burd

I usually watch for them to stop that little box thingie . . .

Someone on the staff must have seen character defects, and the fact that they went to the Dark Side proved that to be true. Grow up in GF and play hockey for the gophs? You can try to suppress that, but eventually you will find yourself on a couch paying some UND-educated psych to listen to your horror story. True, a couple of NCs will keep the demons at bay for a while, but sooner or later they will come for you. So, there you go.

And for us mentally challenged, it's "special."

If the Sioux do hang #8 this year, Hak better follow with #9 in '12. Gwoz and Lucia did it, and with all the talent that will still be on the team, he'd better or I say he should go. I mean, we have standards.

Agreed. And that is the difference between being a great system/program coach (which Hak definitely is) and being a great game coach. Hak is very good at that too, but he will probably have to be able to adapt to the eastern speed game enough to beat whoever is there at the FF (and BC will probably be among them) to prove the point. I like him at UND and am proud of his record.

A defenseman who plays simple, won't wow, and only defends "pretty well?" Sounds a little like a blind date with an interesting personality.

Good points. But I think York won titles in 01, 08, and 10. And there's our own Gino G, who won it all in his 2nd, 4th, and 9th years.

Thanks. I'm running a 10k to help fund research to show CC ways to eliminate floating tiger heads--wanna pledge?

In past years, I've watched the CC broadcast, but I'm not sure I can stand to watch the floating tigers between whistles. Two years ago, I went through the whole nine yards of cancer treatment--surgery, chemo, and radiation, but that was nothing compared to the floating tiger heads.

I voted no without hesitation. I wonder what it would do to recruiting to lose a head coach and the name in the same year.

OK. Here's a reach, but a fun one. Trupp is the spawn of Darcy Zajac and Rasty Spirko. As proof, he's got Sparky's size and offensive upside along with Zajac's grittiness and PK ability. Really. I read about it in the Nat Inquirer while I was in line at the grocery store . . .

IMO Trupp has been playing at an extremely high level. His forecheck will be greatly missed next year.

The gophers desperately need wins that will get them pairwise points. It would be extra satisfying to see the Sioux sweep them farther into that gutter.

Hook up the garden hoses boys--it's time to flush some rodents.

He can do things on the ice nobody else on that team can. I think it's been partly a learning curve for him to know how to use that evasive skill with this team. Trupp. LOVE his forecheck. One thing about having a fairly soft schedule like the Sioux will have this half--they won't be tested on the transition game like they will be in the NCAAs, and that's a concern. RM did not present any kind of a breakout problem last night. It seemed like our D had a lot of time to make decisions.

He's playing extremely well. When he makes the good last decision, he can disrupt a defense a little bit like P Kane can. It's that finishing shot/pass that has sometimes not worked for him. Eidsness would have played well against RM too (and will probably tonight), but I don't think he would have gotten the shutout. Pure speculation, of course, but I think you are right that Dell's focus and concentration is the difference. Those two saves on Longpre's breakaway were really nice.

Robert Morris plays with himself.

Naw. The ex-gophs always turtled as soon as the girl threw 'em down.

This might not be the best place for this question, but a number of you may be able to answer it. Last week, I spent three days in Blaine at the Schwanns rink for a high school girls tournament. On the Herb Brooks rink one evening, the women's national team played an exhibition game against a bunch of men who obviously had a lot of hockey experience. I think they were called the Minnesota development team, but I just stumbled on the game and can't be sure. Another spectator said the team was made up of former D1 players and some former pros who were part of the men's development program. There weren't any roster sheets, so I couldn't tell who was on the ice, though I suspect it included a lot of former gophers. Any of you familiar with this team (or program)?

Although I have also been an Eidsness supporter, that comment seems to be true. Dell appears to have more "best games" in him than even last year's Eidsness did. He just seems to be able to hold the concentration level for the entire 60 minutes without that occasional lapse that victimized Eidsness.

It's funny how name recognition works in college. ND is a little like Duke in that respect. Other universities in the south have top tier academics, like Rice and Emory, but neither of them has nearly as much name recognition amoung average high schoolers (or their parents), at least in the upper midwest, partly because Rice and Emory have no association with a big-name D1 sport. As you say, name brand recognition spills over into hockey recruitment just as it does academic recruitment. For kids who may be considering an ivy-type surrounding, I can see why ND might also attract. It has a midwesternized ivy feel, with its gothic architecture, but is not quite as intimidating academically. Practically no college campuses feel radical these days, but ND is so conservative I imagine some kids and their parents would prefer it over an ivy for that reason.

Aside from his leadership, one of the things I like about Genoway is the thing that gets him in trouble now and then--he can be aggressive offensively. Hak runs a very disciplined, defensively responsible system. Sometimes, it seems that with the firepower he has, his teams could benefit from up-and-down hockey. I think I'm probably wrong on that, as a whole, but having a guy like Chay who likes to push puck up the ice is IMO a good thing in a Hakstol system, even with the risks. I just like a little up and down excitement.

OK. Let's try this. Assuming Matt and another player are absolutely equal on the ice this year. A virtual tie. Their academics and other off-ice considerations are also a virtual tie. Both players have shown superior character this year. The only difference is Matt's past. Do you take it into account. If so, does it tip the scale for or against him? Forget for a moment that such a perfect tie will never happen.

As long as we're drawing for a straight flush, how 'bout the Sioux end the gophers' season too.

That response is why I think it will be interesting to see how they treat him. It's a valid point. In my old age, I have come to appreciate and admire those who manage to overcome faults, even significant ones. Most of us do not change much, sadly. Some (like HG) make a good point that if another player is as good on the ice and has managed to get where Matt is without detour, that player deserves it as much or more. But if Matt keeps up the stellar play, I hope his past is seen only as a measure of how far he has come.