BREC - BSU HOCKEY ARENA

Moose Richards of KBUN Sports Radio "the Bun" and the award winning Hockey Show sent me some recent pictures of the new Bemidji Regional Event Center as it nears completion. BSU and the UND Fighting Sioux will open the event center in October.

Former Badger Adam Burish calls Canucks clowns.

Here is the Adam Burish interview that has everyone talking, I have to admit that I agree with the former Badger Adam Burish, the Canucks are a bunch of clowns and some might even call them Hacks. I can't wait for game four.

VANCOUVER -- Chicago Blackhawks winger Adam Burish accused Vancouver Canucks forward Alex Burrows and defenseman Shane O'Brien of being "clowns" for roughing up Blackhawks skill players during their Western Conference semifinals.

"The thing that upsets me about O'Brien and Burrows is they go and target [Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews]," Burish said Friday morning. "The clown Burrows goes after [Brian] Campbell in the middle of the ice.

"Give me a break. If you want to target someone, come find me or [Ben Eager]. You guys want to pretend you're so tough, and yet you go and try to pick a fight with those guys. If you want to hit them and play hard, fine. But those clowns are pushing them after the whistle and punching them."

Burish implied O'Brien acts tough only when Burish and Eager -- the Blackhawks' enforcers -- aren't on the ice.

"We call O'Brien a 'spot picker,' " Burish said. "He picks his spots pretty nice. He knows who's on the ice and when he can be a tough guy and when he kind of has to shut up."

Burrows' hit on Campbell drew an unsportsmanlike penalty midway through the second period of Game 3 on Wednesday, shortly after the Canucks grabbed some momentum and narrowed the Blackhawks' lead to 2-1. Dustin Byfuglien scored his second goal of the game on the ensuing power play to make it 3-1. The Hawks won 5-2 to take a 2-1 series lead. Game 4 is Friday night in Vancouver.

"You have to be careful at this time of the year," Burish said. "I go into a game and I have a plan. You know who you want to go after, and who you want to target.

Kelly seems giddy about changing the Fighting Sioux name Edit: Audio included

First off I am an alumnus of the University of North Dakota and nothing pisses me off more than what has transpired with the Fighting Sioux nickname, this spring. UND has lacked leadership and someone to bring the University of North Dakota forward.

In my opinion Robert Kelly is the wrong person to lead this university forward, I find him uninspiring. When I read this article it makes my head want to explode of course Robert Kelly is committed to lead the transition, he has no commitment, no attachment and no understanding of what the Fighting Sioux stands for, not a clue what so ever. Robert Kelly is an alumnus Abilene Christian University in Abilene, TX Kelly could give a “flying eff” about the Fighting Sioux name and its storied history. Kelly is an academic who probably has never held a real job outside of the University setting and probably looks at the Fighting Sioux Nickname as a impediment to UND and his vision of what UND should be.

I still to this day believe that UND should be run by a person that is from UND and more specifically a UND grad. You can’t tell me we don’t have someone from UND and North Dakota that isn’t qualified to run this University. I can't be the only one that feels this way? Here is the video of the this uninspiring speech. [Click to watch]

GRAND FORKS – UND President Robert Kelley told members of the University Senate on Thursday that he is “fully committed to the implementation” of marching orders he received last month from state higher education authorities concerning transition from the Fighting Sioux nickname and logo.

Two “task groups” have been established, one to “plan and implement the process of honoring the history and traditions of the Sioux name and logo” and another to “reach out to students, faculty, staff, alumni, friends – all our constituencies.”

A third group has not yet been activated, he said, identifying it as a “new-directions task group,” which – when and if activated – “will help us think through the process of selecting a new name and logo for the university.”

Kelley, who will report to the state Board of Higher Education in Bismarck Monday on the transition, said that “for the immediate future,” he will recommend “that UND simply use its name – the University of North Dakota – and that our athletic and academic teams use the term ‘North Dakota’ or the interlocked ND as an outward identity for activities that require such designation.”

Due to licensing and contractual considerations, including the fact jerseys and other items already have been ordered, “we will use the Fighting Sioux name and logo through the coming year,” he said. “We’re certainly not going to cover up (that part of) any team item that has been ordered.”

However, “as we get through that cycle (the 2010-2011 school year), we would expect to see no Fighting Sioux logo” in use by UND teams, he said.

Kelley said he has had “cordial, businesslike talks” with representatives of the NCAA and with managers at Ralph Engelstad Arena concerning terms of the lawsuit settlement negotiated in 2007 by Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem. The NCAA stipulated that many of the Sioux logos and other features at the arena would have to be removed.

Don Cherry on Flyers hack Dan Carcillo

This video is for Redwing77 as Don "grapes" Cherry addresses the diving and embellishment of the Flyers top agitator (I refer to them as hacks) Dan Carcillo. It's no mystery Don Cherry is not impressed with the antics of Flyers hack Daniel Carcillo because he has addressed this subject in his last two episodes. Don Cherry hits it out of the park with his spot on assessment and Carcillo on how he is a bully and cheapens the game with his soccer like mentality. Carcillo loves to act tough when he is dealing with players that he knows don't or wont fight. Also, notice how Cherry calls Carcillo the wrong name. Classic way of disrespecting someone by mispronouncing their name.

More on the Phoenix Coyotes mess...

A few of my readers have told me that the NHL will never return to Winnipeg. Stories like this one is the reason why I am still hopeful that eventually an NHL franchise will relocate to Winnipeg and once again be only a short drive of 150 miles away from Grand Forks, ND. That is a third of the distance one must drive to see the NHL in Saint Paul, Minnesota. I will still follow the Wild of course but it gives fans like me stuck in flyover country between Saint Paul and Winnipeg options. With each passing day the possibility of an NHL franchise moving back to Winnipeg, Manitoba is becoming more and more of a possibility and looking better and better all of the time. For fans like me that are hoping for this to happen all I can say is keep the faith.

ESPN.com was reporting late Thursday night that the agreement between the City of Glendale and Chicago White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf was dead, and that Glendale, which had voted against Ice Edge and in favour of Reinsdorf several weeks ago, had reached out to Ice Edge again. Even the NHL, however, has questioned the ability of Ice Edge to put the funding together to buy the team, and ESPN.com reported that the NHL would place a number of conditions on the sale, including Glendale having to agree to cover any operating losses next season.

If Ice Edge can't strike a deal, the ESPN.com report indicated that Canadian billionaire David Thomson has a purchase agreement ready to sign that would see the team shift operations to Winnipeg.

Winnipeg mayor Sam Katz said it's "just a matter of time" before the city gets an NHL team. Even if it's not the Coyotes, Katz said this week he believes a team will be in Winnipeg within three years.

The impressive first round playoff performance by the Coyotes that saw huge crowds attend the club's games against the Detroit Red Wings apparently weren't enough to keep Reinsdorf in the game, or to make his proposed deal acceptable. NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said as recently as Monday that he still hoped a deal could be struck to keep the team in Phoenix, but that he had no deadline on when a purchase could be completed.
[The Spin]

Coyotes sale in jeopardy

So you say that there is a chance. This makes the chances of hockey moving back to Winnipeg even better. I am holding out hope, as I recently told a friend of mine from Winnipeg. I can't wait till I can go to a Jets game on Boxing Day just like the old days.

The imminent sale of the Phoenix Coyotes to Jerry Reinsdorf is no longer imminent, meaning Winnipeg's chances of landing an NHL team just got a little bit better.

Several media outlets reported Thursday night that the NHL’s sale of the Coyotes to the Chicago businessman is dead and that the city of Glendale, Ariz., wants Ice Edge Holdings to assume control of the franchise in an effort to keep the team in the desert.

Scott Burnside of ESPN wrote that Reinsdorf’s deal with the Phoenix suburb is off the table and that Glendale’s city council will file documents on Friday morning accepting a new lease proposal from Ice Edge. Glendale voted against Ice Edge’s initial proposal last month.

As for the team possibly returning to Manitoba, the ESPN report indicated that Glendale needs to guarantee several conditions with the NHL before the league will agree to sell to Ice Edge.

It’s believed Ice Edge was waiting for those conditions to be met before signing the new lease agreement.

If those conditions aren’t met, Burnside wrote it’s possible the league would then look at selling the franchise to Canadian billionaire David Thomson, who co-owns True North, the company that owns MTS Centre. ESPN said a purchase agreement is ready if the Glendale-Ice Edge deal falls apart. [Winnipeg Sun]

NCAA hockey tournament could be changing

When I first read Brad's article I didn't like the idea, then I called a couple fellow hockey fans like myself and came to the conclusion that this could be a change for the better. Can you imagine if UND had gotten to play Yale in the REA instead of some run down half empty hockey arena in Worcester, Massachusetts for a best two out of three series. Yeah! In my opinion there is no way that Yale beats UND two out of three times. Before some fans from hockey east attepmpt to take my head off, I lived in Ayer, MA for a year and a half. I worked in Worcester, it is a run down city and the DCU center is a dump as well. Those are accurate statements.

NC$$...

The NCAA would win because they would sell a lot more tickets than they did this year in the NCAA regional’s. I mean seriously, you have beautiful building like the Xcel Energy Center which seats about 19,000 and you can’t even sell 10,000 tickets? That is unacceptable. Also, with home venues I don’t think you would see crappy ice like you did in Fort Wayne Indiana. The ice conditions there and at the Frozen four were a disgrace and made the NCAA look like a second rate organization. I think the NCAA can do better and if it takes a few tweaks to make things better so be it.

The format for the NCAA men’s hockey tournament may be changing in a couple of years.

Proposals were discussed at an annual college hockey national meeting in Florida last weekend and one gained the most traction.

Under the most popular proposal, the tournament would stay as a 16-team field, but the first round would be a best-of-three series played at the venue of the higher seed.

The eight teams advancing to the quarterfinals would play at one of two super regional sites. The quarterfinals would be one-game shots with a trip to the Frozen Four on the line. The Frozen Four would not change.

The proposal would have to be approved by the NCAA and could not happen until the 2011-12 season at the earliest. Regional sites already have been scheduled for the upcoming season.[Grand Forks Herald]

Is Dustin Byfuglien goal celebration over the top?

This goal celebration by former Roseau native and current BlackHawks forward Dustin Byfuglien has cause quite the discussion over on KuklasKorner. Personally, I don't have a problem with his celebration, it might have crossed the line but I am fed up with all the whining that Canucks fans have done during the playoffs. What do you think? Did he cross the line? Does his celebration lack class?

Chay Genoway press conference

Here is the video and audio of the Chay Genoway's press conference that took place at 1:00 pm today. I have to say that I am very happy with his decision to come back and play another year at UND. UND Fighting Sioux hockey coach Dave Hakstol also had a press conference as well.

Krejci to Miss Remainder of Playoffs

Here is the official announcement that Bruins fans already feared. This is very devastating news for the Boston Bruins because David Krejci fills a lot of roles on the Boston Bruins and his presence will be missed in the line up. Either Trent Whitfield or Brad Marchand will attempt to fill Krejci’s spot in the line up.

BOSTON, MA – Boston Bruins General Manager Peter Chiarelli announced today that forward David Krejci will miss the remainder of the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs due to a dislocated right wrist. The injury occurred during the first period of the Bruins/Flyers game on Wednesday, May 5.

Krejci had surgery to repair the wrist at Union Memorial Hospital in Baltimore, MD following the game. The surgery was performed by Dr. Thomas Graham, Surgeon-in-Chief. Krejci is expected to return for the 2010-11 NHL preseason.

The 24-year-old Krejci tallied four goals and four assists in nine games this postseason, after recording 17 goals and 35 assists in 79 regular season games. He set career highs in goals and assists in 2008-09 with 22 goals and 51 assists, in addition to leading the NHL with a +36 rating. Krejci signed a three-year extension through the 2011-12 season on June 2, 2009.

Chay Genoway returning another season. Yeah!

Today Fighting Sioux fans every where are celebrating this morning's good news. I mean seriously this is really good news for the Fighting Sioux hockey team, because they get their all-American defenseman for another season. I would say that the return of Chay Genoway makes the UND Fighting Sioux hockey a much better puck moving team defensively. There is going to be a press conference at 13:00 hours today. This is one of the final pieces to the puzzle for the 2010-2011 season. I would believe that Chay Genoway is going to be one of the top candidates and possibly one of the front runners (top three) for the Hobey Baker Memorial Awards as well.

Grand Forks, ND --- Chay Genoway has decided to return to UND for his senior season with a medical redshirt that has recently been granted.

The free agent could have pursued free agent NHL offers, but for the second summer in a row, has decided to leave them on hold in order to play for the Sioux.

Genoway got off to a great start in 2009-10, scoring 10 points in the first nine games of the season, but suffered a concussion on an illegal hit from Aaron Marvin in mid-November. He never played again the rest of the season, bothered by post-concussion problems. [Grand Forks Herald]

Bruins Win, but…

I think the Boston Bruins were lucky tonight to get the win tonight, their goal tender stopped 34/35 shots and held them in the game when the Bruins were on their heels with the Flyers buzzing. Now with the loss the Flyers have no room for error what so ever, however they will not go quitely into the night, they will put up a big fight. I expect them to play with heart and I and I expect a very rough game on Friday night. Sure they Flyers can come back and win this series anything is possible, however, highly unlikely that they do. The injury to David Krejci if it ends up being true is devastating. Krejci is a great center that kills penalties and plays on the Power Play. The hit was clean and what can you do hockey is a physical game.

The B's may have to do so without defenseman Adam McQuaid and center David Krejci, the latter of whom, according to Claude Julien, was sent to a Philadelphia hospital for evaluation on an undisclosed injury he suffered just prior to the Bruins' second goal at 5:45 of the first period. Krejci assisted on the goal scored by Miroslav Satan.

A source told NESN.com that Krejci needed a wheelchair when he left the building, and John Boruk of CSN Philly tweeted that Krejci broke his wrist on the play, will have surgery in Baltimore and is out for the series and likely the season.

Krejci was carrying the puck through the neutral zone and was cleaned out by an open ice hit from Flyers captain Mike Richards. Krejci laid on the ice as the puck popped loose to Lucic, who then found a streaking Satan for the goal.

As Krejci finally made his way to the bench, he appeared to be favoring his shoulder area, but the actual injury is still unknown. After Julien announced that Krejci went to the hospital, there was rampant speculation in the press box that Krejci had suffered a concussion.

Julien noted that he felt it was a "clean hit" and had no problems with it [NESN.COM]

Bruins push the Flyers to the brink of elimination; Bruins lose David Krejci to injury

The Boston Bruins push the Philadelphia Flyers to the brink of elimination by beating the Goons Flyers 4-1 and lead the best of seven series 3-0. I think it's safe to assume that the Boston Bruins will probably win this series, they would have to lose four games in a row.



The win for the Bruins proved costly as they lost one of their top 6 forwards David Krejci to a possible upper body injury, it sounds like from the early reports that Krejci might have a suffered a separated shoulder. David Krejci was taken to the hospital for further evaluation. Joe Haggerty of CSNNE.com is reporting that it could be a seperated shoulder. That is not good news. [Video of the Richards hit on David Krejci] You can see that it's not a dirty hit at all. John Boruk from CSNFlyers is reporting that David Krejci with a broken wrist. Will have surgery in Baltimore. Out for series and likely season. That is horrible news.

Chances of a series win good

NOTES: The Philadelphia Flyers are 31-31 over all record in Game 3s. The Flyers have never come back to win a playoff series when trailing 0-2 and returning home to play Games 3 and 4. The Bruins are 16-0 all time when they lead a best-of-seven series 3 games to 0.

Blake Wheeler got his first career Stanley Cup play goal on the power play. Wheeler had been snake bit so far this spring.

Carcillo embellishment

Here is the video of the Dan Carcillo embellishment from game two that we have heard so much about, it's pretty obvious that Carcillo is a good actor, I am beginning to wonder if he didn’t take classes in drama. The series between the Boston Bruins and Philadelphia Flyers has been a hard fought series with quite a bit of banter back in forth in the media and on the blogs...

Standing Rock votes to table petitions on Fighting Sioux nickname

You have to wonder if the Standing Rock Tribal Council will ever have a vote on the issue, it's not looking good. I guess those 1,004 signatures don't mean a thing if the Standing Rock Tribal Council don't allow their members to have a vote.

Grand Forks Herald --- The Standing Rock Tribal Council decided again Tuesday to delay action on petitions that had been submitted by tribal supporters of UND’s Fighting Sioux nickname and logo.

The petitions, bearing 1,004 signatures — about half the number of people who voted in the last tribal election — ask that the council allow the people of Standing Rock to have a voice in determining whether the university may keep the 80-year-old nickname.

A spokeswoman in Chairman Charles Murphy’s office said the council “tabled” the issue as it organized the agenda for its scheduled two-day meeting, but she did not know whether council members intended to bring the matter up again later.

Archie Fool Bear, a leader of the petition drive, said the council didn’t formally table the petition but delayed action again “because the tribe did not receive official notice that the State Board (of Higher Education) had acted on the name.”

The vote was 6-6 on a motion to affirm the council’s April 6 decision not to discuss the nickname issue until the State Board “finalized” its decision to retire the nickname. Vice Chairman Mike Faith broke the tie, Fool Bear said.

Faith and other council members did not return calls Tuesday. Chairman Murphy was traveling because of a death in the family and did not participate in the meeting.

“I don’t know how much more quibbling we can have on this,” Fool Bear said. “I guess we’ll have to get a copy of the letter the board sent” to Kelley.

Paul Kelly interview with From the Rink...

This is a must read interview with some really interesting points affecting the landscape of NCAA Division one hockey. Funny thing the Big Ten Hockey Conference keeps coming up. Yawn!

FTR: You mentioned the choices between junior hockey and the NCAA. Following your initial debut and the first few interviews you've done, there's been a negative response from the CHL. They've used the words "unfairly targeting" to describe the things that College Hockey Inc. has said about the CHL.

Kelly: I don't think we're unfairly targeting anybody. We need to provide information to people so that they can make informed decisions. Many times we need to draw distinctions between the experience of playing NCAA hockey as opposed to playing junior hockey in Canada. In order to do that, you need to point out the pros and cons for both of us. If that's viewed as a negative by them, I would say that whatever statements we've made are backed up by solid evidence and facts. If we make a claim that some of the statements that they make and some of the information that they put forth on their website regarding their education packages are somewhat suspect, then players need to read the fine print. We've found many instances of players that have had difficulties of players obtaining their educational benefits. In fact, a vast majority of players that have played in the CHL have never tapped into those benefits - the rate of kids that never get an education, that never get a diploma is very high in the CHL. I think that it's important for players, whether they are from the United States or Canada to know these facts. I'm not saying that NCAA hockey doesn't have it's own bumps and bruises and issues, because it does, but I think it's fair for us to point out some of these things to players and their families. We're not doing it to be purposefully negative, that's not our intention at all. I've always said that the CHL may be the right course for some kids and I think that means that NCAA hockey and the juniors programs in Canada need to co-exist.

FTR: One piece of the Canadian program that does co-exist with the NCAA is the BCHL. So many kids come out of the BCHL and play NCAA hockey. As an Edmonton writer, one that sticks out for me is Riley Nash from Cornell. Are you going to work with the BCHL at all?

Kelly: There are a number of programs up there, the BCHL is one of them, the Albert Junior Hockey League is another, the Prince Edward Island League is another. I actually traveled out to British Columbia and spoke at the BCHL All Star banquet, attended the Owners and Board of Governors Meeting for the league and spoke very candidly with them about our support of what they're doing. The answer to your question is yes, the BCHL is doing a terrific job, they're producing some great players, they've put a great number of very talented kids into NCAA programs. We have every desire to see that continue.

FTR: There are so many kids coming out of California now that have to travel a long way if they want to play Division I hockey, and many of them choose to go to the WHL instead. Is California expansion of NCAA Division I hockey a priority?

Kelly: Frankly, the first college or university that decides to add Division I hockey in California will have just an absolute bounty in front of it. They will have their pick of some of the most talented kids in the country and they've got some great young kids coming up. If we could ever convince USC or UCLA or Stanford or California to add a program, they would have such an immediate impact. It's impossible in football or basketball to start a college program and think that you could have a team that could compete for the national championship any time soon. That's not the case in hockey. You could start a hockey program, get the right coach and bring in the right recruits and within a matter of three or four years, you could be challenging for the national title. I think that many of these big schools need to take a look at that and realize that many of the teams in Division I do so very successfully from an economic perspective. Most of the teams in the WCHA do very well. They fill their buildings, there is a lot of excitement, it attracts students, not just athletes, to the school. It's another activity that they can offer to the student body that brings excitement and enthusiasm. We've got three NHL teams in California and there is a hockey following out there, so I think it's a natural fit for one of those schools.

Personally, I don’t see college hockey being all that successful in the west past DU and C.C., just my humble opinion, while there is some youth hockey out west it’s definitely not as strong as strong as Minnesota, Massachusetts and Michigan, where would they get a majority of their recruits from?

One could make the argument that UAA and UFA have had very limited success and they have decent to very good high school hockey in Alaska. Unfortunately for both schools there has been an out migration of good home grown hockey players to the lower 48 states. These schools would be in direct competition the WHL and the WCHA for recruits. If the western schools could support hockey successfully wouldn't they attempted it already?

Mark Recchi on Daniel Carcillo

Here was an interview that Mark Recchi did for WEEI.COM and it can be found on the Big Bad Blog. Couple of interesting things that stuck out.

Is Daniel Carcillo funny? He never stops yapping.

He’s actually not funny at all. There’s nothing funny to his repertoire at all
----------
Savard really made a statement by taking those guys on. Are you beating the Flyers at their own game?

Well, that is our game, too. That is what makes us a factor. It is almost like people wake the sleeping giant. We get involved in these games, we seem to really get the emotion and are able to play a better hockey game. It is great that Savvy — he could have just laid down after he got hit but he is a competitive guy and he is showing that he is willing to stick up and is ready for this battle. And that is important. That is fine; we’ll kill those penalties and do the job for them.

Did you hear Mike Richards say that he was going to give Savard another concussion, and if so do you have a problem with it?

I didn’t hear it. I just actually heard about it for the first time last night, so that is just really in the competition unless he goes out and acts on it, then we have to look into it. But that is just part of the heat of the moment and a lot of things get said on the ice that really can’t get repeated half of the time.

Another CBC Hockey Montage

The best NHL Hockey Coverage on television.

Back by popular demand more Coach's Corner from CBC

May 1st Coach's Corner episode - Don Cherry on Daniel Carcillo's antics...

May 4th Coach's Corner espisode - More Don Cherry as he talks about Daniel Carillo again.

More on bite gate. (Carcillo and Savard)

This video is worth a look; more on bite gate. It's almost like a couple of children on the play ground having a spat. Apparently Flyers forward Mike Richards threatened Marc Savard on is way to the penalty box. Savard is denying the claim. This series is heating up.

Bruins center Marc Savard has denied a report that said Flyers captain Mike Richards threatened on Monday night to knock him you "for another six weeks."

"No he never said that to me," Savard told NESN.com's James Murphy at practice on Tuesday. "I don't know where that came from."

The original report said that Richards approached Savard as the B's pivot was making his way to the penalty box, saying: "You were out for six weeks? We'll put you out for another six weeks."

Though it appeared to be the latest chapter in the brewing distaste growing between the Flyers and Bruins, Savard has quieted the storm. At least until Wednesday night.
[NESN.COM]

Gary Bettman discusses the officiating; yada yada yada...

I am going to say Barbra Streisand on that one Gary. NHL commissioner Gary Bettman must think the NHL hockey fans are complete and utter morons. In reading various fan sites, media blogs and on line newspapers, it does appear to be a reoccurring theme.

I agree the officiating has been really poor in all of the series. There has been no consistency in the way that games are called in any of the games that I have watched this spring. The best officiating that I saw was game seven between the Canadians and the Capitals. I will also admit that I have seen my Boston Bruins be the benefit of some really poor calls.

The officials: Bettman was also asked about the officiating in the playoffs -- a sensitive topic judging from ESPN.com message boards -- and whether the games are being called differently in the postseason.

"It's not the case," Bettman said. "They haven't been given a different set of instructions. The game is played a little differently, and the officials have to react to that. And there are adjustments that go on in the course of a series that you don't see over the course of the regular season, two teams will play and play different teams the next night.

"The games now are probably a little more intense. ... But no, they're told to call it just the way they did [in the regular season]. I also think the scrutiny tends to be even a little greater and the passion involved in every call is probably greater because every call is important. Our goal is to have the officials get it right and overwhelmingly they do. Are they perfect? This is a game of mistakes. Coaches make mistakes, players make mistakes and, occasionally, even an official might." [ESPN.COM]