burd

Amazing you can hear that above all the other voices in your head.

I thought about leaving early and taking a big fat NHL contract but decided to stay for 5 years, and what did it get me?

I hope Stecher understands that every Sioux fan wants him to go for it if he feels the time is right and is behind him 100%.

I remember Rube and his teams pretty well, since my first games were at the old barn. Not the old Ralph--the old barn. A good friend of mine played and spent most of his time on the JV team as a freshman. Gino coached the JVs. He told me he and many of the young guys hated Gino and thought he was a dictator. They wanted to play for Rube, of course, because he coached the varsity. Gino was probably just a tough taskmaster, and that may be why he got more out of his boys. And back to Yzerman's first comment. Most people nowadays probably don't appreciate how important Serge Gambucci and Fido Purpur were to Sioux hockey. The hockey culture they established in Grand Forks was an important reason why the City and the University cared so much about Sioux hockey and the program's success. Serge would take his Central teams to the Twin Cities and play with the best teams they had to offer. I do not recall whether Gary Gambucci, who played for the Gophers, was a son or nephew.

The backchecking which we talked about much of the year and which Berry talked about in the NC postgame is a big deal in so many ways. In addition to the culture that builds when first rounders buy into it are the immediate, on-ice effects. How many goals resulted directly from backchecking? How many odd man rush goals did we give up compared to years prior (and we know Hak stressed defensive responsibility for his forwards too)? How much puck possession time did we gain through successful backchecking? Schmaltz really matured this year, and his backchecking skills stood out as much as anything. We've got us a bunch of pick-pockets. It's just criminal.

You hate to see guys leave early, especially those like Stecher who have such fine character. All departures hurt, but the more players we develop well enough to get offers before they graduate the more cred our program gets with recruits who are serious about picking a college that can develop them for the NHL. Long term benefit from a short term loss.

If Stecher, Schmaltz, and Boeser stay, the school should make a public sacrifice to the Hockey Gods. I'm thinking a stray gopher fan dressed in green and white would serve that purpose well.

An observation that might be either irrelevant or just wrong. I think Hak's and Berry's coaching philosophies are very similar, as are their game systems. Both teach commitment to defensive fundamentals and discipline, and I assume they are both tough taskmasters. But I think Berry is a little more of a father figure to those boys--tough, but with a softer side to him. Hak was loved by his players, that much has been made clear over the years, but I think he will succeed at the NHL level to a degree Berry could not partly because his personality fits a business discipline as compared to Berry's fatherly disposition. Although it is hard to think Berry can be more successful than Hak was from year to year, that difference in their personalities might allow Berry to accomplish some things Hak did not when working with college kids. I have NO BASIS for this conjecture. I don't know Hak or Berry personally, and I don't know any current or former players. Just another uninformed fan's opinion. But what the heck, there are few things as risk free as a fan's opinion.

Thanks

How can a person get the video replay of the game?

I just don't know if I've seen a Sioux team with this much talent at every position. And on top of that, elite scorers who were just as good in the neutral zone when they didn't have the puck. It was interesting to hear Berry say at the postgame that they stressed that this year, and it showed. When you have first round picks at forward backchecking and stealing pucks for odd man rushes the other way, you have something special, and not just in goals scored. It makes every player on the team want to take their defensive roles seriously and play an unselfish game. Bochinski was fun to watch and one of the best pure scorers UND has had, but he didn't match the total team contribution Boeser made this year, IMO.

We need pics, Oxbow.

Be sure he has barfbags.

Maybe "chip" could better be described as collective pride. The NCHC is a tough place to play, and I have a feeling that conference schedule will be helping a lot of NCHC teams prepare for the NCAAs in the years ahead. And we can have our little hate relationships to keep things entertaining in the meantime.

Very cool that the boys win a Banner in Brad's first year on the same day the resurgent Flyers clinch a playoff spot in Hak's first year. Both could be COY.

Thanks, Biddco. I like that the NCHC teams have a bit of a chip on their collective shoulders. We are definitely something for B1G and others to reckon with.

It was just a dream, Cratter. They play tonight.

This.

This.

I was proud to see how the players and the coach were quick to deflect praise and give credit to others, including previous players and coaches. And you could tell it was not just a recited sports cliche' to them. That bunch truly understands what it means to be humble in victory, which is a separate kind of victory, in my mind. And in the final analysis, it may be the more important one.

All that tells us is that your hygiene doesn't change for hockey.

I thought it was interesting Berry mentioned that he stressed backchecking in the neutral zone and that his most talented players bought into it, which helped create the culture. We often talked here how well Schmaltz, Boeser, Caggiula and others backchecked all season long.

I wonder how many guys like Parise, Oshie, Porter, Toews, Stafford, etc are watching this.

I kind of like the pushback the ledgies (not calling you a ledgie, Noise) are giving here. It's true we are all UND fans, and there's nothing wrong with standing up to criticism, even if it is mild.