Big A HG

I think it's pretty spot on...can't really argue anyone else in. Chay and Aaron are definitive no's in my eyes...awesome players, just not Hobey Finalists. (Maybe Aaron next year, though) The only thing I could argue is that they put Andrew Miller or Brian O'Neill in from Yale because of their achievements as a team thus far this season...possibly ahead of a guy like Da Costa (Merrimack).

Frattin - Malone - Trupp Hextall - Knight - Gregoire Kristo - Nelson - Gleason Rowney - Lamoureux - Davidson MacWilliam - Blood Genoway - Forbort Marto - LaPoint Dell Eidsness Maris The only changes I'd really make are putting in a healthy Kristo and MacWilliam. I opted for Rowney over Rodwell because I think Carter has shown more recently than Derek has. I REALLY like Rodwell, but I think it's just one of those odd man out situations. Gleason has been a stud at forward, so it's hard to see him coming out of that position unless we need him at the blue line because of injury. I really wish I could take out Lamoureux, but we aren't as deep as other years at the center position, so he stays in. I really love the way Davidson plays...he's big, smart, and physical, so there's no way I can take him out. Brent and Rowney both have done some nice things when playing on the same line together. Marto and LaPoint have played together for what seems like an eternity, other than we HAD to switch that pairing up, so they stay together. Genoway and Forbort have played nicely together, and then Blood and MacWilliam are our two most physical presences on the same D-pairing. Dell brings something in net that I don't think the Sioux have seen in a long time. He's so calm, cool, and collected and rarely gives up a softy anymore. He's rarely out of position and doesn't go "fishing" for anything he shouldn't. I think this was something that we really needed this year, and he's brought it. When he first got thrown into the fire early on in the season, he was still getting up to speed with the college game having not seen a whole lot of action behind Eidsness, but he caught on quick and with him in net, I feel we can beat anyone. All-in-all, I think we are as good as anyone top-to-bottom. I think we're getting better at spreading out our scoring beyond just a couple players, and we'll need that. We can't have a good team shut our top guys down, leaving the bottom lines to do the scoring. Kristo is a big x-factor. If he gets rolling, and we have another dynamic scoring line as our third line, we are going to be a tough out. I just hope the low-end competition we've seen for a few weeks doesn't hurt us.

I sure hope you are right, Dave.

I think it all depends on whose team makes the Frozen Four, if either. If the Sioux make a run to St. Paul, and Miami doesn't, and Frattin scores a few points in the Regionals, this thing is far from over. Just look at the stats from last year. Geoffrion, who put up some nice numbers, wasn't even in the Top Ten in scoring, but he was the best player out of the remaining teams, so he had all the talk going his direction, and he won the thing.

Trupp

There are only 10 kinds of people in this world, those who understand binary code, and those that don't. Right Jim?

Have you heard of the Geoffrions? Blake, who finished his career last year at Wisconsin with a Hobey Baker trophy to his name, was always touted because of his long lineage of hockey background he grew up from. His father and grandfather both played in the NHL. What does this pertain to the Sioux? Everyone knows Brett Hextall's father is the legendary goaltender, Ron Hextall. Also, most of you know that Brett's great-uncle Dennis played for the Sioux himself, among many NHL teams in his lengthy career. Not many people, around these parts anyways, know that Brett's own lineage goes much farther...even farther than the Geoffrions. Beyond Brett, Ron, and Dennis, there was another...Bryan Hextall Jr. Bryan was the father of Ron Hextall, and was Dennis' brother. Bryan put up some very nice numbers in an NHL career that covered nearly a decade. Still not satisfied? There was yet another Hextall in the equation...Bryan Hextall Sr. Bryan Sr is the great-grandfather to Brett, grandfather to Ron, and father to Bryan Jr. and our own Dennis Hextall. Not only that, Bryan Sr. is a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame. So, if Brett plays even one minute of NHL hockey one day, he will continue a lineage of four generations of NHL players that spans just about a century, with a great-uncle that had a lengthy career himself, to boot. I thought it was an interesting bit of info...

I'd liken Chay to be more like Todd Coffey than Paul Coffee. Tons of heart, soul, and presence...and the guy can make you go WOW one inning...but the next is like "ugh, did you just do that?" I'd like less "wow" if it meant less "ugh" also. No one is saying Chay should stop being "the man" when it comes to offensive defensemen...I think it's just agreed upon that he needs to know WHEN to be that guy, because you shouldn't be that guy all the time...you end up paying for it.

Here's a bonus wallpaper. I took this pic of a jersey of mine and thought it made a pretty cool wallpaper, so here it is...just a simple photograph. FULL SIZE, Widescreen: http://img291.imageshack.us/img291/3628/bonus1u.jpg

Dell got his break...time to put the pedal to the medal for 8 more games. You can't have Dell going into the Final Five with only 2 appearances over the course of the previous two weekends.

He can say what he wants, and I'm not disagreeing with you in saying that Dell is a better goalie, but you acted like he was making up numbers in regards to the .926 save percentage, and you even wondered where he got it from.

He said it multiple times, Goon.....CONFERENCE ONLY statistics. You can find them here: http://wcha.com/men/min/stats11.php

I would like to see his numbers late November or so onward. He was a little shaky in the beginning, giving up some softer goals. But, since then, he has played pretty darn awesome.

I dug up some info that is quite intriguing. I posted this on another forum as well, but here's what I found: ________________________________ It all depends on how the Hobey panelists look at it. If they vote like they did last year, Frattin has a great shot at winning (I honestly believe Miele will win). Last year: Gustav Nyquist (Maine) played in a good conference, scored 19 goals and had 42 assists, exactly where Miele sits now (yes, Miele has games in hand comparatively). Gustav was the NCAA point leader at season's end, having 7 more points than anyone else. Blake Geoffrion (Wisconsin), finished the year tied for 11th in scoring in the NCAA, posting 28 goals and 22 assists. Frattin currently has 29 goals and 20 assists (T5 in NCAA for points, also with games in hand). Blake Geoffrion was the Hobey Baker winner, not Gustav Nyquist. I found these totals to be eerily similar...with both players having games in hand to best each comparative player's totals from last year. ***The biggest wild card in this whole scenario may be a Frozen Four run by either team. Only once in the last 7 years has a player won that didn't play in the Frozen Four (Matt Carle, DU, 2006). The final voting takes place betwen the Regional rounds of the tournament and the Frozen Four, so a hot player on a team still playing will gain a bunch of notoriety that a player sitting at home may not.

One interesting thing I heard about a month ago, which has been taking shape all season. Every time Canada has hosted the Olympcs, that host's city won the Stanley Cup the following year...EVERY TIME. Vancouver hosted last year, and look who's the best in the West right now. If you're a bettin' man, it might not hurt to throw a few bucks on the Canucks.

12. Michigan Tech at No. 1 UND UND in 2: Anything else is a disappointment. 11. MSU-Mankato at No. 2 Denver Denver in 3: MSUM can play a game here or there pretty tough, and Denver has struggled on Friday's especially. 10. Bemidji State at No. 3 Nebraska-Omaha UNO in 2: Blais will have his boys ready, it's playoff time. BSU just doesn't have the personnel. 9. St. Cloud State at No. 4 Minnesota-Duluth UMD in 3: St. Cloud is good enough to win this, but the top line of UMD is too strong for the weakest part of SCSU's game...their defense. 8. Alaska Anchorage at No. 5 Minnesota UM in 3: UAA will come in with the mindset of knocking off the big name Gophers. Minnesota has had it's share of troubles in the first round, but are just too good to not move on. 7. Wisconsin at No. 6 Colorado College CC in 3: It's CC's turn to host, which will make life a bit more difficult for Wisconsin. The teams are pretty evenly matched, but CC comes up big at home to prevail. No upsets on my board, although I really wanted to sneak one in. Watch out for Mankato against Denver, I think they have a legitimate chance to make things interesting against Denver. They will play a stout D and try and shut down Denver where they can, and in turn, try to score enough goals to actually beat Denver.

I don't believe the voters are educated enough to not vote for Miele. The guy put up a ton of points in the CCHA, despite most being assists. I think Miele wins this one pretty easy unless Frattin can get within 5-6 pts of him.

Whos' more in beast mode right now? Toews or Frattin?

The Sioux were just given a 10 minute unsportsmanlike conduct for roughing... ....roughing the net that is.

Person A decides NOT to get in a vehicle while [likely] intoxicated, and ends up with severe frostbite...only putting himself at risk of injury or death. Person B decides to drive home while intoxicated, smashes a house, putting himself and many others at risk of injury or death. Is there something I am missing, or is person B the bigger idiot out of two idiots?

Both players averaged 2+ points per game, and Kariya played 9 less games. So if you give Kariya 9 more games, he would have likely at least matched or even exceeded Hrkac's numbers. Then, throw in the fact that Kariya had Eastern exposure and a much more well known Pro career, and you see why Kariya's name comes up as one of the best seasons ever. One thing Hrkac had over Kariya was the big difference in goals.

Like RedFrog said, Toews scored a goal, but was only the third star of the game. Not to be outdone, former Sioux and current Blackhawks teammate Ryan Johnson, also had a goal, and earned SECOND star honors. Toews who?

Jonny Toews just said "F THIS, I'LL DO IT MYSELF." Captain Serious scored a pair of goals in another Hawks victory (First Star). He has a multipoint game in 5 of his last 7 games (garnering a point each of the other two), and the Blackhawks have gone 6-1 in that stretch.

It's hard to beat any college hockey team 4 times in a row...except maybe American International. I wouldn't be shocked to see a loss mixed in somewhere...especially a game in Tech, considering we have at least a piece of the MacNaughton locked up.