ScottM

This season has been bad, but quite frankly I was completely surprised we made it to the Title game last April, so this type of finish and let down may have been a bit overdue. However, this season is nothing like Gasparini's last couple of seasons when there was little or nothing on the horizon. At least now we have a solid core of players who will be around next season and some good talent coming on board. Let the others get their licks in now, we are coming back, with a vengence.

I think the only thing Duluth students would protest is the lack of booze or the fact they can't get to Superior for 2 am closing. Hmm, 25 protestors or so, the weather wasn't too bad, no snowmobile events ... can we say "general apathy"?

The Sioux will have to play a full 60 minute game each night to take any points from Denver. This will not be a series for guys to take a night off, or a period for that matter. Personally, I think the team tends to play better against "better" teams, e.g., Minnesota, Michigan, etc. I'm not sure if it's an overconfidence or fear issue, but I think the team spends time looking at a team's reputation, record, etc. and plays accordingly. I hope they take Denver seriously, stay on the puck and play it tough both nights.

Well, a win would have been nice, especially as Wisco got its rear handed to it at Mariucci. Like I said elsewhere, Duluth isn't as bad as their record. Hopefully, the team can recover and bring home two points tonight. Congrats to Sandie on the win. I hope he doesn't continue the trend tonight.

Most probably the NC$$ could not force a school to retroactively change their name/logo. Schools have a vested, financial interest in their names/logos and I really doubt the NC$$ would want to fork over the $$$ to compensate the schools for that lost revenue, not to mention what the NC$$ takes in from licensed merchandise. As a resident of Minnesota, I'm kind of glad that the state is having budget problems. It should provide for cuts at different universities, including St. Clown and Mankato, as well as tuition increases. Maybe these little dirtbags will finally understand what it means to live in the "real world." They probably won't have time to "educate" us, if they have to work a real job.

Nice that they are bringing in a couple of the Ivies for this tourney, as we generally don't see them often. I would have cringed if they had brought in Canadian colleges.

I think "The Brady Bunch" would sound too much like Jan Brady State a/k/a St. Clown State.

I recall a thread similar to this one from December(?) or so. I can't recall whether there was any good information as to where you could find those old sweaters. It probably wouldn't hurt to check to see if the thread is still around.

I haven't been to Duluth for a series for a few years, but it seems like most of their student fans are worse than SCCC fans. Drunken, idiotic dolts who will probably bolt for the door by the middle of the second period before their hangover kicks in. Reminds me of the old REA. The Sioux really need to bring their "A" game this weekend. I saw the Duluth series against Minnesota a few weeks ago and they are not as bad as their record. They are a solid, physical team that can create havoc in the neutral zone and make things happen. Strong PP, and decent PK too. Sort of like a "Blais-lite" team of yore. If the Sioux play tough, like they did against Minnesota, and stay out of the sin-bin, they have a chance to take some points, and God knows we need 'em. Smart offensive minded hockey should work, and it would help to pepper their goalie(s). "If you see a shot, take it!!!" One thing I noticed, was that their d-men aren't very quick, if you can get behind them you can throttle the goalie.

It's easy and convenient to blame the Sioux nickname on any number of ills, e.g., poverty, diesase, alcoholism and idiotic letters. And if you follow that logic, changing the name would suddenly eliminate those ills, and acne too. Ganje should spend more time teaching instead of hanging around SCCC and promoting her own agenda, unless she's actively looking for another job. I wouldn't be surprised if she sent them just to keep her and her "cause" in the light.

Depending on what else is going on and how busy they are Joe Senser's in Bloomington will usually try to find other hockey games, especially if they are WCHA or involve a Big Ten team. Gluek's can be accommodating too, as they often host UND alumni functions.

While I'm glad that we got the sweep, anything less would have been more disgusting than blowing the Saturday Minnesota game, I'm not surprised by the close score. I think Friday was an abberation on both ends. I suspect MTU played a tighter game Saturday, and the Sioux may have been a bit lazy too. I couldn't tell, as the feed was dead and USCHO loaded slower than drying paint. I hope the team has a good, hard week in practice and goes into Duluth ready to play tough both nights. There are no "easy" wins this time of the year and we need every point we can get, and help from other teams to knock off the guys ahead of us.

I didn't hear any of the game or even catch the Minnesota game, but it sounds like the team played with an intensity they have lacked much of the season. Good for them, maybe they'll remember how good it feels to win and use it to motivate them the rest of the way. Nice to see Massen got his first "hat trick" I hope he keeps it up. One more tonight would be nice.

I'm not sure how they define "heritage" but it sounds like a stretch to link "heritage" to a school.

I think the "Zach Attack" has a nice ring to it. Parise will bring great talent and a very strong desire to win to the team. The desire, I hope, should rub off on the rest of the team. Our younger guys, Massen, Boschenski, Canady, et al. seem to have some great raw talent, but are just lacking the maturity and experience to put it all together. I hope they stick around REA this summer and learn to work together on the basics, e.g., skating, hitting with the body (not the stick ) and just developing a chemistry they seem to lack.

Why on Earth are we going to play Niagara and Canisus? Is Blais adopting Minnesota's approach by bringing in powerpuffs to bolster the standings or PWR? Even if we lose, I think a tougher schedule benefits the team, provided they step up. BTW: Charley Waters in the Prava Press reported that Tomas Vanek has to retake his SAT before he can go to Minnesota. I wonder if his choice to opt-into the NHL draft just got easier.

Yeah, I suppose the new place should be sterile, boring and Mariucci-like, especially in view of the new logo populating half the floor space. Of course, given the behavior of certain "fans" throwing garbage on the ice, I'm surprised they didn't make more hay of the idiocy. FYI: The new site also uses "spyware" in its cookies that can be used to track your websurfing. It tends to hide in the gif and other ad areas. A good cookie killing or blocking download should keep it from nesting in your system.

JK, I have a great deal of respect for the young guys, McMahon and Canady are probably my favorite frosh, primarily because they do play smash mouth hockey, which is my favorite theme. They generally have good raw talent, and once they grow into the game, they will be formidible, same with Bochenski and Massen. Jones and Schneider are great, and I think better all-around players than Ballard. I thought the team played beautifully late Friday, and most of Saturday. But for whatever reason, they just got lazy, complacent or scared to take the game to the gophers again. The momentum swing after Minnesota's goal was was felt all the way to Mpls. That's when they should have stepped it up. The deadwood I'm referring to, and I'll push "Replay" again, goes back to my views on the lack of leadership shown by the upperclassmen throughout the season. There was absolutely no reason they should have collapsed in the last minutes of the game. Blais can coach and yell till he's blue, but the captains and others need to prod themselves and the other guys to finish the enemy. The team needs to close the deal, no matter how much/little time is left, or how big/small the lead is. The "leaders" on the team should have led the way and buzzed Hauser the entire third period. 7 shots on goal is not a good way to close it out, especially given Minnesota's overall talent. I think the younger guys have great potential to lead the way and play an entire 60 minutes, but I think they have poor examples right now. I think the team's future is quite bright, in spite of the bumps and disappointments this season, but we really should have turned a corner for good by now. Blais expected the same by Christmas, and beyond. We're not there, yet. The next series with MTU should be a good way to see if the team is going to wilt or step it up and play they way they have when they have won.

Okay, deep breath ... That was the most disgusting way to lose a game I have seen in a very long time. Playing well for 50 minutes, only to piss it away, again, in the third. This team is an utter disappointment in that they do not know how to win, and lack the desire to win when they have a lead. What happened to the great back checking and clearing that developed late Friday and early Saturday night? Couple that with stupid, stupid penalties and a completely dismal effort in the gopher's end in the third. I would have posted last night, but I was so angry at the complete collapse and clock-watching ... I had to get out of the house. Chalk this season up to lack of fortitude and desire. Leadership is non-existent and a killer instinct is not part of this team's DNA. Unreal. Maybe next season when the deadwood is gone.

The first period was generally encouraging, the second was rotten and the third period was "too little, too late." They were going for the net, which is always encouraging. However, I thought the team stood around in our own end, no aggressiveness and porous defense. Somebody needs to tie a leash to Brandt. The guy spent more time behind the net, than in front of it. I don't think it contributed to the loss, but he got knocked on his can a few times as a result. It was nice to see DeMarchi get knocked around by Hale, Jones and Canady. Minnesota came to play, and executed well. I'll give the guys credit for not giving up, but overall consistency was pretty poor. A few nice rushes, than back to the "stand around." The whole team needs to move its feet and get after the puck. I couldn't believe how poor we played in our own end, standing around, soft checking and stupid turnovers. Hopefully, they worked the rust off and go at it harder tonight. If we lose tonight, break out the fork.

It sounds like Blais is pretty pleased with the way the team is developing, in spite of the losses and hard knocks this season.

Actually, I think media coverage for this series is pretty sparse in MSP too, no real interest in the Red Star or the Pioneer Pravda. The GF Hurl'd is still worthless and it takes forever to navigate their site, although it is a vast improvement over the last build. With regard to tickets, it would make sense to fill the seats whenever, however, possible if they want that place to make money. But then again, I don't run that show ... yet.

Having watched the gophers play the past few weeks, I think they are in a funk of some sort. They tend to lack the fire they had the last part of 2001. With the exception of Leopold, Pohl and Taffe, there is little overall consistency right now. Weber can be a wall or a sieve, just like Hauser. I think Hauser is a more likely to completely lose it given his experience. Shell him often and he's done. Weber has potential, but he shows inexperience at times. Turnovers and soft physical play have shown themselves. DeMarchi is a goon, but can also set up the better players every now and then. Supposedly, Lucia is going to push them hard this week in practice, which begs the question, what have they been doing since December? I think the Sioux have started to gel and played better across the board, although there are still a few soft spots and lapses. I was impressed with their play at Mariucci, as they gutted it out for 60 minutes on that Friday, but seemed to relax too much on Saturday. Then again, I was proud they took two points from a "superior" Minnesota team. Hopefully, they continue to work hard and play a offensive-minded physical game this weekend. Keeping out of the box and keeping the puck out of our zone is key. I think we can take at least two points, and possibly more, if we play a full sixty minute game each night, or Minnesota takes us too lightly, again.

Good to hear they finally figured out that ice doesn't favor warm climates. When they showed the HoF game, the ice looked "soft" and later reports seemed to bear that out. I hope this fixes the problem. What new "toy" doesn't need a period of adjustment? Sounds like Blais is pretty upbeat about the team, although I would like to see Massen on the ice this weekend. I hope the team practices hard, as Lucia sounds like he is going to drill the gophers this week. Time to get some revenge boys, and play hard 60 minutes each night.

So, what's the status on that DoJ investigation regarding SCCC's systemic anti-Semitism and racism? Oh, and did those private, civil suits disappear? Pot ... black? Hmm, it's not called "White Cloud" for nothing. Well, what can one expect from the leader a half-ass school known more for its perpetually inebriated student body than anything else. What a pathetic excuse for a university president. ####, he lacks the same gonads as President Kupcake. Maybe they could switch jobs ... nobody would notice though.