tnt

Would you sell one package separately?

Do you still have these?

Obviously you can be competitive with players from one state if you pick the right ones. Look at all the great players from Minnesota at UND, St. Cloud, Bemidji, Omaha, etc. The gophers just need a better mix of players and ones that are going to give it all every game. The gophers can get most of the good recruits out of Minnesota, if they have a bigger problem, it is that they sometimes right out of high school. They do recruit out of state players, but if you were a recruit from elsewhere, would you go to a place where you will be the "non-Minnesotan, or a place with diversity like UND where you get good-natured ribbing if you are Canadian, Minnesotan, or what have you. Maybe it is a better educational opportunity to live through experiences of a more diverse group of guys, and the Sioux will be very geographically widespread over the next few years.

Another parallel could be that both were loyal to their assistant coaches, probably to their ultimate downfall. Gasparini basically had two goalie coaches in Craig Perry and Jim Scanlan. Not saying either of them were bad coaches, but with the name recognition of the program and the head coach, perhaps a defensive specialist or an offensive coach could have been thrown it there.

Are any of those gopher fans like any of the majority of the crowd at GPL who are begging that the gophers get Vinny Saponari who is playing very well in the USHL after getting kicked off of Boston University for multiple indescretions while other players were allowed to return to Boston University who got in trouble. Hmmm!

When you are talking about teams on average scoring 3 to 3.5 goals a game, a goals against average of 1/2 a goal a game is quite a gap as well. so Dell has .14 less saves per 10 shots, but gives up .5 goals a game less.

I think trying to compare different kinds of defensemen and say who is our best is a very difficult thing to do. Each has a place, but I don't think one is more significant than the other. Would the Sioux powerplay be as good with MacWilliam manning the point -- probably not. Will the Sioux penalty kill be as effective without MacWilliam clearing out bodies so Dell can see the puck -- probably not. MacWilliam started out slow, kind of like he did his freshman year, but once again in the second half he is playing very well.

I'm hoping we make it easier for him to go by winning a Natiional Championship. As long as we have another NC under our belts, it is easier to bless someone on moving on, when they have added to the Sioux legacy. I think the coaching staff is fairly honest with the players in that they don't mind them leaving if they aren't going to toil in the minor leagues.

So Dell makes 9.1 saves out of ten shots, and Patterson makes 9.26 saves out of ten. That doesn't seem like a whole lot, and could be explained in a lot of ways. The Sioux tend not to give up a lot of shots period, so Dell doesn't always see the inordinate amount of easy saves, but then again, he doesn't get hung out to dry like Patterson either. Goals against average is important too. What are their league stats for that? If Patterson makes .1 more saves out of ten and gives up .whatever more goals per game, what is more important. Something the voters will have to figure out.

I think Dell might be punished for being on a great defensive team and a great offensive team. I know Cardinal has said that on a few occasions, regarding the strength of the Sioux defensive core. Not saying that isn't the case, but he did make the saves that were required of him, and really took over for an incumbent goaltender. Wouldn't surprise me if Patterson was first team goaltender though, because he truly was the MVP for the gophers, having to make a lot more big-time saves to keep the gophers in games. I hope I am wrong, but it certainly wouldn't surprise me, and I really wouldn't feel it was unwarranted if it went the other way.

Haven't heard of anything about Jones, but I noticed he was up with the Under 18 team last night. Grimaldi went from the Under 17 to the Under 18 team last year, so I wonder if he is there for good or if it was a short-term arrangement.

When did the Sioux move down to #9? I thought they were # 8 most of the second half. Dartmouth got beat too, didn't they? Does losing to the hands down #1 team in the country move you down?

That is how they felt against Yale last year. I would rather the Sioux be humble and know that they can't afford a shift off, that they need to focus on every powerplay the entire National Tournament with the desperation like they were down by one in the last minute of the game. If the Sioux play like they believe they can be beaten and know that every shift needs to be played as such or else the Seniors will be going home without a NC ring, I think they will be less apt to get behind early in an important game like they have in the past. There is sometimes a fine line between confidence and overconfidence.

Is this for fact, or is this what you think they need to do?

Grimaldi scored the tying goal tonight, then scored the winning goal on a penalty shot in overtime in a 5-4 win.

Actually, the other goalie has better stats. Looks like Nathan MacKinnon wouldn't be far behind Cammaratta if he played more games. He has played 14 less games and still has 78 points, including 35 goals.

Disagree, that he has the potential to put up "Paul Kariya" type numbers in college, as was said in the profile, simply because we are in an era where those numbers probably won't be possible again. Could be as good as Kariya though, without posting the same type numbers. Only time will tell.

According to some at GPL, it looks good for Minnesota in his recruitment. Hopefully he takes a look at the Sioux and how he can develop here. Look at the great two-way players that the NHL loves that UND has produced in Toews, Oshie and Parise. You can't beat that advertising.

Kind of interesting that Nolan Zajac still hasn't verballed anywhere. He is third in the USHL for defense in scoring, and is a very good +17, and is a 92 birthdate, so he must still have a nice upside. Do you think he is waiting for an offer from a big-time school, perhaps the Sioux. You would think he would have some offers from schools like Union where his brother Kelly plays. It would be interesting to know if UND has interest behind the scenes, or what is going on with his recruitment. I would think the Sioux would still be looking for another defenseman for next year.

I saw somewhere that Keaton Thompson from Devils Lake will play with the Force after the ND High School season is over. Isn't he only a 9th Grader, or is he a sophomore? Regardless, pretty impressive.

While Darrin Looker probably has the voice and knowledge to do the job, I don't get the excitement from him when I am listening to women's hockey. I know people have had the argument about Hennessey being a homer, but he brings an excitement level to the action, as did Dan Hammer, and I think it adds a lot.

Turns out the announcers were wrong. In the Herald yesterday it said they swept them in the regular season in 2003-2004. Still impressive though.

With the win the Sioux complete the first sweep of South Dakota in 20 years according to the television announcers, and with a mostly freshmen lineup. Final score 83 - 73.

Usually you might expect a remark like that out of a college age kid who doesn't think before speaking, or posting in this case, but this guy is 35 years old. Hopefully he doesn't pass his hate on to the next generation. Hate the Sioux all you want, but respect that the players are human and shouldn't have injuries wished upon them.

... and then you have a poster on GPL saying that he wishes other Sioux players were injured rather than Genoway! Really? That certainly is the epitome of classless.