burd

It took Kawaguchi quite a while to slow the game down at this level. There were times, even in his second year, when he didn't make good decisions under pressure. He turned the corner, obviously, but the adjustment to pro hockey would be even bigger. He should stay.

I have a tough time hating MTU under almost any circumstance. And I remember during the 70s when they were big, fast, and very good. Might have hated them then, but now I only think how they deserve respect for the program's rich past.

Congrats to the team for winning Penrose 2020. Not long ago, winning the McNaughton was a big deal, and now that is true of the Penrose. Not this team's end goal, by any means, but a major accomplishment.

Amen. That's where the coach's earned trust and respect from the players really counts. Sometimes there is no clear choice, and they all want to play. My sense is that there is a lot of mutual respect at all levels with this team.

Not hard to imagine that drama.

If you're talking about Ortega, I can see why Blais liked him.

Coach Berry got a little emotional about that one too.

Travis Roche was as poised with the puck on the blue line as any Sioux D I can remember.

One D man I loved for his pure defensive performance but who flew pretty much under the radar was Matt Jones. Not close to JBD's talent level but really good at his job.

And let's not overlook the effect players like Pinto have on their teammates. Every time a Pinto, Boesser, Scmaltz, etc hits the ice the other side has to account for him at all times. This takes away from coverage or schemes that would otherwise have been on teammates, especially on the PP. Guys like Gooch benefit from that, even if they do not share a regular shift, but especially when they do. Duncan would probably not have been left to score all those goals from his office spot had the opposition not had to cover T & O.

We'll be a No. 1, if not THE No. 1, and that's about all that matters, IMO. If we are not winning games going into regional, we have a problem. On the other hand, if we are strong in goal, healthy, and playing well, I like our chances, whatever our exact seed is. Winning the NC is never a "more likely than not" thing--to many good teams and too many bounces and deflections in a one-and-done tourney. The year has been a lot of fun, and that's worth a great deal to me--the delight of watching them play extremely well every weekend, October through March. So if they don't snag the ring, it will still have been a thumbs up year for the staff and these boys, IMO.

As fans, we usually don't see very reliably.

That SCSU/UMD series will be interesting.

I guess, though they didn't play a full 65 minutes.

Fans might, but this team and this staff wont.

Murray coaches well against UND. Souris boy.

Yup,. That one's not on Scheel.

Doesn't he sit tonight?

Well, there is the visual perception component, and there is the ability to count . . . We know goalies never count beyond 0, even if the rest of us can agree on 4.

Good sentiment, Wilbur. But I gotta ask: how do you test goalies for concussion? I mean, they're goalies . . .

I apologize for bringing what ended up being a political post to a hockey thread. I was trying to use a little humor. We have generally done a good job of keeping these threads relatively politics-free, and while political discussions are interesting and beneficial, I like being involved with you guys in a hockey discussion which, while it has its own tension at times, is free from the intense partisanship that political discussions have come to involve. My bad. Back to hockey. Tonight: Eleventy billion to 1, WMU. We score one with the goalie pulled just before the end of the first.

It wouldn't matter if they were playing the Wuhan Warriors; it's a hoax.

Eleventeen billion to 0, WMU. Bad second period.

I agree. As long as the stay high in the PW, it's not too late to learn hard lessons. Whatever happens until then, they need to go into regionals hungry.

My exact same thought.