PCM

Posted on the POI board, I have no problem with Greyeagle expressing a Gopher perspective. When someone brings his comments over here and posts them, I know who the real troll is.

I saw that on POI, which is why I was thinking Wisconsin. But Goon is right about what Hennessy said.

Yes, now that I think about it, you're right. That's what happens when I read POI. My mind gets warped.

Virg Foss has an article about Colby Genoway in today's Grand Forks Herald. It's good to hear the Jake Brandt is still around, too, despite his injury.

I should have noted that when the question was asked about Kessel, Hennessy said that he would go to either Minnesota or Wisconsin.

Good point. I have edited the summary for clarity.

Unfortunately, I believe it was the same person.

Just to clarify what I think Hakstol meant when he said the loss at Duluth didn't bother him as much, I believe he meant that losing on the road to a good team playing playing with desperation was a bit easier to take than losing at home to two teams the Sioux should have swept. Had the Sioux swept UAA and MSU-M, the loss to UMD wouldn't have been as big.

From Suite 49 sports grill near beautiful Ralph Engelstad Arena, Tim Hennessy and Scott Swygman are the hosts with Sioux hockey coach Dave Hakstol. TH: The outcome of Saturday night's game against Mankato was a bit of a shocker. DH: We have to play better for a full 60 minutes. SS: Brady Murray was quoted in the Herald as saying that the team was playing just to get into overtime. DH: I didn't see that quote. We have to play better for 60 minutes and show some killer instinct to put a team away and close out a series we should have swept. TH: There have been three series (UAA, UMD, MSU) recently that the Sioux had a chance to sweep or take three of four points, but gave gave up late goals and took the loss. DH: The last-minute loss at Duluth didn't bother me that much because the Bulldogs were playing desparation hockey and played well. The two losses at home to Mankato and Anchorage do bother me. Those are games we should win. When it's 2-2 going into the third period on a Saturday night at home, we have to put teams away in that situation. TH: The WCHA championship is now out of reach, isn't it? DH: We don't want to take anything off the table. A top-three finish in the league is certainly possible. Looking at the way the WCHA has gone, we're not taking anything for granted. We're a team that needs points. TH: Judging from the way UND played CC in Grand Forks, the Sioux are capable of playing as well as the Tigers. DH: The big difference is that CC has had players like Brett Sterling and Marty Sertich who have played well consistently throughout the year. We can't say what could have or should have happened when CC played here. We have to play like a hungry team when we play in Colorado Springs. SS: One of the players told me that the altitude is really a factor when playing at CC. He said he gets gassed just from warmups. DH: That's something players have to put out of their minds. The altitude affects everyone differently. Some players say that they don't even notice it. We can't use it as an excuse because every team that goes there has to play with it. TH: You need more production out of your offensive stars, don't you? DH: Yes, the big guys have to step up and produce on a regular basis. We not only need them to score, but we also need scoring through the depth of our lineup. The games will only get tougher from here on. Everyone needs to contribute. SS: The Sioux are only averaging around three goals a game. DH: That's not good enough. We need to average four a game to be in good shape. Special teams will play a big role down the stretch. Cary Eades has done a good job with the power play and Brad Berry has done well with the penalty kill. But we will need to score more goals 5-on-5. Scoring one 5-on-5 goal like we did against Mankato for the weekend isn't acceptable. TH: Defensively, the Sioux have one of the best defensive corps in college hockey and the goaltending is solid. Just because of that, the team should be in every game. Caller: Can you comment about Toews coming to UND? What about some of your other recruits. DH: The NCAA prohibits me from commenting on any player who hasn't signed a letter of intent. Ryan Duncan and Andy Kozak will be coming from the British Columbia junior hockey league. Kozak has a big shot and can produce a lot of offense on his own. Duncan is a smaller player who sees the ice extremely well and makes everyone around him better. Matt Watkins is a very good two-way player. Caller: What about Phil Kessel? DH: I can't comment on him. Caller: Tim, what did you think of Don Lucia's about Hagemo being played too much in the world junior tournament? TH: Lucia was using it as an excuse for Minnesota being swept at home by CC. The Gophers have always complained about their players going to the world juniors. Either they don't play enough or they play too much. Woog wouldn't let his players go to the tournament. Lucia should just tell his players that they can't go and the Gophers should put it in their recruiting book. DH: The players take a lot of pride in playing for their country. I'd never tell them not to take advantage of the opportunity. Besides, you get a better player when it's over. They might be tired the first weekend back, but what they learn and the experience they gain ultimately helps the team. When key players go to the WJC, it also gives others on the team a chance to step into different roles. TH: Someone asked me why Kyle Radke wasn't having more of an impact. He also thought that if the Sioux need an offensive defenseman, they should just convert a forward to play defense. DH: Kyle has made great strides in the last six weeks. I can see it in practice. He's not quite there yet, but he's coming along fine. Also, it's not easy to make the transition from offense to defense. Few players ever successfully accomplish it. Caller: Why do the Sioux play dump-and-chase hockey more than any other team I see? Why do we dump and chase on the power play? DH: We probably do less dumping and chasing than most teams. You have to read the defense and take what they give you. And playing dump-and-chase isn't just throwing the puck away. You have to be smart about how you do it so you can gain possession of the puck after you do it. On the power play, it's mostly a designed play. If you do it right, you can usually gain possession of the puck on the power play. We watch carefully to see that we're coming up with the puck in that situation.

Sadly, what fans think has absolutely no influence on what players decide to do.

You're probably right. It wouldn't be tough to mistake Fuher's 8 for Fylling's 9.

Van does football? Who knew?

I wouldn't bet on that. Andy Murray, who right now has a lot to say about when Brady stays and when he goes, told me that Brady was one of the best players at the LA Kings' development camp last summer. He has turned heads there the last two years. Andy didn't rule out the possibility that Brady might leave early.

Jeez, Greyeagle, can't you come up with a more practical approach?

I don't disagree. But having been on the receiving end of such treatment, I know that it happens more often than most people think it does.

Not to condone what Roebuck did, but he isn't the first coach to avoid the media after a disappointing loss, and he won't be the last.

I can't touch this.

Look at what the Sioux lost after the 1998-99 season. Look at what they did in the 1999-2000 season. Look at what the Gophers lost last season. Look at who's stepping it up and carrying the scoring load for them this season. Every season, teams lose talented players. That's a given in college hockey.

Unfortunately, the article that was front-page news in the Herald is not on its Web site. These theaters are a completely separate business from the Carmike theaters planned for the new CanadInn Hotel. The article also said that the theaters would occupy less than half the space currently used by the old Target store. Columbia Mall's new management is looking for another anchor store to occupy the remainder of the space.

It's reported in today's Grand Forks Herald that the NCAA voted 97-46 not to reduce DII football scholarships from 36 to 24.

There's an item in today's Herald saying that the NCC presidents met yesterday at the 2005 NCAA Convention, but had made not decision yet on hiring a new commissioner. Last I heard, this was the week that the announcement would be made. Here's the Herald item:

Whatever you do, don't ask Dave about his hair style.

Wow. That's a long commute from Kalamazoo.