The Sicatoka

So the only two schools with legitimate nicknames in a North Dakota context are Wahpeton and Larimore?

So is Red River HS the "Roughriders" because they are kids from Las Cruses and Tempe or because that's the name given to people who follow Teddy Roosevelt's lead? You know Teddy: North Dakota's greatest advocate; the New Yorker who said he wouldn't have been a US President if not for his time in North Dakota; Nobel Prize winner, Congressional Medal of Honor winner.

I don't think Babcock goes to a young team in the rebuilding process (i.e. Edmonton). The one I just heard that almost makes sense: If Anaheim doesn't advance this year ...

Any truth to the rumor that Mike Babcock just finished setting forms from blue line to blue line and has twelve yards of ready mix on order for 7 pm delivery?

... and if we had the 1983 Washington Redskins offensive line we'd have some really old offensive linemen. "Rome was not built in a day."

You're saying he's better than Patrick Kane, Steve Stamkos, John Tavares; better than everyone since Crosby (and Ovechkin the year before that). He's good, but until he's in the NHL he's not better than Kane, Stamkos, and Tavares. But I can live with better than everyone after (starting with Taylor/Tyler). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_first_overall_NHL_draft_picks

I'm not greedy. I'll take anyone on this list.

Actually, Minnesota is "The Gopher State".

Minnesota's nickname doesn't come from North Dakota but from a cartoon depicting corruption in their legislature.

But I also see the WCHA producing one or two teams annually that can make some post-season noise. This year's were MSU-PurpleCow and Michigan Tech.

The Oilers pick first, thus is why I said ... McDavid is the top available player in this draft. That's not disrespecting Eichel; it's reality.

Personally, I'd be wholly against using a rival state's motto as our University's nickname. We can do far better.

Under the settlement agreement UND must maintain its trademark rights to the retired name and logo. As such, UND must use them in commerce at some periodicity. So, there will be some (> $0) coming in from the retired name and logo.

Not a potential recruit by any means, but what a playoff series (future Edmonton Oiler Connor McDavid) is having: 13 points in 4 games.

Unique, yes. But again you're trying to sell a nothing. I can go to any truck stop and get a hat or t-shirt that says "North Dakota" on it; but, that's not UND. What makes it identifiable is either "University of North Dakota" or "UND" ... or the (wait for it) ... identifying nickname. You can't sell or market a void, a nothing. No they wouldn't. Nobody outside of this tight little circle cares. If they did, Florida State and Notre Dame would be changing names ... or North Dakota would not. There's not a lot of hazy area in the NCAA policy (no race, ethnicity, or national origin based nicknames) yet the Seminoles and Irish are still out there. If people really cared that policy would be applied equally and consistently. But it's not, which tells me nobody cares if North Dakota takes the hit or if they have a nickname or not. And there it is, as many have said all along: no nickname is merely a ruse to keep using the old nickname.

< and the choir says, "Amen!" >

About the hits on Monday by Kronwall and Ovechkin, I still say put the second official up in the press box during the game. Go with the immediate replay review. In Kronwall's case he probably would have gotten 2 and 10 (maybe 5 and 10), but not 60. And Ovechkin would've been called for something. In this Kronwall case, it seems like TBL is getting extra benefit out of that non-call.

So you never get out to the capitol in Bismarck to take a stroll through the North Dakota Theodore Roosevelt Rough Riders Hall of Fame? Some guy named "Thomas J. Clifford" is enshrined in it as is some basketball hack named "Phil Jackson" and some hockey puck named "Clifford 'Fido' Purpur", and Era Bell Thompson, Gen. David C. Jones, Judge Ronald N. Davies*, Carl Ben Eielson*, William C. Marcil, Gerald W. VandeWalle ... *I love that Fargo Public Schools has to pick UND (not NDSU) grads to name buildings after.

That would violate the Settlement Agreement, section 2.j "Intellectual Property". No, wait, I didn't read far enough. UND can transfer it to "any Sioux nation or tribe". The catch is ... there aren't any "Sioux". There are just Dakota, Lakota, and Nakota. "Sioux" is a nickname given to the D/L/Nakota tribes by others.

The most important word in there? "Most". Some will never.

L'etoille du Nord? French for "North Star"? Where have I seen that? Oh yeah ... the Minnesota state seal, in the middle of the Minnesota state flag.

John Crockett.

For the same reason UND is not considering "Buffalos". It's a little too close to something else nearby.

The Road to the Final Compliance. < CBS "Road to Final Four" music here >

My answer is c) On September 24, 2012, yes, in compliance, but solely because ... ... and the NCAA cut UND some slack given the state law prohibiting UND from adopting a new nickname before 1/1/15. So what do we call that? Quasi-compliance? En route to full compliance (along a slow and narrowed by because of legislature actions)?