OETKB

I agree about UNC being a real test for this Sioux team. However, why not use Klosterman's arm a bit more. Sure, he has not yet had the consistency of last season in the air, but I think UND needs to use Smith and others in short (8 to 15) yard plays, where Klosterman can shine. BTW, how does UND compare size-wise to UNC? Will the offensive line be able to create holes? Lennon reshuffled the OL after the embarrasing loss to CW. Do you think it functioned better against Mesa St., or were they just a weaker team?

Mr. Notermann: How does your son feel about the upcoming season? I'll bet Blais is counting on him to bury some pucks this year as one of only 2 seniors offensively. Do you think he'll play with Speiwak or with some other combination?

I'm another regular visitor to this great website who wants to say "thanks" to the parents who toss us tidbits. It is a pleasure to hear what the players are saying/thinking/doing about the upcoming season. As a fan who no longer lives in Grand Forks, but watched about 20 years of live hockey games before leaving, this site helps me feel closer to the team I'll always root for. Thanks again and keep the posts coming.

Wow. UND had a total meltdown yesterday. I hear that Lennon, when asked how well the team would do at a booster meeting, replied "I don't know. We're a very young team." I'm not sure I agree with them being all that young, although compared to last year that could be argued. Basically, unless the defense can use some tape study to put things together, UND is going to be exploited with 3 step drop offensive game plans all year. It worked for Grand Valley State last year, although the Sioux squeaked out a championship performance in the last drive. It worked for SCSU and now C. Washington. This could be a long season (or a short one, if you know what I mean).

Why not Hyrkac-like numbers? I'd "settle" for 32-67-101-pro Seriously, though, I just hope he is all that everyone is saying he is. After all, he's pretty young and D1 is a big jump, even from SSM.

Well, according to the roster, Parise is 5'10" and about 180 lbs, so I didn't see him as getting burried along the walls. Also, I figured Lundbohm as a very diverse swing player who would take the walls half the time. With two skilled playmakers and a gifted goal scorer, I thought it could be an excellent combination. Now, I don't really know what Parise's playing style is (never seen him), so this was just a true guesstimate that he would do well in a swing-player role, together with Lundbohm. Sound crazy?

I'm changing my mind again, due to the Fournier thing. Sprig is probably right about McMahon & Prpich being played together. They've played together before in prep hockey and their positions don't clash, so I'll bet Blais pairs them like he did with Canady & Connelly last season. 2nd Revised guesstimate: Notermann - Speiwak - Hale Parise - Lundbohm - Bochenski Canady - Genoway - Massen Prpich - McMahon - Fylling Out of the 3 times I've posted here, this is the lineup I feel best about, because I'm not forcing anyone into unnatural positions to fit-in all the top flight players. Blais, I'm sure, will take my 2 cents under careful consideration The roster is now down to 24 players, with only 2 "reserve" forwards. Pretty sparse compared to '01-02!

Wow! That's a shocker to me. Fournier had a somewhat disappointing freshman season, considering he was the USHL POY with over 80 pts. Compared to Bochenski, his skills did not translate to D1 very well. To show up out of shape is a huge surprise. So, does this leave a scholarship slot open?

The fact that UNO got beat at home by a lower-ranked team says something, although UNK was the #25 team and it was the 1st game of the year. Let's hope the Sioux can get a couple crucial wins on the road, including N. Colorado, NDSU, and UNO. It's payback time! No fingers to the crowd required. I think next weeks' game vs C. Washington will be a much better indicator of just how talented guys like Anderson and Mahmoud really are. Some very encouraging numbers, however, were: Klosterman = 9 for 9 passing Smith = 108 yds on 8 catches Mahmoud = set school record with 2 TD's from Punt Returns. Anderson = 7 solo tackles Glas = tied school record with 5 FG's (5 for 5; longest = 47 yds)

Yes, apparently he has a problem with credits transfering from his former school or something like that. Fortunately, he was able to be redshirted and will play next season. Luckily for the Sioux, he was not the #1 guy at his position, but maybe having a year off will allow him to be the #1 guy next year!

I'm in agreement that both Lundbohm & Hale need to play a consistent and improved scoring game this season for the Sioux to reach their potential. However, it is just as important for Notermann & Spiewak to have solid senior seasons, IMO. Both, as juniors, saw their scoring decline from the previous year. Obviously, they played less games than in '00-01, but UND needs these two to perform at their best if they want to make any noise.

Apparently, Blais has made comments that Colby Gennoway will likely play center this coming season. That makes me shift things around a little. Newly revised lineup guesstimate: Lundbohm - Fournier - Bochenski Notermann - Spiewak - Massen Prpich - Parise- Hale Canady - Genoway - McMahon Geez, this is tough. I'd love to somehow work Fylling and Palmiscno into the lineup, if not Connelly, too, but there just isn't room.

48 as a freshman, huh? I hope you are right! I was hoping for half of that. If he truly is talented enought to center the top line, but Fournier is teamed with Bochenski, who is on the top line? I'll get a line combo out of you, yet.

The Media Day online articles say that the Offensive Line is the biggest question mark for the team this year. However, it looks like many of the boys have put on a few pounds since their listing on last year's roster. Schneider, the senior center, is the "little guy" on the offensive line. At a mere 6'0", 290, his nickname probably went from "big Mac" in H.S. to "small fry", seing as the projected starter at L. Tackle is a sophmore (Brian Dokken) who checks in at 6'6", 310 lbs and the projected R. Tackle (Barry Smith) is a sophmore who checks in at 6'8", 319 lbs! Of course, Schneider has the strongest squat on the squad at over 600 lbs. And he can bench 380 lbs, so I'm not the one who's gonna call him anything but "Sir." Go Sioux.

I agree about the Mankato season sweep as a hopeful occurance. The 0-6 loss last season was one of the lowest points since Blais took the helm. A total meltdown. This team, IMO, is worth believing in. The schedule early-on should help them build confidence and chemistry between players. Then, when the difficult stretch comes along, the PWR will take care of itself if UND can get some W's.

I've done further analysis of the returning talent in the WCHA. Also, I looked at UND's relatively easy schedule this season. At home, it looks to me like the Sioux should be able to turn the tide on last seasons performance. In fact, I'm hoping they don't lose more than 5 games at the Ralph. Look at the schedule - it's very possible for them to be something like 15-5-1 in 21 games. The road schedule is tougher. There, I'm thinking UND will be around .500, given that they play UM & Denver only on the road this season.

I'm not familiar with Irman, but I was very concerned when I learned that Potulny had gone to MN and was doing very well as a college player. Then, someone in my family reported that UND passed on recruiting him. Apparently, there were some issues with his character. I don't claim to know what those things were or that it is absolutely true. All I know is that it made me feel much better about not having Potulny playing in Grand Forks. Since his older brother plays for UM, you can't blame the younger Potulny if he chooses to go there, too. And, with the facilities and the excellent recruits and coaching at UND, we shouldn't have to worry too much about ND kids not wanting to play here. Fight on Sioux.

One thing is for certain, a team could do a lot worse than to have "bubble" players (that have to compete hard for playing time) like Palmiscno, Fylling, Connelly, & Lienweber. UND has a luxury this coming season it hasn't had for a few years - a roster deep enough in talent to run 5 offensive lines successfuly. Blais could probably swap the 4th line each Saturday and not have it hurt the team much. Ditto for the "backup" players on defense (Marvin/Leinweber) and in goal (Siembida/Brandt). Who dresses, there, anyway? This years' team will be stronger in the experience department. We may not see a duo of players scoring in the high 40's like last season (or maybe we will), but I'm hoping we can have 9 or more players who score 20+ points.

While I agree Fylling may be in the "competition for ice time" bubble, I don't think it is fair to say he did worse than some of the other soph's in the juniors. I mean, he had 58 pts, including 25 goals, at Sioux Falls last season and won the team MVP award, as well as being named a USHL All Star. IMO, he's in the same category as Canady/McMahon - super hard working with some offensive skills to match. Of course, at 5'10" 170 lbs, he can't have the same physical impact, but the drive is there and he did manage to score 7 pts as a freshman at UND. Anyway, I don't anticipate that anyone will be cut at the beginning of this season, as the roster is not quite as overloaded as last year. If that is true, the competition for ice time will be fierce and that is a good thing.

For the record, I personally believe Schneider & Hale will both play professional hockey, at least at minor level and hopefully beyond. Hale needs to have a season where he asserts himself a little more strongly. I'd really like to see him develop some attitude ie) confidence and leadership. Schneider looked really good as a frosh. Also, it sounds like Greene and Smaby will both be NHL material, although people like me should withhold opinion until they make the jump to D1. Of course, I don't mean to exclude anybody else that is working their butt off to make it in the hockey world. But, hey, use it as your motivation and get mean out there!

I was a little disappointed last season with the lack of protection by the defensemen on either end of the ice. After Schneider got his fighting ejection in the preseason, there was not much hint of it later. I think what Blais wants is a set of d-men who will intimidate other teams meerly by their presence and clean defensive play, as he does not seem to tolerate fighting or after-the-whistle instigations. Then, if he gets enough guys like Hale, Schneider, Greene, & Smaby, no one will dare play the intimidation game (like Demarchi / Taffe did last season). If they try, losing one defenseman to a fighting ejection is no big deal, but it will be to the recipient of the beating!

Some of the posters over on USCHO are knocking Smaby as just another big, one-dimensional d-man. The implication is that without more offensive defensemen, UND can't win it all. Perhaps Dahlen is the kind of player who can take on a role like that. Or perhaps Blais is counting on Schneider or Fuher to become more offensive-minded. Can anyone tell me if Dahlen is well-liked by UND's coaching staff? Do they have the intent of playing him regularly?

I never thought I'd say this, but kids leaving early for the pro's will be a good thing. A good thing because it means they played up to their potential. A good thing because future recruits then know they will be watched by the pros. Not so long ago, people were lamenting that all the good players were going to the Canadian Juniors and that college hockey was in danger. Today, USA college hockey is thriving and I couldn't be happier about that. As long as we continue to land top recruits at UND, having them leave early for the pro's is okay. Especially if they win us a national championship or two in the process! As for our defensemen, I'm very bullish on the development of Schneider and Jones. Hale has had his moments and I'm pulling for him to have a breakout season. Ditto for his brother. Speaking of giants, does anyone know more about Eric Fabian? He had something like 11 goals as a rookie in the USHL, which doesn't tell us much about whether he'll be top D1 material. Thoughts?

Smaby sounds like another recruiting coup for UND. The guy is 6'4" and, by the the time he gets to Grand Forks, will probably weigh well over 200 lbs. Ward was quoted as saying "The Sioux got themselves quite a player,

I just added another "W" to the estimated wins for the coming season. With Michigan losing 2 players late in the Summer to the NHL, I'm hoping UND has the opportunity to win the Punch Imlach Tourny to start off the season. If these guys can get some confidence and momentum going early in the season, it could be a very good year.