, chosen arbitrarily because it’s 10 per cent of the season. Discuss amongst yourselves.)

Then deliver. It doesn’t matter if you’re a first-time offender. It doesn’t matter if you averaged three penalty minutes a season. If you do it, you’re going to be punished. Automatically.

(By the way, the GMs should also consider penalizing players who intentionally make themselves vulnerable to blindside hits. It might have to be after the fact/upon review, but you know there will be a diver or two who tries it. Can’t be allowed to happen.)[CBC Sports]

Awesome Tim Thomas save.

Boston Bruins goalie Tim Thomas was on his game all night last night against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Tim Thomas robbed former Golden Gophyer and Boston Bruin Phil Kessel on a least two grade "A" scoring opportunities. Since leaving the Bruins Kessel has had 1 point against his former team in 5 games.

Sioux and Gophers

Ah yes its rivalry week again as the Sioux will take on the Gophers in the first round of the WCHA playoffs. The Gophers have to win the Final Five to make the NCAA tourney, the Sioux are probably in the tourney. From watching the video this has to be from 1992-1993 season. I am torn because one of these teams isn’t going to be in the Final Five. It’s a shame the Sioux didn’t finish 3rd or the Gophers didn’t finish 6th. Oh well!

I will probably break the series down latter in the week. Seriously, I am still suffering from another head cold that my daughter gift wrapped and brought home from day care for me.

Most seasons I would ussually throw out more red meat but frankly I am not that excited about this series or really in the mood for ripping on the Gophers that much, honestly this season the Gophers just aren't very good, no matter how you spin it, they suck! I would compare it to kicking a dead horse.

That being said, I am still going to the game and I still think that the Holy Cross choke game is still funny and I still smile when I think about the Region of death in Denver Colorado. Regardless of what happens this weekened the Gophers season either ends this weekend or next. The Sioux mostly likely have the NCAA's to look forward to.

LET'S GO SIOUX KICK SOME GOPHER ASS...

List Challenge: Top 5 Overrated NHL Goaltenders

Ok, I'm bored, but I'm issuing a challenge to the writers and commentors on this blog. Top 5 lists to flavor up the blog. Yeah, it's all nice to talk about the cheap hits, but I think it's time to spark some other kinds of debate.

So, I'm going to pose my top five most overrated goaltenders currently playing in the NHL. My rules? They cannot be a rookie or a goaltender that has not at any point in the previous two seasons been called the "#1 goaltender" for their respective club. They cannot already be considered a poor goaltender (Sorry, Vesa Toskala is out). They must have at least SOME hype to them.

Here they are:

5. Marc-Andre Fleury (Pittsburgh Penguins) - Ok, I'm going to get flak for this, but he's really not all that good. He just has a team in front of him that can cover for his mistakes. He tends to be too aggressive if you want some real goaltender analysis. And yeah, he won the Cup last year, whoopdedoo.

4. Marty Turco (Dallas Stars) - He was so bad last year the 5 hole was briefly named after him ("He got Turco'd."). He was better this year, but he's really not much more than a middle of the road goaltender. He's the king of inconsistent. One minute he's brilliant, the next minute, he's worse than putting goalie pads on a quadriplegic.

3. Jose Theodore (Washington Capitols) - Sometimes called Jose "Threeorfour" by sarcastic fans, this selection actually pains me. You see, I saw him when he played for the Habs and he was REALLY good on a REALLY mediocre if not bad team. I'm not sure why he's not found success, but then again... being on Colorado and Florida can do that to any goaltender... sometimes (I still can't believe Khabibulin has a Stanley Cup ring. Not because he's a bad goaltender, but because... seriously.. TAMPA FREAKING BAY?) can drive home the suck in anyone. And yeah, I know about Colorado and Roy but look at the team in front of him. What? Oh yeah, thought so. I rest my case. And no, I'm not saying Patrick Roy was overrated. I can't stand the guy, but he was VERY legit.

2. Cristobal Huet (Chicago Blackhawks) - #2 and #1 are pretty interchangeable as both I can't see as to why they ever were named #1s for their respective clubs. Huet has a 5 hole the size of Illinois and plays as consistent as the ground in and about a rock slide. He makes me nervous any time someone shoots from the point. UG-GLY.

1. Carey Price (Montreal Canadiens) - How sad they have brought in Jaroslav Halak to foster and push Price along and had a GM in Gainey who said Price was the #1 all along and yet... Halak is the real deal and Price is barely NHL quality. I'm not so sure that this is Price's fault though. Gainey was a bad GM and surely rushed Price along. He shows signs of brilliance but often those are just the gleam of the lights off his facemask. I also give him the award for the goaltender who has most often tore the hearts out of Habs fans, stepped on the heart, and then flushed it down the toilet since Patrick Roy left. And he's still young. Oh, and the fact that he's gotten so much hype and has done Z-E-R-O to the millionth power to deserve the hype may also have swayed me to this.

Honorable Mentions: Nikolai Khabibulin*, Peter Budaj, Ray Emery, Any Lightning Goaltender, Vesa Toskala (Hey, can someone suck so bad they become overrated by simply saying he sucks?), Manny Legace (Ouch!), Rick DiPietro. I should give one to Boston's Tim Thomas too, but man, that guy's come a long way to get where he is.

* - He, like Theodore, is among those I have a softspot for.

Henrik Lundqvist could be on this list but the jury's still out. He's not won it all yet, nor has he gone especially deep into the playoffs. However, such factors as how suck the team in front of him is, has to be considered. Put Lundqvist on the Wings and I'm sure he'd be hoisting the Cup.

So my question to the bloggers on this site and the commentors is: What's your top 5?

GMs to recommend banning blindside shoulder hits to the head

I believe this is the first step in the right direction, for the NHL. The OHL already bans head shot already, why not the NHL? In International Ice Hockey Federation play their opinion is that; “there is no such thing as a clean hit to the head." The NCAA bans hits to the head, there is at least a two minute penalty for shots to the head.

The NHL's general managers will recommend the adoption of a new rule to ban blindside hits to the head by a player's shoulder.

So far, this recommendation was made by an eight-man committee of GMs at their annual meetings and it will be placed in front of the entire 30 general managers on Wednesday morning. The proposal will be subject to further review and tweaking but it appears a formal recommendation for a new rule will be made when the meetings end Wednesday afternoon.

“We’re going to fine-tune it,” said San Jose Sharks GM Doug Wilson, who is a member of the eight-person committee. “It’s going to go back to the bigger group for our thoughts.”

The new rule will also subject offenders to supplementary discipline in the form of suspensions. Repeat offenders will probably face lengthy suspensions.

However, since the details remain subject to further changes by the GMs, who could conceivably even shelve the proposal, no one wanted to say exactly what the proposed rule is other than it will address blindside hits to the head by a player’s shoulder.

The formal recommendation will go to the NHL's competition commitee and the governors for approval this summer. The new rule will probably take effect next season [Globe and Mail]

More Steve Downie antics.

Stick salute to Puck Daddy. Check this video this is wild stuff, classic Donny brook, while Downie does hit the Atlanta defender high and leaves his feet, the MacAurther crosscheck on St Louis was uncalled for, bush league and late, he doesn’t even get a penalty on the play. The two buffoons announcing the game can't see past the homer glasses. I thought it was interesting so I included it.

Poll Monday

USCHO.com Division I Men's Poll
[March 8, 2010]

Team (First Place Votes) Record Points Last Poll
1 Denver (26) 25- 7-4 976 1
2 Miami (24) 24- 5-7 972 2
3 Wisconsin 22- 9-4 881 3
4 Boston College 21-10-3 827 5
5 North Dakota 20-11-5 779 7
6 Yale 19- 7-3 732 6
7 St. Cloud State 20-11-5 703 4
8 Bemidji State 23- 8-3 644 8
9 Cornell 17- 8-4 587 9
10 Michigan State 19-11-6 528 11
11 New Hampshire 16-11-7 497 10
12 Alaska 18- 9-9 437 14
13 Ferris State 19-11-6 406 13
14 Minnesota-Duluth 20-15-1 367 12
15 Colorado College 18-15-3 261 15
16 Northern Michigan 17-11-8 205 19
17 Union 18-10-6 178 18
18 Nebraska-Omaha 20-14-6 170 20
19 Vermont 15-12-7 114 16
20 Mass.-Lowell 18-14-4 79 NR
Others Receiving Votes: Maine 47, RIT 36, Boston University 24,
Michigan 22, Massachusetts 17, Minnesota 9, Colgate 2

----------------------------
USA TODAY/USA Hockey men's poll
[March 8, 2010]

1. Miami (21)
2. Denver (13)
3. Wisconsin
4. Boston College
5. North Dakota
6. Yale
7. St. Cloud State
8. Bemidji State
9. Cornell
10. New Hampshire
11. Michigan State
12. Alaska
13. Ferris State
14. Minnesota-Duluth
15. Colorado College
Others receiving votes: University of Nebraska Omaha, 16; Northern Michigan University, 13; Union College, 13; Rochester Institute of Technology, 10; University of Massachusetts Lowell, 4; University of Vermont, 2; University of Maine, 1; University of Massachusetts, 1.

INCH Power Rankings

As always I include the INCH Power Rankings for conversation.

1. Miami
2. Denver
3. Wisconsin
4. North Dakota 2 Could the Fighting Sioux's upcoming playoff series with Minnesota be any more even? Not only do both teams have identical 1-1-2 marks against one another this season, but both the goals for and against (11-11) are also mirror images. 20-11-5 (15-10-3 WCHA) LAST WEEK: W vs. Michigan Tech, 5-1; W vs. Michigan Tech, 3-2. THIS WEEK: vs. Minnesota (WCHA First Round Series)
5. Yale
6. Boston College
7. St. Cloud State
8. Cornell
9. Michigan State
10. Bemidji State
11. Alaska
12. Union
13. New Hampshire
14. Ferris State
15. Minnesota Duluth
16. Colorado College
17. RIT
18. Northern Michigan
19. Nebraska-Omaha 1
20. UMass Lowell )

Dropped out: Maine
Bubble-licious: Colgate, Michigan

Matt Cooke knocks out Marc Savard

I think Matt Cooke is a disgusting piece of dog shit and I honestly can't till the day that he is on the receiving end of one of these hits. Cooked is what is wrong with the NHL, the lack of respect for you opponents. It was a deliberate attempt by Cooke to injure Savard, look at the video. Savard suffered a concussion on the play. Another day and another head shot in the NHL.

Dirty, vicious elbow by Matt Cooke on Marc Savard to his blind side after he shot a puck at the Pittsburgh net. Just no regard for the health and well-being of another player right there. Replays showed Cooke lowered an elbow that smashed directly into Savard's head when he had his head turned away from the Penguins forward. The elbow knocked Savard right down to the ice. Savard was down for 10 minutes and trainers had to take the playmaking center off on a stretcher. Somehow there wasn't a penalty called on the play, but there's [no] way Cooke gets off without a lengthy suspension. That is the kind of play that the NHL is trying to rid their sport of, and it's yet another injury that the B's can't afford.
[CSNNE.COM]

Links to the Story:

Puck daddy; Savard stretchered off after Matt Cooke head-shot

KuklasKorner; Matt Cooke Hit On Marc Savard Today

Bruins.com; Bruins Update on Marc Savard

Bruins blog; Cooke delivers concussion to Savard

"A guy like that has to be suspended," the Bruins coach said. "That's the way I see it, because it's an elbow to the head from the blind side. That's exactly the examples they show of what we've got to get out of this game. We have a guy who's got a concussion. Our best player. He's going to be out for a while. He was [unconscious] on the ice for a bit. That's unacceptable."

Hub of Hockey; Is Matt Cooke's Dirty Hit On Marc Savard Suspension Worthy?

Bleacher Report; Pittsburgh Penguins: Matt Cooke's Hit on Savard Deserves Big Suspension

Winnipeg Sun; Issue coming to a head

TSN; Bruins' Savard carried off the ice following blindside hit

From the Rink; Marc Savard Taken Off On Stretcher

Stanley Cup of Chowder; Marc Savard diagnosed with concussion

NESN.COM; James Murphy Dishes on Marc Savard Hit, Lack of Retaliation Against Matt Cooke (Video)

How did I do?

I posted my WCHA preseason poll at the now defunct Illegal Curve.

1.) Denver
2.) Wisconsin
3.) UND
4.) Minnesota
5.) UMD
6.) SCSU
7.) C.C.
8.) MSU-M
9.) UAA
10.) MTU

Here is the way the WCHA finished with the final games today.

1.) Denver 42 19-5-4 25-7-4
2.) Wisconsin 37 17-8-3 22-9-4
3.) St. Cloud State 34 15-9-4 20-11-5
4.) North Dakota 33 15-10-3 20-11-5
5.) Minnesota Duluth 33 16-11-1 20-15-1
6.) Colorado College 27 12-13-3 18-15-3
7.) Minnesota 26 12-14-2 17-17-2
8.) Minnesota State 20 9-17-2 15-18-3
8.) Alaska Anchorage 20 9-17-2 11-21-2
10.) Michigan Tech 8 4-24-0 5-28-1