Snake

RIght...I just didn't want you to feel it was a reason to discredit this "dream tourney." Heck, the B1G schools could probably use the extra non-conference games against each other!

3 of the 4 Beanpot teams are HEA.

I'm not sure the Wild are in that big of a hurry.

Yeah, UND could probably hang 8 on SCSU if they didn't care about giving up 6...

We are much more mobile on the back end now than we were the last time we played BC. I'd take my chances out east.

Pittsburgh lost to Phoenix 3-1 tonight. Boston blanked Edmonton 4-0 today. And to top it off, Matt Cooke took a stick to the face early in the context of the Wild game. I'd say it has been a great day for hockey!

However, the question here is whether or not the puck would've gone in if the net hadn't been raised up. I bet the refs disallowed it because they determined that the puck slid under the raised portion of the net and would not have gone inside the post had the net been in place. I watched it several times, and in my opinion it wasn't conclusive enough to overturn the goal call made on the ice. I think it should've been a goal, but can see why the refs disallowed it. They determined it wouldn't have gone in had the net remained in place.

I guess the hockey Gods got the result right in the end.

The call on the ice was a goal, and it was awfully tough to tell if the puck went inside the post or under the dislodged net. Conclusive enough for the refs to overturn it I guess.

Just have your goalie kick the net off every time, I guess...

Because it's not the offseason?

One other thing that wasn't specifically mentioned - travel. Instead of that 20-10 gopher team possibly heading east, they get to stay in the metro. Not having to leave New England has been pretty good for BC, hasn't it? More often than not, teams like UM, BC, UND, etc. have earned the right to stay close to home by having good seasons. Teams like MN and BC, that are lucky to have a regional in their backyard every-other year, get the odds tilted in favor of not having to travel when that "bad" season happens during a hosting year. Ultimately, it comes down to the need for more acceptable "neutral" sites in the west. We have a lot of great facilities in MN, but most all of them except the X are home venues for their college teams! I like that Scheel's Arena is now in the mix.

Yes, definitely. I hope the fan bases from the smaller schools involved appreciate the opportunity they have. I know if UND was in the rotation I'd do my damnedest to be there every single year.

Yep, no argument here. Get popular; raise demand; ticket each game.

That was my comment...that as the tourney becomes more popular they would be wise to ticket each game. I'm not saying it was a reason for low attendance from UMD and MSU fans, but if 10k gopher fans snatch up all the lower bowl session tickets and then don't show up it makes for a dull atmosphere as the fans of the schools actually playing are squeezed out of the lower bowl. Granted, in such a scenario it's probably not very difficult to move down to the empty seats...

I heard the tickets were sold as session packages, i.e. one ticket for both games with no exit/re-entry. Do you think this hurt or helped the overall in-person attendance? I'm sure as the event gains popularity they would be wise to ticket each game.

Obviously because he couldn't get a ticket!!

I will definitely agree that they are skilled in "different areas than usual," but not so much on their usual areas. This team is definitely good in its own way, but it's not a complete team in the sense that they lack the scoring threats we're accustomed to.

Omaha goes 6-4? That is preposterous. How on earth does their 3-7 Non-conference record against the current 10, 11, 22, 33, & 34th PWR teams suggests they could now pull a 6-4 record against the current 3-9 PWR teams? Omaha is one of the reasons the NCHC finds itself in this mess!

It's tough to sweep on the road, but at least they're giving themselves opportunities for sweeps by coming out hard on Fridays. I'd rather have the pattern of playing hard in game 1 when it comes to single-elimination time.

The difference here, though, is a non-conference regular season "tourney" vs. an actual conference championship with a NCAA auto-bid at stake. Correct me if I'm wrong, but shootouts won't be used to decide auto-bid games (at least I hope not for the sake of all things pure in the world).

Didn't we start using an "interlocking" ND logo to help distinguish ourselves from Notre Dame? Well, it appears that they like the idea, too, based on the jerseys they will wear tonight. Granted, it's a different font, but I've never seen them "interlock" the N & D like this before. Anyone else?

Basically, rinks like Northeastern, QU, and perhaps Michigan Tech are on the list for the very same reasons we would hope the Old Ralph would've made it if we were still playing there???

I agree. Most All the gopher fans I've talked with lately really miss the old WCHA.

For the NHL it makes sense due to the skill level of the players; but IMO the college game is sloppier on Olympic ice vs. NHL-sized sheets. There are too many missed passes and a lot of chasing the puck into the corners on the bigger sheet.