Who do we throw under the bus?!?

There has been a lot of discussion on who we should throw under the bus for this past weekend’s hiccup on defense… Face it our penalty kill and power play were not as good as they should be this past weekend and the UND Fighting Sioux gave up five goals on eleven Maverick power plays on the penalty kill this weekend, that's unacceptable.

The Fighting Sioux also gave up three shorthanded goals on the weekend which is also not very good and that needs to be fixed. It means the players are not taking care of their first responsibility, defense. Coming into the game the UNO Mavericks had not scored a shorthanded goal all season and they go away smiling by tripling their season total. The fact remains that hockey is a team sport and the blame should be squarely on "the Fighting Sioux Hockey Team and coaching staff" not on one player or two. I took the liberty of counting how many goals against each player had this past weekend. You're going to see some repeat names.

Sioux and Mavericks Game one

UNO 1 - 0 6x5 PP LL Joey Martin (6) (Rich Purslow, Eric Olimb) 11:43 NDK (-): Trupp 19 (1), Malone 22 (1), Genoway 5 (1), Blood 24 (1), Dell G32

UNO 2 - 0 5x6 SH Michael Young (1) (Matt Ambroz, Terry Broadhurst) 13:32 NDK (-): Trupp 19 (2), Malone 22 (2), Frattin 21 (1), Kristo 7 (1), Genoway 5 (2), Dell G32

UNO 3 - 1 6x5 PP Ryan Walters (7) (Bryce Aneloski, Johnnie Searfoss) 6:23 NDK: 24 Blood (2), Gregoire 17 (1), Knight 10 (1), Genoway 5 (3), Dell G32

UNO 4 - 1 6x4 PP Joey Martin (7) (Eric Olimb, Alex Hudson) 10:01 NDK: Gregiore 17 (2), MacWilliam 2 (1), Genoway 5 (4), Dell G32

UNO 5 - 1 6x5 PP EA GW Rich Purslow (7) (Eric Olimb, Joey Martin) 11:05 NDK (-): Ben Blood 24 (3), Chay Genoway 5 (5), Brad Malone 22 (3), Eidsness G31

UNO 6 - 1 6x4 PP Matt White (10) (Brock Montpetit, John Faulkner) 12:21 NDK (-): Trupp 19 (3), MacWilliam 2 (2), Genoway 5 (6), Eidsness G31

UNO 7 - 1 6x6 Brock Montpetit (6) (Michael Young, Zahn Raubenheimer) 14:06 NDK (-): Frattin 21 (2), Trupp 19 (4), Genoway 5 (7), Simpson 18 (1), Malone 22 (4), Eidness G31

UNO 8 - 4 6x6 HT Joey Martin (8) (Michael Young) 13:47 NDK (-): Blood 24 (4), Trupp 19 (5), Genoway 5 (8), Frattin 21 (3), Malone 22 (5), Eidsness G31

Sioux and Mavericks game two

UNO 1 - 0 5x6 SH Terry Broadhurst (7) (unassisted) 4:10 NDK (-): Frattin 21 (4), Trupp 19 (6), Genoway 5 (9), Hextall 26 (1), Malone 22 (6), Dell G32

UNO 2 - 3 5x6 SH Michael Young (2) (unassisted) 18:36 NDK (-): Trupp 19 (7), Frattin 21 (5), Genoway 5 (10), Malone 22 (7), Marto 25 (1), Dell G32

There Are Few Consequences to UND For Keeping Sioux Identity

There never was:

Three bills are coming up for legislative hearings to save the name but Harmeson says that the argument has been over inflated and the solution is simple “There is nothing and probably never will be anything in the NCAA Constitution about rousting a team for their mascot”.

Harmeson’s simple solution is to keep the name. He says that there will be some concessions that have to be made “During any NCAA-owned event the school could not make reference to the nickname and logo”...

Harmeson during a call to the Scott Hennen Show said that the decision to keep the name during home games is one that could be made by the administration “In a minute”.

Of course the University administration and the Board of Higher education are hostile to the Sioux name.

If you remember right the prior administration, of which Harmeson was an important member, was fighting to keep the name. The Hoeven appointed Board of Higher adminstration forced an awful settlement. The North Dakota Attorney General, Wayne Stenejhem said that there would be high level meetings including Hoeven and himself with tribal leadership to keep the name.

Those meetings NEVER happened because of the elitist attitude of the State's administration. They'd rather create a sense of hostility between the members of the Indian tribes and the people of the Grand Forks and Sioux fans.

When the Spirit Lake tribe said Hell yes we want UND to be known as the Sioux the Board of Higher Education made up an issue and said that they couldn't wait for the Standing Rock Tribe to have their say.

Their manufactured reason was that we needed to drop the name to get into the Summit league. Of course that wasn't an issue, it was just an excuse to drop the name supported by Tribal Members and UND Alumni 2 to 1.

We dropped our application to the Summit, it wasn't important.

This entire thing has been about hostility by the elites on the Board of Higher Education and the University Administration to the Tribal Members and the People of Grand Forks.

The Fighting Sioux name is worth saving. The jerks on the Higher Education Board and the University Administration should shut and start working for us rather than working against us.

Cross posted from SayAnythingBlog.com

Martin Hanzal's Goal (Redwing77)

Ok, here's another one for you hockey pundits.

I saw this goal live (on TV) and I was completely blown away with the call. So were the fans. So was the commentators... and so was LA GM Dean Lombardi, who blasted NHL Review official Mike Murphy. And Lombardi is paying $50,000 for doing so.

My Opinion

This is a NO GOAL. Every angle has the puck being hit when it was, at best, even with the crossbar. I can't find an angle where his stick wasn't above the crossbar until after the puck was headed to the net. And, no, I'm not trying to defend LA Kings defenseman and former UND stud Matt Greene (#2 pictured).

As for Lombardi, his comments were ridiculous! He stated, in effect, that the reason why Toronto (and Mike Murphy) didn't overrule the on ice officials was because Lombardi got the GM position instead of Murphy! That's dumb. However, complaining because it was a bad call was dumb, but justified. In other words, had Lombardi come out and said that Toronto made a bad call, and gotten fined for saying so, I'd be defending Lombardi. Saying what he said was just stupid.

The NHL, however, responded by saying, in effect, that the job of Toronto isn't to overrule the officials, but to get the call right. Well, that's nice, but I've never seen the on ice official get overruled to get the call wrong. The instant replay system is designed to ensure that, true enough, the correct call is made, but also to ensure that the officials are calling the reviewed play correctly. Whether or not the on ice official is overruled is irrelevant. If overruling the officials on every single replay in a game results in the right calls being made, then who the hell cares about the on ice officials?

Sioux 4 Mavericks 2

JOHN STENNES/GRAND FORKS HERALD

Tonight the Sioux and the Mavericks played in what I would consider a tight checking hockey game or a high stakes chess match and this time around the mentee beat the mentor. Going forward, this is the kind of games that were are going to see as we get closer to the WCHA and NCAA playoffs… Tonight the Fighting Sioux had all the right answers and starting the game with a parade to the penalty box in the first period the Sioux finally righted the ship, got down to business, the Sioux were better tonight controlling turnover and they got pucks deep.

What a difference a night makes

I think tonight’s game was a lot different than last night’s game, tonight the Fighting Sioux played with more discipline after the first period and they cut down on the turnovers in the neutral zone and beat the Mavericks at their game tonight. I felt like the Sioux were the better team all night and they got pucks deep, they cycled the puck and defenseman for the most part were more responsible clearing puck in front of their net.  

Sioux give up three short handed goals on the weekend

The Fighting Sioux did give up two more shorthanded goals tonight but it was more a case of bad bounces and great plays by talented players. Coming into the series this weekend the UNO Mavericks had not scored a shorthanded goal after the series was over they had three on the weekend. I don’t know what to make out of that other than the Fighting Sioux has to be more aware of the penalty killers that are pressuring the points, like I Mentioned last night the Mavericks play a high pressure game, they are on top of you all of the time and for the most part they don’t let up. On the power play the Fighting Sioux went 2/8 on the night and 3/17 on the power play for the weekend. Ironically the Sioux got more power plays than the Mavericks 17 to 11.

Sioux fans step off of the ledges; for now!!!

In the last 24 hours Sioux fans were a little surly after last night shellacking 8-4 at the hands of the UNO Mavericks, one might say that there was a lot of teeth gnashing on the message boards, chats and twitter. Some fans even suggested that they wanted the head coach of the Fighting Sioux be terminated because he hasn’t won a national title in his tenure. Yeah! Also, lets give credit where credit is due, the Mavericks are a legit team that is well coached. Like I had mentioned earlier the Mavericks play a high pressure game they are on top of you the minute the puck drops till the end of the game. The Mavericks defense is very active and they are always trying to counter attack, that makes them prone to the odd man rushes as we saw in tonight's game. There is no shame in losing to this team.

[Box Scores]

University of North Dakota Hockey Blog

USCHO

UND MEN'S HOCKEY: Sioux exact revenge, beat Omaha 4-2

UNO falls in third-period flurry

Goon’s three stars of the game
1.) Jason Gregoire (2g-1a-3pts)
2.) Evan Trupp (1g-0a-1pts)
3.) Corbin Knight (0g-2a-2pts)

The Sky is falling in Grand Forks, ND – Time to fire the coach?!?

Here is a better version of that song. [Bad Day]

In Blais we trust

Last night the UND Fighting Sioux hockey team played the UNO Mavericks which are coached by former UND Fighting Sioux Head Dean Blais. The Mavericks got the best of the Fighting Sioux in the first game of the series winning by an 8-4 score. This result of last night’s game has caused a chain reaction in Grand Forks, ND and around the Fighting Sioux hockey nation and today “some” Sioux fans want head hockey coach Dave Hakstol fired. Yeah I am serious!!!

It’s no mystery that Dean Blais is a “God like” figure in Grand Forks, ND and his record speaks for himself, Blais was responsible for bringing the UND hockey program out of the basement of the WCHA and back into national prominence winning national titles in 1997 and 2000. Blais is a great hockey coach in my opinion; I believe that Dean Blais will someday be in the USA Hockey Hall of Fame, based on his accomplishments as a player and a coach.

After winning a McNaughton Cup and then losing to Denver University in the 2004 West NCAA Regional Final, Dean Blais left the University of North Dakota and headed to the NHL to become an assistant coach for the Columbus Blue Jackets, after a couple of seasons in the NHL Dean Blais moved on to coach a first year USHL team the Fargo Force in 2008-2009. True to form, Blais took a first year team to the USHL finals where his team finished second in the USHL playoffs. After one season in the USHL, the University of Nebraska Omaha was looking for a top flight coach and made Fargo Force head coach Dean Blais an offer he couldn’t refuse, I read somewhere that the salary offered was somewhere in the 250,000.00 range so off to Omaha coach Blais went. True to form Coach Blais gided his Maverick team to a 20-16-6 record, after his first year in the CCHA and the Mavericks moved to the WCHA with the BSU Beavers and coach Blais has the UNO Mavericks playing well sitting in fourth place of the WCHA with a 13-8-2 record over all and a conference record of 10-5-2.

Hakstol era

When Blais left the University of North Dakota he gave UND Fighting Sioux assistant coach Dave Hakstol his personal endorsement, basically saying that the University doesn’t need to look outside for a new head coach because they already have his replacement on staff at UND.

During his tenure at UND Fighting Sioux head coach Dave Hakstol has racked up an impressive record of 172-91-26 and a conference record of 104-63-18. The Sioux under coach Hakstol have finished as the NCAA runner up (1X), third overall (3X) , (2x) Broadmoor trophies and (1X) McNaughton Cup. In his first four seasons coach Hakstol was very successful going to the Frozen Four each seasons, but falling short each year by never winning the National title, during that run Hakstol’s teams lost to once to Denver and three times to Boston College. So by most people’s standards that’s been a pretty good run for the Fighting Sioux but for the Debbie Downers "we didn’t win the big game." I always wonder what it's like to be an SCSU, MTU or UAA fan?

Fans with pitch forks and rakes to storm REA

So last night the Sioux took one on the chin and lost the game 8-4 to the UNO Mavericks lead by Dean Blais, the game was a night mare and everything that could have went wrong did, it was one of those games where one team has been doing well in the standings and was prime for the picking. Coach Blais’ team was all over UND and you could say that they beat the Sioux at their own game, the Mavericks played a high pressure game and sent two fore checkers in on the Sioux. This threw the Sioux off their game and the Sioux also had trouble getting the puck deep and fought turnovers all night long. The Sioux also had to kill off like three five on threes last night and that even further derailed the Sioux effort, the defense and both Sioux goalies looked like they were a bunch of orange road cones that were caught out of position all night long. The spelled disaster for the Fighting Sioux.

Over on the UND Hockey Blog and Sioux Sports some Sioux fans have been calling for the head of Dave Hakstol and would like to see him fired. Are you kidding me? The University of North Dakota is not going to fire Dave Hakstol unless he does something really stupid or criminal. Let's not bail on this team yet, it was one game and there is a lot of season left.

Dominic Moore's shootout goal... You make the call...

This the shootout goal that everyone is talking about today. It appears from watching video that the former Harvard Crimson and current Lightning forward Dominic Moore's shootout goal shouldn't have counted because it was scored on a rebound, this is against the NHL rules. It's incidents like this that make people cool to the shootout.

Sioux 4 Mavericks 8 Ouch!

JOHN STENNES/GRAND FORKS HERALD

What’s a blog post without a Friedrich Nietzsche Quote - That which does not kill us makes us stronger… Well, maybe not! I am sure right now Rival fans across the country are enjoying the fact that the Fighting Sioux lost tonight to the UNO Mavericks 8-4, however, it’s not the end of the world and there is no reason to get our pitch forks and rakes and march on Ralph Englestad Arena just yet. For the Sioux fans that are ready to call for Coach Hakstol's head the University of North Dakota is not going to fire coach Hakstol and the Sioux are still sitting pretty good with an 17-7-2 record. While this was the worst loss since the Sioux lost 10-1 to the Gophers on March 6th 1992 there will be better days and I think this team is something special.

I have been watching the replay of the game to see if it was as bad as it looked from the stands and unfortunately it was. Tonight was not a good game for the Fighting Sioux; in my opinion the Fighting Sioux got beat at their own game, they were out muscled and out hustled to the puck all night long. One might say that the Fighting Sioux were run out of their own building by a more motivated hockey team.

This was also a case of the Fighting Sioux not playing well for the last four games and it finally caught up with them causing them lay a steamy stinker on the ice tonight and there is no sugar coating it, they played like dog crap. I can think of a 1000 sports clichés to describe tonight’s game but the plain and simple explanation was that the Fighting Sioux came out flat and the Mavericks hammered them, it is what it is. The UNO Mavericks are a good hockey team and they are coached by a future hall of fame coach they had the right game plan tonight.

After the game during the post game radio interview with Tim Hennesy Fighting Sioux head coach Dave Hakstol took the blame for the loss but I think we can lay the blame at the players feet, coach Hakstol wasn’t out on the ice taking undisciplined penalties that cost the Sioux five power play goals on seven power play chances. Coach Hakstol said the same thing in this morning's paper.

We weren’t good and that starts with me,” UND coach Dave Hakstol said. “Bottom line. That’s where it starts. That’s where it ends.

“The difference in the game was that we weren’t ready to play tonight. I didn’t have the guys ready to play. Saw a few signs of it early in the week. We weren’t ready to play. We didn’t prepare well enough and you saw the results.”

It’s one loss and I am not ready to write off the season or call for the university to fire the head coach yet. It’s time for some perspective, the Fighting Sioux have a 17-7-2 record and have played the toughest schedule to date in NCAA hockey, and they didn’t rack up 17 wins playing the weak sisters of the poor or by beating non-conference cupcakes. I have also been reading the comments on the UND Athletics chat from earlier tonight and I must laugh, The Mavericks were the better of the two teams and they jumped on the loose pucks and capitalized on the turnovers and buried the Sioux on the power play going 5/7 tonight.

[Box Score]

USCHO

UND Hockey Blog

Fighting Sioux

Omaha.com

What does it take to be a ref? (by Sioux 7)

I think I'm going to write the wcha and/or und tomorrow and ask how I become a ref, since the ncaa is NOT in charge of reffing.

This is from the ncaa.com website:

http://www.ncaa.org/wps/portal/ncaahome?WCM_GLOBAL_CONTEXT=/ncaa/ncaa/sports+and+championship/ice+hockey/womens/playing+rules/officiating

Officials are selected, trained and assigned by conferences, institutions or local assigning authorities. The NCAA selects officials for championships only and does not certify officials. For more information, contact a conference office or institution in your area for the name of a local assigner.

I bet if I red more of the rule book tomorrow, I would be better educated than all the refs in the WCHA.

I'm not a lawyer but I have dealt with laws and legislation before. There is the "what the law reads" and how the "law is interpreted" and what the "spirit of the law" is. So, depending on how you decipher that quote from the ncaa, it can be red a couple of different ways.

I know it sounds like I'm complaining, and I am. But why did the league take the names off the refs and linesmens jersey's? Did they all enlist in the witness protection program. I know, what your thinking how can they be in that program, since it seems that they haven't witnessed anything :)

If the ncaa only selects officials for championships, why not get some pro's? You know like NHL refs or AHL refs or ECHL or why not USHL or even NAHL refs?

Also if the NCAA doesn't certify refs, shouldn't the institutions in a league have the right to assign/request officials for their games?

So who pays the refs? The ncaa, the league, the institutions, rich alumni, coaches, who?

If, I write an actual letter and not a email to UND about applying to be a ref, I wonder what would happen? (I have to send it certified mail, so they have to sign for it and can't deny that they didn't receive it.) Would they forward that to the WCHA office in Denver? Will they send me a job application. I think I will. I really want to see a wcha ref application.

Here is another angle, why doesn't each school have/select a ref and linesman? Then you can hold them responsible for their actions/calls. Think about it? For example say a UND ref is totally biased, in favor of the Sioux. After he screws a couple of teams all the other schools in the league can get together and get him thrown out. I don't think that is such a bad option. It can't be any worse than the what we have now.

Okay, I've said enough, time to get off my soap box.

Freezing your butt off in North Dakota - Sioux and Red Cows...

There has got to be a reason that we live up here in this God forsaken land, the weather is quite inhospitable and its not very much fun to be outside in it right now. Any thing that is exposed could probably turn into an ice sickle and getting frost bite is not very much fun, the fact that you can lose your fingers or toes because of it makes it less attractive.

With college hockey now in the second half of the season there are many good stories out there right now.

The Daily Gophers is wondering what is wrong with Minnesota Pansies on Ice...

As I had mentioned yesterday; It looks like C.C. Tigers forward Jaden Schwartz will not play against the Sioux next weekend.

The Fighting Sioux six game homestand ends with first-time visitor UNO coming to town with former UND head hockey coach Dean Blais at the wheel.

This weekend's games between the Sioux and the UNO Red Cows Mavericks will be broadcast live on the FSSN, the Midco Sports Network Channel 27 in Grand Forks, ND, Fox College Sports (FCS Central on Friday 617, FCS Atlantic on Saturday 623), WDAZ Channel 8 in Grand Forks, ND (Saturday only) and WDAY Channel 6 in Fargo (Saturday only). Friday's game will be re-broadcast on the NHL Network at 11 a.m. Central on Saturday, Channel 307 in Grand Forks, ND.

The WCHA blog predicts that UND will split with the UNO Red Cows Mavericks this weekend. I disagree with him I think UND wins tonight 4-2 and Ties tomorrow night 3-3.

The MGOBLOG has an interesting post about the Big Ten Hockey Farce and what a schedule might actually look like. I highly doubt you would see a 24 game conference schedule that would mean a lot of games between very few teams. I hate to think what that would do for the RPI/PWR. I could imagine a twenty game conference schedule. I find the comments by the people that commented on the article to be interesting as well.

Over on the Sioux Sports blog Dave Berger has this weekend UND and UNO series review. Dave predicts a three point weekend for the Fighting Sioux...

The CCHA has suspended LSSU head hockey coach Jim Roque for one game.

Ryan Cardinal from Gopher Puck Live was on KFAN on Thursday and you can listen to what he has to say about “Minnesota’s Pansies on Ice”… Cardinal is expecting a sweep against the big slow lumbering team from UAA.

As I mentioned on Twitter this morning, I will be on 1310 KNOX A.M. in Grand Forks, ND during the 4:00 PM hour with R.J. Richards and yeah I do have a face for radio… You can click on this link if you want to listen.

As usual U.S. College Hockey Online makes their weekly predictions and according to Theresa and Tyler they expect the Sioux to sweep this weekend.

Brian Sullivan from the EZAC blog has another entertaining article about how the ECAC is no longer the EZAC. You can put a tuxedo on a goat, but it’s still a goat.

Flames Curtis Glencross gets slap on the wrist for boarding Wild’s Clayton Stoner

Former UAA Seawolves forward Curtis Glencross gets off with a very light slap on the wrist, the fine of 2,500 dollars has “no teeth” to it what-so-ever, in fact I think this ruling is an utter joke especially for Curtis Glencross. Seriously, I have nothing against the player but Glencross makes something like 1.2 million dollars so that is a drop in the bucket for him.

I also think it’s funny that now we are blaming the player that was checked into the end boards, give me a break. I think this latest ruling is a joke, especially if the NHL wants to get serious about player safety. I think a one or two game suspension would have been more appropriate since Curtis Glencross is a repeat offender.

Toronto Sun --- Curtis Glencross won’t have to take a league-mandated seat in the pressbox.

But his next paycheque will be a few bucks light.

The Calgary Flames speedster escaped a suspension for the second time this season when he was fined $2,500 Thursday for a boarding major in Wednesday’s 6-0 loss to the Minnesota Wild.

A day after blasting Minnesota Wild defenceman Clayton Stoner, Glencross said he wasn’t expecting a call from league disciplinarian Collin Campbell before the fine was announced.

“I would have got a call already,” Glencross said after Thursday’s practice when asked if he was expecting to hear from the NHL’s head office.

Replays confirm the winger’s assertion that Stoner stopped short of the boards, which was at least partly responsible for causing the dangerous incident.

Weekend Match-Ups (by Sioux 7)

Here we are now officially past the half-way mark of the season. Everyone has played 14 or more league games. Looking at the standings this week it looks like everyone still has a chance to get home ice, except MTU. Sorry Tech fans, to get home ice it looks like you’d need to have a five-hundred. And for MTU that would entail them to win out the rest of their schedule, not likely. The UNO Mavericks need to get some points this weekend, if they want to stay in the hunt for a WCHA title and not fall back into the “middle of the pack”.


WCHA standings

TEAM……………...W-L-T...Pts
1. North Dakota………12-4-0…24
2. Denver……………...10-3-3…23
2. Minnesota-Duluth....10-4-2…22
4. Nebraska-Omaha….9-5-2…20
5. Colorado College…..8-8-0…16
6. Minnesota…………..7-7-2…16
6. Wisconsin…………..7-7-2…16
8. Alaska-Anchorage...6-8-2…14
9. Bemidji State……….5-9-2…12
10. St. Cloud State….....5-8-1…11
10. Minnesota State…...4-9-3…11
12. Michigan Tech……..1-12-1…3


WCHA
Alaska Anchorage @ #4 DenverLast weekend the Seawolves swept the CC Tigers in Anchorage and the Pioneers took 3-points from the Mavericks in Mankato.

These two played back in December with the Pioneers taking three points that weekend in Anchorage. The Seawolves long Christmas break seems to have paid off by getting a sweep of CC last weekend (UAA’s last home WCHA sweep was on Nov 16-17, 2007 vs UND). Now all UAA has to do is keep that momentum going into Denver. The Pioneers are on a six game unbeaten streak going 3-0-3 (with a win & tie versus UAA) and have just one loss in their last 14 (10-1-3). Both the Pioneers games last weekend went into overtime. I have a feeling DU is due to drop a game and this weekend might be it. SPLIT


St. Cloud St. @ Bemidji StateLast weekend the Huskies were enjoying a bye week, meanwhile the Beavers took 3-points from the UNO Mavericks in Omaha.

The Huskies hosted the Beavers earlier this season in St. Cloud and the Huskies took 3-points from them on the weekend. Now the Beavers look to return the favor in Bemidji this weekend. These two are currently separated by one point in the standings with BSU in the lead, but the Huskies have two games in hand. The Huskies need to start some type of second half run, if they want to try and salvage their season. The Beavers are in the midst of a good run going 4-1-1 in their last six and the Huskies are on a 4 game winning streak. SPLIT


#16 Nebraska-Omaha @ #2 North DakotaLast weekend the Mavericks tied and lost to the BSU Beavers in Omaha and the Sioux split with the Golden Gophers in Grand Forks.

The Mavericks are 5-6-1 away from home this season, while the Sioux are 8-3-1 in Grand Forks. When these two teams meet back in November in Omaha each team won a game, UND 6-5 and UNO 1-0. This weekend will mark the return of Dean Blais to The Ralph, I think it is safe to say, he will get a big warm cheer from the crowd, when they announce his name on Friday night. The Sioux can turn the WCHA into a three team race this weekend if they sweep the visiting Mavericks. On the flip side, the Mavericks need points to stay in the title race and home ice. UNO has been on a bit of a skid as of late, and playing at The Ralph is not an easy task and can be intimidating, especially the first time (UNO has never played in Grand Forks). I’m going to go with the Sioux this weekend again. SIOUX SWEEP


Minnesota State @ #9 WisconsinLast weekend the Mavericks tied and lost to the Pioneers in two overtime games in Mankato and the Badgers split with the Bulldogs in Duluth.

The Mavericks had their five game unbeaten streak snapped on Saturday. The Badgers continue to be hot as well going 8-1-0 over their last nine games. If the Badgers can get a sweep this weekend it will keep them in the driver’s seat for getting home ice. If the Mavericks get a sweep it would put them in the thick of the hunt of home ice. However, the Mavericks have not been a great road team this season going 3-5-2 to this point and the Badgers are 11-4-1 at the Kohl Center. I’m going to go with the Badgers in these tilts. BADGERS SWEEP


#5 Minnesota-Duluth @ Michigan Tech Last weekend the Bulldogs split with the Badgers in Duluth and the Huskies tied and lost to St. Lawrence in Houghton.

When you look at the numbers on paper this shouldn’t be much of a series. It looks like the Bulldogs should beat the Huskies up and down Michigan’s peninsulas. The Huskies last win came back on Friday October 15th against the MSUM Mavericks in Houghton (that is over 3 months ago!). I’m going to say that the hockey god’s will bless the Huskies with some “puck luck” this weekend. SPLIT

NON-CONFERENCE

Alabama-Huntsville (3-21-2 overall) @ Colorado CollegeLast weekend the Chargers were sweep by Merrimack (Hockey East) in Huntsville and the Tigers were swept by the Seawolves in Anchorage.

The Tigers have stumbled the month or so going a dismal 1-4-0. But, the Chargers are an awful road team, going 0-10-2 on the road. I think the Tigers will be mauling the Chargers this weekend. TIGERS SWEEP

BYE WeekUniversity of Minnesota – Golden Gophers

Thursday’s freezing North Dakota addition.

Omaha.com Photo

Sioux fans if you don’t have your passport yet I recommend going down to the post office and getting one. Next winter UND is going to play UNO in men's hockey in the MTS Center in Winnipeg: Sioux to play game in Winnipeg...

There is a nice article in the Omaha.Com about Ralph Englestad Arena. Engelstad Arena home to big crowds, big wins.

There are some interesting points from Goal Gophers, apparently the Minnesota Golden Gophers are going to have an outdoor game at the Gopher Football Stadium. [Goals Gophers]

Apparently C.C. Tigers freshman forward Jaden Schwartz is close to returning to the lineup soon.

The “Weekly Rankings” are up on the College Hockey Blog…

Bemidji State University is on a roll right now and they are playing some great hockey. According to the BSU beat writer, the Beavers have an impressive 7-3-1 record for the last 11 games, that's a 4-1-1 record since for the start of the second half of the season. According to the KRACH BSU has played the 5th hardest schedule to date..

The Wisconsin Hockey Blog has their version of “Bracketology” up and I like where they have the Fighting Sioux going… I would love to see the Sioux in Green Bay Wisconsin because it’s closer to home than Bridge Port or Manchester.

Curtis Glencross boards Clayton Stoner

Last night during the Wild and Flames game, former UAA Seawolves forward Curtis Glencross boarded Wild defenseman Clayton Stoner into the end boards with this hit and for his effort Glencross will likely be the next victim of the Colin Campbell “Wheel of Justice.” Glencross was given a five minute major on the call but not given a game misconduct.

PK Subban overtime winner

I am going to preface this with I am a Bruins fans and the Habs are as disgusting to me as the Minnesota Gophers, so excuse me for not being amused with P.K. Subban antics. While I do think P.K. Subban is an exciting young talent, what do you think Gordy Howe would have done to him if has celebrated like that in front of him? This is one thing I hate about hockey; there are players that celebrate like they have won the Stanley Cup on every goal. Act like you have been there before. Was P.K. Subban’s sniper gun celebration over the top?

TSN.com --- "I scored the goal, I did a celebration," said the 21-year-old rookie who has taken some heat for being cocky this season. "I wish I had just put my stick up, but that's something I've always dreamed of -- scoring the winner in overtime.

"It was a great moment, but the important thing is we got the two points."

It didn't bother the Flames, who not only erased a 4-0 Montreal lead but got an important point while playing their third game in four nights on the road. Calgary, trying to battle back into playoff position in the Western Conference, went 2-0-2 on a four-game road trip and have at least one point in five straight games.

Bob Kurtz the voice of the Wild...

Here is the radio voice of the Minnesota Wild Bob Kurtz as he does a number on the NHL refs during Peckham and Havlat incident in last night game that led to Oilers “hack” Zach Stortini fighting Wild Defenseman Brent Burns

They said what?

Check this out, this is from Roman’s blog on Goal Gophers.

THE DON ON RADIO

Tuned in on Monday evening to hear coach Don Lucia on his weekly radio show. Trouble was, there was not a program this week. He was on KFAN on Tuesday morning for a while. Some highlights:

* On recruiting: He drove 1,000 miles the past couple days recruiting. He still wants to recruit the high-end talend but believes the one-and-done players probably hurt you more than they help. He said he is trying to get a blend, including players who will stay four years.

* On Friday's 3-2 victory: "We answered the ball physically. ... Even on Saturday it was a one-goal game in the third period."

* On unbalanced schedule: Nine of the past 11 games against North Dakota have been at the Ralph in Grand Forks. Partly explaining that is three-game first-round playoff series there last March.

* On special teams: He is not worried so much about the Gophers' power play even though it was 0-for-6 on Saturday. The penalty kill is the biggest area which needs fixing. North Dakota only scored two five-on-five goals.

* On a bye week so soon after the holiday break: Ideally the Gophers would have had their next bye week in early February.

* On skating legs of Erik Haula and Nick Bjugstad, freshmen forwards who played in the World Juniors: Their legs are fine.

Blasier not expecting any love this weekend.

I think I can speak for quite a few of us, that former Fighting Sioux hockey coach Dean Blais will always be loved in Grand Forks, ND. Personally, I had tears in my eyes when I found out he was leaving UND for the NHL. I think that I will always have a soft spot for the Dean Blais, he is a future hall of fame coach that can get the most out of his players. Blais brought UND back to greatness 1990’s after UND had hit rock bottom, winning NCAA titles in 1997 and 2000.

Omaha.com --- 1:50 p.m., Tuesday: Former Sioux coach Dean Blais already knows what it feels like to work from the visiting team's bench at North Dakota's Engelstad Arena.

Blais last winter led his U.S. National junior team to a 4-2 win over the Sioux. The crowd of 10,000-plus in Grand Forks was happy to have Blais back on UND's campus, and there was no chance they'd act hostile toward a team representing the USA.

But that was only an exhibition, and it didn't count a lick toward North Dakota's WCHA and NCAA championship hopes. Blais even had one of the Sioux's own -- Danny Kristo -- skating for him in a Team USA sweater.

Blais remains a revered figure at UND, but he fully expects all that good will to go out the window this weekend. For the first time since he left the Sioux in 2004, Blais will go back to Grand Forks as the coach of another college team.

"I left the University of North Dakota on great terms, going to work in the National Hockey League," Blais said Tuesday prior to the Mavs' practice. "And obviously last year, coaching for my country, that's a compliment for what we accomplished at North Dakota, too.

"But now, coming back to Grand Forks as UNO's coach -- trying to take away their points and beat their Fighting Sioux -- there's going to be no love for me up there at all."

Andrew Brunette's slick goal

This is an awesome goal by Andrew Brunette...

Tuesday morning links – freezing in the north country.

Apparently Omaha.com writer Chad Purcell didn't get the memo from the "East Coast" hockey pundits because he too thinks UND is the best team in the NCAA. How dare he even suggest that; this is utter blasphemy!!! [Omaha.com]

UNO freshman is a quick learner [Omaha.com]

There will be a lot on the line this weekend when the Fighting Sioux play the UNO Mavericks. NCAA hopes on the line for Mavs [Omaha.com]

According to the Goal Gophers playing a physical brand of hockey is considered by some to be intimidation hockey down in the land of 10,000 excuses. [Goal Gophers]

Apparently, the Lansing State Journal didn’t get the memo on Yale either... [lansingstatejournal.com] I have asked the same questions as well...

But here's the big question being asked around college hockey - by fans and media publicly and coaches and players privately: "Is Yale really the best team?"

Most everyone admits the Bulldogs are good, talented and the best in their league. But the question often asked is, "What would their record be if they played in a more competitive conference?"

The Little Caesars North American Showcase is taking place at the REA on Jan 20 - Jan 23 admission is free. [Click for details]

Apparently, Merrimack College sophomore Stephane Da Costa is going to be a hot ticket on the free agent market this year after M.C. is eliminated from the NCAA hockey tourney. [CBC.CA]

Oshie Set to Return This Week?

According to Andy Strickland of True hockey and Hockey Buzz former Fighting Sioux hockey player T.J. Oshie is set to return to the St Louis Blue line up sometime in the very near future.

TrueHockey.com --- Monday was a significant day for Blues forward T.J. Oshie who could return from ankle surgery as early as Tuesday when the Los Angeles Kings visit St. Louis.

For the first time since beginning the on-ice portion of his rehab, Oshie participated in contact drills as he begins to put his surgically repaired ankle to the test. Prior to Monday’s practice Oshie told his teammates he didn’t want them to hold back as he was looking to push it.

After practice Oshie looked good and there is a chance he suits up Tuesday night. How big of a chance remains to be seen as a lot of that will depend on how his ankle feels Tuesday morning. Obviously if he’s experiencing any soreness the team will hold him back.

It appears the safer play would be to sit out against the Kings but no one is willing to rule anything out at this point. If Oshie is not in the lineup on Tuesday, it looks like Thursday against Detroit is looking pretty good.


Oshie originally broke his ankle November 10th in Columbus.