Snake
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Posts posted by Snake
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Without getting into a point-by-point analysis of the last page or two of posts, let me just say that I think most of it is incredibly stupid.
Actually, I think there was some good analysis in there if you don't have your green glasses on.
Glad I made my post after you made that comment...By the way, your sig line is outdated.
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I don't want to add any more fuel to this fire but, will have to agree with Goon. I don't see a lot of "offensive depth" this year for the sioux. Last season you guys had 2 legit scoring lines that would consistenly score. Now with the departure of Zajac & Stafford has really depleted the scoring. The likes of Forney & Vandevelde were supposed to step in and not miss a beat. It is quite apparent that these guys have not filled the role. Both are in-experienced in WCHA play, where Stafford and Zajac had a few years under their belt.
Also, with Zajac and Stafford last year it allowed Oshie & Toews to "fly under the radar" so to speak. This year Oshie & Toews are struggling because the opposing coaches have figured out if they stop this line the scoring drops off dramatically.
Player development - most players have gone backwords this year.I think both of these posts touch on what I feel is a glaring weakness - that is the lack of a seasoned veteran WHO CAN SCORE AND NOT JUST BE A ROLE PLAYER. Guys like Kaip and Fabian are nice, and it's cute when they actually find the back of the net, but can we get a Senior forward to average a point per game for once in the foreseeable future? Those types of players should be the ones that are developed by the coaching staff. All of the guys that jump after their sophomore season already have it in them - that's why they're NHL draft picks.
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tDon called Jutting this summer and asked if they could move the game. Since it's UM's home game they have such options. Jutting decided to go with it since he figured it was the right thing to do. PA and Dubay interviewed Jutts yesterday and asked if he would have made the same decision a month ago he said NOPE!
The Sioux have no significant depth at forward, so I guess it's no surprise to me they'd go 0-5 on the PP without Toews and Lee. Last night was a pretty good indicator of how far away this team is from being a serious contender. We lose 1-0 on the road to CC with only one forward gone and the Gophers handle 'Kato on the road 5-1 with three lines. There's not enough time to make baby-steps, either. It could get ugly at Mariucci...
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Am I dreaming, and if I am would someone please be so kind as to wake me up?
More like a nightmare!
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Are we sure the "real" season doesn't start until next weekend?
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Just like every other team we have played this year. We out play, out shoot, out hustle the other team. Their goalie stands on his head and plays like it's a frozen 4 final. That $hit is getting REALLY old.
What team have you been watching this year?
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Maybe JT will want to participate in his 3rd WJC bad enough, which results in him coming back to ND for one more year! Okay, it's a stretch, and I wouldn't bet on it, but we can hope!
I understand that college teams are more likely to release their players for the WJC, but making the jump to the NHL doesn't totally wipe out his chances of playing in a 3rd WJC - especially if he doesn't crack the Blackhawks' lineup like some people think will be difficult for him.
So you know this for a fact? I won't disagree with you that he has had a strong WJC, but he has been average with UND this season. Granted every team that has played UND this season has slashed, hooked and held Oshie and Toews but if Bochenski isn't in the NHL, I don't see how Toews is going to crack the Black Hawks line up?
I think Toews would have an excellent shot at cracking the Blackhawks' lineup next year. Comparing his situation to Bochenski is a little apples to oranges. Bo's a good player, but I think Toews has a better all-around game and he comes in with a higher draft status so I'd bet Chicago would be more apt to get him out there to see what he can do.
Now, would there be room for both Skille AND Toews? Maybe Skille jumps early and Toews stays? That sure would be nice.
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You can't hang that on Jon Toews. Maybe the coaching staff, the other players, etc., but not him. This kid is special and you will miss him when he's not here. In my opinion, he's the most talented player in the WCHA. He just doesn't have enough players around him this year. That will be apparent next year when you see what he does in the NHL.
It's apparent by what he's doing in the WJC.
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Think I've got the wrong guy, unless you've stolen his uname, or it's just real similar.
I think you're thinking of HKNTSMN...hockey nut in southern minnesota.
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It's different because it's not the same team. The 04-05 team barely averaged three goals per game. The Spirko-Zajac-Stafford line didn't really become the "men among boys" line until near the end of the regular season. That was two freshmen and a sophomore providing much UND's offense. What got the Sioux by that year was Parise's goaltending and a big, physical, experienced defensive corps. It also helped that by playoff time, guys like Fabian, Massen, Canady, Genoway and McMahon who hadn't been scoring much started popping in goals. Just because the puck isn't going in the net now doesn't mean it will stay that way the entire season.
Last season, the Sioux had Zajac, Stafford, Spirko, Towes, Oshie and Duncan up front, yet they were hardly an offensive jugernaut, averaging about 3.7 goals per game. With the exception of the 01-02 season, none of the Sioux teams under Blais ever averaged under 4 goals per game. The Sioux struggled much of last season, but made it to the Frozen Four with the help of Parise's goaltending and Smaby being the experienced anchor on defense. And once again, the offense started coming around by season's end.
This season, some of the key elements that made UND's defense good the past two seasons are gone. We don't have as many big, physical defensemen as we did the past two seasons. We don't have Parise. And I'm not saying that neither Lamoureux nor Grieco are capable of filling his skates. I am saying that their job is a lot more difficult without an experienced D-corps in front of them and without much support from the offense.
As Hakstol said, when the team is scoring only 2 or 3 goals a game, the margin of error is very slim and every defensive mistake is magnified. He's exactly right. The team's style of play and mindset changes when not making any mistakes that cause goals becomes more important than scoring goals. Hakstol understands what Blais understood: The best defense is a good offense. If you don't have a great defense, you sure as heck better have the offense to compensate for it.
We know that some of the players who were expected to do a lot of scoring haven't been. We know that some of the forwards who were expected to step up their scoring haven't done it. And although this year's freshman class isn't last year's, I see signs that Forney, VandeVelde, Zajac and Genoway will contribute more offensively as they gain experience.
This leads me to another point. The past two weekends, I've heard the coaches of teams that swept the Sioux talk about how maturity and experience factored into their success against UND. I don't care what anyone says, there's no escaping the fact that this year's team is young. There is no substitute for maturity and experience in the WCHA.
I think this is a good summary. I'd also like to add that I think this is the year where we're really feeling the impact of Brady Murray leaving early. Man, would he look good in Green right now. Couple that with Spirko leaving early and there are two players most everyone on this board thought would be playing all 4 years. We just don't have an upper classman that can make a significant impact on the scoreboard. Spirko and Murray would have been those guys this year. Instead, we're stuck relying on Frosh and Sophomores to carry the load offensively.
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I think Grieco should be given a chance to see what he can do since he is young and I think he has shown good promise. The Sioux need two good goalies anyways. Jordan Parise first year turned out to be his elevation to the starting job. I do blieve the Sioux coaches need to recruit another goalie for next season, if not for the future, maybe someone to split time with Grieco or Phil next season. Phil's done after next season and it doesn't hurt to plan for the future.
Gotcha - thanks!
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It is beyond dispute this team is not good this year, but those are absolutely unrealistic expectations. Particularly courageous from someone who isn't putting on the jersey or lacing the skates every day to post they hold someone else to such a standard. The thing about goal setting is they must be...realistic...achievable...measureable. When you don't have those first two, the last doesn't matter. No program at any level wins every game they play and contends for a championship every year. Those expectations reflect more on you than it does the Sioux administration, coaches, or players for not delivering those goods.
Obviously expecting a team to win every game is unrealistic. A more realistic goal would be to expect the team to compete hard in every game. I'm not necessarily seeing that.
On the other hand, winning at least ONE game against MTU in your own building is absolutely realistic; unfortunately this team is underachieving as measured by their 0-2 record this weekend.
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Great post and I agree with you.
I heard that too. I hope Grieco stays he has a lot of potential and I like having a bigger goalie too to cover more net.
Goon, I'm having trouble understanding where you stand. Do you think they should recruit another goalie for the merry-go-round and give Grieco thoughts about leaving the program or should they stand pat with Grieco's potential?
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I agree with AZ, the coaching staff needs to get out there and recruit a goalie to come in that is bad ass. Maybe even for next year, he can come in take over someones spot. Until then Hak needs to find a way to rebound the rest of the season
Yeah, because we intentionally recruit non bad ass goalies on purpose? The coaching staff must have missed the "ass" part when evaluating Grieco and got a guy that was just "bad."
It's easier said than done; and who's to say the same people who made the decision to bring Grieco in won't mis-evaluate someone else (not implying Grieco was mis-evaluated). I seem to remember people clamoring for Grieco early in the season, and now that we've got a little taste - not even a significant sampling - of what he can do AS A FRESHMAN we want another guy. Let the kid play with a team in front of him that gives a damn and the goaltending situation may not look as bad as it seems right now.
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Here's something positive:
I'm looking forward to watching this team pull the 10 vs. 1 uppie at Mariucci in March!!
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Its apparent that Sheppard doesn't want to make a call that affects the outcome of a game. Not doing your job the way its supposed to is the same thing.
He sure doesn't have a problem "reffing the scoreboard" on most nights during the first 58 minutes of a game!
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I agree. But I don't think that shot was a very difficult one to control the rebound on. For how well we were playing up to that point, to get the lead for the first time in forever, and have a goal like that go in, it just was a momentum-killer IMO.
No disputing the effect on momentum here. I just wish the team would help the goalies out a little more. They've got a tough enough job as it is, and when the goalie's the only defender down low it gets that much more difficult.
Maybe Grieco should have "controlled" his rebound out to the circles...that's where is defenders were
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Not to mention that every team we played against this year (with the exception of Mankato), had better goaltending than us.
We have three problems. Either our talent is not working to their potential, the talent wasn't there to begin with (right now it's certainly no better than anyone elses), or our coaching is poor in that they can't motivate our players to perform.
I'd like to think it's not the latter. I'd sure hope these guys don't enjoy losing and that would be motivation enough to play well.
Guys that we counted on to take scoring roles aren't doing it this year. Last year they played in the shadows of Zajac, Stafford, Spirko, Oshie, Toews, etc. so it was maybe easier to see their "potential" on the 3rd and 4th lines. Now that they're the focus of the team it's a different story. This lends me to believe they either haven't made the progression from year 1 to year 2, or they aren't as good as we think they are. Maybe they've just been put into this role too quickly?
We also have an issue with sub-par veteran leadership. When I say sub-par I'm not talking about hard-working, inspirational types, but more to the effect of 20+ goal-scoring, 1.0 PPG type. This team has relied on underclassmen for too much of the scoring burden over the past few years. That's what is making the early departures so difficult to overcome. It's great to get the blue-chip guys, but we need to have some players that will develop into scoring threats as seniors and not just muckers and grinders.
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Phil made some great saves on Friday night in the 1st period too. And I don't think Grieco was that sharp all-around. He gave up a lot of juicy rebounds and looked tentative with the puck all-together. Maybe that just comes from not playing in a while. But Grieco has got to figure out how to control rebounds. The 1st goal was a direct result of him not controlling a rebound.
Grieco made the first save. The goal was a direct result of nobody clearing the guy standing all-alone in front of the net.
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Hakstol was just on with TH, but it really isn't worth posting, because TH throws the same softball questions and drivel toward Hak every night.
Yeah, it's getting pretty old listening to these guys say "we just can't get a break."
Isn't it written on a plaque in the Ralph somewhere - "The harder I work, the luckier I get?"
You make your own luck...
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What? they are pulling him?
Is he hurt?
It's "Shake up night" at the Ralph.
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That looked awful on the part of our backcheckers.
It was awful on the part of our D.
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Why is a Tech player standing all alone in front of Grieco?
Lee was on the ice.
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I actually think it would be easier to recruit a goalie than can stop the puck than trying to replace blue chippers Stafford, Zajac and Spirko.
I disagree. I believe the point was made in an earlier post that if a forward or D recruit doesn't pan out it's not as magnified as if you "miss" on a goalie recruit. Finding a guy that's 6-foot plus and takes up a bunch of the net is one thing, but finding a guy that knows how to stop the puck is another. Everyone's after stud goaltending - it's rare. Sure, as one of the elite programs in the country we should be able to land a stud now and then, but perhaps it comes down to those who are evaluating potential goaltenders. Maybe we're just not that good at picking the "right" ones. UND has certainly done a better job picking up blue-chip skaters than blue-chip goaltenders.
The Sioux I'm used to watching win games and championships by playing a style with a balance of speed, finesse, grit, and power. They win by scoring goals, cycling the puck, carrying the play in the opponent's end of the ice, and punishing the opponent while in their own zone. They also do it with TIMELY goaltending. Right now it seems like we're missing all of these elements.
If we fix the timely goaltending does that mean we're going to score more? Will that take the pressure off the rest of the team so they can let loose and start scoring? Maybe the goaltending sees every shot as critical because they're not getting any offensive (or defensive) support? Chicken or egg?
Saturday at Colorado College
in Men's Hockey
Posted
He's got an amazing shot - when he gets it off. He takes forever to get his shot off.