The Sicatoka

OK, I'll name names and say it. Lee Marvin has been doing a more than acceptable job skating penalty kill. He's not David Hale, but if this is the role you put him into he's handling it. Five on five he needs to relax. Ice it if that's what it takes. Chris Leinweber has reverted to how he played last year. He needs to play like he did to start this season. He needs to step up and hit and not allow people around him, namely deep to the outside. You're a senior Chris. Last shot. How do you want to go out? I name those two defensemen because their minutes jumped in David Hale's absence. That doesn't mean that the rest don't need to shoulder some of the load of the Hale void. Jake Brandt needs to follow the advice his father gave him before a start a while back: Stay close to your net and simplify your game. Jake still has decent conference numbers. (PS - Jake, let me see Jake Brandt, not some impression of some 'other' goalie. Be yourself, play your game. Simplify.) I name Jake because, based on numbers to date, I'm not sure who else to turn to. If Marc Ranfranz wants to prove me wrong, have at it Marc. If teams are tackling Parise and Bochenski someone else has to make them pay for it on the scoreboard, and that's besides Lundbohm and Massen and Notermann. The "step up" list here is too long to put up and it contains too many juniors and seniors. (Any is too many.) Some guys really need to step up. There's still time. OK guys, rrrreeeeaaadddyyyyyy? Go!

The 2002-2003 (16-19-2, 11-15-2) season just ended. You went into a coma. You woke up today. You look only at team statistics and league standings. The team is 22-9-5 and 12-9-5 in league play. What are the positives that you see? [*]The team controls its destiny regarding home ice in league playoffs. [*]The team has a shot at fourth place (with a sweep and some help). [*]The team is perfect (10-0-0) in non-conference play. [*]The team has a 0.680 winning percentage when the normal lineup has just three seniors, three juniors, and all the rest freshmen and sophomores. [*]Brandon Bochenski is 32-23-55 so his freshman year wasn

Here's to hoping you'll find reason to be quiet .... three times.

Siembida looks like he's lost his confidence. He turned toward the net twice on that first goal Sunday. (Confident guys turn away from the net because they just know the puck won't be in there.) A year in juniors somewhere (similar to what Fylling did) would probably help him get the confidence back. Sofie eats up pucks in practice but hasn't been able to crack this season's starters list. I'm starting to wonder if some of the pucks he takes in practice shouldn't be going to other guys to help them improve. I had hopes for Ranfranz. Then came that Saturday Mankato game. (Five goals on 21 shots.) I don't know what to think now. Which was "the real" Marc Ranfranz: the one that dueled DU's Dubie for 59:58 or Saturday in Mankato? Jake Brandt? He has the best numbers in conference games (0.901, 2.50). He just doesn't seem to put together solid back-to-back performances.

Root cause: Some NDSU fans. I'd much rather be in Mr. Thomas' position (something like "People, next time, tell the refs and call security.") than Mr. Taylor's (something like "Dear UND, I'm sorry that some of my fans, well, you can dress them up but you can't take them out in public. Again, sorry, and I'll keep trying to fix it.") That is especially true when you consider that, apparently, Mr. Taylor's actions from last semester (the Mankato incident) do not appear to have mattered (recent incident). Maybe Mr. Taylor needs to learn from Mr. Thomas and sit in the sections in question for a game or two. (Thomas did this not for anything as untoward as this situation, but to try to get students to sit down so others around them could see as well.) Haven't I said before that I wish all fans would cheer 'for' their team and not 'against' the other?

This is currently only open to season ticket holders (or that's what I think my letter said). It opens up to everyone later this week.

Straight-bladed sticks? Let me guess, goalies with no masks too? ;) It takes about five minutes to learn how to shoot a backhander with a curved stick. The curve helps with the deception because a puck coming off the heel doesn't move like one coming off the toe. The stick blade has two sides. The rules allow for use of either.

And that's what got us to this conversation. I wish Mr. Taylor all the best in his attempt to fix the root cause, because it's not the UND (or the Minnesota State - Mankato) staff.

Sid's had that "vision" for years. (I think Sid has a lot of "visions." ) And that's almost a weekly rant for him in February/March. To form Big 10 hockey, six member schools have to play hockey AND they have to agree to play a conference schedule together (and agree to abandon existing leagues). Only five of the eleven in the Big 10 play hockey (Mich, Mich State, Ohio State, Minn, Wisc) and none of the others have made noise about adding it. (Title IX says you have to add mens and womens hockey. It's not the best economy to be looking to do that in right now.) Based on past reports, the schools with hockey aren't really in favor of leaving existing conferences. (Why would they? Would they rather battle for one auto-bid or two?) A new, western (or how about more central US) IAA conference makes some sense. (Didn't some of us here say that, by NDSU making their move, that was what they were hoping to spur?)

Dear Sioux hockey team, In a scrum, in the slot, in front of the net, if the puck arrives on your stick, please don't take the extra time to spin around to get the puck onto your forehand; shoot the @#$%& puck on the backhand. If you can't, work on it!* Taking the time to go forehand gives the defense a chance to get ready. (How many times did we see a blocked shot this weekend after a guy spun to go forehand?) Fire it before they realize who has it and hope for good things (like opportunistic rebounds or goals). Plus, any goalie will tell you a backhand shot is the toughest to stop because the shooter's wrist action is later, the puck just doesn't come off the stick the same way as on the forehand, and the puck speed always seems "off-speed" compared to the motion (which makes it more deceptive). * Best backhand shot in the history of hockey? Wayne Gretzky. He's scored a few goals and more than you realize on the backhand. Wayne can probably pick corners better on the backhand than most guys can on the forehand.

And, jim, don't forget Blais missed an interview to be with his team, which happens, just so a particular announcer could show one of the finer moments of radio non-professionalism in regional history.

beersong: That's the deadest I've ever seen the new Ralph. I think the afternoon games (and the state hockey tournament taking some energy out of the Grand Forks folks, Central and Red River played in the final) really hurt the crowd.

So it's UND's fault that some members of the NDSU crowd (a) use poor form, and (b) "grabbed" a coach? I suppose it was the Minnesota State - Mankato coach's fault for having black assistants as well.

The allegation is that someone

Reality check people: Would you rather have a top five goalie from ND HS hockey or a top five goalie from the USHL? GFC's Moreland will be a solid collegiate goalie somewhere is my guess. But it won't be next year. He needs at least one season of junior experience to see more shots and a better quality of shots.

My only comment is this: Another Bison head coach with no previous head coaching experience. The last one that fit that category: Bob Babich.

WDAY-TV and KFGO-AM are reporting that the "fan" (and I use that term so as to not use more appropriate terms that may get *-ed out by the board) and the NDSU Athletic Department will be formally apologizing to the University of North Dakota. BisonMav: Look in the hockey forum and you'll see 'siouxrock' was put on notice last week.

Subway? Jared, see the light ..... RedPepper.com

If the computer came up with this schedule, when did Don Lucia learn to write software?

Rent "8 Mile"? Naw, I just got inspired. And I didn't hack or talk much smack on my fast-track; I'm a throw-back, to the days we lack. I'm no a political hack, not some Jacque Chirac, so let me double back, to the new found yack for the Pack-attack. Now I'll jump back, big daddy mack ! This thing could be contageous. I'd better start finding words that rhyme with Sioux.

Are you taken aback by my angle of attack?

First, sentences? Capitalization? I like the new look! Very impressive. (It should be "Who will play with whom?" but most people will miss that. Either way, I'm still impressed.) Next, and to your question, who knows. It sounds like some 'messages' may have been sent in practice this week. We'll see who responded by who takes the ice Saturday.

And I'm not on crack, with the lightnin' snap the Pack-attack gave the biscuit a crack, a mighty smack, during the OT track, to come on back, the next night, and make another snack of some unsuspecting jack and turn their season black. It's a fact. Keepin' it real. Wu-u-urd-up to yo' mama. :0 Sorry, but I don't believe the rap community has anything to fear from me.

That second mystery puck was on course for the net vacated by Ranfranz going to the corner to play the real puck. The person sitting next to me saw it come out of the section next to us.

The Pack-attack gets on track and smacks back at Fylling's old pack in the House of Zack? That's whack! How many people outside of West Fargo picked them to win? Be honest here. WF's goalie, Nick Reinisch, was WF's starting tailback and carried them to the State AAA football title last fall. The kid is having a senior year.