Siouxman

I saw a picture of this one: Hey Ref, are you pregnant? You missed the last two periods!

I was hoping to have something profound for my 1,000th post but, oh well, this will have to do. These are simply Final Five memories, not necessarily good or bad. 1. The Tyler Hirsch incident. 2. Watching Sioux-cia march around the X with the Gopher band, while wearing her Holy Cross jersey. She received many #1 salutes on that one. 3. Having a drunk MSU-M fan yelling crap at me for two periods after UND had lost the afternoon game and MSU-M was still in the Final Five (they hadn't played yet) for about the only time in their history. I ignored him, but he accosted me in the concourse between the 2nd and 3rd periods. I finally commented about what a medical miracle it was for someone to still be walking while brain dead. For some reason that got him fired up, but he finally walked away as I was about to call for security. 4. Meeting two great Gopher fans who have sat right in front of us for many years, and who we have met up with at the Frozen Four, even though the Gophers weren't there. Knowledgeable and rabid Gopher fans, but not arrogant or feeling entitled. A rarity for Gopher fans! 5. Having my son win two Final Five packages at UND, and sharing them with Dad! 6. The MTU band. 7. The Robbie Bina incident. 8. The sea of Kelly Green 9. "And the Home of the . . . SIOUX!" It is now time to leave for the FInal Five (yes, on Wednesday afternoon)

Imagine that. A Final Five game for the Gophers and we haven't heard them say yet that it doesn't matter. If they make it that far, I guarantee the third place game will have great importance for them.

I am excited for this team, but I have my doubts. Simply because we are not playing good hockey right now. The PP is not crisp, too many soft passes. CC challenged our points and so did MTU on Friday night. That caused us problems. From here on out we are playing the higher caliber teams with greater speed, and right now we are just not clicking. We are also not taking care of the front of our own net. MTU got two goals Saturday night they should not have had if the D had done their job. The rest of the way no one can have an off night or not feel up to it. So I am excited and looking forward to the playoffs, but I have realistic hopes. I've seen Michigan play and they can be great and not-so-great. But the rest of the higher ranked teams I don't have a feel for their capabilities. The Sioux have played some great hockey against UM and Denver, they just haven't really clicked lately. But they do find a way to win, and maybe that counts more than anything.

Wow. He should have just walked out on the ice in the third period and delayed the game to get his point across. No penalty there, at least in the WCHA.

I believe that Sioux-cia is committed to being there and Siouxmama as well. Bob In Wisconsin will hopefully be there. Goon and others, come on and join the fun.

I agree with Dagies. You need to know some history here before you can even begin to think about these things. CC was a bottom feeder for a very very long time. I don't see Scott Owens being forced out there at all. That program is highly respectable. Hockey at CC is not the fanatic religion that it is at other schools, so I doubt you will see alumni clamoring for change. I believe Lucia is safe for another year. But I don't believe that it is going to be a comfortable year. The bleeding of players from UM to the pros will continue this off-season, partly because a couple of players are ready and partly because of issues. There have been too many issues the past few years with this team and they seem to continue. Lucia's future next year is going to be hitched to getting a large immediate impact from the incoming freshmen class. Not an enviable position. Shyiak at UAA has made a very favorable impression on people, and UAA's finish this year was a strong positive. Likewise, Russell at MTU is well respected and they suffered horribly this year due to many season ending injuries. The MTU team played this year with pride and continued to work hard. If UM could capture that they would be a much better team. Eaves at Wisconsin had a much better year than expected. The Dasher Dancer is safe as well, even with his issues. In trouble, I don't know that there are any in the WCHA. Jutting at MSU-M would be the most likely. He has been on the hot seat before and I believe that they underachieved this year. The Bruess issues probably won't have a bearing on this, as Jutting appears to be his own worst enemy. St. Cloud did not have a good year, but I think Motzko is in good standing. He will have to turn things around in the near future, and he does have some good recruits coming in. Sandelin at UMD is likely safe after UMD had an unexpected up year, although they sagged a little at the end. Beating UM on Thursday night would help him out. UMD should have a good year next year, and if they don't then the crowd might start calling for change. I would not expect any coaching changes this year in the WCHA, unless coaches decided on their own to make a change.

I agree with AZSioux. I don't care what you use as a measuring stick, there isn't any way to rate the captain's because you can't go back to see how they worked with the team, what happened in the locker rooms, what were the issues, etc. On the public face, there is no doubt that Ryan Duncan is one of the most popular, but he would be one of the most popular players even if he wasn't captain. There isn't anyone in existence who has been around all of the captains in UND's hockey history.

And for those too young to know, Troy Murray centered the checking line that played against the other team's top line all the time. He was very popular with the Blackhawks fans who appreciated his work.

Michigan and Denver flipped in the PWR and Denver now only 1 point above the Sioux. With Bozak and Ruegsegger out the Sioux just need to take care of some business and they can have a #1.

Put the fangs away Cougar-cia, there will be children present, right Bob?? Mr. and Mrs. Siouxman will definitely be there.

You can't draw JBSU for every round of the playoffs!

Its temporary. You will feel it the next day!

And that's a pseudo-pharmacist talking!

Paul Allen is on a Holy Cross kick on KFAN this morning. He mentions the Kansas Jayhawk basketball loss yesterday and then says here's the call of the game. It then cuts to the Holy Cross ending. He has done it three times, and you know - it is hilarious every time!

While the businesses are closed, the skyway system is open. We have stayed at the St. Paul Hilton Garden Inn and used the skyway just last year for the games. The skyway is open and usable. There were many people using the skyway system.

Hotel availability in St. Paul is pretty tough during the Final Five. There is a poultry convention going on in town. We are at the Radisson by the MOA.

I have to believe that he has a few moves he can teach the young 'uns.

Just don't let him have that second beer Friday night and it should work out.

Yes. You can either walk outside, or leave your coat in the hotel and use the skyway.

Mickey's Diner is an experience right out of Mel's Diner, the TV series many years ago. The waitresses banter with the customers, so if you do go in be prepared to be picked on and insulted. Last year the waitress saw my Sioux jersey and yelled out that there were Gopher fans eating in there. I replied that it was their problem and if they couldn't handle it they should leave. The other interesting thing is we were in line waiting to get inside for a seat. We were behind three actors from the Guthrie. One was acress Georgia Engel, who played Ted Baxter's girlfriend Georgette on The Mary Tyler Moore show, and she plays Robert's mother-in-law Pat on Everybody Loves Raymond. And yes, that tiny little voice is her true voice.

Dagies - About time you made it to the brunch, don't you think? It is in the morning, so we have never had any issues at Hoggsbreath.

Hey, I'm pretty generous when giving away someone else's credit card. You have class and school work and you were never an 11-teen y/o. It was more like 11 going on 22, for about 10-years. Besides, it sounds like MafiaMan is lining up a gig for Siouxmama to cover the card charges. We can all get a report at the brunch on Saturday. Man, NDH, this is beginning to sound like more fun than your cruise.

Genoway

Here's someone that knows what they are talking about. From INCH "Found on a Cocktail Napkin." Item #8 on least desirable hockey awards. As if this is something we already didn't know.