mikejm

Hey, hey...well, er, ummmmmmmmmmmmm................ Guilty.

I'd like to suggest the WCHA add both Bemidji and the University of Kentucky. UK's annual hockey posters are legendary: http://www.ukhockey.com/posters.html

I have spoken to pretty high-ranking administrators at NDSU's athletic department about hockey in Bisonville. I've been told in no uncertain terms that adding hockey is not even a dot on the horizon. The downtown arena backers are grasping for straws and support with the special election less than two weeks. The began this mess with a 4000 seat bowl for basketball but when NDSU balked at that they increased the size to 7000 or so. I think Bison bosses would rather stay on campus than move downtown. My two predictions: No Bison hockey, now or for the foreseeable future; and unless election day brings a freak snowstorm that keeps voters away from the polls, the arena will go down in flames.

Dagies, I appreciate all your insight in this. My only comment (and thus my quote) is that no team knows the impact their incoming freshmen will have...including the Sioux. Barry Tallackson was spoken of in not-quite-Kessel-like terminology for a long time before he joined the Gophers. Barry is an immensely talented kid who maybe had things come a little too easily for him in youth hockey. He was a star on every team he ever played, although to a slightly diminishing degree each step he took upward. He couldn't consistently hold his game at the high level his natural talent would indicate he should. Barry is a very nice kid, humble and appreciative of everything that's happened to him, so I'm not comparing him to an unquestionably talented but just lazy skater like Tomas Vanek. Don't get me wrong, the Gopher's incoming class is a huge talent pool, as is UND's. The question always remains how well any of these young men will mature as the competition gets better and better. On paper the Sioux freshmen are a top two or three class in the country. If they can score goals the way they have to this point in their collective careers, I'm picking UND at third in the WCHA, in spite of having a very young blueline. If the leap to what has become the biggest, baddest college hockey league anywhere is too much for our frosh, we might be fighting for home ice again...or worse.

The ECHL has a west division, so the Atlantic City franchise is simply re-locating. West division teams are: Alaska, Long Beach, Idaho, Bakersfield, Fresno, San Diego, Las Vegas, and Victoria

I had a conversation recently with a friend who's spent a great deal of time with both Sioux coaching staff and NHL players, GMs and agents. A couple of interesting points, paraphrasing: 1. The current state of flux regarding the NHL and the (lack of) CBA probably puts Matt Greene's probability of signing a pro contract and not coming back for his senior year at less than 50/50. With no CBA in place, it is impossible for anyone to sign an NHL contract, or even to negotiate an NHL salary through a two-way contract. Even contracted players like Zach have no idea what kind of money they'll make if and when the NHL plays again. 2. Sioux coaches are absolutely giddy about their incoming freshmen! "An unbelievable collection of talent" is what I was told. 3. Further, the coaching staff is not really worried about the possibility of having just a handful of returning d-men. "We have a system in place; it works, and it will continue to work." 4. The offense that I have been crediting to Eades all season is really the brainchild of Hak. He has been the driving force behind designing, implementing and perfecting the grinding, cycling style that Bill Clement raved about in the Regional. Can't wait for October!

Not to upstage you or anything, but (modestly pawing the ground) I was tossed out of the old Englestad (nee Winter Sports Building) four times during one game. It probably would've only been three times, but I mistakenly sat down next to the head of campus security on my fourth trip into the arena. Welcome to SS.com. Siouxman

Amen.

No, this is Gwoz's senior pix.

Now don't go calling Ballard a punk. Taffe maybe, but not Ballard.

The Sioux played 45 games this year. http://www.fightingsioux.com/sports/mhockey/stats.asp

From the "fun with meaningless numbers" department in Wahoo, Nebraska: Ran some year-end numbers through Excel today and found out our beloved Matt Greene isn't the baddest of the WCHA bad boys, at least when it comes to his PIMs as a percentage of the team total. Guess who wins? These are team "leader" numbers only. Name School Penalties PIM T Pens Team PIM % of Team Paukovich DU 48 120 349 754 15.9151% Greene UND 63 126 370 800 15.7500% Scott MTU 37 101 304 708 14.2655% Rosehill UMD 42 103 344 759 13.5705% Harrington UM 42 100 336 745 13.4228% MacMurchy UW 40 88 333 701 12.5535% Stuart CC 39 94 353 752 12.5000% Fletcher SCSU 39 86 338 700 12.2857% Rankin MSUM 38 84 353 787 10.6734% Parez UAA 22 60 279 631 9.5087% Interesting that our pal from Denver racked up nearly as many PIMs as Mr. Greene, with 25% less trips to the box. I haven't dug deep enough into College Hockey Stats to see how the WCHA stacks up against the rest of D1 hockey. Discuss. (Sorry about the columns. I don't know how to override the board's formatting.)

I don't think you have to worry about anyone who wears a pink tie beating anyone up, even an old fossil like you.

All during the Frozen Four, I kept hoping Thorne or Clement would mention the "Red Pepper" line. I wonder what the Tellmanns would've done to hear their restaurant name on national television?

Especially a rookie with, apparently, only one leg!

Wow, Rick, what a great insight. I like Matt a bunch, but never really thought about him in the "human" light you've portrayed. I'm happy to hear his parents are supportive of his staying in Grand Forks. I sincerely hope he listens to them.

IF the Matt's both leave (I'm guessing one does, the other stays), the incoming freshman class will have to carry over their torrid scoring from SSM and the BCHL. With such a young d-corps, the 05-06 Sioux will have to win a bunch of 7-6 games. I am hoping against hope that Smaby gives the Sioux one more year; I can't imagine how the AHL or ECHL could be any more physical than 28 WCHA games.

Quick thank you to an under-appreciated group of seniors. When I saw Matt Jones on the news last night, clearly having just cried his eyes out, talking about how he'll never again be able to call "these guys teammates", I wanted to call Hockey Mom and tell her to go give them all a big SiouxSports.com hug. Here's to a great bunch of young men who worked their tails off to makes this a lot longer season than most folks would've thought possible: Thanks Jake, Brian, Nick, Quinn, Colby, Matt, James, Rory and Andy. May life bring you as much joy as you've allowed me over the four years of your Fighting Sioux careers.

I think DU played Fighting Sioux hockey a little better than the Sioux were able to last night. They clogged the crease and knocked down a lot of pucks. I know the Sioux had a lot of scoring "chances" but really, how many clear opportunities did they have? As much as I hate to say it, the Pioneers are a very talented team. They certainly didn't outplay the Sioux; they just got the bounces the Sioux didn't. Great season by a great bunch of young men. This team truly embodies the Fighting Sioux tradition. Can't wait for October.

Actually, I think "vaht?" is already universally recognized as verbal shorthand for "what the heck was I thinking when I downed that 6-ounce glass of tequilla as a chaser to the Leinie twelve I had after happy hour was over."

Thanks for getting my back, dagies.

There's a good note in one of the wrap-ups from last night's game. It talks about Hakstol thinking he should use his time out after the Gophers scored two quickies, but when he looked at the clock, he realized there was a tv timeout coming. He saved the time out (didn't need it after all) and got the break the team needed to gather itself. Helluva coach.

The best payback for Punk-o-biotch is to have Robbie Bina walk the trophy past the disheartened Pioneers.

What kind of a test? Of your (lack of) intelligence, grace and decorum perhaps? At least you got the joke part right. You exemplify the concept.