burd

I think we have as much talent on this team as we have had on any team since the new rink--it's just spread more evenly up and down the lines. A lot of people will say that's crazy, and with the record so far, maybe they're right. We do miss that player who can destabilize the other team's defense every time he's on the ice. Vanek, Heatley, Parise, Toews, Gerbe all did that. Still, I really like this team. If they can get stellar performances from BE and sweep this weekend, look out.

I think you flipped it, Stack. Denver has 7 of its last 12 on the road, including 5 straight in Feb. Their schedule from this point on is not an easy one. I think if the Sioux take two this weekend, Denver will end up in our rearview.

Yeah, you're not quite there yet at 42. You'll have to take your chances from the upper deck for a few more years. If this were a Badger event, the cutoff would have to be around 36 . . .

In a perfect world, they would have an "old throwers" night when old guys like us would be escorted (or wheeled) down to the glass during the second period to chuck a dead gopher onto the ice. They could hand out slightly thawed dead gophers at the door for those who prefer not to freeze their own.

It's a problem. I usually keep a gopher team picture at hand so I can throw up on it. Hope that helps.

I love what Chay G brings to the team, but he he's also scary with his turnovers. Some notable ones tonight. Maybe having Finley back and in shape is even more important in that he knows Genoway and covers for him well.

It was tough to tell with Tech's video whether some of those third period goals were soft. A couple looked that way. Nice night for the Sioux. Nice for BE get a shutout, especially with some big time saves.

We dipped a little in the pairwise after last night. Can any nerds out there say if we will lose ground even if we win tonight, Tech being Tech (assuming nothing too strange happens elsewhere).

Goon's been living in his own head for a long time. Better let him have his win.

Not sure whether you can generalize too much on whether Lucia's decision no to go with Jones was best for his team. If the game is close, you take the PP, especially if your guy is not the one playing enforcer. If the game is out of reach, I would like to see my player go if our team is getting pushed around. The gophs were getting man-handled in both games, and I think they needed to do something to slow that down or stop it, if only to gain some respect for future games. Lucia should not have turtled, but seeing the blood in Jones' eyes up close and personal probably had something to do with his decision.

Some day, I think some Sioux faithful needs to put together a truly worthy Clark Griswold Christmas Vacation style rant that describes what we all know gopher players and their fans to be. We have been letting them off the hook calling them just arrogant all these years. Just by reading this thread, you can see that beside being arrogant, they're a bunch of gutless, whining, cheating, spearing, excuse-making, yellow-bellied, chicken-livered, rug-wearing, panty-wearing chokers. That's just the obvious stuff.

True enough, but then Brian Lee and Drew Stafford certainly were not entitled to any excuses playing in their home rink in 2005.

Come on, guys. Our own coaches, including Hak and Blais, routinely would say that players coming back from Juniors would be pooped for a week or two--routinely. They always said it was worth it and that the team was better for it in the long run, but they always pointed out the tiredness factor. Great series by the Sioux. Best I can remember for a long time. Jones is a bull. Little L might have lost some honor, but he probably kept a tooth or two.

Damn. For a young hockey player to be on the Sioux bench before a gopher game looking up at a juiced-up crowd at that rink must be a goose-bumpy experience. Then a game like that. Tough recruitment to match for UMass.

Both Blais and Hak have said the same exact thing about our returning junior players in past years.

Regarding "dirty" goals, the players should watch playback of ZPar's 22 goals this year: Very few sniper shots--just hard work, desire, and a nose for the net. Add in a bunch of assists on those that didn't go in but rebounded for someone else.

I hear Trupp has switched his Sakic for a 33 Roger Maris for the Gophs.

I think we can thank the Europeans and former soviet states for the style of play we now have in the NHL. Not that long ago, NHL hockey was fantastic during the playoffs but sucked IMO during most of the regular season. The rules changes that have emphasized speed and finesse were made partly to facilitate more European style hockey. Canada is the heart and soul of the game, but other countries deserve credit for some important improvements.

Merry Christmas everybody. If you're traveling, be safe. Enjoy whatever time you get with your family (but don't be afraid to sneak off and listen to some Sioux hockey).

I don't think any of the Ivies give merit scholarships. The give a ton of need-based aid, though, and I think their thinking is that the academic threshold is high enough that it is all merit money in a way. Cornell is often seen as being the easiest Ivy to get into, but that is relative. In any top notch school, a recruited athlete will have a little more slack on the academic side of the admissions package. Still, the middle 50% of admitted students at Cornell scored between 630 and 770 on the critical reading and 660 - 730 on math--pretty good.

Great sweep. Eidsness was out of position quite a bit last night, but positioning is usually one of his strengths--at least with regard to body. I guess that makes me less concerned, but I'm not sure, actually. The Lasch goal might seem soft, but that was a pretty microscopic hole he got it through. I like BE. The players must have confidence in him too, judging by their willingness to play the up-and-down game. Speaking of that, these recent scoring outbursts are what many had hoped for when this season started, based on the number of highly talented but not elite players we have. A pleasant surprise that many of our goals have come from the "regulars." Our defensemen still aren't controlling the boards very well, though. Come back, Joe.

Well, the best teams never beat teams who are better than they are.

I thought LaPointe had his best game of the year. Played with a little confidence.

I'm probably alone on this, but I still believe that Hak is a very good coach and that this team has a good blend of talent, including goal. The Eternal optimist. I think we might get stomped by the gophs this year, though, which would hurt.

I wouldn't put Blake at an elite level in '97, and he wasn't on the '00 team. He was at that level in '99 and possibly in '98, both teams that were better than the '97 team, but they didn't get out of regionals either of those years, if I recall. Panzer was probaby at or near his best level in '00 and they did win it, but he wasn't Parise or Toews or even Oshie. Absolutely wonderful player, though--the kind I prefer to have on a college team, especially if they stay for 4. I agree about Gregoire.