skateshattrick

Meland and his father were talking with Cary Eades in the lobby of the REA on Sunday before the game. You are correct that Eric Meland was leaving for Lincoln that day after the meeting with Coach Eades.

True, but they don't have room for a defenseman this year. He is playing with the FM Jets this year. Look at www.fmjets.com or www.pointstreak.com.

RIT didn't need to fight with the Gophers because they knew they could beat them and did.

I meant to say unlike Moorhead, Fargo is not a hockey town.

I'm not convinced and I am from Fargo. The level of play in Fargo has improved dramatically over the past 5-10 years, and the number of players and interest has also increased dramatically. However, unlike Fargo, I sincerely believe that Fargo is not a hockey town. Fargo gets absolutely no support from the community or public support. The rinks being built with private money are a great step forward, but I have my doubts about the success of the Force. USHL teams are very expensive to run, with franchise fees of over $500,000. Rough estimates are that it takes 3000 fans to break even. Fargo has never shown that kind of commitment, and I don't think they will with the Force. I expect the Force to do well for 2-3 years until the novelty wears off, and then fans will disappear like they always do. Fargo just has too much competition for the Friday and Saturday night dollar, including Sioux hockey, youth and high school hockey, NDSU and other college basketball, etc. USHL teams typically do well where there are not established major colleges (Sioux Falls, Sioux City) or larger markets without great youth and high school hockey (Lincoln, Omaha, Des Moines). I hope I'm wrong, but I don't see it working long term any more than in the past. The new arena will only hold people's interests for awhile. Ultimately, it is the product that needs to succeed. The rink will hold people's interests for only so long. Blais is the wild card--he will help. The question is, how long will he stay? Fargo is a perfect NAHL town. It can draw 1000-2000 fans (especially with a new rink that is not like the craphole called the Coliseum), but I seriously question 3000+ fans. If this doesn't work, this may effectively kill the NAHL and Fargo may never get a team here again.

Ignore him. The only way he is relevant is if we pay attention to him and he gets under our skin. I don't find him to be worth the time of day. As I've said before, he's just a Barreiro or Royko wannebe, and in reality is a pathetic hack journalist with no talent, no credentials, is not funny, and is not relevant outside a very small market. He makes Sid Hartman seem knowledgeable about sports, and McFooly will never, ever be as successful as Sid. Seriously, what makes him any more relevant than a writer with any small town newspaper in ND or Minnesota? The only sport that he knows anything about is golf.

Jeff.

I'm not sure that we disagree that much, but you miss at least one point. I'm not going to make excuses for Prpich and I do not condone cheap hockey under any circumstances. However, Peltier shouldn't get a free pass either. As much as I don't like 3rd men in like Malone, he did what most players would do in that situation when an opposing player is gooning up one of the smaller players. I have no problem with Zajac going after Anderson for what he at least perceived was an attempt to harm the best player, TJ Oshie. I also have no problem with Lucia going after Zajac. He should in that situation. I do have a problem with Finley going after Wheeler regardless of who started it. It was after the whistle, in the handshake line and unnecessary. He could have skated away. My overall point was that the actions of Peltier really started everything. However, IF Don Adam had called that correctly at that time, he could have controlled the game. By giving Peltier only two minutes and putting the Sioux down a man, Adam set the tone for the rest of the game, which was already intense. The rest was predictable. My point was that if Peltier wants to play that way and pick on smaller skill players, he should expect some pay back. As much as I hate goon hockey, I hate pussies even more. Pussies are guys who pick on the smaller, skilled players and start things after the whistle when the ref is standing between them to protect them. The classic example is Claude Lemieux who is only tough when someone's back is to him. I'm not saying that Peltier is ordinarily that type of player, but I would definitely keep an eye on him after what I saw Saturday.

Dirty, you're right. Comparing Happy...er, I meant Dubay to Sid was perhaps a bit over the top.

You are missing the point. I have absolutely no problem with announcers who are also fans such as Doug Woog or even Anthony LaPanta. Yes, Woog bleeds maroon and gold, but he is also very knowledgeable and is usually objective. Dubay has gotten better, but he is still a fan first (homer is more fitting) and his hockey knowledge, though improving, is certainly not to the level of Woog, Nanne, etc. I appreciate the fact that Dubay talks about college hockey, but his lack of objectivity is at times laughable. It remains to be seen if he will continue to develop into an objective journalist or will become another Sid Hartman (not intended to be complimentary). Kevin Gorg is even worse. He is such a Twin Cities homer that it is pathetic, whether it involves the Gophers or HS hockey. As far as what happened, you are correct that a number of different calls could have been made at the Sioux-Gophers game on Saturday, but I am getting a little tired of the apologists and Gopher Halo wearers regarding Peltier. It is always the alleged thuggery of the Sioux that starts everything in every Gopher fans' eyes, but I was at the game and the assault by Peltier on Trupp was right in front of me. That, in my opinion, is why the game got out of control. Don Adam, as is typical, did not control the game starting with that cheap shot. No amount of spin can convince me that was not a cheap shot by Peltier. Peltier is fortunate that this Sioux team does not have Mike Prpich or Matt Greene.

I am glad that you brought this up because I would like to see that as well. I was at the game, and it happened right below us, in front of the penalty box area. What I saw is that Peltier checked Trupp from behind, but he was fortunately parallel to the boards. Peltier then basically sat on Trupp and cross-checked him several times. Trupp took a punch at Peltier who also took a swing. Malone then came in and went after Peltier. I never condone the 3rd man in like Malone, but it was certainly understandable considering who instigated the situation and Trupp's size. What was amazing is that Peltier only got a minor penalty and Malone got a double minor and a misconduct. I have not seen the replay, but I would like to see it to confirm what I believed I saw at the time. That is when Hak flipped Adam off, which was not excusable, but understandable considering the history with Don Adam--THE worst official in the WCHA. And that is saying a lot.

Agreed. That is why I called McFooley a wannabe.

As a long time Fargo resident, I couldn't have said it better myself. McFeely is a self-important, Dan Barreiro or Mike Royko wannabe. The problem is that he is not witty, really knows nothing about most sports outside of golf, and is a poor journalist. He's a two bit sports writer that will never come close realizing his own inflated perception of himself.

What is there not to get? Nik Lidstrom is also my favorite defenseman of all time. I could care less that he is Swedish. He plays the game the way I like to see it played--great skater, passer, tremendous vison and has never played dirty or on edge. It is the same reason that I like Wayne Gretzky, Steve Yzerman, Pavel Datysuk, etc.

No. He has always gone by PJ and always been referred to as PJ. He is a "Junior", so I assume that is why he is called PJ.

That is a very diplomatic way of describing PJ Lamoureux.

English is the preferred language on this board.

LaPointe was banged up and Hakstol had said earlier that he may not be able to go against MTU, which was in fact the case. It was not a healthy scratch.

Mason and Schmidt?? I know Schmidt screwed up on a few goals that helped Denver, but how can you possibly put those 2 behind Campion and Robin Anderson? Adam is the undisputed worst official at any level, but Campion has had repeated complaints the past few years about his perceived bias. Remember the confrontation between Campion and the MSUM coaches after the UM v. MSUM game? Campion should be honest and wear his Gophers jersey when he's officiating. Robin Anderson is never in position, is horribly inconsistent from the beginning of the game to the end, and allows the interference and clutching and holding that the NHL eliminated. Even worse, he thinks he's part of the show. At least in my mind, Anderson is a close second to Adam. I actually like Randy Schmidt. Of course, the fact that he's a local guy (Fargo) may be affecting my judgment. We need ND officials to balance out the officiating crew, particularly after Mike Schmitt retired. You know that the state of officiating is sad when Derek Sheppard does not even make the list of worst officials.

I thought that is what you meant, but I was told by Roseau people that the Sioux recruited Ness hard. On the other hand, I was told that the goalie going to St. Cloud was not offered anything by UND even though he wanted to go there. I don't know if the Sioux had interest in him or should have, but he seems pretty good.

Agreed regarding the talent of Ness, but I'm not sure that the Sioux "missed" on him. They recruited him hard, he just chose Minnesota. Whether that is based upon the larger ice sheet and style of play, his father steering him toward Minnesota, or some other reason is unknown.

What do you want us to say? If we say that the Gophers are the greatest, always get the best recruits, and we are humbled by their presence, will you quit whining or go away? If you don't like it, then don't troll around on this board and go back to Gopher Puke Live so that you can have a lovefest with your comrades and a pity party about how Sioux fans are hypocritical.

Great post. Cut TJ some slack. He's a college kid, but a great kid. Trust Hak to handle this matter.

I like Woog. He's a good color guy and I think he's pretty fair in his assessments. His knowledge of the game is tremendous and he has the ability to explain his thoughts in a very understandable way. Yes, he's a Gopher fan--it certainly is understandable as their former coach--- but he tries to be objective and gives praise to opposing teams and players where justified, and criticism to the Gophers when justified. I have a lot more problem with Frank Mazocco (sp?) who is not only a big time homer, but really does not have the knowledge that Woog has. The worst is Kevin Lerg. He's biased towards anything Twin Cities and is annoying.