NHL responsible for NCAA exodus

Here is an interesting article that came out today. It blames the NHL for the latest rash of early departures from the NCAA Division I hockey.

Toronto Sun - It's been a tough off-season for NCAA hockey teams and the NHL is responsible for most of the pain.

Although it's really nothing new, the exodus of players from American colleges to the pro or junior ranks seems to be more pronounced this year.

The trend continued Tuesday when Montreal Canadiens' first-round pick Jarred Tinordi bailed on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish to join the London Knights of the Ontario Hockey League. Tinordi hasn't signed with the Habs but jumping to the Knights allows him to attend training camp in Montreal, something that wouldn't have happened if he stuck with Notre Dame.

But Tinordi, the son of former NHLer Mark Tinordi, isn't even the only Canadiens prospect to walk away from school in the last month or so.

Louis Leblanc, the Habs' first-rounder from 2009, was forced to leave the Harvard Crimson after one season when he signed an entry-level contract with the Canadiens. He's eligible to play in the American Hockey League but instead joined the Montreal Junior of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.

Forward Jerry D'Amigo officially ended his short career with Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute when he signed Wednesday. D'Amigo spent just one season at RPI, racking up 34 points (10 goals, 24 assists) in 35 games.

In the last couple of weeks, first-rounder Kyle Palmieri has skated away from Notre Dame after agreeing to a contract with the Anaheim Ducks and Nick Leddy signed with the Chicago Blackhawks, leaving Minnesota in the process. Palmieri will start the season in the AHL and there's a good chance D'Amigo will wind up with the Marlies, although the Guelph Storm and Kitchener Rangers have their fingers crossed that the two U.S. junior teammates get sent to junior at some point.

Major junior teams gave the NCAA a couple of kicks of their own, though, snatching away some top-end talent at the last minute.

Lucas Lessio, playing with the Canadian under-18 team at the Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament, didn't live up to the verbal commitment he made to join Michigan in 2011 and opted instead to sign with the OHL's Oshawa Generals. Julian Melchiori did the same when he joined the Kitchener Rangers recently instead of heading to Massachusetts-Lowell for his freshman season.

Since April 1, 17 players gave up NCAA eligibility to sign with NHL teams, according to figures compiled by insidecollegehockey.com. Factor in the others, like Tinord, Lessio and Melchiori, all of whom never even showed up on campus, and you can see how hard the U.S. schools have been hit.

It's not unusual for players to leave college early, though. Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews, Blues defenceman Erik Johnson, Kings blueliner Jack Johnson, Oilers forward Andrew Cogliano and Canucks forward Mason Raymond all dropped out in 2007 to work in the NHL

Another day another college recruit to the OHL

It has been a bad summer for college hockey as another player defected to the OHL/CHL. Jarred Tinordi has decided he is not going to play college hockey for Notre Dame and is going to go to the London Knights of the OHL instead.

TSN.CA ---- ontreal Canadiens first-round pick Jarred Tinordi is taking the more common route to the National Hockey League.

The London Free Press reports that the 18-year-old defenceman has chosen to play with the London Knights of the Ontario Hockey League next season, instead of joining Notre Dame.

With the move to the OHL, Tinordi will play a longer schedule and can attend the Canadiens' training camps. College players are not allowed to go to camps until they have left school and signed with their NHL team.

Tinordi, the son of former NHL blueliner Mark Tinordi, was taken 22nd overall by the Canadiens in June. The 18-year old was the captain of the U-18 U.S. National Development team last season.

D'Amigo Signs With Maple Leafs

Here is the official announcement on RPI star Jerry D'Amigo, in my opinion he was one of the better freshman in college hockey last season but everything that I have read on the kid leads me to believe that he wasn't/isn't going to play in the NHL this season so his signing does puzzle some.

NHL.COM --- Brian Burke, president and general manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs, announced Wednesday that the club has agreed to terms on a three-year entry level contract with forward Jerry D’Amigo (pronounced dah-MEE-goh).

“We’ve been very pleased with Jerry’s progression over the past 12 months,” said Burke. “Seth Appert and the rest of the coaching staff at R.P.I. (Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute) have done a really nice job of preparing Jerry for the next stage in his development. We look forward to having him at training camp.”

D’Amigo, 19, appeared in 35 games with the R.P.I. Engineers of the ECAC last season, recording 34 points (10 goals, 24 assists) and 41 penalty minutes. The 5-11, 208-pound winger ranked fifth nationally in points per game by a rookie (0.97), led R.P.I. in game-winning goals (3), and finished second in shorthanded goals (1). For his efforts, D’Amigo was selected to the ECAC All-Rookie Team and he was named ECAC Hockey’s Rookie of the Year.

The native of Binghamton, New York, represented the United States at the 2010 World Junior Championship in Saskatchewan. D’Amigo finished tied for third in tournament scoring with 12 points (6 goals, 6 assists) in seven games to help lead Team USA to a gold medal.

Penn State is good enough for the CCHA but UAH isn't

When I read this bravo sierra it makes my blood boil that the CCHA will let an established team like UAH twist in the wind but will extend an invitation to a team that doesn't even have a program yet. Hey Anastos; how can Penn State who doesn't an arena or an existing program be an attractive choice to the CCHA?

When Central Collegiate Hockey Association officials gather next week in Dearborn for annual meetings, they are expected to discuss the possibility of adding a 12th team to the league.

The target: Penn State.

"They are a very attractive choice -- very attractive," CCHA commissioner Tom Anastos told The Detroit News on Tuesday. "They're in a different market than we're in, more and more U.S. players are on college rosters, and there's tremendous growth of the sport in Pennsylvania."


The CCHA includes Michigan, Michigan State, Ferris State, Lake Superior, Northern Michigan and Western Michigan.

Anastos confirmed Tuesday the CCHA's interest in Penn State less than a week after the Altoona (Pa.) Mirror reported that the school is on the verge of making men's and women's hockey Division I programs. The newspaper attributed the information to a source.

Men's and women's hockey currently are club teams at Penn State.

Anastos said there is no timeline for extending an invitation to Penn State, but confirmed he has exchanged e-mails with Penn State president Graham Spanier on the topic. Anastos also said Penn State officials recently toured hockey facilities at CCHA member schools.

"Obviously there's some interesting dynamics," Anastos said. "Certainly there's some commonality."

Attempts Tuesday to reach Penn State athletic director Tim Curley were unsuccessful. Members of the school's board of trustees have not discussed the issue publicly in meetings. The trustees' next meeting is Sept. 16. [From The Detroit News]

This kind of stuff pisses me off, it's the CCHA commissioner acting like an elitist snob again. So lets make sure that I get this right; UAH not good enough, Penn State no existing program; but Penn State is good enough and an attractive option. I think college hockey owes it to UAH to find a home for the Chargers if an existing league is going to snub a team that needs a home for a team that isn't even on line yet.

Bruins: Marc Savard deal investigated like Ilya Kovalchuk’s

With an arbitrator voiding Ilya Kovalchuk's contract Monday, it looks like pandora box has been opened. You have to wonder if Marian Hossa's deal is going to be looked at as well.

BOSTON — The Boston Bruins [team stats] say they’re cooperating with the NHL in its investigation of Marc Savard’s contract.

The league is looking into Savard’s contract after voiding one with a similar structure that went to Ilya Kovalchuk. The Devils had agreed to pay Kovalchuk $102 million over 17 years, with much of the money coming upfront. An arbitrator agreed that was meant to circumvent the salary cap.

Kovalchuk is back on the free agent market. It’s not clear what would happen if the league determines there’s a problem with the extension Savard signed last year. It pays him $28 million over seven years, with about $1 million of it in the last two years.

The league registered Savard’s contract in December but told the Bruins it would investigate. Boston general manager Peter Chiarelli says he met with league lawyers last week.

Report: D'Amigo leaving RPI

This would be a big loss for Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Jerry D'Amigo was a beast during the WJC and one of the best freshmen in the ECAC. This is just another early departure and a big time loss for RPI and college hockey. According to Yahoo Sports D'Amigo could end up playing in the AHL for the Toronto Marlies or in the OHL with the Kitchener Rangers.

Yahoo! Sports is reporting that RPI forward Jerry D'Amigo will be signing a contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs, possibly as early as Wednesday.

D'Amigo, a native of Binghamton, was a sixth-round pick in last year's NHL draft by the Leafs. If he signs, the Leafs could assign him to their AHL affiliate, the Toronto Marlies, or he could play for the Ontario Hockey League's Kitchener Rangers, who hold his junior hockey rights.

He was the ECAC Hockey Rookie of the Year last season. [Parting Schotts]

Links to the Story

Adios D'Amigo: Leafs To Sign Prospect Jerry D'Amigo, Leaves RPI [Bleacher Report]

Leafs may sign U.S. junior star D’Amigo [TheRecord.com]

RPI's D'Amigo leaving RPI [Union Hockey Blog]

Just talked to . . . Jerry D'Amigo [Rangers Rap]

Andrew Ladd with the Stanley Cup

Check out this picture.

Kovalchuk a free agent after arbitrator ruling

The Kovalchuck drama continues after the arbitrator Richard Bloch ruled in favor of the NHL. It will be interesting to see how long this drama plays out and where Kovy ends up.

NHL.COM ---
Ilya Kovalchuk is once again an unrestricted free agent as systems arbitrator Richard Bloch has determined the NHL was within its legal right to reject the 17-year, $102 million contract Kovalchuk signed with the New Jersey Devils in July.

Bloch heard arguments from both the NHL and the NHL Players' Association, which filed a grievance on Kovalchuk's behalf, over two days in Boston last week. His decision came late Monday afternoon. As a result of Bloch's ruling, Kovalchuk immediately returns to unrestricted free agent status.

Upon announcing the contract was rejected, NHL Deputy Commissioner said the League would not approve it because it was a "circumvention of the Collective Bargaining Agreement."

The Devils can choose to re-work the contract in hopes of getting it approved, or Kovalchuk could look elsewhere.

Red Wings say Chris Chelios is going to work for the team

Chris Chelios finally decided to hang up his skates, think about this, Chelios played professional hockey well into his 40's, he played 7 games with the Atlanta Thrasher at age 48. That is impressive in my book, most guys that age are lucky to keep up in an old timers league game at the local rink.

DETROIT - Red Wings general manager Ken Holland says Chris Chelios is going to work for the team.

Holland said Saturday night that Chelios' new job doesn't have a title yet and his specific responsibilities haven't been determined.

The 48-year-old Chelios played for the Atlanta Thrashers last season. The defenseman helped Detroit and Montreal win the Stanley Cup, won the Norris Trophy three times as the NHL's top defenseman, and was an 11-time All-Star.

Leblanc's major-junior jump

First off I was surprised when I read that Louis Leblanc was going to play for Harvard last season. This kid has QMJHL written all over him.

Last summer, I was having a casual conversation with a high-ranking official within the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League when the subject of Louis Leblanc came up.

The Canadiens had recently selected Leblanc in the first round (18th overall) of the 2009 National Hockey League entry draft. The 6-foot, 178-pound centre from Pointe Claire had already announced he was headed for Harvard University to play NCAA hockey.

The QMJHL official, although obviously somewhat biased, thought Leblanc was making a mistake by not playing major-junior hockey.

"If the kid was going to go to Harvard for four years and get his degree, I'd say, great, go for it," he said. "But he's not. He's probably only going to play two years and then sign a pro contract and leave."

He added that by taking the NCAA route, Leblanc would jeopardize his chances of making Team Canada for the world junior championship, explaining that by the time the selection camp was held in December, Leblanc would only have played about 10 games with Harvard, while major-junior players would have played more than 30.

He also said that as a French-speaking first-round pick of the Canadiens there was no doubt the club would sign Leblanc to a contract. He added that if his hockey career didn't work out, Leblanc is a smart enough kid to get accepted into just about any university and would have the money to pay for a Harvard education once he hangs up his skates.

Basically, his thinking was that Leblanc's No. 1 priority right now should be hockey.

I was thinking about that conversation last weekend when Leblanc announced he was leaving Harvard after only one year, signing a three-year entry-level contract with the Canadiens that reportedly could be worth as much as $3.6 million U.S.

Leblanc played 31 games with Harvard last season, posting 11-12-23 totals, and failed to make Team Canada.

Leblanc will play this season with the QMJHL's Montreal Juniors and the spotlight will be shining very brightly on him. The Juniors will hold a press conference with Leblanc on Tuesday at a Crescent St. restaurant, which you can be sure will result in a media circus.[Read the whole story]

First off I want to preface this with I am not anti-CHL like some of my fellow college hockey bloggers are, personally I see the benefits of both leagues and the NCAA can’t expect to win over all of the blue chip American players. I also don't think it's productive and to constantly stoke the flames of discontent when it comes to the NCAA vs the CHL doesn't solve anything and you’re never going to change anyone’s mind anyways.

I never understood why this kid didn’t make team Canada during last years WJC as well. Leblanc is definitely the real deal. Also, former Fighting Sioux hockey player Jonathan Toews as well as a few other Canadian NCAA hockey players had managed to make the team Canada WJC roster while playing College Hockey in the USA. The question out there is who pressured Luis Leblanc to leave Harvard and sign with the QMJHL? Did someone convince him he wouldn’t be making the Canadian WJC if had stayed at Harvard?

UAA Seawolves sign David Hale's former dance partner.

I know it's a little late but I thought I might post this anyways. The UAA Seawolves signed former MSU Mankato forward Ryan McKelvie. Sioux fans will probably remember him more for his fight with former Sioux defenseman David Hale. The Sioux were down in the game and the fight between Hale and McKelvie rallied the Sioux players and helped them turned the game around, the Sioux went on to score 4 of the next 5 goals and rallied salvage a tie for the game.

UAA's announcement regarding McKelvie's hiring appears here.

A three-year captain for the Mavericks, the red-headed McKelvie was a hard-working, gritty performer who played both ends of the rink. And for those who have seen most of MSU's games the last couple of decades, it would be hard to disagree that his dust-up with North Dakota defenseman David Hale during the 2002-03 season was one of the best college tussles during that time.[Mav Blog]

I can imagine Ryan McKelvie who was known for his tough play more than his goal scoring will be a good addition to the Seawolves hockey club. UAA is a tough team to play against because they are big and get in the passing and shooting lanes and play more of a defensive style of hockey and I am sure his addition will only help. McKelvie was also an assistant coach at Bemidji State University.

Darby Hendrickson has options.

Check this out this little nugget that I found it over on Michael Russo's blog, it looks like former Minnesota Wild and Minnesota Gopher hockey player Darby Hendrickson could be doing color for Gopher hockey this winter on FSN if he wants the job. Interesting!

Russo note: If it’s the coach, I believe the vision is for this person to basically be around home practices and games. I think former Wild center Darby Hendrickson is the guy Richards really wants. But Hendrickson makes good money as a Northwest Division rep for the NHLPA and I'm told by multiple sources that he's been offered the Gophers' color job from Fox Sports North. Plus, he works for FSN as a Wild analyst. So Hendrickson has a lot of options to weigh through. But I'm sure Hendrickson would be very intrigued by a unique coaching opportunity with his hometown Wild. So we'll see where this goes with time.

While I like the job Doug Woog did with FSN, face it he was one of the faces of the Golden Gophers hockey, I do think it was his time to move on. I also think Hendrickson is a likable hockey personality and he probably won't be an in your face color guy but more of an analyst that explains the game to you. That being said, Hendrickson will always be one of them a Golden Gopher, one of the hated golden Rodents...

Sioux Hockey is king in ND... Can we all just get along?

I was bored so I thought I would add a few observations of my own. Being a UND fan in Football and Hockey, I do miss the old days of bantering back and forth with Bison fans before the Sioux football team slaughters the Bison in college football and then hoists another Nickel Trophy. The sad news is that rivalry hasn’t happened since 2004 the last year the Bison were a member of the now defunct NCC. The Bison AD wanted to play the Sioux but then AD Roger Thomas decided against it, I guess Thomas thought it was better to slaughter UM Crookston instead of playing a competitive and entertaining game against the Bison. In retrospect it was a bad move for UND not to schedule the Bison when they first started their transition to Division I. By not scheduling the Bison in football during their transition period the Sioux shot themselves in the foot.

UND follows NDSU

Now that the Sioux have started their own transition to Division I in all sports the two schools are looking into possibly playing every other season in football and are in the process of scheduling games in other sports. Eventually UND and NDSU will play in football possibly as conference foes. Contrary to what the Bison fans say on Bisonville aka Belligerent-ville, there is a slim - decent chance that the Missouri Valley Football Conference could accept the Fighting Sioux some day in the future. None the less the; the rivalry “with the other school” could resume on a bi-yearly or semi regular basis in the near future…

NDSU decided to transition to division I in all sports in 2004-2005 and left the Sioux in division II. Today; NDSU is a full fledged member of division I in all sports and are entering their third season in the Summit league and the Missouri Valley Football Conference. Late to the dance; UND has since decided to move up to Division I as well and are beginning year three of a five year process to transfer over to division I. UND is in the process of applying for membership in the Summit League in 2012 or 2013. UND’s application was slowed down because of the Fighting Sioux nickname battle.

Hockey is King

As the hockey season approaches UND hockey is getting ready to embark on another run towards the NCAA tourney and has a good shot at taking a run at winning another MacNaughton Cup, based on the roster that they have returning. From reading the drivel over at Belligerentville; Bison fans are hoping that their mediocre FCS team can finish .500 and in the middle of the Missouri Valley Football Conference; last season the NDSU Bison were an unimpressive 2-6 in conference play and 3-8 over all last season. In Basketball, the Bison men and women will embark on a chance to win an auto bid in the Summit League.

Being bored during the summer I decided to do some light reading of the posting and pontifications from Bison fans on their favorite message board Bisonville aka “Belligerentville.” After some thought, I have come to the realization that Bison fans are kind of like the fans of an unnamed WCHA SCSU hockey team; they have little bit of a Napoleon complex.

Whether Bison fans will admit it or not a fair number of their fan base does have program envy of the Fighting Sioux hockey. Every message board post that mentions UND hockey ends up being a moronathon about how Bison fans don’t like hockey or care about it and then they go on to mention about how awesome the Bison are in football and basketball. Just for the record the Summit League Conference is a mid major that is stuff full of unimpressive teams most of have never heard of or would recognize until recently. This is league is not to be confused with the Big Ten, ACC, WAC, PAC Ten, et. el.. When people talk about the WCHA people recognize the league and don't have much trouble with identifying the schools. Sure some of the schools are division II but who cares?

I always laugh when I read that fallacious comment about how Bison fans are not interested in hockey. If they are not interested about it why do they keep bringing it up? Someone forgot to tell that to the thousands of cars that are coming up from Fargo to watch Fighting Sioux hockey every weekend during the fall and winter when there is a home hockey game during the WCHA hockey season.

This past week some fan was commenting about how no one watches hockey and that it’s a niche sport. The comment is about as clueless as you can get and isn’t even close to being true. It sounds like some of the Bison fans need to get out of their mother’s basement; UND is ranked second nationally in attendance for division I hockey. If hockey is a niche sport, what do you call the attendance numbers for the Summit League Championship Men’s Division One Basketball. Here are the Summit League Conference basketball tourney - 6,285, 3122, 2033, 2854 attendance numbers. In comparison here are the attendance numbers for the WCHA Red Baron Final Five, 12544, 13113, 15292, 14170, 16414. I rest my case.

In conclusion; while I write this blog post with a hint of sarcasm and maybe with my tongue in cheek just a little, I do think there is some validity to the argument that the Fighting Sioux hockey team is king in North Dakota, and no other college sport marvels is Fighting Sioux hockey in the Flickertail state. I would probably stand by this comment that can be found on Bisionville.

Not necessarily, but I would expect them to be just a little bit more informed before they post something stupid about Sioux hockey. While it seems fashionable to make fun of UND Hockey, no sport that NDSU has will ever marvel Sioux hockey.

Making some stupid blanket ridiculous statement that no one watches UND hockey when it doesn’t take a genius/AG student to realize that more people attend Sioux hockey than any other sport in North Dakota.

So yeah college hockey is a big deal, one could make the comparison that Hockey is to UND like football is to say, Florida State University maybe. The WCHA would probably compare in significance to the SEC of football.

Let’s compare Bison football and Basketball, well, we know where they stand. The WCHA > the Summit. Look I can't wait till UND can start kicking NDSUck's ass in sports again, I miss watching the Bison get run over in football. Like the one guy said, 'have you seen the nickel trophy lately?'

I also think it's funny that an message board thread that is in a forum dedicated to smack talk, actually got closed/locked down, it would be interesting to see why they closed it? Must have been too much talking smack. That takes the cake. You can have sucks without NDSU...

Minnesota Wild sign ex-Wolverine John Madden.

This is a really good move by the Minnesota Wild,John Madden is one of the best defensive forwards in the game of hockey. According to Michael Russo, it is a one year deal that will pay John Madden 1 million with a possibility to make 250,000 more.

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) -The Minnesota Wild say they have agreed to terms with veteran center John Madden on a one-year contract.

Terms of the deal announced Friday were not disclosed.

The 37-year-old Madden has won three Stanley Cup titles in his career, including last season with the Chicago Blackhawks. He had 10 goals and 13 assists in 79 games for Chicago.

Adding depth at center behind captain Mikko Koivu has been a priority for the Wild for the last few seasons. The team had interest in Mike Modano, but he signed with Detroit. Koivu signed a seven-year, $47.25 million extension last month.

Madden has long been one of the top defensive forwards in the game and has made the playoffs in each of his 10 full years in the league.

Another reason to be positive - Chay Genoway's return...

Here is another reason to have a positive outlook for the 2010-2011 Fighting Sioux hockey season. Edit - If you haven't seen it; super pseudo reporter Patrick Miller from USCHO has an awesome article on Chay Genoway's recovery. Reading this this story makes me very happy that the captain Chay Genoway will be back on the ice when the puck drops in October. I would have to think that Chay is going to be one of the favorites/front runners for the Hobey Baker Memorial Award.

Then, in the blink of an eye, it all changed. At Ralph Engelstad Arena in a game against St. Cloud State, an elbow from behind stapled Genoway’s head to the glass. It happened so fast that the officials at first threw the wrong Huskies player out of the game.

Eventually, SCSU center Aaron Marvin was assessed a major for checking from behind and a game misconduct. The WCHA later added a one-game suspension for the hit on Genoway.

“I never lost consciousness,” Genoway says. “I knew I had my bell rung. I’d had my bell rung before. It seemed a little different. I knew where I was and all that. It was one of those things. I knew I probably shouldn’t finish the game. I kind of had the idea that something was wrong. I had a headache.
----------(snip)----------
Genoway won’t discuss the medical details of his current status, and coaches are prohibited by federal law from disclosing such information. But he plans to be playing for North Dakota when the season begins in October, and he hopes his teammates give him the opportunity to captain the team again.

“Summer feels like it’s gone by fast, but not fast enough,” Genoway says. “I’m ready for October. It’s been too long.”[Read the whole story here]

I also can't wait for the first time SCSU and UND play this winter, mark it on your calender December 3rd and 4th Aaron Marvin and the SCSU Huskies travel to the Ralph Engelstad Arena to get beat by the Fighting Sioux.

The lastest on the Canadian's Sieve.

If Carey Price isn't careful he is going to be a goalie without a team. I don't know but it would appear that the Canadians don't value Price as much as he values himself. Personally, I would take Antti Niemi over Carey Price any day. As a Bruins fan I have never been impressed with Carey Price; I think he is over rated and I think that the Canadians let the better goalie Jaroslav Halak walk this spring.

TSN.CA Staff --- The Montreal Canadiens' contract negotiations with restricted free agent goaltender Carey Price are certainly going at a slower pace, but that does not mean the club is looking at other options in net.

Price's agent Gerry Johannson told the Montreal Gazette on Wednesday his understanding was that there was no truth to the rumours that the Habs could go after unrestricted free agent netminder Antti Niemi.

"(The two sides) are not necessarily close, but it's not that we're not close in a bad way," he explained to the Gazette's website Habs Inside/Out regarding a new contract. "We're having good conversations and we both are committed to getting things done."

USHL Alumni Voices: Danny Kristo

s/t to Brad Schlossman. James D'Amanda, from USHL.com interviewed Fighting Sioux Danny Kristo and there are a few things that jumped out at me. As summer ends and the season approaches I am getting more excited about the up coming season.

What is your off-ice training like?

DK: Most of my teammates here at North Dakota are dedicated to off-ice training, so we pretty much have our whole team up here for the summer. We lift weights twice a week – legs twice a week and upper body twice a week – and one day of agility and sprints to work on speed and quickness. I mean, it would obviously be nice to be home for the summer, but if you are a committed athlete, there's no better place to work out than at your school. We have a great weight room and great facilities, so I live up here for the summer and make the most of it.
-----------------
So what's next for you? What are your career goals?

DK: Well, a lot of people have been asking me that lately, but basically, I want to focus day by day. We only lost two seniors last year [at UND] and we're all looking forward to next season. We're also pre-ranked #1 in the country, and we all want to win a national championship next year – bring the title to my home now in North Dakota. We just want to get better every day and live life to the fullest.

Logic and reasoning from NDSU fans.

Check out this line of reasoning from our friends to the south of us. Every time I read something stupid on the Belligerentville message board the old saying of, ‘if you want to work on the farm you go to NDSU, if you want to own the farm you go to UND’, pops into my head.

I have been checking out Belligerentville from time to time to see what the Bison fans have to say. While I miss the rivalry in football with the other school, I don’t miss the verbal sparing with the NDSU fans, they make you appreciate Gopher Hockey fans.

Regarding the whole numbers thing and popularity with hockey in this region...

I give credit to UND for having a GREAT hockey program. However, if the big time BCS schools cared about hockey and added the sport, it would only be a matter of time before those big programs gradually started washing out traditional powers like UND. When the big schools care about something, they win. They just have too many resources (athletics dollars, media market, name recognition, etc). It would become just like FBS football and men's basketball...every once in a while the small school breaks through, but not very often. [Bisionville]

I hate to burst the bubbles of the people that think UND isn’t one of the top schools in Division one hockey. UND has seven NCAA titles tied with Denver University and second only to Michigan University. I am not sure what make this rube think that a BCS school could match the storied rich hockey history that UND already has or even the other schools in Division One hockey. Seriously! Last time I checked Minnesota, Wisconsin, Boston College, were BCS schools. UND has more NCAA titles than all three of the fore mentioned schools. Sure B.C. has UND number right now but that will even it’s self out eventually.

UND has also been number two in attendance in Division One Hockey since the new Ralph opened, they have been second only to Wisconsin in attendance (who is one of the biggest schools in Division One Hockey).

Theoretically speaking if a BCS school added hockey there is no guarantee that they would be able to establish a tradition and following like UND and other WCHA schools already have. Second most of these schools don’t have the facilities it takes to run a successful Division one program. Hey the water is warm you welcome to join us if you would like, but what conference are you going to play in?

Lastly, the UND Fighting Sioux are recognized all over Canada and the Upper Midwest as being one of the best in Division One hockey with hockey recruits. UND is also respected in the NHL and NHL coaches love to draft UND recruits because they know they will get the proper coaching and will be well rounded players that play solid hockey in both ends of the ice. Also, a fair number of Canadian kids living on the western prairies of Canada dream of playing for UND in division one hockey because they know the Sioux are the best in division one hockey.

Maybe the Belligerentville fans should stick to basketball and football, because they sure as hell don't know what they are talking about when it comes to hockey. I am also going to laugh when the day comes that UND is accpeted to the MVFC.

UND ranks as top school where students study least

I saw this article at the Fargo Fishwrapper and I thought I would pass it along so you can read it. Noticed NDSU isn't mentioned in this article.

GRAND FORKS – The University of North Dakota just can’t seem to catch a break from the Princeton Review.

The university isn’t on the list of top party schools or top liquor-swilling schools this year as it was last year.

But now it’s moved up on the list of schools with students who study the least – actually, it’s No. 1 – and landed a spot on the list of schools with least-accessible professors.

To be fair, UND is still among the nation’s top universities, which is how it got into Princeton Review’s list of “The Best 373 Colleges” in North America. It was the only one in North Dakota listed, though several state universities did make it into a separate list of top Midwestern colleges.

Princeton Review arrived at its rankings through a survey of 122,000 students at the 373 colleges, asking questions such as how widely liquor is used on campus.

Other than the rankings for specific categories, such as least studious students, the 373 are not ranked together because the company thinks it’d be comparing apples and oranges. Different universities fit different kinds of students, it said.

So, here’s a quick recap: In 2009 UND was No. 5 among those with students who study the least, No. 15 for students who down the most liquor and No. 18 among party schools.

This year, UND is No. 1 among those with students who study the least and No. 19 among those with professors who are least accessible.

The Princeton Review based those on answers to these questions: “How many out-of-class hours do you spend studying each day?” and “How accessible are your instructors outside the classroom?”

In response to questions about its students’ studiousness, UND released a study by the Higher Education Research Institute at the University of California, Los Angeles, that compared UND students with those at two peer universities, whose names were not revealed.

UND seniors in the 2008-09 year said they studied, on average, 5.48 hours a week. At one peer, seniors said they studied an average of 5.54 hours and, at the other peer, 5.37 hours.

UND freshmen said they studied an average of 5.48 hours while their peers studied 5.65 and 5.48.

Among those with least studious students, the top five are UND, followed by the University of Central Florida in Orlando, the University of Mississippi in Oxford, the University at Albany (N.Y.) and West Virginia University in Morgantown.

So is it fashionable to kick Lucia when he is down?

Recently Adam Wodon from the College Hockey News wrote an interesting article about the Minnesota Gophers and their head coach Don Lucia. Lucia has been under a lot of heat lately for his team's play the last two seasons; Gopher fans are unhappy and find their results from the last two seasons, subpar and unacceptable. It’s not much of a stretch to say that many in the Gopher State are ready to grab the pitch forks. While it has become fashionable to pile on Lucia, an Islander blogger was none too impressed with Lucia and or his Gophers hockey program.

The whole thing was stupid, except that it suddenly became trendy to bash Lucia. And when Minnesota failed to make the NCAAs the two following years, after having been powerhouses for so long, people could go back to those comments by Snow and use them as fuel for their own misguided criticisms.

Snow, of course, belied his comments when he drafted Aaron Ness, a player committed to Minnesota, the following summer. Meanwhile, Ness hasn't blossomed yet after two seasons, so this is now Lucia's fault too, apparently. Yet the Islanders aren't rushing out to grab Ness away from Lucia. Why is that? Is it because the Islanders know that if Ness is to develop at all, it will have to be at Minnesota? That would actually be smart on the Islanders' part — but it contradicts the idea that Lucia can't develop him.

Meanwhile, this folly reached a new level when Chris Botta — former Islanders media relations director and now a well-read, well-regarded blogger about the Islanders — wrote a post in March that suggested Ness was looking to get out of Minnesota. In it, Botta wrote that Lucia routinely "bashes" the American Hockey League, and suggested, again, that Ness was looking to get out because Lucia was ruining his career. He wrote that Snow was "publicly ahead of the curve" when it came to Lucia.
[College Hockey News]

In case you hadn't seen it, here is the blog post in question that Adam Wodon is talking about from the New York Islander Blog Point Blank.

Multiple sources tell Point Blank that Ness, who just concluded his sophomore season with the Gophers, is ready to turn pro - if the Islanders want him. A league source said the Islanders have not given up on Ness and hope to strike a low-risk Entry Level contract agreement so the 5-10 defenseman can play in the minor leagues.

A former powerhouse, the Minnesota hockey program has been a shambles the last few years under the direction of coach Don Lucia (yes, Garth Snow was very much publicly ahead of the curve on this one). The Gophers finished this season at 18-19-2.

Ness has regressed under the tutelage of assistant coach John Hill. At one time thought to be a lock for Team USA at the World Junior Championships, the strong-skating Ness did not even make it to the final round of cuts. Islanders prospect Matt Donovan, a fourth round draft pick now with the University of Denver, made the team. In 29 games this season, the offense-minded Ness had just two goals and ten assists.

According to a source close to the Minnesota team, Lucia is known for telling young players of the “horrors” of the minor leagues in an attempt to keep them with the Gophers. Ness’s development has fallen off to the point where the pro ranks are his only option if he wants to give himself the chance of achieving his dream of playing in the NHL. His closest friend, Jordan Schroeder, has just left the school after signing a contract with the Vancouver Canucks.

If I was Donny Lucia the first thing I would do would be to find out who the hell the source close to the Minnesota team is, then I would ask him what the hell he/she is trying do? While I am not in the Gophers locker room it would appear that Donny also might want to get better control of his locker room and who he allows access to.

Next thing I might do if I was Lucia is that I would try to sit down with the Islanders leadership and have a discussion, maybe try to mend a few fences and do some damage control. It’s also not good to have media people from NHL teams and NHL front office brass dusting the Gophers program. This could hurt the Gophers recruiting and have an affect on player retention in the future.

Lastly, it would appear that John Hill is a reoccurring theme that keeps popping up over and over again and might be the real problem hindering the Gophers. The Gophers also lost two very good assistant coaches (Mike Guentzel and Mike Hastings) and retained the one that they should have let go in John Hill.