Stanley Cup Finals Schedule Released

If the Stanley Cup Finals go to game seven, we will be watching hockey deep into June.  The only questions we left to answer, who's going to be the two teams in the finals? 

Game 1 Wednesday, June 3
Game 2 Saturday, June 6
Game 3 Monday, June 8
Game 4 Wednesday, June 10
Game 5 * Saturday, June 13
Game 6 * Monday, June 15
Game 7 * Wednesday, June 17

* if necessary

Badlanders Gains Steam in InForum UND Nickname Challenge

The Fargo Forum is having a little fun, they want to see which nickname their readers think will make it to the next round of the nickname selection process. It appears that "Badblanders" is gaining steam with the fans. You can submit your vote at this link. Don't forget to submit your vote.

From a serious angle, it's nice to see that Sundogs and the Flickertails nicknames aren't doing very well.

Thoughts on Possible New Nickname

With the list scaled down to 63 potential nicknames, I'd also like to give my thoughts on each potential one, much like Eric did.

Aeronauts - I say not. 
Aeros - This is ok. Makes sense with the aviation program, but still could do better. 
Arctic Blaze - I find this as to poke fun of the harsh Grand Forks Winters
Arctic Force - See previous name
Aurora - An aurora is a gases reacting in the atmosphere to put colors dancing across the sky. Are they implying that UND is gassy?
Aviators - Again, appropriate, but could be better. 
Badlanders -Lets just skip this one shal we?
Big Green - I dont know what to think about this one
Bison Slayers - Won't happen, but this was the first one that made me laugh out loud
Blackhawks - It's a good name, but we cant use the native american logo and the team would probably take alot of heat for taking it from the NHL team, even though two of UND's most successful alums were successful with Chicago. 
BLAZE - Moving on.....
BLAZING STARS - ok, again, moving on.... 
BLIZZARD - it's alright, but doesn't work with the Kelly green color scheme
Blizzard Dogs - Whoever submitted this, I'm sorry, but no 
Bombardiers -- I like it. Name it after a former UND captain, Brad Bombardier  
Bombers - meh. maybe. 
Cavalry - da da da da da da CHARGE!
Charging Nokota- could be worse, like Flickertails 
Drillers - no  
ENERGY - Will our logo be a power plant, or the Sun?
Explorers - lets not and never say we did 
Fighting Green - 
Fighting Greens - 
Fighting Green Hawks - KEEP AWAY FROM THE USE OF FIGHTING IN THE NEW NAME!
 Fighting Hawks - 
Fighting Sundogs -  
Fire - NO
Flame - this is a team and a university with more than one person. new name shouldn't be singular
Flames - I'll let you just think about this one for a bit. I know what they are going for here, but it wont end up meaning that to rival fan bases 
Flickertails - Yes, because I want the school to be represented as an animal that mistakenly gets identified as a gopher.  
Fliers - meh. 
Force - Didnt realize we were in Fargo now. 
Force of North - too close to the Pride of the North marching band. Let's not.
Global Hawks - Not the worst name on here
Green Bombers- 
GREEN HAWKS - MUCH LIKE THE USE OF 'FIGHTING,' GREEN SHOULD NOT BE IN THE NAME EITHER!
GREEN PRIDE -  
'Grey Hawks' - 
 Night Hawks - THE STATE BIRD ISNT EVEN A HAWK! WHY THE OBSESSION WITH THE HAWK?! 
Nighthawk- 
Nighthawks -  
Nodak - Let's just delete these next two.
Nodaks - 
North Dakota - My first, second and third choice. ******Im 100% with Eric on this one
North Force - Say this one out loud. Just do it. Sounds terrible doesn't it? 
North Stars -  Yes, lets piss off Minnesota even more with the use of the name of the state's former NHL team that moved to Dallas.
Northern Lights - Too blahhhh 
Prarie Hawks - no 
Pride -  What does this have to do with anything? 
Riders -  
roughriders - Already High School in Grand Forks. This is out.  
SNOW DOGS - Anybody see this movie? 
Snow Leopards - HA! 
Spirit - See explanation for 'Pride' 
STORM - could be worse. logo could be a lightning bolt with tornado shoulder patches.  
Sundog -  
Sundogs  - UHHH NO! 
Thunder Hawks- This is Grand Forks, ND, not Grand Rapids, MN 
Warhawks - ehhhh
Warriors  - I'm surprised this made it this far.  
Warriors of the North - Cool tribute, but it's too much to say
Wings - I hate the Detroit Red Wings, so I obviously don't like this one. 
 Wooly Mammoth - no

Why Flickertails is a bad Idea

I tweeted this same thing yesterday. For the UND fans that want the name Flickertails. This is what we're talking about. Does that remind you of anything?

This should cause people to stop and think. Ahem, do we want the University of North Dakota to referred to as Flickertails? Seriously?

By definition: A Flickertial is a Richardson's ground squirrel (Urocitellus richardsonii), or the flickertail, is a North American ground squirrel in the genus Urocitellus. Like a number of other ground squirrels, they are sometimes called Dak Rats or gophers, though this name belongs more strictly to the pocket gophers of family Geomyidae.

No! I will take a pass on this nickname as well. I am not interested in having the battle of the grounds squirrels.

Sifting Through the Nickname Recommendations

The's 63 nicknames to choose from. Some of them are down right horrible. In breaking down the names that are still on the list, I find very few that are acceptable.
Aeronauts - I say not.
Aeros - I find this acceptable.
Arctic Blaze - where not in the Arctic.
Arctic Force - Redundant, - where not in the Arctic.
Aurora - This is just as bad as Sundogs.
Aviators - Yep, works for me. Favorite of RWD.
Badlanders - Meh!
Big Green - Hum. That one could work.
Bison Slayers - Ha! I find this one amusing.
Blackhawks - We already play Chelsea Dagger when UND scores. I guess we could take their name, too.
BLAZE - Blaze up eh.
BLAZING STARS - How about Blazing Saddles? Nope.
BLIZZARD - Okay.
Blizzard Dogs - Checking goggle.com, there's already  a Newfoundland Blizzard Dogs
Bombardiers -- bomb, bomb, bomb. Could have possibilities.
Bombers - Okay, works for me.
Cavalry - I wonder if this would fly?
Charging Nokota - A Nokota Horse could be an acceptable mascot for me.
Drillers - Yeah, one has to think of the warped possibilities. I am going with not. 
ENERGY - Boring.
Explorers - Meh.
Fighting Green - Why not just go with Gang Green?
Fighting Greens - Yuck!
Fighting Green Hawks - What's with the Hawks.
Fighting Hawks - Of the Hawks suggestions, the one is probably the most acceptable. That and Blackhawk.
Fighting Sundogs - I want to put an  EF-Bomb here.
Fire - Nix!
Flame - Nine!
Flames - Nay! This should be obvious. We would be copying the Calgary Flames.
Flickertails - I just threw up in my mouth a bit.
Fliers - Whatever.
Force - We already have the Fargo Force.
Force of North - I could live with this.
Global Hawks - Catchy, named after the drones.
Green Bombers - Whatever floats your boat.
GREEN HAWKS - I suppose we could come up with a badass logo for that. Or not.
GREEN PRIDE - Horrible idea.
'Grey Hawks' - What's with all the hawk names?
 Night Hawks - Another nickname with hawk in it.
Nighthawk- We could use a ____ as the mascot?
Nighthawks - Is there such a thing? There is.
Nodak - Again, whatever.
Nodaks - Like Charlie from Hockey Bias said, this could be clumsy.
North Dakota - My first, second and third choice. ******
North Force - This is kind of clumsy, too.
North Stars - I could get behind this one.
Northern Lights - This doesn't do it for me.
Prarie Hawks - Okay.. Whatever.
Pride -  Yuck! And hell no!
Riders - There's already a high school in town that's named Rider or Roughriders.
roughriders - Same thing applies here.
SNOW DOGS - Yuck! Again, another bad name. What's the mascot going to be?
Snow Leopards - Only cats we have in ND is a Mountain Lion.
Spirit - No THANK YOU!  Next.
STORM - Better than Sundogs and Flickertails.
Sundog - Oh hell no.
Sundogs  - I just threw up in my mouth a bit more.
Thunder Hawks WTF?
Warhawks - There's some possibility with this one.
Warriors  - I am surprised this one made the list.
Warriors of the North - In honor of the men and women from GFAB.
Wings - Green Wings?
 Wooly Mammoth - This one is amusing.

God No! Please. No Sundogs

When I read this quote, I am very concerned. Seriously, I can't imagine that the University of North Dakota's sports teams could end up being called the "Sundogs". What a horrible idea for a nickname. UND could end up being a laughing stock if tagged with this nickname.

Anna Burleson, Forum News Service --- "People wanted to be unique as we go forward," he said. "I think it was important the considerations we do have are solely unique and are something that would be solely the university's."

McDonald and Bridewell both approved a form of "Sundogs" and said it was unique to the region.

"It would be marketable," McDonald said. "It would help to identify us at national level."

If you look at the 63 nicknames that are on the list, very few are what I would call acceptable. For those that don't know what a Sundog is, click on this link.

This is the definition of a Sundog - Sun dogs, mock suns or phantom suns, scientific name parhelia, are an atmospheric phenomenon that consists of a pair of bright spots on either side on the Sun, often co-occurring with a luminous ring known as a 22° halo.

Video: And the Academy Award goes to Andrew Shaw for Embellishment

Anaheim Ducks forward Ryan Getzlaf is assessed a two-minutes minor penalty for high-sticking Chicago Blachkawks forward/pest Andrew Shaw. I think you could make the argument for embellishment by Shaw. If you count the seconds after the infraction in question it's almost a two full seconds before Shaw reacts.

Here's a gif of the play in question. Looks like Shaw wasn't even touched by Getzlaf. You make the call, you be the judge.

This is the season, change change change

by Redwing77

Ok, first I see my Red Wings bow out early.  That's ok, I didn't expect them to make the playoffs (none of the pundits did either).  Now... lots of change.

First, Hakstol bolts for the Flyers.  Ugh.  I don't like the Flyers.  Better there than Buffalo or Toronto, perhaps, but still....  it stinks.  I never saw it coming.  That being said, I talked to Hakstol in Kearney, Nebraska while the Tri City Storm (with UND recruit Chris Wilkie) faced off in what would turn out to be the season ending game for the Omaha Lancers (with UND recruit Shane Gersich).  He was a great guy and a splendid ambassador for North Dakota.

I still love to think about the Haters.  I mean, Hakstol couldn't win it all in his 11 seasons with North Dakota even with stacked rosters and a bucket load of tradition (which, by the way, never makes saves nor scores goals but whatever).  So, obviously, Hakstol shouldn't be considered worthy of anything, right?  Or perhaps just worthy of a head coaching gig in the NHL.  Not even the NoDak godcoach Dean Blais garnered that post... or perhaps he turned them all down to get an associate head coaching gig with the Blue Jackets?  Whatever.

Nevertheless, I don't know how it will work out for Hakstol in the NHL.  I hope he's successful.  It's a different world in the pros.  A TON of entitlement and "me first" attitudes prevail in that league.  Maybe he'll be able to convince Ron Hextall (of all people to say what's next) that GOALTENDING might actually be a CONCERN for Philly?  Hmm???  Seriously!  2 career backups and 1 30 something year old rookie isn't going to win you much.

Anyways....

And now Red Wings Coach Mike Babcock will head to Toronto to be the head conductor aboard the second biggest train derailment in the NHL (behind Buffalo).  Ok, there were rumors abounding regarding this pre-season but still!  This is a good deal for Toronto.  I mean, stealing assistants from Detroit didn't necessarily work out (see San Jose) so why not steal the head coach himself?

In any regards, the front runner for the Detroit gig is former WMU head coach Blashill.  Blashill knows the system Detroit runs and has lead the Wings in developing many of the younger stars currently on the Wings roster.  I don't know if this will thrust the Wings back to the Finals but it's not exactly a dumpster hire either.

If he's hired, it may also be good for college hockey.  In the past, I got the feeling that Detroit really didn't have much faith in the NCAA (despite Nyquist, Abdelkader, Howard, and a few others).  They typically invested a lot more in the Scandenavian hockey markets and major juniors as well.  Perhaps there is a shift in hockey town towards a find the best no matter where mentality that will include the NCAA now?  Who knows.

In any case, I haven't the foggiest idea what will happen in Detroit and Philly next season or two.

Final Random Musing:

However, in Toronto, the scuttlebutt is that Babcock's hiring is BAD NEWS for one named Kessel.  Babcock likes solid play at both ends and a complete buy in to the system.  He might be able to do that (much like Trotz did with Ovechkin), but many amateur pundits (including myself) suggest that Kessel should pack his bags in time for Draft Day because he'll be moving out of Toronto.

Nickname Committee Cuts List of Names to 64

The UND Nickname committee has cut the list of names to 64. One of the names under consideration is "North Dakota". Below is the list of names that are moving forward. Unfortunately, Sundogs and Sundog is on the list. I am disappointed that Green Machine is not on the list.

1. Aeronauts
2. Aeros
3. Arctic Blaze
4. Arctic Force
5. Aurora
6. Aviators
7. Badlanders
8. Big Green
9. Bison Slayers
10. Blackhawks
11. BLAZE
12. BLAZING STARS
13. BLIZZARD
14. Blizzard Dogs
15. Bombardiers
16. Bombers
17. Cavalry
18. Charging Nokota
19. Drillers
20. ENERGY
21. Explorers
22. Fighting Green
23. Fighting Greens
24. Fighting Green Hawks
25. Fighting Hawks
26. Fighting Sundogs
27. Fire
28. Flame
29. Flames
30. Flickertails
31. Fliers
32. Force
33. Force of North
34. Global Hawks
35. Green Bombers
36. GREEN HAWKS
37. GREEN PRIDE
38. 'Grey Hawks'
39. Night Hawks
40. Night Riders
41. Nighthawks
42. Nodak
43. Nodaks
44. North Dakota
45. North Force
46. North Stars
47. Northern Lights
48. Prarie Hawks
49. Pride
50. Riders
51. roughhriders
52. SNOW DOGS
53. Snow Leopards
54. Spirit
55. STORM
56. Sundog
57. Sundogs
58. Thunder Hawks
59. Warhawks
60. Warriors
61. Warriors of the North
62. Wings
63. Wooly Mammoth

For Those That were Wondering

I had a few people ask me this week what was going on with Zane McIntyre. Some wondered if the change at the head coaching position would make any difference. It will not make a difference.

One more to go.

Obviously, we're still waiting for Jordan Schmaltz as well.  According to Andy Strickland, it sounds like there's a chance that Schmaltz could be back this fall. We will see how that develops and plays out. For those that wondered, and I saw a few of the comments from fans, Strickland is a credible hockey source and is up on what's going on with the St. Louis Blues.

Zane has decided to leave North Dakota and is committed to the Boston Bruins. We are excited about that. https://t.co/e0meju1ylp

— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) May 20, 2015

Any word on signing Zane McIntyre ? #AskGMSweens

— Jesse Desrochers (@JesseDesrochers) May 20, 2015

Sounding like Brad Berry replacing Dave Hakstol as #UND head coach has #stlblues prospect Jordan Schmaltz leaning towards staying in school

— Andy Strickland (@andystrickland) May 18, 2015

Related articles

• UND's McIntyre Is Leaving Impressive Legacy Behind(thehockeywriters.com)

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The Hamburglar gets a Raise

Last season, former Bowling Green State University goalie Andrew Hammond made a big splash with the Ottawa Senators. In his first season with the senators, Hammond was (20-1-2, 1.73 GAA & .943 SV%) in 23 starts.

For his efforts, the Senators are showing Hammond the money. Last season, Hammond made 750,000 with the Senators and is getting a pretty nice raise to 1.35 million.

Hammond's new deal will have an annual cap hit of $1.35 million. #NHL

— NHLnumbers (@NHLnumbers) May 20, 2015

The Senators sign goaltender Andrew Hammond to a 3-year, $4.05M contract extension. He had a 1.73 GAA & .943 SV% in 23 starts this season.

— NHLnumbers (@NHLnumbers) May 20, 2015

Breaking: #Sens agree to terms with goaltender Andrew Hammond on a three-year contract extension 🍔🍔🍔

— Ottawa Senators (@Senators) May 20, 2015

Andrew Shaw No Goal

According to the NHL rule 78.5, this is why Andrew Shaw was not awarded the game-winning goal. According to the NHL Rules, the puck has to be shot in with a stick.

NHL situation room confirms Andrew Shaw's goal disallowed because he directed it in with something (his head) other than stick. #Blackhawks

— Chris Kuc (@ChrisKuc) May 20, 2015

Blackhawks goalie Corey Crawford steps into the Ducks Rickard Rakel

The game is getting feisty. Blackhawks goalie Corey Crawford steps into the Ducks forward Rickard Rakel and causes a bit of a dustup.

Got to love NHL playoffs. Mayhem all over including blatant interference by Crawford on Rickard Rakell and faceoff neutral zone.

— Scott Burnside (@ESPN_Burnside) May 20, 2015

Corey Crawford steps out and intentionally bumps into Rickard Riakell on a dump-in. #curiousmove #ANAvsCHI

— ESPN NHL coverage (@ESPN_NHL) May 20, 2015

Clayton Stoner Cross-Checks Andrew Shaw in the Face

Anaheim Ducks defenseman Clayton Stoner was very lucky that he's still in the game. Stoner cross-checks Marcus Kruger from behind, causing him to slide face first into the end boards. Kruger suffered a minor cut for his efforts.

But Stoner wasn't done. The Ducks defender goes on to perform oral surgery on Andrew Shaw.

To quote Brendan Shanahan, "this was a blatant attempt to injure an opponent." In other words, this was an egregious act that deserved a penalty. Also, I think that Shaw has an expectation to not be cross-checked in the face. The play is basically over.

If I was the commissioner of the NHL, these are the types of plays that would be highly punished. My question is, would this hit be worthy of a call from the Department of Player Safety. Is this suspension worthy?

2015-16 UND Hockey Schedule

Date            Opponent                                   Time (CT)
Oct. 3         Manitoba (exh.)                       7:07 pm
Oct. 9          vs. Lake Superior State^             3:30 pm
Oct. 10        vs. Maine^                                    7:00 pm
Oct. 16        at Bemidji State                            7:37 pm
Oct. 17       Bemidji State                           7:07 pm
Oct. 23        at Vermont                                           TBA
Oct. 24        at Vermont                                           TBA
Oct. 30        at Colorado College*                         TBA
Oct. 31        at Colorado College*                         TBA
Nov. 6        Wisconsin                                  7:37 pm
Nov. 7        Wisconsin                                  7:07 pm
Nov. 13      Miami*                                       7:37 pm
Nov. 14      Miami*                                       7:07 pm
Nov. 20       at St. Cloud State*                              TBA
Nov. 21       at St. Cloud State*                              TBA
Nov. 27       at Michigan State                                TBA
Nov. 29       at Michigan State                                TBA
Dec. 4         Denver*                                     7:37 pm
Dec. 5         Denver*                                     7:07 pm
Dec. 11        at Minnesota Duluth*                  7:07 pm
Dec. 12        at Minnesota Duluth*                  7:07 pm
Jan. 1         Alabama-Huntsville                7:37 pm
Jan. 2         Alabama-Huntsville                7:07 pm
Jan. 9         US. Under-18 Team (exh.)            TBA
Jan. 15       Omaha*                                     7:37 pm
Jan. 16       Omaha*                                     7:07 pm
Jan. 22       Colorado College*                   7:37 pm
Jan. 23       Colorado College*                   7:07 pm
Jan. 29        at Western Michigan*                  6:00 pm
Jan. 30        at Western Michigan*                  6:00 pm
Feb. 12        at Denver*                                           TBA
Feb. 13        at Denver*                                           TBA
Feb. 19       Minnesota Duluth*                 7:37 pm
Feb. 20       Minnesota Duluth*                 7:07 pm
Feb. 26        at Omaha*                                    7:07 pm
Feb. 27        at Omaha*                                    7:07 pm
Mar. 4        Western Michigan*                 7:37 pm
Mar. 5        Western Michigan*                 7:07 pm
Mar. 11-13  NCHC Quarterfinals (Best of 3)
Mar. 18-19  NCHC Frozen Faceoff (Minneapolis)
Mar. 25-27  NCAA Regionals
Apr. 7-9       NCAA Frozen Four (Tampa)
* NCHC game
^ Ice Breaker Tournament (Portland, Maine)
All times Central
Home games in bold
Schedule subject to change

UND to Announce New Head Coach at 1:00 PM

The news is breaking fans right now. According to Brad Schlossman, UND is going to hire Brad Berry to be the next head coach of UND.
GRAND FORKS, N.D. – University of North Dakota Director of Athletics Brian Faison will introduce the 16th head coach of the UND men’s hockey program today at a news conference in the main lobby of Ralph Engelstad Arena. The news conference will begin at 1 p.m. Central. A live of stream of the news conference will be available at UNDsports.com.

The new head coach, Faison and current UND players will be available for interviews immediately following the news conference.

For additional information, contact UND Assistant Athletics Director for Media Relations Jayson Hajdu at 701.740.7659 (cell) or at jayson.hajdu@athletics.und.edu.

Dave Hakstol Named Head Coach of the Philadelphia Flyers

They say to be careful what you wish for. Coach  Dave Hakstol is moving on. The news broke this morning that Hakstol is going to be the next head coach of the Philadelphia Flyers. For the fans that wanted Hakstol fired because his teams didn't win an NCAA title, you won't have Hak to kick around anymore. I must say personally, I am shocked. I don't think many saw this coming.


Official Press Release -- Philadelphia Flyers general manager Ron Hextall announced this morning that Dave Hakstol has been named the 19th head coach in Flyers history.

“Dave brings a wealth of head coaching experience and success to the Philadelphia Flyers organization,” said Hextall. “He’s a proven winner and we are pleased to have him become part of the Flyers family.”

“I am extremely excited to be named the Philadelphia Flyers new head coach,” said Hakstol. “Through the process here with Ron [Hextall] and everybody in the Flyers organization I have gained even more of an understanding of the history and tradition of this organization and I’m very proud to become part of the Philadelphia Flyers today.”

Hakstol, 46 (7/30/1968), comes to the Flyers from the University of North Dakota where he spent the last 11 seasons compiling an overall record of 289-143-43 with a .654 winning percentage in 475 games. In 2014-15, he led North Dakota to a 29-10-3 record with a .726 winning percentage and a berth in the NCAA Frozen Four.

North Dakota made the NCAA Tournament in every one of Hakstol’s 11 seasons and reached the Frozen Four seven times in that span, which is the most of any program in the country during that period. Hakstol led North Dakota to an overall postseason record of 54-24 for a .692 winning percentage, including a 17-11 record in the NCAA Tournament, during his tenure.

He joined the school’s coaching staff in 2000 as an assistant coach, and took over the head coaching job four years later. Under Hakstol’s watch, North Dakota won three regular season conference championships – two in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA, 2008-09, 2010-11) and one in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC, 2014-15).  North Dakota also won WCHA playoff championships in 2005-06, 2009-10, 2010-11 and 2011-12.  Hakstol received conference coach of the year honors twice, in the WCHA in 2008-09 and in the NCHC in 2014-15.  He was also an eight-time finalist for the Spencer Penrose Award as national coach of the year.

Hakstol’s program has produced 20 NHL players and a total of 46 that have played professionally at some level. His former players include Jonathan Toews (CHI) and Matt Greene (LAK), each of whom have won two Stanley Cups since leaving the school, as well as T.J. Oshie (STL), Travis Zajac (NJD), Drew Stafford (BUF, WPG) and Chris VandeVelde (EDM, PHI). He has also had seven players named Hobey Baker Award finalists, including Ryan Duncan who won the award in 2007, and 11 players named All-Americans.

Frank Black Cloud: Fighting Sioux will not be silenced

This was a letter to the editor that was posted in the Fargo Forum. Before you label this gentleman a racist, don't do it, he's a member of the Dakota Sioux. This is one of the assumptions that people make when they talk about the Fighting Sioux. There are a lot of natives American that like the Fighting Sioux nickname.



In response to the outlandish claim that we Sioux are “racist”:

You obviously have no clue as to what you are talking about, nor do you have a full and complete understanding as to the name Fighting Sioux or its origins.

I, for one, am a proud Dakota Sioux and a very proud Fighting Sioux supporter as are many, many other members of the Spirit Lake Sioux Tribe. Our support and dedication to the name and logo are rooted deeply within our connection to our elders and the “gift” they bestowed upon the University of North Dakota in the 1930s and later solidified in the Sacred Pipe Ceremony in 1969.

I am a member of the group “The Sioux Were Silenced” because we were silenced and it’s a shame that you, as reporters, don’t explore that fact.

Nor do you even try to dig deeper into the facts that surround the removal of the gift that was given to UND by my ancestors and the elders of both Spirit Lake (Devils Lake Sioux Tribe back then) and Standing Rock Sioux Tribe. Why hasn’t the news media tried to explore the facts behind the sealing of the documents that could reveal the true reason and the real agenda behind the attack on the Sioux people and the name and logo at UND?

Were there any natives represented at that meeting with the NCAA and if so, who were they? What’s in the documents that they are trying to hide? What are you afraid of?

A good reporter would investigate these types of questions that the residents of North Dakota have the right to know. Then again, you may not be that good of a reporter.

We will never be quiet. We will not be silent any longer. We want answers and we will get them.

Frank Black Cloud from Fort Totten, N.D

Men’s and Women’s Hockey Players to Graduate this May

Here’s a list of the UNDhockey players that gradate this Saturday. I would like to congratulate them all. If you look at the list, a majority of these players graduated in four years. That's no easy task playing division I hockey and going to school.  

Men’s Hockey (6): Connor Gaarder (Entrepreneurship), Mark MacMillan (Entrepreneurship), Nick Mattson (Management), Brendan O'Donnell (Communication), Michael Parks (Communication), Stephane Pattyn (Entrepreneurship)

Women’s Hockey (3): Andrea Dalen (Business Economics), Michelle Karvinen (Graphic Design & Technology), Tori Williams (Psychology)

On-Ice Officials for the Conference Finals

If you're not reading scouting the refs, I recommend you start perusing it. The site is run by Josh Smith, that's the same Smith that is a contributing editor of the Hockey Writers. 

Here are the on-ice officials for the Stanley Cup Conference Finals. 

Referees:

Eric Furlatt, Steve Kozari, Wes McCauley, Dan O’Halloran, Kevin Pollock, Chris Rooney, Kelly Sutherland, and Brad Watson. Standby referee is Gord Dwyer. 

Linesmen:

Derek Amell, Scott Cherrey, Michel Cormier, Greg Devorski, Shane Heyer, Brad Kovachik, Brian Murphy, and Pierre Racicot. Standby linesman is Steve Miller. (Scouting the Refs)