dagies

It doesn't cost them much and they don't risk losing the kid later if he decides not to sign. And one benefit of having them in your system is you have more control over their development. Heck, I'm just taking a stab here. But it sounds good to me.

In everything I've read and heard it seems Berry is an awfully important part of the UND coaching staff. I think this is a very big loss. But you have to be happy for a great coach and a seemingly great guy from everything I've gathered. He will leave big shoes to fill. Ouch.

I thought that comment was interesting.

Considering tnt was comparing the Sioux returnees with those of other WCHA teams it's fair for cavedurtis to suggest that Hirsch could at least be considered when discussing top returning scorers on a team. Sioux-Habit, you make good points in that it's hard to know for sure whether Hirsch will be the same player as he was before. I venture to guess if a prominent Sioux player missed a year for whatever reason Sioux fans would be looking optimistically to that return as well. I don't think cavedurtis was hijacking the thread with his suggestion.

Okposo is a recruit I will admit to being jealous about. Just from what you read about his game he sounds like a stud. His stock seemed to rise at a rapid clip this past year.

You are. It was Koberinski.

Maybe just my perception but he always seemed to hurt the Sioux. Can't say I'm sorry to see him go. Pios need to suffer their share like the rest of us. Sprig one wonders, if SCSU can make similar strides this next year, with Goepfert in goal they may have to be reckoned with in the NCAA's. I know it sounds preposterous when you think of SCSU of a couple of years ago, but Motzko had that team playing WAY better than Dahl by the end of the year. And Goepfert is good enough to get the job done. I'm not sure I see it happening, but to answer your question, that seems like a team that may at least stand to be counted.

Travis may not be a super defensive defenseman, but I never figured out why he didn't get more of an opportunity with the Wild at a time they were very publically saying they needed offensive defensemen.

Worked out pretty good when Blais benched Blake.

I heard he was waiting to see how they treated Phil.. With JP gone, Phil will get a fair shake. Expect Mario to sign. And Phil hasn't had a fair shake to this point? I wonder what they were waiting for....

I can see where Grow is coming from, but from a different perspective. It's getting harder and harder to find affordable, unique food or mom & pop restaurants in Minneapolis. Not that it's not possible, but the trend is to chain restaurants while I feel the culture of the city is improved when you have one-of-a-kind types, and more of them. If you are outside of Mpls/St. Paul proper it's even harder to find anything that's not a chain. How boring is that? If you've ever been to Boston, you know what I mean. I realize we could never be a Boston in that sense, but I'd rather be closer to Boston, than the leading chain restaurant market in the country.

Kessel's apparent desire to NOT come back to college hockey, coupled with the rampant rumors that he's got some issues in the lockerroom have me thinking it may not be so bad to see him with MN for one more year...

You want Bayda? We got Bayda... Alright, no one is really going to confuse the two.... BTW, I remember that hit still. It made quite an impression.

It would have been good to get him but when I found out his home is listed in Connecticut and his father played college hockey at Dartmouth I realized he wasn't the normal Winnipeg homey we are used to getting a shot at. Sounds more like he was an east coast kid to me, and if so, UND was probably doing pretty good just to get to be a finalist.

I don't have the impression that Porter is a playmaker, but I like what he's saying about trying to finish more this season. He's scored 10-12 goals in the past and if put on a top 2 line he will need to score at least 15 I think. And maybe he can do that or more?. It's good to read he looked very good at the Chicago camp. We'll need him to step up I think. I think Kozek will step up this year and score 15+ goals. Just my opinion. To me, Miller is a wild card. He showed some flashes last season. Is he ready to be an every-down player? And if so what is he truly capable of. His flashes get you to thinking pretty good things, but it's so hard to know for sure what he has to give. I think Watkins will have his place but don't see him as a top 3-4 scorer, but maybe more of the checking line center. Just my impression again. I don't know that Kaip is going to go bonkers on the score sheet but 5-7 goals would be a nice improvement if he's effective on a checking line. I think we know what we're going to get with Duncan and Oshie. What does Martens have to give? He didn't play much last year. Does he have a shot? I'm kind of interested in seeing how that develops. He was a decent player in the BCHL. To answer your question I think Kozek is my candidate to surprise, and Porter a #2.

Good post overall. I do think that we fans need to moderate our expectations for some of the incoming players. In the last few years we've been so lucky to have some guys step in and excel from the get-go, i.e. Parise, Oshie, Toews, Spirko, etc. But that is not the norm, and I think guys like Forney and Zajac are going to look a lot more like the normal incoming recruit who doesn't turn heads quite so much the first year. In years past freshmen seasons like we got from Watkins and Kozek last year seem to be more representative of what to expect. That doesn't mean these players won't be big time contributors at some point in their career, but we need to be careful not to expect too much from them right away. It doesn't mean they won't contribute their appropriate share in their first year. The question is, what is that share? Maybe the rookies will prove me wrong, but I'm worried that many fans think the second coming of Travis Zajac will be on the ice this season and I suspect it won't be quite like that.

He's still playing in the WCHA, against some of the best talent in college hockey. He'll still have highly talented teammates, even if not quite as many as last season. I don't see how, if UND was to lose more games, how this would be a worse situation for JT than if the Sioux won a few more games. Could be more character building. Certainly get him ready for Chicago!

Well, he should have. Thanks for the correction.

That was pretty clear last season.

If I was Motzko I'd probably try this angle on a Marvin/Christian prospect: Ok, your family is a huge part of the UND legacy. Cal pretty much started the program and other family has played there. Dave and Billy played for UND as well as Olympic teams, etc. The Marvin and Christian names will always be connected with UND. It's understandable if you want to be a part of that. But you have the opportunity to connect those storied family names to the ascendance of another program. A program started by the legendary Herb Brooks, that has seen a hint of success but has really struggled recently. Your name could be connected with revitalizing this program. And 50 years from now, the Marvin/Christian name will be connected with the development and emergence of 2 highly successful hockey programs. You could be responsible for multiplying the level of respect for what your families have contributed to hockey in this area. You have to decide what's more exciting to you. Do you want to step into a comfortable environment under the umbrella of your ancestors? Or do you want to step out take your family name to a new level. You have my number. Call me and let me know.

Unfortunately, I'm afraid Toews will be gone. I hope to heck that is all, but it's hard to say. I just want to get them over with, however many there are, and know what it is we can put on the ice next season and look forward. Good point about the Badgers. They're sitting fairly good right now, unless Skille impresses in Chicago too much. Go Skille!

I never thought that goal should have counted anyway. I don't have the wording of the rule from last year, but I thought it was clear that a player could be incidentally in the crease when a goal was scored, i.e. a skate or something, as long as they weren't interfering with the goalies ability to play his position. Standing in the crease and blocking the goalies vision or ability to move, or even being so close as to make this a judgement call, IMO, was never the intent. At least they clarified it going forward. Personally, I hope they do away with this rule altogether. I don't see hand passes as being part of hockey, in any zone.

I had hoped Motzko would be taking recruits away from MN, not UND.

If this is true, good luck Jordan! I'm willing to admit I thought he was sort of a throw-in recruit when he came to UND but he proved how much I know. He had more impact on the UND program, I think, than his more heralded brother. Thanks for a couple of great runs. Where would we have been without him the last half of the last 2 years?