The Sicatoka

Not sure if serious ... however, I will say I do wonder if the "Drama's of Brock" weren't a distraction this year. Drama's? Yes. Coming back (and the "oh, he could've gone!" noise); the wrist and associated surgery; the "how quick will he be gone after season's end?". Team first. OneUND.

Worried about getting hurt and losing a professional career? Lloyd's of London. Yes, you can get an insurance policy against a career-ending injury in college. I'm sure you could get Lloyd's to write it to compensate you for the equivalent of a "rookie max" deal that you'd lose. And honestly, it'd be fairly inexpensive.

I appreciate the sentiment, but it's a decade or two too late.

Kolpack serving as Pravda for the Central Party Committee. http://www.inforum.com/sports/4240837-kolpack-key-departures-closing-gap-between-summit-and-valley Apparently there's too much interest in the MVC and that needed to be patted down. OK, now that my snide cynicism is covered for a Monday, < gulp > Kolpack may have a point. Wow. Kolpack just implied that UND is more "friendly" as a conference-mate than Drake, Evansville, Loyola, and Bradley.

My first hand observation yesterday was that UND may have been the smallest team in Fargo. Ohio State has a couple big guys, BU is big, and UMD is mammoth. Yeah, Tucker Poolman was out, but those teams were just bigger. Is there anything UND can add this off-season to put some size back into the line-up?

Give him a break Mafia. He is what he is.

Now to the forwards, based on yesterday I think 9 and 27 are going to make misery for a lot of folks for a few seasons.

So, did the Gophers transfer the "best team at the break" award to the Wild?

Historically, sophomores with a low career minutes total don't return.

One. Ten. Whatever. Demand the first year be met on July 1, 2017 so only two of the rookie deal three remain. That said, does another year at UND for a guy Jost's age put him in a better negotiation position in spring 2018?

4-0 DU

My thought on Jost: If he's going to jump, jump now, but demand rookie max deal (3 years) and demand one game in the NHL yet this year to chop a year off that purgatory. Yup. Jam up COL and tell them, "If not that, I'm at UND for the full four" and ... well, ... tell 'em Judge Smails!

DU 2-0. And it sounds just like Magnus. Yes, they're playing the tape recorded school song over the PA off of a 1975 vintage Panasonic cassette player!

About the 2017-18 defense, well, it makes me smile. 4, 5, and 6 have come a long ways. Add in 24 and 28 and there's a core five. Now, that said, let me add 24 needs to improve on the defensive part of his game. Markedly. He makes some questionable choices. Running the point? Sure? But 5x5 in a tie game he needs to think more "defend" and less "jump in" unless he knows there's a responsible forward and center out there with him to cover for him.

Losing Boeser and Jost would junk-punch an already offensively challenged team. Worse? Who's the leader? I still say the 2016-17 team lacked leadership.

... but for whom? His choice leading to the third BU goal was just ... say it Chuck.

We only age out two seniors (Ausmus and Hrynkiw). I'm strictly looking at DOB (not thinking health and such): Gabe Bast and Josh Rieger are '96 DOBs. They have to come now or they start losing NCAA eligibility by being over 21 at arrival. That tells me the team knows the need two defensemen (Ausmus obviously, and Tucker Poolman) and it's Bast and Rieger. The team loses SR Matty Rinks. Peter Thome is a '97 DOB. Pretty clear there. Adam Scheel is a 1999. He's the insurance depending on Cam (or even Tomek). We've lost Boeser. His 'cou jersey is hanging in the visitor's locker room in The X (just saw it on the Twit). Seems clear Nic Jones (1996 DOB, transfer from OSU who is doing the transfer sit-out year in Penticton) is that slot at forward. UND ran a 14-8-4 (26 man) roster this year when it's normally 15-8-3. I wonder if they'll bring in 1997 DOB Kawaguchi to try to increase competition (and scoring). The only other 1997 is Keane and he really didn't light up the USHL this year. I suspect he's the insurance. After that, all the pipeline guys are 1998 or younger DOBs. I suppose you dip into the best of those as needed.

Flip this: Who in the recruiting pipeline is ready to come in?

Tucker Poolman on the ice would've been a short-term benefit. Putting the now resolved issue* behind all of us, finally, would be the long-term benefit. *Lots of things in life don't resolve the way I'd like, but I have to move forward just the same.

From the USA Today article: I'd say scholarships (or a scholarship endowment) could be claimed as "academic success". Then again, could new helmets (hockey and FB) be considered "health and safety"?

My observation: The host school was playing in Fargo with their official Athletics logo on the boards and on the ice. But it wasn't on the jersey; a logo soon to be deprecated was still there. OneUND

Picked Harvard and Air Force and two teams that outplayed and lost yesterday.

We found that on there early on.

Indoor track, outdoor track, and cross country are three sports. Men's and Women's teams of each is six teams toward the minimum for DI (14 sports for FCS; 16 sports for FBS). MIH, FB, MBB, WBB, and VB are going nowhere. That's 11. The parlays begin there.