DAR
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Posts posted by DAR
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Yet another recruit sucked in by the Ralph's morgue-like atmosphere.
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He must have been there on the right night for his visit. It will be interesting to see how he does next year. 17 is pretty young to make an impact in the WCHA but from the sounds of it this is a very talented kid. We are going to have some real skill at forward next year.
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This is great news, I know he will be very young coming in next year (17 I believe) but from what I have heard and read this kid has some great talent. It just shows the potential that this kid has if Hak is willing to bring him in as a freshman at 17. He will look great in a Sioux uniform. He probably will not have as much of an immediate impact as Kessel but will be a very good player.
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Nothing more satisfying than ending the Goofers season in a convincing manner. The look on Lucia Pet's face as his team was getting steamrolled was priceless. My favorite line of that game was at the beginning of the game when the Sioux were on the power play early in the first period. The Sioux were really pressuring and the Goofers could not clear the puck and Clement says "this is like men against boys out here". It was also great to hear when Clement said the Goofers were on "life support" and the game was not even half over. At least we will be for the most part "Skippy" free this summer due to that whippin.
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Now don't go calling Ballard a punk. Taffe maybe, but not Ballard.
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Ballard's a punk in my eyes, could never stand him as a Goofer. Always taking cheap shots when the refs weren't looking and would never stand up when challenged. That is the definition of a punk on skates.
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Fuher will be teammates with those Goofer punks Ballard and Taffe. I think Westrum might be there as well. I thought Nick progressed well at UND, and it is good for him to get a taste of pro hockey.
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Hopefully the fact that the Oilers are strapped financially as well as the lockout situation will keep him here. If not for the lockout situation he would be gone for sure, that is the only hope for Sioux fans. I think most fans realize how important this decision is to next year's team. IMO the chance at next year's National championship rests on this decision. You cannot have that young and inexperienced of a defense and expect to raise a banner. With Greene and Smaby some of that youth can be covered up somewhat. The forwards and goaltending will be national championship caliber, without Greene or Smaby the defenseman will not. I think we need them both back to have a good shot at the title.
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I'm probably in the minority here, but I think Brian Lee would benefit from another year in Jrs. I don't know how much of his tenativeness came from not practicing with the Stars and only playing weekends. I really wanted to be impressed because of all the hype surrounding him, but I just couldn't. I don't know how he'd do at the college level, at times he seemed lost while he was in Lincoln. As long as UND eases him into the line up, he should be ok .
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With the state of the Sioux defense next year Lee is going to have to be able to come in and take a regular shift. There will be no easing him into the lineup and that will be the case even if both the Matt's stay.
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Hmm things to look forward to in 2005-2006? Brady Murray netting 30 goals
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YEAH!! I agree with that Brady is going to come back with a vengeance next year and he will have some talented linemates to play with. Look out for Brady! Zajac will be even better as well and he was great this year especially as the games became bigger Zajac stepped up big time for a freshman.
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Duncan is a center. I don't know if Toews plays center or wing, can someone answer that for me? Duncan's lack of size is fine, a team can do just fine with one small center. Two small centers can hurt a team.
How about this fora first unit PP:
Stafford (on point)
Zajac
Toews
Murray
Lee
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I like that, although I don't think Drew is as good of a passer as Genoway I think he would do fine on the point. That would be a lot of talent out on the ice. Potentally four first rounders on the ice as Toews (when he is eligible) and Lee are likely to go in the first round if there is ever a draft. Drop the puck!!!
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If everyone stays we will have an excellent chance to be in Milwaukee a place where the Sioux have shined before! Man, I am going to have serious hockey withdrawl. I was a hockey fan while I was in school there but have followed it even more since I graduated in 99. It is a great sport and has provided me with a lot of great entertainment. I know Duncan is small but I really think he is going to be a dynamic player, I doubt he would be on a line with Murray though as they probably do not want the two smallest guys on the team on the same line. I agree that Zajac Spirko and Stafford should remain the top line. IMO they were the best line in the frozen four and the ESPN announcers praised that line often. I think Porter is going to have a big year next year as well. If he could just improve his scoring touch a little he could get 15-20 goals next year. He is a great skater and plays physical. I will be most interested to see how Toews does, will he be able to make the adjustment to the WCHA, based on the press clipping I think he will.
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I posted this over on USCHO, but will post it here as well for those that don't check over there:
Fighting Sioux 05-06
Forwards coming back (8):
Zajac, Stafford*, Spirko, Murray, Porter, Fabian, Prpich, and Kaip.
Forwards coming in (5):
Toews, Kozek, Watkins, Miller, and Duncan.
Defense coming back (6):
Greene*, Bina*, Radke, Smaby*, Foyt, and Marvin.
Defense coming in (3):
Jones, Lee, and Chorney.
Goalies returning (2):
Lammy and Parise.
* = not sure if they will be back next year, or in Bina's case, not sure if he will be able to play next season.
Bina said that he has a doctor's appt in May to check his progress, but he hopes to be back on the ice by Sept. I'm guessing that Greene is gone for sure, not as sure about Stafford or Smaby. Smaby faces the same problem as Greene due to his size, but he doesn't seem to take as many dumb penalties. Stafford was on or off all season, I feel that he could come back and work on his consistency, but there is a decent chance he won't return, although I think he would really help out this team next season.
Concerns:
According to the numbers above.
The Sioux will have 12-13 forwards next season.
The Sioux will have 6-9 defensemen next season.
The Sioux will have 2 goalies next season.
They will need to add one more goalie to the roster, for at least the practices and to add depth. They will need to bring in one, maybe two, more forwards for depth reasons. They have both VandeVelde and Oshie that they could bring in early instead of sending them to the USHL for a year.
Defense is going to be an issue. Worst case scenario, if Smaby and Greene both leave, and if Bina can't play next season, that leaves 6 dmen on the roster. Three of those six will be freshmen. While they may all be highly touted freshmen, they are still freshmen. Of the remaining 3, neither Foyt or Marvin played much defense this season, most of the time they were playing forward. And Radke only played 28 games, and not much at all in the latter part of the season.
Yes, defense will definitely be a question mark for this team. Hopefully the return of Zajac and Spirko, including a healthy Murray, with the addition of some highly touted forwards will be able to score enough goals to offset the defensive lapses.
Go Sioux in 06!!
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I just don't see Smaby and definitely not Stafford leaving. All this talk about Smaby is based on the quote from that Tampa GM. Time will tell but I see the only possible departure from this team is Greene. For some reason I feel like he will see the potential in next year's team and stay for one more kick at the can. I am going to remain optimistic that this will happen. I think he has put more of his heart and soul into this team than either Bo or Parise who I think we're obviously good players but were most concerned about their pro contracts rather than the Sioux.
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A big thanks to the seniors for their contributions to the Sioux program. It was great to see their leadership on display as this team came together. It hurts to come up one game short and I am sure the players feel that way more than any of us as they have devoted their hockey careers to reaching that goal and to come up short has to be tough. As time passes I am sure they will look back on this season with extreme pride. Good luck to this years group of seniors in all their future endeavors.
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The Bill Clement quote should be sent to that Tampa idiot. Did he watch the frozen four or the regional. Smaby will stay I am 99.5% confident in that. I do not even think he is ready to jump up a level before the end of the season run he had basically a pretty lousy season. Greene is more like 50/50.
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Just got back from Columbus and now that the season is over and I can say what obviously should have been said much earlier. I gave in to a superstition that had me believe that I would end the Sioux's hot streak if I wrote this before it was over.
Some of you may recall that I took leave of my senses following the Saturday game against (@) Anchorage, and stated that Hak should resign. Ummmm yaaaaa, nice call on my part. Needless to say, I'm more than a little red-faced over that one. What can I say, when I'm wrong, I'm REALLY wrong.
I realize that my credibility is now somewhat wanting, but as an alumnus of UND, I couldn't be more proud of the way the team and the coaching staff finished the season. Winning Saturday night would have been the icing on the cake, but as I said when I was calling for Hak's head on a stick, I wasn't expecting (or demanding) #8, I just wanted them to play like I felt they were capable of playing. Man, did they do that!
Anyway, I think I'll go through much more careful consideration before opening my trap again. Yes, I got exactly what many of you wanted me to get: A great big dose of 'shut-the-&%@#-up'.
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I think the team and the coaching staff deserved criticism at that point. Much to their credit they turned it around and the team played up to or even exceeded their potential.
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I am looking forward to seeing some of the incoming freshman forwards especially Toews and Duncan. I realize Toews is real young but I expect him to have an immediate impact. Duncan really had a good year for Salmon Arm, I think he will be a fan favorite. He is small but skilled and plays bigger than his size from what I have heard. It should be interesting to see where Kozek and Watkins fit in as well. The cupboard certainly is not bare. D is my main concern because it is a lot easier to play forward as a freshman and contribute than it is defense. I never expected Radke would see this little playing time so he is basically a freshman again. He apparently did not show the coaches enough to play in meaningful games as we went with 5 D for the whole NCAA tourney. I do not know what to expect out of him next year. Hopefully he works hard over the summer to improve the areas of his game that need improvement.
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Edmonton has already stated that they don't think he will benefit from more college play. I'm sure both sides are weighing money with the Greene side thinking "if you want me to play pro, make an offer I can accept" and the Edmonton side thinking "you are risking significant injury and/or a slow-down in your progress"...so somewhere in the middle, they will come together.
For all the penalties, some not so smart, I still say that Matt Greene is the most dominant of all college level defensemen. I guess he gets tired of being slashed across the elbow everytime he's on the ice and occassionally retaliates...wwud???
I'd love to see him play for the Sioux next year, but I wouldn't be surprized if he is suiting up in the AHL before this year's play-off time (if that's still a possibility - I'm not sure about deadlines, etc.)...
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I just wish for once a guy could say hey I want that national championship and I am coming back to get it. The AHL is not exactly a glamourous league. Greene got more exposure playing for the Sioux this year than he ever would have in the AHL. Edmonton does not have much money to throw around so I am hoping with that and the labor situation that Greene comes back and leads us through the Grand Forks regional and on to Milwaukee for a repeat of the 1997 frozen four!!
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This is a great site to follow Sioux hockey. I get my fix on this site on an almost a daily basis during the season and occasionally during the summer as well. A big thanks to those who make this site so great. I have enjoyed reading this site for a couple years now and could not imagine following the Sioux without SS.COM. THANK YOU!!
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I would love to see Matt back as well, especially with the regional in GF. If we have everyone back we should be able to make another run at it. That being said the crosscheck penalty that led to DU's 3rd goal just killed us. It was a needless penalty and an obvious one. He needs to understand the game situation a little better sometimes.
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I would think with the feeling of the bitter loss that the two Matt's would want to take another shot at it. The Lightning GM who said that is probably some Canadian who does not like US College hockey. North Dakota is a great place to develop your skills in the NHL, I don't care what that guy says. We really cannot afford to lose Greene or Smaby if we hope to be a championship run, the defense will just be too young and inexperienced. We would be playing basically 4 freshman regularly in Lee, Chorney, Jones, and Radke. Those d-men will not be a very physical group, they are more the skating/puck moving types.
Smaby
in Men's Hockey
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Yeah it was great seeing Danny Boy Irmen get flattened a few times in that game. Prpich leveled him once as well. His only response was to take a run at Greene and draw a boneheaded penalty. Nice game Danny Boy, you and Potulny both sucked!!