burd

One habit I think Sioux players have shown is a tendency to coast to the puck and try to win the battle by poke-check. Part of what I loved about Matt Jones is that he ALWAYS skated hard to the puck.

I was afraid to say it, but I thought they’d lose last night by 10-15 goals. I feel the same way about tonight. Their announcers are right: SCSU is by far the best team in the NCHC, probably the country. Bunch of their guys must have been dealing with the flu or something last night.

Yeah, I really like him and think he will be a very important part of their future success. Has to adjust a little to the physical side of the game at this level, but he sees the ice well, has huge stick skills, a quick release, and works hard.

Rocco often dished to guys who were not ready for it. He could see open guys before they saw themselves. Wasted talent sometimes in that others were just not playing at his quickness level.

Having Perron on your line is a little like having R Grimaldi on it.

I don't see it as too simplistic if your position is hased on some hockey facts or factors, which I think yours is.

Nice to see some real, honest-to-god hockey talk, whether one agrees with it or not, instead of simplistic declarations of staff or player incompetence or generalized opinion that the program fails to meet expectations. There are a lot of very knowledgeable hockey fans here, and it would be nice to hear more specifics. Won't come from me, though--I'm not one of them. Love the game, which is enough to be a fan but not enough to be an informed critic.

Amazing that this team has not lost in regulation since the first weekend in Nov

That's the thing. It's too simplistic just to say he's got to change his game and stop taking those chances. Work on situational awareness. With his whole line, so they're still in sync. I think James is a factor in Blake's improvement, with his vertical game and hard working style. They're different but can learn from each other.

Situational awareness, I guess.

True enough, and I remember having similar thoughts about Greg Johnson and his habit of dangling too much during his freshman an soph years. He was a very smart person and figured it out

Very true, and yet part of his exceptional value in the O zone is that he forces things (and opponents alter their game to deal with it). It's a situational and zone specific discussion, IMO.

And nobody said it was determinative.

Hrkac was a ridiculously prolific scorer, averaging about 2.5 pts per game in 86-87. Anyone know where his plus/minus numbers might be?

Thanks. Are all the plus/minus numbers on the team website?

What's Blake's +-

Agree.

Blake unquestionably is a defensive liability, but they have to be careful not to neutralize what he brings to the offense, which is critical to their ultimate success.

Too simplistic a question, IMO. The decision who to start next Friday will be based on a host of factors, of which last night's performance will be one. I have no problem with Hobie taking the net, but I'm sure the staff will see how the week's practice and Ludvig's recovery goes before making that decision. Ludvig has proven himself with more performances (including 3+ months of practice) than Hobie has. And just because I'm full of shyte doesn't mean I'm not right on this.

Whichever team wins it all this year will have earned it. LIkely 3 Regions of Death?

Blake is a big part of any hope of winning a 9th, but maybe they can designate no-dangle, no blind pass zones for him.

And please, please, facetime your mom. If I could use overstrike, I'd have put "write" first.

This team has some ice time under its belt, but it plays young. Which is usually fun and exciting. But they also need to learn to play a little older. Earn the right to think the whole ice belongs to you and nobody else. And play a full 60. And keep your feet moving. And play one shift at a time. . . . .

And that's a little surprising, given the speed, stick skills, and snipers they have. After the first two OT wins this year, I thought they'd welcome OT against anybody. But they have to be more careful with the puck and play D too. I think they'll get some of those back over the next several months. Overall, they need to get a little more vertical in their game, which is why James is so valuable to them now, IMO.

Looks good