MavRick

I wouldn't worry too much about the Mavericks. Whatever our boys had at the beginning of the year, they either don't have any more, or everyone has caught up to. 0-3-1 against Quinnipiac and Bemidji is all you need to know. As for the relationship among fans, I am certainly sorry there were jerky fans in Omaha. I had very pleasant interactions with Sioux fans, who were equally gracious in the concourse after both games, which I think says a lot about your fan base. Saturday would have been hard for anyone on the fuzzy end to take, but there were lots of smiles and handshakes from folks in green. Respect. There will be a few fans anxious to see REA this weekend, and I was going to be one of them but for an unruly ex-wife. Next year, perhaps. You have lots of laundry in the rafters, and your school is the world HQ for the brand of hockey we've fallen in love with. I think anyone with any measure of sense in Omaha has a great measure of respect for UND, for obvious reasons. This series will go well for you, probably so well that it will finish off the Mavs for the postseason. I don't say this to be dire or cute - even Blais said it would take two seasons of .500 hockey before he could win championships at UNO, just like it was at UND. So it shall be. Sioux 5-2, 7-1.

Hi there. It's my site where you saw the photos. Saw this in my referrer log and thought I'd stop by. Nice place you got, my North Central brothers and sisters. A few points on Qwest Center Omaha. 1. It is owned by the city and run by an independent board called the Metropolitan Entertainment and Convention Authority. 2. $291 was the total price tag for the arena and convention center, of which $75 million is attributed to the Arena alone. Not to worry, the Ralph is still the Taj Mahal of college hockey, or, frankly, of any sport played anywhere. 3. The downside to an off-campus facility is ice time and UNO trains on a municipal rink. Still, I was talking to our rookies, and one of them said he played in front of 700 people in Alberta. I think we'll get a little buzz from a recruiting perspective. 4. Creighton University basketball is the co-anchor tenant with UNO Hockey. 5. The seating you saw in the photos was being configured for a concert that took place last night. There will be conventional seats in a 360-degree lower bowl that comes all the way down to the boards for hockey and then a horseshoe-shaped upper bowl. Thre is, however, what we are calling a "patio" or open area in front of the branded concession stands in the shoot-once end. I think the see-and-be-seen types will do a lot of hanging out there. The word is QCO could put in temp seating there to add a couple thou and get over any arbitrary seating requirements needed for an NCAA event. 6. Love to see the Sioux join us down here. (Need to get up the road to GF, for that matter.) I've always heard rumors that it was the Sioux who kept UNO out of the WCHA (never anything concrete) so there may be some emnity there. Whatever the relationships between our schools, if you show up in your Sioux gear and introduce yourself to me at the QCO, I'll buy you an age-appropriate beverage of your choice. Thanks for visiting my site; thanks for letting me in here; good luck with the upcoming season. Rick MavRick's UNO Hockey Pages http://www.foutotheside.com/hockey