tnt

But his facts are made up in his head.

Was that the year Denver tied us for the title the next night, and got the top seed?

Who knows, they may still have to play Denver in the first round.

Didn’t UND get it in Omaha?

Actually they would wrap it up with a sweep, or win and 2 points, so the Penrose could be in Arizona next weekend. Would be nice for them to have the Penrose hangover going into our weekend with them.

Hopefully we take care of business against Duluth next weekend and Western sweeps Arizona State to come close to wrapping up the NCHC title. Too bad they didn’t beat Omaha in regulation last night, then they probably could have wrapped it up. Don’t want them to be playing for the title at home against us, but need Arizona State to stumble in their last 4 games against Western and Omaha, or have Omaha stumble to help us have other outs, as Denver has an easier schedule.

Yeah, can we quit with the playing the same team the last weekend of the regular season. Change it up, it makes things more exciting. Every once in a while you may get the top two teams playing for the NCHC title.

It says the state of the program when Schlossman doesn't even think it will be close.

Right, sell the University as a whole and the educational opportunities along with all of the facilities. Then sell them on being remembered as the group that put UND in the spotlight again. Instead of being lumped in with all the other NDSU championship teams, why not start a path of your own and be recognized like a Mike Mooney who helped turn the program around last time. Create your own opportunities to be recognized for greatness.

I think when they said they were refocusing on peaking at NCAA tournament time, it was all part of a master plan. They have been sandbagging all year, and will probably do the same this weekend so everyone underestimates them, then they will go on their run. A guy can dream, can't he?

I question what it is in our roster management where we have off years on average once every couple years. Hakstol seemed to know how to always have a few guys waiting in the wings with experience, or he could get them to stay in juniors longer. Maybe that is a thing of the past with everyone wanting to rush things, and there are guys like Zellers and Strathmann that are willing to develop another year, but when you are told the reason behind our problems is because our defense doesn't have the experience, it beckons the question why. It's not like we are losing a ton to the pros. Hakstol had that problem too, and didn't have the advantage of the portal to fill in those gaps. Whatever system Hakstol had, it doesn't seem to be duplicated under the current regime.

The good thing for UND in the probability that they will need to win the Frozen Faceoff to get a tournament birth is that none of the teams in the league are in the "can't lose" category. Western has been impressive, but other than Bump aren't loaded. The problem for UND is that they have lacked the consistency to go on a long run. Get home ice and a first round victory, and who knows if they will even have to face the team with the most talent in Denver. This weekend is the first step in keeping home ice alive.

True, but in many circles hockey is a niche sport too. Regardless, NDSU is getting far more national exposure than UND is these days. UND used to get talked about every year during tournament time. When is the last time when they have the selection show for the National Tournament where UND is even mentioned, much less someone picking them as the candidate to win it all?

Remember when there were arguments on which was the premier program in the state of North Dakota - NDSU football or UND hockey? It appears that question is moot now, as NDSU has a much, much higher standard of excellence, and culture. UND hockey gets complacent after 3 or 4 wins in a row, while NDSU doesn't get complacent after 3 or 4 titles in a row. Long for the day when the passion is there to actually compete for National Titles again in hockey.

UND used to have the best winning percentage in the NCAA tournament. UND made the NCAA tournament just about every year under Hakstol and made the Frozen Four a good deal of the time. Yes, there were those that wanted Hakstol run out of town, but there were also a lot that knew if they kept getting that close the door would be knocked down. Now they make the tournament about half the time, and are one and out when they get there. To miss the tournament when you are bidding on regional sites is even worse. I don't even want to start on the destination performances and Frozen Faceoff one and outs. The same people that are fine with the decline, would have not recognized the need to move on from Gasparini. Sometimes a new face is needed to bring the program to another level. We could still very well be at five national championships if there weren't people that could see a change was needed.

North Dakota State Bison (North Central Conference) (1997–2002) 1997 North Dakota State 9–3 7–2 T–2nd L NCAA Division II First Round 1998 North Dakota State 7–4 6–3 4th 1999 North Dakota State 9–2 7–2 3rd 2000 North Dakota State 12–2 8–1 2nd L NCAA Division II Semifinal 2001 North Dakota State 7–3 5–3 3rd 2002 North Dakota State 2–8 1–7 9th Total: 46–22 This is Bobby Babich's record at NDSU. One bad year. Probably doesn't make him a bad coach, but sometimes you need a new voice. Why weren't NDSU fans just happy and go with the flow because it is just a sporting event? Whatever you do in life, do well and get the most out of it. I think most of us believe that UND hockey should aspire to be in the conversation every year, and that there is a lot being left on the table. Doesn't make Berry a bad coach, but sometimes a change is needed to change the culture and mindset because based on the postgame interviews the message doesn't seem to be getting through to the players. It certainly worked for NDSU. Do you think NDSU would be fine making the NCAA playoffs about every other year, then when they do make it suffer a one and done?

We’ll see if the “next man up” that the preach comes to fruition, or if when the weekend is over Tim Hennessey is interviewing Berry about who was missing with injuries.

Obviously, it is less fun when the team isn't winning, and when that starts becoming more of an issue like it was for Minnesota, you saw how the fans reacted to that. It is plain to see that apathy is setting in here as well.

You are absolutely correct, this isn't life or death and it is just a leisure activity. In saying that, why are any of us supporting something from an institution that doesn't hold the value on anything more than that of a leisure pursuit? The fact that we are paying a half a million a year to a coach, and goodness knows how much for the entire coaching staff, doesn't meet with it being fairly insignificant in the grand scheme of things. I would also argue that those that feel like that should in no way be supporting something like NIL, when there are more important things in society where that money could go. Goodness knows how much an education costs now, so for a leisurely pursuit, a free education should be more than enough.

I would expect we rebound next year, as there isn't a regional in Fargo, but the following two years there is, so that could continue the trend.

Regardless if he can come back, I think they need to carry an extra defenseman.

I would think J.T. Miller, but we know what happened there. But I think even then, Grimaldi was probably thought to be the prize, but since he was so small he wasn't as high in NHL draft circles.

We have seen a goalie that comes up and plays great to start out, then can't match that the rest of the way. Seems to me Josh Siembida started out pretty well then faded.

Think about it, how many times do you hear our rivals have a hatred for Berry like they did for Hakstol, Blais or Gasparini? That should tell you something. Never hear gopher fans continually ranting about Berry.

I’ll say it again, you know the program is in a bad state when the fans are way more pessimistic than optimistic. Pumping UND for getting championship #9 seems like it is in the rear view mirror.