mikejm

Jeebus......that should be easy.

Hey. UND has never been at the top of the list when it comes to incoming recruiting classes! Just ask Michigan.

That was no knock on JT at all. I simply think Oshie is a more dominant hockey player than Jonathan ever was in his two years of college hockey. And for that matter I think TJ is playing at a higher level today than his linemate Duncan did last year on the way to winning the Hobey. This kid is "NHL-ready" right now; he'll slip on a Blue sweater in mid April and fit right in the lineup there immediately. Obviously Toews was NHL-ready, too. I don't mean any disrespect to him at all. I've seen in person over the years at least half of the Hobey Baker award winners. I do not recall a single one of them being so involved in every play, every shift, every game. And that includes Hrkac.

It's been pretty apparent for at least a couple months now that there isn't a player on the ice who can out-play TJ Oshie. I've heard TH say on the away game broadcasts that Osh is a man among boys. The home games I've seen merely confirm Hennessey's observation. He battles through checks, double-teams, holds, grabs and still manages to find a passing lane, to spot a cutting teammate with a pass. Oshie should be playing in the NHL right now; he simply is that good and that dominant in his play. We are being blessed with a bonus every time he skates a shift for the Sioux. This will be blasphemous but Oshie is carrying the team's bucket right now the way Jon Toews never did. Jon was quietly superb; TJ is like a one-man wrecking crew who no one can stop. His dominance does not show up in the scoresheets the way a Hobey winner's tend to. But I ask, is there a better player in college hockey this year? And if you answer in the way I think you will, how does TJ not get the Hobey? Isn't the award to recognize the best player? I've expressed my disappointment with TJ's

Did I hear something about a bong?

As do I; especially after all the bad blood has come to the surface. They will be angry. Still short-handed, though.

Yeah. You're getting outdone by an old man.

Try this one.

Towes and the Hawks vs. Wild right now on Fox Sports North. They had a nice feature on Toews during the pre-game.

Um, he's from Bemidji. They haven't exactly been in position to make state in awhile.

I'm with you sagard; if the Sioux get a #1 seed, they're going east.

I agree that this team is not as physical as Mean Greene. But I'll wager this year's team has a little bigger chip on their shoulders than did that one. I like the way this team is starting to gel in the physical sense. There are a lot of really big checks being laid into people early in the game. That's setting a tone and sending a message. I don't think I'd want to tangle with these kids right now. If the WCHA lays some extra penalties on the Sioux for Saturday's antics they might just say f**k it and send Malone and maybe Davidson out there to lay some serious smack on somebody. If that's the case, I hope they save it for tUMD or JBSU; Bemidji just seems like a bunch of really nice young men.

I'm just sick of the whiners. Freakin' Nancys. Screw 'em. Then beat them into a pulp. I like Dirty's (oops, Diggler's) name: Murder, Inc.

This whole thing makes me very tired. I am tired of the WCHA using video review to assess penalties. I am tired of the clutch-and-grab play that has been adopted by so many teams to defend skilled teams like UND. I'm tired of all of us whining about the (lack of) quality of WCHA officiating. I'm tired of Nancy Gwozdecky (and others like Mazzocco) constantly whining about the Sioux gooning up college hockey. I hereby propose that

Somehow I get the feeling Gwozdecky is used to keeping someone between himself and a hockey fight. If that means pushing one of his own players into the fray, so be it. Nancy.

Sayeth the future leaders of our country!

^You put that much better than I was about to Whistler. Thanks for capturing my sentiments.

I agree with your assessment that this is a negative trend. I honestly don't know what college hockey can do to stop it, though. When considering major juniors and the European leagues, the NHL is dealing with professional players and contract law; college hockey

Mike Jacobs' purpose seems to be increasingly focused merely on pot-stirring. He offers little in the way of factual information to support his claims, and worse, posits no constructive solutions to the "problems" he, with his omniscient powers, gleans on campus or in the community.

^You are a very kind poster redwing

I was wondering if anyone else saw the remarkable resemblance to a certain high school hockey game. Nice catch jk. I forget, was that the championship game? This looked exactly like that. And if I recall correctly, wasn't the game against Brian Lee and Chris VandeVelde's Moorhead Spuds?

Jeeze. Bitter? You remind me of someone...

Last time I used Suite 49's lot the voucher was only worth $5. To the OP, depending upon your ETA, I'd park east of The Ralph in the Columbia Court neighborhood. Easier to get out.

Okay kids, time to take this lovefest to pm! (It could get ugly!.)