tnt

I get that he has to be a diplomat and calling them out could have an adverse effect, but I don’t know that I would praise them either.

Will agree, if Berry wins back to back then the talk is suddenly quite different. Usually though, you have to knock at the door a few times before you kick it down. I wouldn’t be against winning back to back and pushing those win totals up 8 on that graphic. It does go to show how lean the times have been in the NCAA tournament lately, that it would take 3 straight titles to catch Denver in NCAA wins since 2017.

It's one thing to voice your opinion, but quite another to act like someone is stupid for using Hakstol as a person from whom to request advice. There is a reason he was a finalist for coach of the year at the highest level of hockey.

Let's see, you are mocking someone at the top level of their profession. How about you telling us for which Fortune 500 company you are CEO! Seriously, tell us where we will see your name in the headlines, other than for some transgression.

I would hope he has better connections than to have to revert to that. Seriously, it would need to be someone in the loop of the current state of college hockey. I know some NHL people are adamant that you stick with your line combinations for continuity and to create a chemistry, but others change lines like Berry does. I just think an outsiders viewpoint of why we can't get past one game with the talent and advantages we have is a good place to start. My perception is that Berry doesn't think that anything is wrong. When they talk about how proud they are and that they left it all out on the line, it seems a disconnect with getting outshot 15-1 when you were that close to being able to put a game away, or at least get up by a couple goals. Would have loved to hear the exhortation by the coaches going into the 3rd period.

Maybe we are losing with philosophy less than losing the recruiting battles. If you aren't as talented, I would argue you would lose more during the regular season as well. I think it is a mindset, and getting the players to perform on the big stage that is the issue. Maybe we are losing the battle of recruiting guys that refuse to lose. I know Carle has said he likes to recruit guys that have a pedigree of winning. Obviously UND has guys with that same pedigree, but maybe they need someone else to look at what they are doing in the postseason. I know Hakstol wasn't too proud and asked Gasparini's advice to try get over the hump. I would hope Berry would be open to some constructive criticism from a few mentors as well.

Could be both Buium brothers are gone. Might as well add another "B" to the group with Behrens.

Emery hasn’t been a huge offensive threat, but if he can move the puck efficiently and take care of his own end like Zmolek, it could be huge to free up Wiebe to up his game and with Strathmann and Livanavage we should have a bit more offensive upside than this year. If we did get a transfer like Pohlkamp look out!

The leading goal scorer on Cedar Rapids has 14 goals in 55 games, he had 8 in 14 games and still leads Cedar Rapids in points per game. I don’t believe Penticton’s leaders average a whole lot more either. Don’t know a 4th year of juniors will be an advantage when he has already put up good numbers in previous years. Now if there are lingering injury issues, that might be another story, but it is going to be hard to crack our lineup for even well seasoned Junior players. People surprise you, I don’t think many had Johannes as a key player coming into this year.

What makes you so certain he isn’t ready?

They were saying that part of the reason that they are thinking about Major Junior players being NCAA eligible is because the threat of lawsuits. I’m afraid there is no going back on this now, even though I wish there we could.

Minnesota loses a few guys that play a lot of minutes in Snuggerud, Brodzinski and Nelson, so may be a lot of opportunity for big minutes. Playing with Blake can really give players nice numbers though.

Really, reload with 3-4 first rounders? How many first rounders is Minnesota going to get this year? How many first rounders go the college route in an average year? And you do realize before the new Ralph we rarely got 1st round talent. Look at our 1997 and 2000 teams and show me all the first round talent.

That’s the thing, I think UND has given guys plenty of time to come back from injuries and even got guys rest, especially after wrapping up league titles. The problem I see, is they never regain the edge required to compete in the postseason after that.

This is another byproduct that I don’t like about the portal, either teams moving on to the new shiny thing without seeing how they develop, or players moving on because they think they should be playing right away despite them needing some development and rounding out of their game before extensive game action. How many great players would we have missed out on if we didn’t allow them to develop, or if they moved on? We can already look at examples of players that would have looked nice in a UND uniform if one or both parties stayed with their original plan in guys like Halliday and Rizzo. We have seen so many guys develop at different times like LaDue and Poolman, so best not to throw away the baby with the bathwater.

To be honest, I despise this new system of transferring and NIL because it has and will change the competitive balance and widen the gap between the haves and have nots, especially in some of the other sports. That said, if you are not going to use it wisely, you are going to be left behind. The word wisely is the key. Years like this year need to be the exception, not the rule. UND needs to use it to supplement and complement their current recruiting, filling in gaps of experience and positional need and role.

Was USHL defenseman of the year a year ago, and was Bemidji’s second leading goal scorer this year. Don’t know how fast he is compared to others, but certainly making the World Junior team ahead of Livanavage, he certainly has a lot of talent.

Would be nice to get an Eric Pohlkamp to add some more offense.

They did it again, but this time it bites them, and they lose the point. When you are fighting against Vegas for the final spot, why don’t you pull your goalie before overtime before Vegas gets that secure point?

Blake’s talent and hockey sense are on a level higher than both of them.

What about the .6 game against Minnesota and the near equivalent against New Hampshire, nevermind the overtime winner being overturned against BU. We probably don’t remember all the things that went our way though. We just need to make more breaks for ourselves, by sometimes something as simple as shooting the puck and getting to the net.

I know players should be self motivated, but I think sometimes they need something to really push their buttons, much like Lennon did for the NDSU football game this year. I know Blais brought in Ralph and Morelli to inspire before the 1997 championship game. When I see Goehring talk to the players it seems more monotone and not really inspiring, but maybe he is their best option. I don’t think the chance to see Berry throw up his arm and yell is going to be a game changer. Like I said, when you are at the regionals, and you are an athlete, you should be able to motivate yourself. Maybe they could bring in the other Bubba to do the griddy.

I know for the past 8 years I have been spending more time cheering for the lesser of two evils than I have been cheering for my team.

When you have Schmaltz saying how proud he is of the team, and saying they came out flat in the 3rd in the same breath, while getting outshot 15-1 early in the period, shows the disconnect. How do you come out flat in a period when you have one period to move on to a regional final? Berry basically said the same. But they did try to respond after they came out flat, so we all should be proud like they are.

Oh, and by the way, why did they have to play Michigan again? Losing 5 of 7 down the stretch, beating the powerhouse Miami might have something to do with that. Hey, I was one of Berry’s defenders, but at some point that graph speaks for itself.