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This sums it up...


Goon

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This kind of sums it up... Taken from USCHO

I was there and the Fighting Sioux erupted in the first period. For some reason or another, they had that confidence and explosiveness. They took it to MSU. It's not like Miller was letting in floaters from center ice. Dakota pounded State in the first period. Miller is just one guy on the team. North Dakota may be young and may have struggled in the first half. But they are still North Dakota. They have a ton of skill, although most of it is young. If they get solid goaltending, they should be able to sneak into the NCAA tournament. If they do, anything can happen. There's never any guarantees, but the Sioux always have the ability to explode and score some goals. When they get Mazurak and Lundbohm back, they will be even better. I really expect the Sioux to be one of the best in the country in the second half. They have some real tests on the schedule, but that's never been a problem for them.

(Edited by Goon at 3:30 pm on Dec. 30, 2001)

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A first period blowout is all well and good and hopefully the Sioux will continue to dominate the first period.  However, a full-on collapse as the game progresses will ultimately produce more losses than wins.  I agree that they probably have the ability to be one of the best of the second half, but they need to prove that they can play an entire game.  They haven't done that yet.  In the past the team wasn't allowed to take a big lead and then rest on their laurels, usually because it was them who were down going into the third.  Now, it's just the opposite.  They have big leads going into the third and it seems as if they just sit back and expect expect the other team to give up.  I hope they get that fire back that they've had in recent years in the third period.  That period used to be owned by the Sioux.  Only when they learn to finish these games as strong as strong as they start them, will I feel truly confident.  Michigan State is a great team, but you can't blow a lead like that and then squeak it out in OT.  It just doesn't tend to work out in the long run.

Here's to hoping for a strong 60+ minutes every Friday and Saturday night until the end of the season.  Let's get some great momentum going into the playoffs, win the WHCA tournement, and wind up in Minneapolis this spring (in game gear) where we belong.

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That's the key.  The team has to learn to keep playing a full sixty-minute game, and not get lazy when/if they get a decent lead.  The younger players seem to getting that idea, slowly but surely.  If we can get/maintain the third period intensity of past teams, we should have better results over the long-term.

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