MafiaMan
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Posts posted by MafiaMan
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I understand Blais' logic in that area, PCM, but it didn't help UND this past season when they had to trek to St Cloud minus a couple of pretty good players. I'd rather watch UND minus a couple of players playing a big conference game over the holidays as opposed to seeing Brown or Wayne State any day!
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In all seriousness, I am curious about the quality of "western" North Dakota hockey since 1992. I am originally from Belfield and was at UND when Bismarck played Minot for the state high school championship. Dickinson had just gotten a team organized that season and although their varsity played everyone else's jayvee squads, at least it was a start. Anyone know the 4-1-1? Have Dickinson and Williston improved? How do Bismarck Century and Bismarck Demons hold up against the Red River's and Central's. And does Minot continue to wear the Gopher wanna-be jerseys? Where can I buy an old Devils Lake Satans jersey? I guess that should keep everyone busy for a while. I miss bein' in the h.s. hockey loop in Grand Forks...
MafiaMan
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Anything would be better than seeing the likes of Brown, Wayne State, and the Dickinson JV squad. Subway Classic my a**. I realize it's a token tournament for the home team to parade around a new trophy at the end, but even the Gophers schedule some decent teams at the Mariucci Classic. I kinda like the idea of this, although I'd say the best bet would be to make UND and UNO permanent participants and rotate the others around since the Sioux see enough of them in the regular season anyways.
Or...here's an idea...dump holiday tournaments altogether and schedule league games that count so no one gets left off the the schedule! Home and away against all opponents...now THERE is a radical concept.
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Since when did it become a prerequisite that you have to have been a UND alum to be a head, associate head, assistant coach, or towel boy for the Sioux hockey team? Has anyone forgotten that Cary Eades USED to be on the Sioux bench (or up in the booth, depending on how you look at it)? Or maybe you didn't know he was there. And now you think he'd come back to be second fiddle again? As if.
On another note, for all you naysayers out there about David Hakstol. Now considered one of the best coaches in all of college football, he hadn't even held a head coaching job until he was in his 50's. Nobody started the 2001 college football season with more pressure than he did. After all, he was a nobody. All he did that year was go undefeated and win the national championship. His record in the past three seasons is 35-3. I'm talking about Larry Coker. Give Dave Hakstol a chance, but let's put an end to the b.s. that he'd better win an NCAA championship right now or else he's a dud. In 50+ years of Sioux hockey, they've won 7. The Gophers have won 5, but went 23 years between #3 and #4. It's a bit unreasonable to expect a team to win it every year.
That being said, go Dave go! Good luck with your newest challenge!
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Sweeny? Dickinson? I was born there. Always thought the Midget nickname was the second-best in the state. Right after Satans. Now it's apparently #1.
MafiaMan
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My favorite memory of Coach Blais:
I was in Ann Arbor for the 1998 West Regional and seriously, the ONLY person in the building wearing a Sioux jersey. Yost was a madhouse of maize Michigan jerseys. I walked right by Dean in the concourse area and said "good luck coach." He quickly pulled me aside, shook my hand, and said, "looks like we might be the only people in the building pulling for the Sioux, huh?". I laughed, he chuckled, and he went on his way.
The guy is truly down-to-earth and a genuine good guy. It was a nice ten year run in Grand Forks, Coach Blais, and I wish you all the best in the NHL. I hope the 2004-2005 Sioux run the table and win the NCAA title as your going-away present.
MafiaMan
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The World Cup of Hockey is right around the corner and I was curious if anyone on the board was planning on going to the games at Xcel. Here's the schedule:
Sept 2 USA vs Russia
Sep 3 USA vs Slovakia
Sep 7 North America Pool # vs North America Pool #4 or
North America Pool 2 vs North America Pool #3
Sep 10 Semifinal 1
Semifinal 2 is schedule for Sep 11th in Toronto with the championship being held on the 14th (also in Toronto)
European Pool (Czech Republic, Finland, Germany, Sweden)
North American Pool (USA Canada, Slovakia, Russia)
Some good hockey, folks. Get your tickets now!
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Everyone's missing the point. College hockey has gotten so good over the past few years that it's become NCAA basketball. Watch the Paul Martins, Zach Parises, and Keith Ballards while you can for the year, two, or three that you have them, because quality players putting in four years of college are quickly becoming a thing of the past. Unfortunately, I might add. It would have been something watching UND and UM duke it out next season with their full corp of upper-classmen and new recruits. You think a Ballard or a Parise wouldn't have had a burr in their saddle all season long after the way this past year ended for both of them? Alas, we'll never know...
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Is that THE Brent Bobyck?
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Once again, I find myself wondering how hockey can be considered a second-tier sport to watch and attend. Did anyone see last night's Pacer/Piston game? 23-11 after the first quarter, and with 45 seconds left in the half, the score was 27-22. That's right...the Pacers had racked up all of four (yes, that's the number 4) points in the entire second quarter. Only two three pointers by them in the last 45 seconds put them into double-digit scoring in the quarter. Points by quarter:Indiana: 1st 23. 2nd 10.
Detroit: 1st 11. 2nd 16.
Is anyone else wondering how this is even watchable? I was a HUGE NBA fan back in the days of Magic, Larry, and Dr J. What the NBA has become thanks to Michael Jordan is crap. It's more rigged than wrestling. Referees asking the scorer's table how many fouls Shaq has, Kobe taking four steps to the hoop without a call (except for the fall on the defense after he made the shot), the Wolves TRYING to foul Shag and send him to the free throw line but the official all but ignoring the play and telling Mark Madsen "let him go". He had him in a bear hug for crying out loud! If they want to foul Shag 50 times a game, make the damn call. There are RULES and they need to be enforced whether you like them or not. At least in the NHL (in the Stanley Cup Finals, no less), the official has the GUTS to call an obvious 5:00 penalty on Calgary for a cheap shot on Lecavalier with less than 5:00 left in the game. Tough call for the Flames, but maybe their goon should have used his head.
Every time I hear that the NHL is a second-rate sport, I just cringe. The NBA is a joke. And these playoffs are proving it once again. Yet announcers like Craig Sager fawn over Kobe and his "courageous" effort, comparing him to firefighters, cops, and the military in his dedication and drive. ARE YOU FREAKING SERIOUS, CRAIG? It's basketball. Even if he's not guilty of rape, he's guilty of cheating on his wife. Hardly a role model in my eyes. Unfortunately, I guess I'm just too conservative these days. The thug-life NBA...it's FAN-tastic.
Give me the NHL any day. I only wish the season was year-round so I wouldn't have to stomach the intermission known as baseball season.
My rant is over. Next? -
You want hockey ratings to improve? Then HYPE THE WORLD CUP! I've read many articles touting the 1996 game 3 Canada/USA game as one of the greatest games ever played and it wasn't even shown live on ESPN! I watched it on tape-delay and I agree...it's on-par with the 1980 USA/Soviet game. Why is it people trash hockey, yet every winter Olympics, the TV ratings are thru the roof and it's impossible to get a ticket? Showcase the big events and they will come!
I watched last night's Piston/Net game and honestly, how can people tune into this stuff? BORING!
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Ironic, but on the ESPN website, there was an article that talked about the selection process. It's mentioned several times that players were picked "to win," not because they were the best at their position. Sound familiar? If not, I suggest you rent the afore-mentioned movie Miracle and check it out. Herb Brooks' influence is alive and well in USA hockey.
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Read this week's Sports Illustrated...there is an article touting the demise of the trap in favor of speedy teams like the Lightning and the Flames. Check it out. I concur (and I'm a Red Wings fan)...Tampa Bay and Calgary have been two of the most exciting teams I've watched in recent memory. TV ratings be damned...I'm glad we don't have to watch the slog-fest that was last year's finals (Anaheim and New Jersey). GO LIGHTNING!
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Fiction! In real-life, Brooks called Rob MacLanahan a "cake-eater," not a "candy-ass." Disney changed the name because they felt "candy-ass" was less offensive.
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CVCL,
Decent point, but I do not agree. Take a look at the size of players today in any sport. Players are bigger, faster, and stronger, yet they play on the same size rink as they did in the 1940's. If Gary Bettman wasn't such a moron, he'd have required all "new" arenas being built to have Olympic size ice sheets to open up the flow of the game. Look at how silly baseball is? Is there any wonder why home runs are up when instead of playing in cavernous parks like the days of old, bigger, faster, and stronger players now play in baseball fields the size of my local softball diamond. Big man, Sammy, and big man, Barry, hitting home runs over a 300 foot fence. I'm not impressed. Same with hockey...bigger ice sheet, more room to maneuver.
On another note, Steve Yzerman has already said he will be wearing a face shield next season. If pee wees on up wear them, why dump them in the pros? It's a safety issue, folks, we're talking about someone's sight!
I'm still a fan of the NHL, but what a disaster. The Flyers/Lightning series has evolved into slashing and fights at the end of every game...not exactly what the NHL is trying to promote.
MafiaMan
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DaveK,
Despite being a Red Wings fan, I believe you are 100% correct. Rocket Richard must be turning over in his grave knowing that only two Canadian hockey teams are still alive in the Stanley Cup playoffs while teams from San Jose and Tampa Bay are near-favorites or favorites to make the finals. I used to cheer against Canadian teams, now I find myself pulling for them. A Detroit/Toronto or Detroit/Montreal cup finals would draw a monster share of the Canadian TV market. We'll see if it happens.
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Here's one I recall being played when the Sioux took the ice..."Machinehead" by Bush. Not bad, not bad at all.
Although this one is pretty loud and pretty tasteless, the beat of "The Beautiful People" by Marilyn Manson rocks!
"Welcome to the Jungle"...that song never gets old.
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My humble picks:
Detroit over Calgary in 6
San Jose over Colorado in 6
Philadelphia over Toronto in 7
Tampa Bay over Montreal in 6
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Goon,
Uh oh. Looks like some changes in Beantown after tonite's performance. Personally, I think Boston should send Martin LaPointe back where he belongs...in a Red Wing uniform! GO RED WINGS!
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The Detroit Red Wings do a pretty amusing job of mixing songs up, particularly when penalties are called. I can recall hearing "It's a Mistake" by Men at Work when a Red Wing is marched off to the sin bin for two minutes. One of the funnier ones I heard, though, was when the St Louis Blues team goon (I forget his name...scrolled thru the roster and couldn't find it) was sent to the penalty box in a game earlier this season. The guy had hair about 4' long and they played "Sign" by Tesla...not the whole song, just the part where it said "and the sign said long haired freaky people...need not apply." You could hear the laughter throughout the arena.
As far as best song, though? Like it or not, Gary Glitter's "Rock n Roll Part I" will always rule the roost.
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With all due respect to the larger programs, I think the "regionals" have taken something away from the regular season record. For example, a small school like UMD, UND, or Denver can win the WCHA regular season, then have to play the tournament in either Milwaukee or St Paul in front of large hostile crowds. What was the reward for the Sioux winning the MacNaughton Cup? A WCHA title game in front of 16,500 Gopher fans. It's no different in the CCHA...Northern Michigan, Nebraska-Omaha, Miami (Ohio) all get to play at Joe Louis Arena in front of huge pro-Michigan and pro-Michigan State crowds. Before you start screaming bloody murder at me, let me say that I'm 100% OK with the conference tournaments being played at these venues. BUT...
...let's then base the post-season on overall standings. I'll use as an example of two years ago, the 2002 Denver Pioneers, who won the WCHA regular season title and then won the Broadmoor Trophy in St Paul by defeating the Gophers, again, in front of 16,000-17,000 pro-Minnesota fans. Their reward? A death-sentence regional game in Ann Arbor against Michigan. Nice.
Now, how about we go back to the home ice advantage format. Denver in 2002 deserved it on the basis of their performance in the conference regular season and playoffs. Let them host their first round NCAA opponent in their home rink. What difference does it make if Holy Cross flies to Minneapolis for a regional or to Denver for a one-game playoff?
Make the regular season meaningful again! I'm not being anti-Gopher here, but it's absurd that the #5 team in the conference regular season was allowed to be a #1 seed for an NCAA tournament. By that same theory, the top four teams in the ACC should have all been #1's for the basketball tournament. It's ridiculous and puts all the weight on the shoulders of a computer ranking. Imagine this year if Colorado College would have made the tournament. They'd have had a home rink to play their regional games based on what? A near .500 record? Surely, you jest. I don't think there was anything wrong with the way the system used to be with the exception of the silly two-games total goals rule.
Anyone concur?
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Sheesh...8-2, 8-3...and I call myself a "financial manager." I'll write it off as being up too late on a Saturday night.
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Did anyone hear Barry Melrose on NHL Tonite? He mentioned something to the effect of (and I'm paraphrasing) 'nice to see a western team win it now and then.' Take a look at the past ten years, Barry...sheesh:
2004 Denver, 2003 Minnesota, 2002 Minnesota
2001 Boston College
2000 North Dakota
1999 Maine
1998 Michigan, 1997 North Dakota, 1996 Michigan
1995 Boston University
1994 Lake Superior State
By my count, I have 8 "western" schools and 2 eastern schools. And if you want to be REALLY picky and say that the WCHA consists of western schools and everyone else is eastern, it's still 5-5! Nice work, WCHA!
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My biggest beef isn't anything related to the arena...it's that the focus is taken off of the team and has been placed on socializing, drinking beer, and "being seen." The arena is just not as intimidating as old REA.
CFM...you and I need to log off the computers and get a life! What the hell am I doing here on a Saturday night?
Who's Your Favorite UND hockey Player?
in Men's Hockey
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I can't believe no one has mentioned Brent Bobyck. Now that guy could FLY up and down the ice...he was really something to watch on the penalty kill.
Someone did mention Curtish Murphy...I read the other day that he signed a contract to go play in Russia. Too bad he never got a real shot in the show...one of my favorite college players.