Benny Baker

I don't know about you guys, but this is quickly becoming the norm for me. I've been through a lot of butt puckering the last 3 frozen fours. - 3rd year in a row for Michigan to get to #10; - Watched Minnesota play the last two years, and they were only a few minutes from winning last year; and - Watched Denver win #9 just two years ago (but it was better than seeing Minnesota and Michigan win, right?), but now they're gunning for #10 as well.

Feel the same way. Don’t want Michigan and Denver at 10 before UND gets 9. Don’t like Boston schools at all either. Hopefully whoever wins has their title vacated due to some NCAA recruiting violation.

Gosh, pulled up my work calendar earlier this week, and it said “out of office” today and tomorrow. Was I supposed to be somewhere … ? Let’s go (gulp) BU.

Brad Berry would even tell you he’s disappointed he didn’t land Cooley, Fantilli, and a number of other first round recruits. Kind of weird you though took my post as a knock on Blake considering I had just said (see below) about him… I guess if we’re entertaining the hypothetical of trading college players, and assuming Blake still played college hockey, I would try to trade someone else first. If you’re telling me I had to trade Blake, I’ll give you the answer 90%+ people will tell you: Celebrini or Gauthier. Some big on leadership qualities might say McGroarty. To the extent they return, others might try to argue for BC’s Smith, Leonard, or Perreault.

Huh? What first rounder should Carolina trade him for?

Wish we had a first round forward. Who was our last: Jost?

487 points would put Jackson Blake in the top 10 all time for points for UND players in the NHL (although Boeser and Schmaltz will beat him there) and one more ahead of the current #10 player, Jason Blake. I look forward to watching how his NHL career progresses. Hope he can become another Sioux legend in the pros.

486 career points. Does Jackson Blake end his NHL career with over/under that amount?

Lol. I 've been chuckling at some of the responses to your question. It did, indeed, seem to trigger some folks. They refuse to answer because they don't want to "go in circles" only to go in circles with you about why they don't need to answer. If you can't answer the question, why such urgency to respond and go in the circles you wanted to avoid in the first place? Repeatedly. Lol. Yes, funny how their minds' work.

Rules for thee, but not for me.

Why not 88? When things started trending in the wrong direction?? And UND replaced a 3-time national champion coach during a run a no NCAA tournament success??? Thanks for helping make my point, gentlemen! The question was always whether UND's national tournament performance is trending in the right or wrong direction here? For two decades, the program had success in the national tournament. That trend of success started during the 1996-1997 season. Has that trend of success in the national tournament from 97-16 continued during 17-24? No, it hasn't. And your efforts to avoid the question only confirm that you agree.

1997-2016: 20 seasons, 11 frozen four appearances, and 3 titles 2017-2024: 8 seasons, 0 frozen four appearances, and 0 titles Is North Dakota’s national tournament performances trending in the right or wrong direction here? Hell, for two consecutive decades between ‘97-16, UND would more often than not being playing in the frozen four. Now, we’re closing in a decade without even making it.

Of course they weren’t goals, lol. Obviously Duluth and Notre Dame didn’t beat UND 4-2 and 3-1 those games. But Duluth and Notre Dame still won, right? The topic was luck, fortune, or “bounces” (as you put it). Duluth was offsides, but it was immaterial to the goal that was waived off. And the Irish player put the puck in the net, but it fortunately went in less than a second after the final horn blew. Luck, fortune, and “bounces” (as some people put it) for UND.

You’re probably right. Wishful thinking on my part for the next 12 hours …

What, the Canes need to sleep on it another night, lol? Genuinely curious—with the Canes officially announcing multiple other college signings—just wondering why Blake hasn’t been announced yet. Especially as a Hobey Hat Trick finalist with the last year for the Canes to sign him before he hits FA. Should have been a done deal by now, right? Hope he rejects the full court press like LaDue after the 2015 season.

Does anyone know why it hasn’t been reported that Blake has signed? Morrow signed. Nadeau signed. Why hasn’t Blake yet?

Which makes 100% perfect sense, because if you’re going to complain about a semi-final loss in the national tournament, you’re no doubt going to complain about a regional semi-final loss in the national tournament. UND’s post season performances are trending in the wrong direction. They are not getting closer to a national title, they are getting farther away.

Correct. Look at where things are trending for the program.

Good point. But can’t a program push a current player to the portal? Thought I saw someone on here implying Hastings was pushing Lucius to the portal. Wasn’t Collin Adams’ scholarship pulled for a year? In other words, if Minnesota wants to find a way to get Wood scholarship money, they can. Or maybe their NIL pays his tuition. But yeah, would be great for UND to land Wood and/or Wilkie.

Lol. Duluth and Notre Dame’s first game winning goals were waived off against UND in 2021 and 2022, respectively. Both teams literally had to score 2 game winning goals each to beat UND in the NCAAs. In back-to-back seasons. If UND only got more favorable bounces in the NCAAs!

100% agree. I also remember having the same karma-related line of thinking, haha. When they scored 2 goals in the last 100 seconds to tie AND then Duluth’s first over time goal was waived off, I said the Hockey Gods were rewriting a wrong (BU game) and ensuring UND beat Duluth. Once that goal was waived off, I was all but certain UND was going to the frozen four. But alas, unlike BU who capitalized on the additional chance, UND didn’t.

Cameron Rowe was a goalie commit at one time, FWIW.

Agreed, that’s a fair point, but I think the distinction is that where college coaches yield most of the power over the hockey team, the GM and front office have much more control in NHL. So I’d agree some star players could wield more power than some NHL head coaches, but management and ownership will always run the day.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not calling them excuses, but I think UND found fortune and still lost some of those games. They were down by 2 to BU with 7 minutes left. If they don’t tie in the final minutes, it doesn’t even get to OT, and no one gets to talk about a 4th period or an “offsides” that wasn’t. They were down by 2 to Duluth with 2 minutes left. If they don’t tie in the final minutes, it doesn’t even get to OT, and the “5OT against a rested team” narrative doesn’t occur. They originally lost to Notre Dame 2-1 in regulation because no one backchecked to pick up the man in front at the end of the game. If video replay doesn’t show the puck go in a few milliseconds after the final horn, UND doesn’t even get the second chance to lose in overtime. Like the recent Michigan loss, all of those games could have easily been regulation losses for UND, if not for some fortune on their end.

https://www.espn.com/womens-college-basketball/story/_/id/39886931/top-2024-recruit-sarah-strong-commits-uconn Is it an apples comparison? The narrative is that UND is both losing on the ice and in recruiting. Not like UND has Cole Eiserman or 2 of the top 4 recruits coming in next season like UCONN women’s basketball.