farce poobah

Toews,: Goal, assist, +2, 71% on faceoffs. Crosby: drew a penalty with an acrobatic flop, -1, 40% on faceoffs. :)

GAME ON. Kudos to UND fans for another massive showing on the road.

FYP. Yeah, probably enough that they can open up the upper bowl.

Thanks. I watch too much hockey ... (but was struck by how Sweden and Finland kill penalties).

Dm it ... another penalty that should have been holding the stick on SCSU ... instead becomes a UND penalty.

UND PK is not well set up for big ice. We use a high pressure on the puck strategy and force the opponent to make a series of good plays, and at center ice, we try to stop them at the blueline. On the big ice, teams that regularly play there tend to make the opponent PP bring the action to them ... a tight small box in front of the goaltender. Glad this is the last big ice game of the year.

Dowd lucky that his head shot on Johnson was not a major.

See post #3. 999

Minnesota Gopher hockey fans showing how much they appreciate their team on Senior Night. With 3500 in the stands for puck drop. Too bad; their team is pretty good this year.

11 guys hit the scoresheet again tonight. That's terrific for morale in the locker room.

The 5000 fans at The John are having fun tonight.

I think it was to be on NBCSN ...

I agree with this. Team USA beat the teams we should have beaten - the first four opponents - and scored 25 goals (while allowing only 6). The Canada game was surprisingly close. Team USA gave them just one goal - less than anyone else in the tournament. Being within one bounce of Canada is not something to be ashamed of. What they should be ashamed of is mailing it in the Bronze medal game; I can hardly recall a sadder performance from USA (and I've been watching for 30+ years). As to talent, I think a few more USA players might make Canada's roster (Ryan Miller instead of Smith or Luongo; Ryan Kesler and Zach Parise would be candidates for 3rd and 4th lines; and Carlson might be considered for the 7th-8th defensemen). And Canada left home 4 of the NHL's top 16 scorers (!) So I agree, top to bottom USA simply didn't match up with Canada. Anyone thinking we could win based on talent was deluding themselves. USA needed to outwork Canada AND get a couple bounces. Overall, thinking back to 1998 when the NHL players came into the games, USA hockey is closing the gap but its a really long and slow process. We are well behind Canada, closing the gap on Sweden and Finland, and I would say we're now ahead of Russia.

I could swear I saw (former Sioux player) Brad Pascall on the ice after the game. He's now VP Hockey Operations for Hockey Canada.

Sweden playing really well also ... This game is so well played I almost can't tell its on the big ice. Most big ice games are interminably slow, because plays take so long to develop. These two teams are closing down time and space so quickly, the game looks like a regular-sheet game. Oh - and Mike Babcock is a genius. Especially in-game. He makes adjustments based on who's getting it done. Sharp contrast to Bylsma, who failed in that regard (obviously USA players are accountable in that failure too).

He really does elevate in the biggest games.

Toews!!!

Duluth has definitely crossed the line - into intent to injure - multiple times in the last few years. I agree.

4 goals in 8 minutes ... against a solid opponent ... on the road This team is starting to play up to their potential.

I haven't felt this crappy ... since I hit crossbar-post-out-nogoal in the broomball shootout for intramurals my senior year at UND.

Clearly: Dos Equis.

I think that's unlikely, because IIHF has made significant changes in response to the IOC direction to minimize lopsided games and grow the sport outside USA and Canada. One big initiative has been coaching partnerships, where USA and Canadian coaches partner up with various national federations. Each WCHA team has a coach with a partner, for example Elander is mentoring Germany. http://www.iihf.com/iihf-home/sport/women/ambassadors/peter-elander.html Another is the competition itself, where they set up the top 4 teams in one pool, and the bottom 4 teams in another. So there was no USA vs Russia or Germany game. (Unless of course Russia/Germany were to advance.) That said, the competition (beyond USA v Canada) is certainly among the most lopsided of any on the Olympic program.

LOL I didn't see which referee called the penalty. Pollock (CAN) or Jerabek (CZE).

Crosby with a disgusting dive that draws a penalty on Finland. Selanne calling him out on it, as they go back to the bench. Bravo.

Correctamundo! Full list here: http://www.nhl.com/ice/shootoutstats.htm?fetchKey=20142ALLSAZAll&viewName=shootoutSkaterCareerTotals&sort=shootingPctg&pg=3 As surprising as how good some guys are, is how low some great players rank on that list.