dagies

You know, I don't know if I could pick one. This would probably be my finalists, though. No order: D Hale - we've seen his impact on the ice during the CC series, and goals scored when he was off the ice. Blais talks about him as an All-American, and of course he is one of the captains. Not only performs on the ice but also effective in a formal leadership capacity for a team that is way outperforming last year. Parise - when fans of other teams said UND needed a "savior" I scoffed. However, how can you quantify Parise's impact, at least perceived by the fan like myself? Monster point getter who makes the players around him better, a guy that Blais said everybody likes, and who has lead others into joining informal on-ice practice sessions. In addition he adds a component where he may have had impact on other recruits coming from Shattuck (i.e. Murray, Smaby etc. I'm speculating here...) - remember Blais comments "everybody wants to play with him". Notermann - here's a guy I thought was a good defensive forward, a real worker who caused trouble for the other guys. Well, this year he seems to have brought a level of play and ability and scoring punch that has played a significant role on the team's improvement. At one time didn't Blais say that for several games he was their best forward. Not to mention being honorary captain at least one time? This guy has really elevated his impact on the team, it appears. Honorable Mention: Bochenski - he has really improved his strength on his skates and brought his scoring along with it. He has proven he is not just a product of Parise, clearly. Massen - possibly the most improved player on the team. Let's see, about 5 goals and 8 assists all last year and he has more than doubled that already this year, a leader on the team in conference points. Also, very confident puck handler. Spiewak - Also picked up his offensive game this year while often playing on the "checking" line. Assistant captain responsible for leadership and performance. Another player who has picked up his game. Schneider - necessary point production from the defensive corp. And a lot of it! Rarely gets beat. R Hale - Captain, and one of 3 formal captains who have helped create a better work ethic and a winning chemistry on the team. D. Lundbohm - another significant increase in offensive production

siouxbear1 you might find this helpful as well: http://siouxsports.com/forums/index.php?ac...a1ff980228fdbb5

Good point, guys. You know, I said these guys are a tribute to the Sioux program. Really, I should just commend them on being good young men. I'm curious if anyone else found D Hale's comment about coming back next year NOT being his decision to be interesting in any way? Does he look for that guidance from Ryan? Does he feel obligated to the team in some way? Just curious if anyone else has thoughts.

That was a great article. What a tribute these guys are to the Sioux program.

Great article. Note the reference to Micflicker who is having a good year in the USHL with Sioux Falls? Wow. No wonder Chris!!!! likes BC to recruit early.

Sounds like home ice and last line change might be the breaker.... Scott, to an extent I agree. Was it 2000 we went to Denver late in the season and got swept? However, I agree that if we can go and split with CC, that says a lot.

Yeah, if it wasn't for the MN PP in OT on Sat maybe Mankato wins that game. IF IF iF

It's interesting that Calgary sent Leo down but traded for Mottau. Maybe nothing, maybe something. I'd like to see Leo do well because he seems like a great guy.

I wasn't going to say this on POI but since the discussion came over here I will. It wasn't long ago some Gopher fans were giving Sioux fans crap about complaining about officiating. I guess no one is really any better than anyone else, after all.

I had CC sixth

Yeah, baby!

Here's really nice article on Murray. And at 5'-9" and 165# it's no wonder he was down on the draft prospects list http://www.canada.com/search/story.aspx?id...02-cc1b4b1bd86f

I gotta go with MN and SCSU #1 and #2. Then WI. In the old days WI was #2.

I wouldn't classify him as a prospect because I don't know if the Sioux are looking at him or if he has interest in college but Jordan Parise is ONLY second in the USHL in save% at .921. Lammy is now at a .914 save% and that ain't bad. http://www.ushl.com/ushl0203/standings_framed.htm

I've been very impressed with James from what I have seen this year. Not only can the guy shoot the puck but he has excellent hands. He works well down low with the puck, and can handle the puck very surely. Then, there's the strength.... Great job, James!

No doubt, I think we have been spoiled by years of good goaltending, the core of which was Karl G. Why do fans rip Jake? Well, there have been times he looked very good and times he hasn't looked real good. The long and short of it is he makes some great saves but he also leaves a lot of pucks hanging out in front of him. Kollar did the same thing, and got away with it until his last year. Early in the season we were getting wins but still giving up 2-3 goals on 14-15 shots per game. That gets hard to accept when you look at a long season. Fortunately, that has improved. Maybe us fans are overly critical and expect too much. That said it does look like he is stepping it up as of late. In the WCHA Jake has worked his saves % up to .908, second only to Bruckler and Reichsmuth at .923. Not bad, really. And saves percentage is the one stat that probably isn't tilted by the number of shots per game.

With a little luck, maybe we can keep them "together".

From a post on Hockey's Future. Understand this is just a poster so I am not speaking to the veracity of the comment. Just passing along the rumor: He's currently 4th on the Shattuck team in scoring with 42 pts: http://www.s-sm.org./Athletics/Statistics.....aspx?TeamId=18

I can hit the ice with just as much speed!

Like Miskovich and Jeff Panzer!

Drew Stafford # 2 in scoring for Shattuck with 69 points... http://www.s-sm.org./Athletics/Statistics.....aspx?TeamId=18

Scott's going out on a limb again.

That would be a HE, and yes I was. The "NO GOPHERS" that Sprig illustrated is sort of like saying the Gopher was banned. Didn't mean to imply it was banned from the board. Sorry. (Geez, did that make sense?)