Just Curious

I hope you were kidding otherwise you know nothing about hockey and should stick to posting opinions on the basketball threads. While a team doesn't have to have an outstanding goaltender to win a championship, they do need a capable one. I don't care how many or how talented the other positions are, you have to have a goalie to win!

The rumor that Ambroz is going to play full time in the USHL next year was reported on 2 blogs that I read, they may be using each other as sources, but either way: http://theworldofjuniorhockey.blogspot.com/ http://www.areavoices.com/force/

Ambroz's linemate from last year is committed to Wisconsin for 2010, so I would think that might give them an inside track as well. It will be interesting to see how he competes against older, USHL talent this year. It will definitely help his development, but may drop him down in regards to WHL drafts if he doesn't have a standout year.

I had assumed that many colleges were after Ambroz, I was just curious if there was any solid intel out there that UND is for sure in the hunt.

I know its still very early, but does anyone know if UND is recruiting Seth Ambroz? I know we lost out on his linemate from last year, but at just 15, this kid may be huge.

The initial intention of my posting was to end this tangential topic and get back to what the tread is named for. I realize that we all have strong opinions about hockey and hockey related topics and that each of our opinions are as different as we are; but it would be nice to read a thread and have it actually pertain to the subject that is in the title, not 5 days of debate on whether the Austria hockey league is a stepping stone to the NHL. Let us agree to disagree and get back to talking about former players, not European leagues!

NDFlyer, I have just one question for you: How long did you play in Austria?? Better yet, why don't you just fill us all in on how many Austria league games you have watched and since you obviously are an expert on European leagues and their ability to help a player's development, why don't you set forth a plan for all those other hockey players that are thinking of playing in Europe only to one day play in the NHL.

Maybe we could just drop the subject as to whether or not people on this board think JPar did the right thing. Why don't we just wish him the best and perhaps even give him some credit. He is in the process of recovering from a fairly serious injury and perhaps he thinks this will be the best option for him to get back into shape and prepared for next year, or the next 5 years. There could potentially be more than just 2 steps involved in him making the NHL, if he does in fact make it.

So I was poking around NHL.com today and noticed that Andrew Kozek and Joe Finley are not listed on the rosters for the prospect camps of the teams that drafted them. Anyone know why??

Sounds like all the UND boys did well in the future stars game in St Louis, but Lammy and Porter got the better of Oshie. Maybe all 3 will get a shot next year. http://blues.nhl.com/team/app/?service=pag...rticleid=367162

Anybody have any word on why Tampa Bay still drafted him after the news of his heart condition came out?

I thought MacWilliam was coming in next year and not Fienhage?? Where is MacWilliam going to play next year? Does he still have eligibility in the league he was in?

There are a couple of things that don't make this situation worse than the Clarke situation. First off, DU changed its mind on when he was to come in, one of the factors that made him choose DU over UND, without that incentive, the decision process begins again. Second, he was still relatively young, sure he wasn't 15, but he made the decision based off of when he could start and later realized that it was too far from home for him. I respect that influence. Had DU not changed its mind, I am sure Jason would have stayed committed, but they did change their mind and he had the option to rethink his choice. DU didn't make a huge stink over it, and I don't think we should either. As far as Clarke goes, yeah it sucks, but lets move on, there is no reason to still be complaining about this situation 2 weeks after the fact.

While I have no problems with early predictions, I think one of the important things to remember is that CC and U of M will not necessarily have solid goaltending next year. While they both had great performances as freshmen, there are many examples of sophomore slumps. I am not saying it will happen, but its happened in the past and there are still many questions to answer. Also, remember DU loses Mannino, so they will have 2 relatively untested sophomore goalies to backstop them. So, that gives us some questions in net in what most people predict will be the top 4 teams in the WCHA next year. I think things will be close all around and should make for an exciting year. It would be nice to see less dichotomy in the conference and more epic battles!

I am as disappointed as the next guy, but you have to remember that this kid is just 15 and making decisions that are way above his maturity level. Even if it is just him being fickle, its his life and his choice. There is no need to rag on a 15 year old kid and hope that he flops. That is just pathetic. Maybe his situation changed, what if his family hit hard times and they needed him to play in the Q to make money for the family......... Fact of the matter is that only a select few know all the details and he only backed out of a verbal commitment, which is a commitment, but not as official and binding and a written. He had every right to do what he thought was best for him and his family. UND will find a recruit to replace him and will be fine. UND's program is solid and while it may lose a recruit here and there, they will also snag one from time to time as well. I wish Clarke all the best and while its sad he won't be in Fargo and at UND, may he have a long and productive hockey career. Now give the kid a break!

Well he obviously played well enough to get the attention of the NHL team. He is dressing as the 7th defensemen for tonigths game. http://westerncollegehockey.blogspot.com/

A year is a long time, Forney may change his mind (which ever direction its leaning now) by then. With his history of injuries, I don't think alot of schools are going to come calling too quickly. He will need a good year (stats and injury wise) for schools to start looking at him seriously. He also has those 2 years of eligibility against him as well, some schools will be hesitant to offer him a scholarship when they know he will only be available for 2 years. Personally, I would love to see him come back after his stint in the USHL, I don't know if it will happen, but until I hear he has committed elsewhere, I will keep my hopes up. I wish him the best of luck with what ever he decides.

There is a difference between not being good enough to play last year and being good enough but being #2 behind another great goaltender. Hak praised Walski at MANY points last year and was impressed with his work from the previous season, he obviously beat out Grieco for the #2 spot. He may have gotten more games last year had Lammy not had such a great year and been healthy the whole time. I think the fact that UND did not try to get a higher quality goaltender in the middle of last year proves that Hak and co felt that if Walski had to become the starter they would still be OK. I think that the idea that Eidsness has the #1 spot locked up is a bit short-sited. Hak will evaluate them next year and give the spot to who deserves it. I think Walski has proven he has the work ethic to become a starting goaltender in the WCHA. May the best goalie win, or better yet, may we have a rotation between 2 outstanding goalies. Remember, lots of people wrote Lammy off years ago and look at his numbers last year!

I think Duncan's drop in points last year was not b/c of the loss of Toews, but more so due to the fact that teams now knew to keep an eye on him and he received alot more attention and harassment. This will still be the case next year, and depending on who he is lined up with, he may yet again have a drop in points, but I don't agree with the idea that he needs to be surrounded by good players to be good, its more of a matter of teams keying in on him more and more, especially with TJ gone now. I still think he will put up good numbers, maybe just more assists than goals. Although if Gregoire and Toews are as good as we think they are, that line could rival the DOT line of 2 years ago.

Didn't see this posted yet, so enjoy a nice little piece on Gregoire. http://journalstar.com/articles/2008/04/25...7c391506072.txt Also, concerning the questions of Cichy's teamwork and ability to get along with others, was this information obtained from people in the USHL he played with or from those in the Development program that he left. I think he was in the wrong type of system with the development team, and some negative comments most likely came from that situation instead of his stint with Tri-City.

I am glad someone started a positive thread after last night's game. I think its absolutely disgusting how many 'fans' are calling for players to leave, coaches to be fired, and pointing fingers left and right. It has been discussed else where in this forum, we are lucky to be fans of a team that gets to play in April. I cannot deny that UND didn't play up to it's usual standards last night, but look at the fact that it's usual standards are quite high. We are lucky to have a program like UND to watch and enjoy. We get to see great players, both talent-wise and those dedicated to the fans and the program. I would like to thank the team, coaching staff, and all those fans that stayed loyal, through the good and bad. Even if the Sioux have a losing season from time to time, I will remain a fan.

Gregoire gets an assist in regulation and a goal in the 2nd OT for Lincoln's win in Game 1 of the playoffs. OH, he also had 9 shots on goal during the game. He is going to be great!

I think if Cichy would have been on a slightly better team we would have seen much bigger numbers out of him. I know the hype surrounding him has died down a bit, but I think he will surprise alot of people coming in. I don't know if I would roll with a line of all freshmen, especially since they have slightly different styles of play, but I think they will put up some good numbers from the get go.

Gregoire had two of Lincoln's 3 goals last night in their loss to Sioux Falls. Considering his injuries and games missed this year, his stats are extra impressive and I hope he wins Player of the Year....

This should probably go in the former players section, but either way... Watched the Nashville vs. St. Louis game tonight (actually still in progress). So far he (Bochenski) has a goal and an assist. His line is definitely the best line for Nashville tonight. Also both announcers have been very complimentary about Bo and his travels through the NHL. They talked about his problems adjusting to the muscle he put on and they said they watched him in the morning skate and he seems to have found his stride again and got back his jump. Hopefully Bo keeps up the work and finally found a home.