Fratt Mattin

If he hits the portal I hope we go after him

Yeah I had problems yesterday as well

I’ve had trouble getting the website to load all day

If we don’t take a portal defenseman, we’ll have no seniors and just two juniors. That’s not a recipe for making a tournament run

My thoughts exactly. If there’s a high end junior or senior d-man available in the portal, I think we need to be all over that. Preferably a righty

Totally agree that he needs another year for the same reasons you say. Glad to hear that about Conroy

Not saying it’s likely, but I don’t think we can assume Reschny is back. I personally don’t think he’s ready, but he plays a very pro style game and who knows what he/Calgary think would be best for him

Yeah I’m just assuming other improvements as well. Guessing Larson trims the fat and adds 1-2 more portal d-men. I also think we see them get 1-2 big CHL names. The checkbook will be open after this year’s disaster of a season

Holy cow. Well you can pencil UMTC back in for the playoffs next year. That's basically Cloud's 4 best players (other than Gross who turned pro)

Could be on his end. He's from out east, so not exactly a traditional recruit for them. Bob leaving might have made him reevaluate and look at some options closer to home

Yep. Gonna be very hard to figure out what to do there. I wonder if putting Ollie at 4th line center is the best option? I don't think you can break up that 3rd line after what they did in the regional, but Ollie is probably too good not to play. So to me swapping him in for Littler might make the most sense. No easy answers here though

That would be a deadly duo for the Pios. They will score plenty of goals next year if they get Preston too

He has also said he tries to model his game after Jonathan Toews. Let’s hope that includes going to the same school

Yeah, totally agree. Even if we could afford it, as I've explained in other comments, I think the money would be better spent elsewhere (not a knock on him, great player obviously)

If the number is actually 7 figures, then I would guess we are comfortably out of the running

Oh man that gets me excited. Command, Carels, and an older forward out of the portal would be a perfect haul in my opinion

Command would be very interesting, as it looks like he has played his whole career in Sweden thus far. I can’t remember the last time we brought in a freshman who had no previous experience in North America. He’s a great player though, so I hope they can make it happen.

It’s funny because he also was scratched for all the important games at 4 Nations and the Olympics (rightfully so imo). Maybe he just doesn’t play well when he puts on the stars and stripes lol

I think when people say “regret” they generally mean that another year at UND is probably better than any pro option short of playing full time in the NHL. So, when a guy leaves early just to be a full time AHLer or lower, it does make you wonder if they wouldn’t have been better off sticking around here. This is an even more valid argument now that guys can get paid to play here

I’m no expert, but my uneducated opinion is that his chances are slim. The NHL doesn’t like sub-6 foot defensemen at all. Stretcher has made it work, but his physicality and compete were both a clear level above Livanavage’s. No hate to Jake. I think he’s a great player and would love to have him back. Just my amateur analysis and I’d love it if he proved me wrong

Never say never, but I highly doubt it

This is where I’m at. Obviously you don’t say no to a player like DuPont, but with the commits we have lined up, you have to ask yourself if it makes sense to spend the money at that position. When you look at next year’s roster and where the holes will be, it probably makes more sense to devote resources to finding a Rickwood and/or Reschny replacement rather than go all in on someone who doesn’t play a position of need

I hope you’re right because he’d be a huge add. Also Gopher fans are convinced they’ve got him locked up, so that would make it extra sweet

OK State, Iowa State, and UNLV would all make a lot of geographic sense for the NCHC if they ever decide to make the jump. I know in the current landscape more schools are cutting than adding sports though, so it's probably just a pipe dream for now

DuPont, England, Cripps, Jacobson, and Fitzhenry should all be on our radar. Although given Jacobson's dad owns the Wheat Kings, I'm not sure he'll even play NCAA