burd

Which of our Dmen will be the one most likely to skate it out of the zone like Stecher used to do for us?

definitely some sniping talent with this team.

Betting UND dosn't play a full 60 minutes.

Air next?

WE will probably see some tandem goaltending this year like we did in years past.

Good points. And in addition to the points our D scored, don't underestimate the value their play in the defensive zone played in our forwards' success at the other end of the ice. I think that D corps was as good as any we have ever had, considering all phases of the game.

Have to like the schedule this year. Nice to have the boys get a chance to find themselves a little in front of the home crowd. Also get a dose of gopher and BC in NYC the first half. I'm always grateful to be a fan in a program that brings in so much talent, but this time of year it is really nice as we wait to see what we have. Christmas morning in October. . Will Spirko be there? Who will make a magical diving backcheck against Manitoba? Will Poganski have become Poganski+? Who might be the next Caggiula?

Years ago I was passing through GF with my teenage daughter on our way to a place I own at Metigoshe, so I got us tx to the Friday night Mankato game. I think Ralph died just a few days prior. There was a copy of Fight On Sioux on each seat for the fans, included with the price of admission, I guess. I've gotten a lot of enjoyment from it.

Sounds like a treasure trove, Al. Thanks for the tip.

Some of those old pics in Fight On Sioux are great, including the view of the old barn ice taken from behind the goalie. I remember the fog that would form when the barn was full on cold nights.

I watched a lot of games at the old barn. I also disagree with your claim that UND has played without arrogance for 50 - 60 years until Hak came along. Arrogant fans are a pain in the arse, and there will be more at UND if another banner comes our way in the near future. But whatever Hak's faults were, I don't believe you can justify your claim that he created a culture of arrogance. I think the culture he created was excellent. His big game coaching skills may have lacked something, but his character was A-1 in my opinion.

There's the catch.

Yeah, that was dumb, wasn't it? I guess I got caught thinking he was a Sr. this year with the time he missed.

I don't usually do this kind of thing, but I rewatched the NC game. We are really going to miss that defense. Wow, they were good. All phases of the game considered, maybe the best ever in my years watching Sioux hockey. Also noticed that St. Claire had some very good shifts. Would be nice to see a jump from him this year.

You probably fly through JFK anyway, don't you Class?

I sure hope they can keep Miami in the NCHC

When it comes to complementing guys like Jost and Boeser on that line, individual skills mean less and the chemistry, intuitive side of things means more. No 3 on that line will not need to have big time skills, but he will need instinct. Caggiula had both instinct and skills, so his place will be a hard one to fill.

Yeah, Schmaltz' D game really improved last year. And I'm sure he knew that had to happen to have a chance of playing in Chi.

It's not easy to determine now just how important defense was to our forwards' scoring success was last year, but you know it was a factor. I also don't think Jost can be expected to match the defensive skills Schmaltz showed last year. Still, as others have said, there's no reason to think that #9 is out of our reach. Stay away from injuries and keep getting better as the year moves along, and we should be in the discussion.

My problem is an infantile twin brother of mine sometimes logs in using my name and saying just plain stupid shyt. I hope people don't think I would say such things.

I would feel disloyal if I didn't put in here to watch for Gornall.

It's OK, MM. I'm just too stubborn to use emoticons like I should. There' hope, though.

I have little problem with gopher players. They're just kids trying to live a dream, like all college hockey players. But the program has to do something about the fans it recruits. Their work ethic is obviously very poor, judging by all the empty seats at their games, and the talent has been at the D2 level or lower or a long long time. Not saying they are stupid people, but they're clearly not getting any coaching or mentoring. Even their wannabe fans like Dave are more like BB fans giving it a whirl with a sport they really don't know anything about. I'm sure if my cousin or best friend's mother was a gopher fan I would see something good in her, but thankfully I haven't been put in that position yet. So I'm kind of hoping the gophers have some real success in the years ahead so they start to attract some fans who understand the game and can contribute to forums like this one. And speaking of challenged fans, don't ask what the quote box from sfs is doing in my post. Just don't.

Kidding, right? Wisconsin hires DiNozzo and you have them down at 8?

I'd guess his main motivation was that he thought UND would do a better and quicker job of getting him into the NHL. He wants to win at every level, so of course he wanted to win a NC, but he has been very candid in saying his main goal is to get to the NHL and to be well prepared when he gets there.