skateshattrick

And both of those incidents pale in comparison to Woog paying money to his players, Lou Nanne and Glenn Sonmoor recruiting Zach Parise after he already committed to UND, the Clem Haskins scandal, and the numerous other recent scandals at the University of Rodents.

Go away troll. This is a hockey board, something that you have shown time and time again that you know nothing about. We could care less about the high school with ashtrays known as NDSU, Bison football program and its attempt to go Div 1AA, which is the equivalent of "B". I can understand why the Bison are moving to D1AA after it blew it by failing to get a D1 hockey program, but based upon the Bison football team's success at D2 recently, we thought that they might go D3.

My favorite period to watch is the 5 goal second period wipe-out of BU in 1997, an awesome offensive display, especially the 5th goal with the period about to end; what a dominating forecheck. Don't have the 80 and 82 games, however, would sure like to see them to compare to the 87 team (since I think the 82 team was the best ever).

I'm not sure that I agree with this comment. Vanek is a great player, but speed is not his forte. He is an incredible stickhandler, very strong on his skates, and is a sniper, but not real fast. Minnesota has many faster players like Riddle, Guyer, Ballard, Paul Martin, etc. I agree that losing Vanek would be huge because he is a big time goal scorer. I don't see that they lose anything in speed. At this point, all of this is speculation at best. Who knows what is going on in Vanek's mind, let alone the Sabres. I do agree that there is not a whole lot to play for after winnng a championship, particularly with the risk of injury if he stays.

Sicatoka, Handyman and Dagies- all very good and objective posts. Sic, I agree with you about the lower lines. However, the defense played a role in why Parise, Bochenski and others had trouble scoring at the end of last season. In my opinion, the Sioux need to improve on 3 areas: 1. Goaltending. Although this improved at the end of last year, it is still a concern and affects everyone's play because the team needs to have confidence that the goalies will make a stop every now and again if there is a mistake. 2. Transition game, which I believe is the ability of defensemen to carry the puck or break it out of the zone like Ballard and Martin. 3. Depth at forward. The 3rd and 4th lines were not very productive, and also took dumb penalties and gave up some weak goals. The short list is Palmiscino, Connelly and Canady, but Ryan Hale also struggled. I truly believe that the Sioux addressed this concern with some of the new recruits, and Prpich and Fylling will be a year older and better. Time will tell if the other 2 areas of concern have been addressed. I think that they have, and I am cautiously optimistic about this year. I would feel better if the new D man from western Canada was coming this year rather than next year. I think that this could be the Sioux's year if 1 and 3 above are improved even if the Sioux don't have the offensive defenseman. Minnesota, Michigan and BC will be strong, but I believe the Sioux will be right there will all of them.

That is overly simplistic. Defense is not simply defensemen playing well, it is forwards backchecking, playing good position and hustle. The same is true of offense. Goals are not scored simply because of forwards doing their job, they need the defense to break the puck out of the zone (rather than banging it off of the boards or dumping it in), passing the puck well in transition, and holding the puck in the offensive zone. Most (not all) of the Sioux's scoring droughts were directly attributable to the fact that the forwards had to either spend too much time in the defensive zone helping out or chasing the puck in the neutral zone. If the defense cannot get the puck out of their own zone, the forwards will not be able to generate anything. The Sioux seldom had odd man rushes last year, which is more of a defensive shortcoming.

Again, I agree completely. Schneider and Fuher can score when set up in the offensive zone, but we truly lack a player who can break the puck out and start the transition. The Sioux defensemen breakout last year (other than Hale) was often to either bang it off of the boards or the glass. We also used far too much "dump and chase". That may be the way Tech, Wisconsin and Duluth play, but its ugly hockey and does not utilize the abilities of some of the skilled forwards. We desperately need a Roche, Murphy, Williamson type of player. Maybe Andy Schneider can be that person, but he was not last year despite the fact that he had as many points as Ballard.

The teams from the early 80's were stacked with offensive talent and could score with the best of them. Players such as Smail, Sykes, Taylor, Eades could all score. However, they also had great goaltending with Jon Casey, and great defense with Marc Chorney, Howard Walker and James Patrick. Those teams had many, many players that went on to have NHL careers. Those teams played more like an NHL team in that they were physical and rarely allowed shots outside the perimeter. The 87 team was good mostly because they had Tony Hrkac (still the best college player that I have ever seen), Bob Joyce (who scored 50+ goals), Ian Kidd and Russ Parent (2 very offensive defensemen) and Belfour. In other words, they could score almost at will, particularly on the power play, and Belfour would always be there for the big save. Russ Parent was a Curtis Murphy clone. He was very offensive-minded---a great skater who would often lead offensive rushes. Dean's teams are different than Gino's, which is partly because of the changes in college hockey. There was no Olympic sized ice in the 80's, which meant that a physical NHL style was more effective. Now, many of the teams in the WCHA have big ice sheets (Minnesota, Denver, CC, Alaska, St. Cloud). As a result, an offensive defenseman like Roche, Murphy, Williamson, Preissing, Ballard, etc. is more of a necessity. Dean's success has been based upon faster, quicker and better passing teams and the offensive defensemen. In my opinion, that style is much more fun to watch. I would much rather watch a college or European style than an NHL style. The last couple of years, Dean does seem to be recruiting bigger "stay at home" defensemen, but that is probably because Hakstol and Berry recruit the defense and that is the style that they played. Maybe Andy Schneider will take on the role of the offensive defenseman this year. Regardless, the Sioux defense should be very good this year.

Great post JK. I agree with everything that you said.

Well put. Irmen and Potulny are 2 of the best recruits in the country, not 3rd or 4th line type guys. The situation with Ryan Potulny is understandable because he was going to go to Minnesota anyway. Plus, the Sioux at least recruited him. I would like Hakstol or someone to tell Sioux fans, however, why Irmen was not recruited. He is more proven than any of the forwards that the Sioux have coming in other than Brady Murray.

I'm not sure that I understand the speculation about Greene. Yes, he took many stupid penalties. However, no one doubts that he is very talented. He will get smarter and will be a very good defenseman. When Mike Commodore was recruited, I remember David Hoogsteen telling me about a new recruit who could not even skate. Commodore was raw, and took countless stupid penalties. However, he developed into a fine college defenseman. Greene is a much better skater, is bigger, and has a higher upside. He will get better and will be an asset. As far as the QMJHL, I have often wondered the same thing. Denver pulls out recruits from there, and the CCHA teams and Hockey East teams recruit heavily from that league. Michigan, BC, New Hampshire and others also recruit heavily from Western Canada (Kylanos and Kobasew from the BCHL went to Boston College) and the USHL. Is there any reason the Sioux don't go into the QMJHL??

No, I am saying that I question whether Woog ever said that in an interview. When Karl was recruited, he was playing in Fargo for the Ice Sharks. I recall that Karl was offered money by Minnesota, but not a full-ride. I believe it was 1/2, but it may have been slightly less. If you want to find out, contact Tarek Howard or Scott Koberinski. They were Karl's coaches at the time. However, he clearly was recruited by Minnesota. It was in the papers and was discussed at the time that Karl chose UND over Minnesota and Alaska-Anchorage. Look it up.

To clear up any misconception about Karl Goehring, he was recruited by Minnesota and offered money. I believe it was a 1/2 ride. Woog had a reputation for being arrogant about the U of M program, and purportedly expected that Goehring, like many local kids, would come to Minnesota for less than a full ride. By the way, I have heard that accusation leveled at UND recently by many in the hockey community, including 3 different former Sioux players. No one is claiming that UND needs to recruit all of the local players. However, when very, very good players are expected to walk on or take less because they are local players, that does not sit well. That is arrogant, and is very similar to what happened to Woog. Woog did not lose his job because of a lack of quality players, he lost his job because of horrible communication skills with players and because he could not win with great players. He also lost some good players from Minnesota because he expected many to walk on or take less than a full ride. Minnesota North Star, if you never heard of Ryan Potulny or Danny Irmen, then you obviously either do not follow youth hockey very closely . Ryan was one of the leading scorers for GF Red River as a 9th grader, and Danny Irmen was a top 2 scorer for Fargo North as a 9th grader. Ryan was the most talked about kid from North Dakota for many years. Danny was in the Burggraf camps since he was a kid, and Frank told anyone who would listen how good Danny was and was going to be. By the time they were sophomores in high school, they were 2 of the best players in the State. They played on Select Teams and were well known in both North Dakota and Minnesota. They then both left for juniors at age 16, and had 2 great seasons at Lincoln in what would have been their junior and senior years of high school.

I don't disagree that Danny Irmen and Ryan Potulny are close, and Danny may well have gone to Minnesota anyway. However, I do know Danny and his dad, Don, and I can tell you that they were not happy that Danny was not recruited by the Sioux until after committing to the Gophers. The Sioux recruited Ryan Kraft and Karl Goehring even though it was rumored they would go to the Gophers. It made both of their decisions difficult, and Karl was ultimately swayed to go to UND.

I agree with you completely ScottM. However, I did not understand your comment that certain fans still get their panties in a bunch because Potulny and Irmen went to Minnesota. Count me among them, not because they went there, but because it seemed avoidable. UND did not recruit Grant and instead recruited the kid from Edina, who transferred to Wisconsin, and is now out of hockey. Even if the Sioux were not thrilled with Grant, they had to know that would have on effect on Ryan who was very well known even as a Pee Wee and Bantam as a blue chip talent. It certainly was a hot topic in Grand Forks at the time the Gophers recruited Grant. I realize, however, that you cannot get all of them, so the Sioux deserved the benefit of the doubt on that one. However, when Danny Irmen gets full-ride offers from Minnesota and CC and the Sioux don't even bother to call him until AFTER he commits to Minnesota, that one justifiably ticked a lot of people off. I have seen Danny play since he was a squirt and I know how good he is and will be. That one I place squarely on Hakstol. In my opinion, the Sioux coaching staff deserves to hear about that one. By the way, Phillipe Lamoreaux is also very good. His numbers speak for his ability. If he was not very good, Minnesota would not have recruited him knowing full well that his father played at UND.

ScottM, I'm not sure what you are implying. Are you implying that the Potulny's and Irmen are "just" ordinary players and that fans want to see them "just" because they went to Red River or Central? If that is what you are implying, then you are dead wrong. The Sioux have had token local players in the past, including some of the Marvins from Warroad and a few local kids from Minot and Grand Forks. However, make no mistake about the 3 at the Gophers. Ryan Potulny is only a graduating high school senior, and was the leading scorer and MVP of the USHL. Danny Irmen may have been Ryan's biggest competition if not for an injury that forced him to miss a number of early games. Steve Johnson has said that Danny has the most upside of any player he coached at Lincoln, the USHL champs. Grant Potulny is the captain on the 2 time defending champs, and was MVP of the 2002 national championship. You will not find better quality than Ryan and Danny anywhere, whether it be the USHL, the BCHL or the SJHL. By your logic, Jeff Panzer was "just" a local kid that was recruited because of his local connections. If you recall, when Jeff was recruited, the headline and article focused nearly exclusively upon Wes Dorey, who tore up the Canadian junior leagues and had a ton of points. Is there any question who turned out better? Can you name 5 players from the BCHL in the past 5 years who are better than Jeff Panzer? I understand your point that the BCHL has turned out some excellent players and that the Sioux have had great success with players from Western Canada. However, you paint with far too wide of a brush when you label all local kids as token or insinuate that people just want local kids because they went to Red River and Central. Sioux fans do not want token local kids that will not produce. However, when the local kids are equal or better to competition from Canada and elsewhere and are true blue chip players like Ryan Potulny and Danny Irmen, then we do want to see them in a Sioux uniform, moreso than kids from Western Canada. At the very least, those kids should be recruited. There is no excuse for not recruiting Danny Irmen despite Hakstol's arrogant claim that you can't get them all. I can think of at least 5 forwards on this team on scholarship who are not even in Danny Irmen's class. It would have hurt to see Jeff Panzer be a Hobey Baker finalist for the Gophers. Irmen and Potulny have that kind of talent.

Thank you DamStrait and Sprig for saying what every Sioux fan feels about Hammy and his posts. To ensure that there is no ambiguity or doubt, Hammy please go troll and spout the company line elsewhere. You turn every post on USCHO into a Gopher Love Fest and are the topper of every conversation. We don't want you here.

Let me clarify Hammy. I think the Sioux will win the league because I believe they will be better than the Gophers next year, at least during the regular season. Satisfied? The fact that the Gophers did not win the league title only tells me that they were not a dominant team the past 2 years. That is not to say that the Gophers were not the best team at the end or that they did not deserve to win. The Gophers were a good team the past 2 years that got stronger as the season went on and got some lucky breaks along the way (not having to go to Michigan like Denver and CC, winning OT games than could have gone either way, and playing on its home ice). Last year's Gophers team was not the most talented team in the league, CC was. The Gophers also split with Mankato, UND, and I believe St. Cloud. The bottom line is the Gophers won the last 2 years and deserved to win. I do not buy into, however, that they are the dominant team in the WCHA and the league title should be handed to them.

1. UND 2. Minnesota 3. Denver 4. CC 5. UMD 6. Mankato 7. St. Cloud/Wisconsin 9. Michigan Tech 10. Alaska-Anchorage Minnesota has not won the league title the last 2 years, so I do not expect that this year. The Sioux are going to be very good. Denver has talent and every other year competes. CC loses a lot, but had good freshmen last year and a good recruiting class. UMD has some good young talent, but not great depth and may be a bit overrated. The wild cards are Mankato and Wisconsin. Was Mankato a fluke that took everyone by surprise? Can they replace Stevenson? Is Backes an impact freshman? Does Wisconsin's great freshman class produce this year?

I don't know if any team has won 3 cups in 9 years with 3 different coaches, but the Red Wings have won 3 of the last 8 (or 3 of 9 if you go back to 1996 when New Jersey beat Detroit), but all with Scotty Bowman. Of the last 9, Detroit and New Jersey have won 3 each, Colorado 2 and Dallas 1.

Goon is right on with his post. It is ridiculous to suggest that Dean Blais does not deserve a contract and a MUCH larger contract that the football, basketball and other coaches. The comment that UND should not bend over backwards for Dean because he has not done much the last 2 seasons is neither fair nor accurate. The Sioux had one bad year by their standards followed by a good year with a disappointing finish. Recall that the Sioux were an OT away from winning back to back championships in 2000 and 2001, which would have been the same accomplishment as Lucia. Blais was also Minnesota's 1st choice for a reason. By that logic, if Lucia were to lose great players like Vanek and Paul Martin early and finish below .500 (Roche and Lundbohm), and then follow that up with a record of 26-12-5, he should not expect Minnesota to "bend over backwards" to get him a new contract despite his back-to-back titles because history does not matter and the only relevant consideration is "what have you done for me lately." It appears that some of our fans have become spoiled and arrogant about the Sioux program. The Sioux expect to compete every year, but despite the great tradition and arena, its not always easy to out recruit Minnesota kids from going to their home state, or Canadian kids lured by the beauty and mountains of Colorado, or kids lured by the tradition and academics of Boston College, Michigan and others. Blais turned around a program that was in the toilet. To even insinuate that Blais does not deserve another contract based upon his past accomplishments, which are all recent, is ludicrous. He has earned more respect than to be tossed aside as just another coach.

Well put DMB. I agree completely. I also hope that Dean Blais stays and if and when he leaves, he does so on his own terms. If he does decide to leave at some point, it will be a loss, but you are right that there are several good candidates that have been mentioned.

I sincerely hope that Hakstol is not in the running. He is the person that did not recruit Danny Irmen until AFTER he accepted a scholarship offer from the Gophers, 2 years ago said that Ballard was not in the same class as Roche and Leopold (2 championships isn't bad) and still has not recruited a player with Ballard's skills that can rush the puck (with all due respect to Andy Schneider), and has ticked off some recruits with his arrogance. If you have ever met the guy or had kids in UND camps, I believe you would know where I am coming from. I am not a fan of Hakstol, and I personally think that Hakstol is a huge drop-off from Osiecki and Sandelin. It was Blais that got Parise and Murray to come to UND. They landed these major recruits despite Hakstol. The only thing Hakstol has going for him is that he dates Tim O'Keefe's daughter. Steve Johnson is a Grand Forks kid and former Sioux great, a consistent winner at Lincoln, and very well-liked by his players. I heard from Potulny's uncle that if Steve Johnson were the coach, Ryan would have come to UND even though his brother was at Minnesota.

It is premature to believe that Dean Blais is going anywhere. He is the coach as long as he wants to coach. For anyone who questions his effectiveness, remember that he turned around a program in 1994-1995 that had 3 straight losing seasons under Gino. Gino has consecutive records of 17-21-1, 12-25-1, and 11-23-4. More importantly, the fans were no longer coming despite having one of the best players in the country in Greg Johnson. You could throw a rock in any direction and stand a very good chance of not hitting anyone. Blais won a national championship in his 3rd year, 1996-7, and made the NCAA tournament 5 straight years from 1996-2001. He won WCHA titles in 1996-7, 1997-8, 1998-9 and 2000-01. He also won 2 national championships and took 2nd in 2000-01. They strugged with a young team in 2001-02 that went 16-19-2 (of lot of which was due to goaltending) but returned to the NCAA tournament last year with a 26-12-5 record. That is very good by any program's standards. For DMB to imply that the situation is comparable to Gino is not accurate. Gino had 3 straight losing seasons where they were horrible. Plus, he had been there 15 years. Blais is still winning despite losing top assistants like Mark Osiecki, Scott Sandelin and Lee Davidson. He and John Marks were also a big reason for Gino's success. Blais will leave on his own terms when he is ready to go. IF and when Dean Blais decides it is time to go, Steve Johnson is the clear frontrunner.

Redwing 77--What is your source that Lamoreaux is not coming? I would be very surprised. Have you talked with his parents, Pierre or Linda? I know both very well, and I would be surprised that he would not come next year. If he's not coming here, where is he going?