burd

I have a friend who ownes a car dealership that sponsors a hole-in-one-win-a-car at a yearly fund raiser. He told me that nobody ever won, so one year he didn't insure against it. Of course, a guy holed one.

It will never happen, of course, for many reasons, including location. But Maine would be a great program to have in a super conference.

But having very good defensive forwards is also key, especially in the game Hak coaches. The Sioux will lose a lot of defense by virtue of the forwards they lost.

Actual studies have shown that NoDaks who drive the middle of the fairway usually hit last and have more time to drink beer while NoDaks who hit in the woods look for their balls. But those studies also show that NoDaks who hit in the woods spend much of the time drinking when they should be looking for their balls. So I guess you're good no matter where you hit it. Good study, but I'll be damned if I can remember where I saw it. Might have been cited on the wall of a stall at Frenchy's back in the day. Old but good law.

Flatten the take-back a little and keep your weight on you rear foot a little more. Do that and Eids will be back to his old self. (And you will have yourself a draw, which is a deal with the devil, but what do we care as long as Eidsness is stopping pucks)

I'm pumped to see Grimaldi play. One memory of Trupp stands out--when he was a freshman (against Manitoba, I think) when he raced back on the back check, went airborne, and lifted the stick of a guy on a near breakaway preventing him from getting a shot off. That told you something about the guy, right there. Hope 1) Gregoire stays, and 2) October comes in a couple of weeks.

I don't think Grimaldi will replace Trupp's ability to forecheck and PK for a while. The team will sorely miss Trupp's all around play.

I initially was very surprised at Hextall's offensive upside, but I frankly don't think his early departure will cause the Sioux to drop a spot in the standings. Experience is very important, and he has that. But he also tends to make decisions you would expect from a very inexperienced/immature player. Losing Gregoire would be different story.

What happened to CC last night illustrates just how important it is that the Sioux stay out of the box. UMich only scored one PPG, but CC's rhythm was completely messed up, partly from all the specialty team involvement. With the way Renss came out with the physical play yesterday , I was afraid the Sioux would start taking stupid penalties. They did not, and that took discipline--and some smarts. Maybe even Hextall has figured this out. If they establish some flow today and roll all their lines, they will win, IMO. Good luck, boys. Put the d-dancer out on the golf course where he belongs. I'll bet he talks when others putt. And fudges his lie. And adds his score wrong. Grrrr. They're worse than gophers. Go get 'em.

If a fight breaks out, at least Hak won't have to worry about getting hit. They'll all have to take a wiz.

One thing that gives me just a little worry going into the tournament is what effect having both Genoway and Kristo back in the lineup at about the same time will have on the team rhythm that has been so good lately. They are both dynamic, creative players who add a dimension to the team. Partly because of that, their teammates sometimes get caught watching or not knowing quite how to respond to their play, I think. With Genoway, it's bringing the puck up--with Kristo it's the Kane-like play inside the blue line. The sioux have had weak opposition during their recent absence (compared to the rest of their schedule), but they have done well, and part of that has been everybody playing their roles well and minimizing mistakes. They have such solid defense and so many good forwards that sooner or later this team will score if they stay out of the box, and play otherwise solid hockey. The team is better with those guys, but in a one-and-done format where one or two mistakes can end the season, I hope the good position play continues.

I get to see Sun Praire recruit, Josie Johnson, play fairly often, since Sun Prairie is in my daughter's conference. Don't know whether she's signed or even been promised a spot. I'd be interested in whether anyone else has any thoughts on her play. It's difficult to tell how good the best players in that conference are.

Maybe somebody can help me out. I subscribe to Sioux insider, and the 4-month subscription ran out a week ago. I have not been able to renew or resubscribe. I try but get caught in a cycle--the site won't respond when I select a one-month subscription. I'm old and I'm stupid, but I'm not stoned.

The 86% chance that we come up short has me pi$$ed.

Maybe someone can help. My four-month subscription with Insider expired and I am trying to renew with absolutely no success. I keep getting into a loop where I log in, check the box for the period of subscription but cannot get it to respond. Anybody gone through this?

For Mike there's probably more worth remembering from 1970. Back then, he was thankful for more each morning than a good stool and finding his dentures.

Every now and then someone just has to go over there and yell "GARDEN HOSE" and watch the little buggers p!ss themselves.

It is almost as if the unanswered question about this team's identity next year is playing itself out this year.

They just have to figure out where the BJMs (BLack Jerseys of the Mind) are stored.

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.