farce poobah

I'm sure the Red Wings will also become Sioux fans, now that they know this.

Lot of upsets in the making. This looks to be a wild and crazy tournament. The ones I think have the highest probability of upsets: * UNO over Michigan * UMD over Yale * UNH over Merrimack * CC over BC

For Saturday: 1) Short shifts, forwards and defensemen. 2) More-equal playing time among the D. 3) Emphasis on "no-stickwork". Particularly since RPI is fast. 4) Move the feet. Goes hand in hand with stickwork. 5) Lay off the big hits, but finish checks. For Sunday: 1) Breakouts: be less predictable on the first pass. Denver's second forward was cheating on Saturday, anticipating what our first pass was going to be. 2) Riding time: be more patient and work to wear down the short DU bench. 3) Puck support in neutral ice. Second guy near the puck carrier, and get it in deep if the rush is stopped. For both games: 1) Enjoy the moment. You were meant to be here. 2) This is YOUR TIME.

Just a quick note that as a Comcast HD internet subscriber, I get ESPN3.com ... all their stuff. I rarely take them up on the Cricket broadcasts, or 2 Euro football clubs. But it shows ALL the NCAA games this weekend. I will definitely take them up on that. (Unless of course I head off to Green Bay.)

Notre Dame has to be thinking about expanding its ties with other Catholic universities. (BC, Merrimack, Providence, to name just three.) I agree they will leave the CCHA, but I see them going to Hockey East. That's the closest thing to their other Big East ties. (Especially if the campaign to add schools brings in Syracuse or Pitt, and if UConn moves up from AHA to Hockey East, etc etc.) I wouldn't be surprised if there's a split of Hockey East and Big East in the coming years; some of those hockey-only alliances are as unlikely as those that exist out west. Of course, we (North Dakota) would love to have Notre Dame in WCHA. But from Notre Dame's perspective - football is king - I'm not sure they would be interested in coming back to the WCHA after leaving 30 years ago. I agree with the comments about the MAC schools sticking together; the hard part for them is what coalition can they build ... I think a hockey scheduling arrangement with Big 10 schools and the MAC schools is VERY likely.

Only 2000 votes so far ...

We also won't see the upside effect on attendance until fans of other schools who start making it frequently start buying tickets...

There's no easy draws this time of year, but from a style of play standpoint, I like UNO's chances against Michigan. For a #12 seed, they got a decent draw (only 400 miles from home, its not at someone else's house, and its a team they are familiar with). Go Deano. Beat the ugly helmets.

Nothing evil tonight. Too many TV cameras around. George will comb his hair every 10 seconds, straighten his tie every 30, ask the FSN cameraman "how do I look?" every 45 seconds, and change his suit after the first period to make sure he contrasts with the wave of green and white sitting behind him.

I look for the Sioux to come out and roll four lines, keep the legs fresh up and down the lineup, and work on fine tuning some specific things (faceoffs, PK, etc). I would expect the same from Denver, particularly since their NCAA seedings aren't really affected much by winning or losing tonight. Given that DU has less depth (but their top guys are as good as anyone in the nation), I think that scenario favors the Sioux. Last WCHA game as the Fighting Sioux (?) - come on boys / fans, let's continue the proud tradition with one more win tonight.

CC is really REALLY young. If they can keep their team together, next year might be the big year for them.

It was a very slow motion, gentle check; neither player was doing more than slow coasting. However, it was from behind. I thought it was a 2-minute cross check.

Taking a gloved hand and smearing around the other players mask/face. Pretty much what moms do to little kids, making it a mild insult to the face washer. (As it too timid to actually fight.)

I got impressed with Bemidji today. They react to the play as one cohesive team as well as anyone. They keep numbers on the right side of the puck. They didn't give UMD much (except the last 30 seconds of regulation!). They make good decisions with the puck. (They didn't finish well today.) I can see why they gave UNO fits. UNO makes a living off other team's mistakes, and turns them into goals. BSU rarely makes mistakes, rarely gives up odd man rushes, etc. They make you beat them - they don't beat themselves. Mr. Serratore is one excellent coach. Once he gets WCHA-level talent up and down the roster, look out.

Oh, and this thread wouldn't be complete without a tip of the cap to the strong turnout from Bemidji. Well done, guys.

Late in the first period, I was thinking "gee, I would rather the Sioux play CC than UAA". UAA is big strong physical, play good positional hockey, and they simply don't beat themselves. CC got puck luck in droves tonight. And once they got the lead, they too are tough to play against.

If you were there, please vote. If you watched on TV, its OK to vote. If you listened on radio ... oh what the hey its St Patrick's Day.

... and when Gino won titles, his assistants were the likes of Rick Wilson (still in the NHL after all these years), Dean Blais, Jim Nelson ....

Most of the 4000 diehards were at Mariucci last night .... but seriously, what a horrendous atmosphere for a proud program. They badly need to reseat Mariucci, and start by creating a real student section (and a larger one). That's what creates the college atmosphere that old folks like me love. Don't expect it to happen .... but when Mariucci gets full, it can get loud and intimidating. Of course, that was 10 years ago.

Blackhawks, on a day off, visit Walter Reed Hospital. Says something about that franchise that they are apparently the first to bring the Stanley Cup there. "You know, we think we make sacrifices," said captain Jonathan Toews. "And then you come here and learn what real sacrifices are. These are such young people whose bodies have been changed forever. Yet their spirit is terrific. They don't feel sorry for themselves. They just move on. I've learned a lot here today. It's been amazing. I've never spent a day quite like this and I'm not going to forget it. I hope none of us will." Amen. Full story: http://blackhawks.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=555690

we got outshot in the second period. that is unexceptable.

This might be the shortest game thread in years. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

Sioux women take a 3-2 lead on the Gophers. 2900 at the Ralph tonight.

BC lost to Northeastern 2-1. Surprising Merrimack wins again, 2-1 over UMass.

Mankato draws first blood. Ole! oleoleole! Ole! oleoleole! Ole! oleoleole!