burd

In reviewing our goals, it's hard to believe Caggiula got so much room in front of their net. If he ever gets to the NHL, it's going to be a whole lot different lifestyle in front of the net. Getting a hatty in Cloud is a big deal. The thing that makes the CBS line so dominant is that all three of them can maintain possession and are also great passers. With the D we have, they can do their thing and not worry so much about getting caught in an odd man rush the other way. That line would always be poison for the other side, but I'm not sure they would be this dominant without those dmen we have behind them. Great game to watch. I hope the other matches with the better NCHC teams are this entertaining.

Looks like he has a nice glove and is quick. Not what you'd call a calm goalie though. You'd have to call him a winner, though, and that's all we can ask for.

Especially when we were losing faceoffs all night.

H sure flops around a lot out there, but the man gets it done.

It actually started out as Holey Roaming Empire, but they could never win the big one, so they changed the name. Wow, business ethics for 500 is a gamble. Good luck with that.

There are some very deep dudes here.

I'm changing my mind--I'm going with 808287. We can change, right?

I guess my all time favorite would be In A Gadda Da Vida. Discuss

I recall seeing a Bobcat game or two way back in the 60s. It must be a very well-managed organization.

It would be cool if they could produce pregame videos focusing on one or a couple players for each game. Trupp night would get the crowd fired up for his night. Diving back-checks, diving goals, rushing up the ice with the puck on his stick. I miss the guy like I miss Sparky.

I didn't notice, but I watched the video, and you almost have to be at the rink to evaluate that stuff. He forechecks aggressively, and on Friday night he made a Trupp-like backcheck play that probably saved a goal. But, like I say, I wasn't there to watch his play away from the puck.

I can't believe Hammer would abandon his TCoS. His own child!

That's right. They were going in last night. The boys are playing very well. Just have to keep our heads and keep the pressure on.

I don't know, but that looks a lot like mating behavior, and I don't want to think about it. Adjusting to the new name is difficult enough.

In some respects the Vikings and the . . Hawks? are in similar situations. They both have had a fairly weak schedule up to now (Denver aside) but have done what they had to. The next 4 or 5 weekends, though, will tell us a lot about what they have. .

I realize it's a joke, yzer, but it brings to mind a question I have often asked myself which some of you guys closer to the game itself might comment on. I don't know when goalies began using the butterfly style--a long time ago, I'm sure But shooters go either 5-hole or high now because that is where the biggest holes are. I've noticed how often our guys miss high or off the shoulder going for water-bottle shots and not only do we not get a rebound, the puck often rings around off the glass and either out of the zone or high on the sidewalls. A low shot can do that too if it's wide, but on net it has a much better chance of a rebound, it seems like. I know goalies can kick low shots out too, which helps defense, but what exactly is the thinking on that? Is it such a non-issue that coaches do not even bother with it, or do some stress more low shots (when it's not a prime scoring opportunity) to raise the chance of rebounds and greasy goals? Where there is any traffic, goalies don't see a low shot as well either. I started thinking of this when one of my kids started playing and seeing how so many young kids seem enthralled with water bottle shots when they should be going low. I'm sure there are a lot of coaches and/or knowledgeable fans in this site who can respond to this.

Remember, we always have Wilbur as a hole card. That's why he isn't posting here anymore. He's taking pucks from his wife and kids in the basement.

I would guess the entire team is playing defense at a high level. Goalie is obviously hot, but you don't get that many shutouts without forwards and dmen both doing their jobs.

I don't think that will happen if they keep Kunin. And I wouldn't lay it on us being number one. Wisconsin typically plays us well, and they have some very talented freshmen that apparently have been getting better with each series. Of course, badger fans are conflicted about whether a severe suckfest is about the only way to get Alvarez off the dime on Eaves.

And this team can skate with us. A shatpile of freshmen on the ice, counting both teams.

I think a lot of us knew this team has not faced a talented team yet.

You can tell Badgers have some speed. We haven't dealt with much of that this year.

Back "in the day" a buddy of mine would find a dead badger (road kill), freeze it in a cross position. He would then duct tape it to his back under his coat and smuggle them in. He got caught once. The students were down low up against the glass in the old Ralph and getting it out and in the air when the students were all standing for cover was a little easier. The dead gophers were actually more fun because they would slide further on the ice, and of course they would usually throw them after a goal and try to get them to slide up to the goalie.

I hope we can keep Bucky off the board for at least a period. Despite their recent woes, this is Wisconsin, and this game will have a higher tension level than they have had so far this year. Rather not see H get rattled early. Once he settles into the game, I think he'll be solid.

I think most of us agree this was an unjustified suspension. And most of us probably also agree that it is too bad some of the clean, heavy hitting in the game is being outlawed. And that is interesting discussion for winter meetings and whatever seasonal meetings the heads of officials have. But the real issue on the ground for our guys is how you play smart so those officiating decisions do not increase the chance that they will lose. As fast as this game is played, and with the current enforcement goals of protecting players, that hit will get you the box every single time. Wrong call upon slow motion review? Probably. But the penalty will be called and everybody knows it. And nobody can act surprised that Cags got the dressing room for it either, right or wrong. What counts is not whether the call was justified but how the players adjust to an environment they all know exists. This team is good. They have speed and skill up and down the lineup, great defense, and some snipers. They need to play physical but smart, and that hit, while legit, was not particularly smart IMO.