Benny Baker

I do not agree with the "Fire Hak" crowd, but I do understand their frustration. Hak should not be fired, he should stay. These are just my opinions.

Yup, the 2004-05 team, 25-15-5, was the team he lead to the national championship game. I wasn't attempting to diminish the accomplishments of Hakstol's teams, but rather point out that the limited opportunities to make the NCAA tournament back in the day meant that some fairly solid teams were shut out from the opportunity altogether. Like the 1983 Sioux team.

Like I said, "better than or equal to". 2004-05, 2008-09, and 2012-13. Check your stats.

1. "Uh . . . isn't this using stats to mislead." No, absolutely not. The capitalized heading clearly indicates that the subsequent list contains North Dakota frozen four coaching records. That list, as a result, contains the undisputed frozen four records of every North Dakota hockey coach. The post does not include any personalized opinion derived from these undisputed, verifiable facts. The post is not misleading in any manner whatsoever. 2. "Obviously, 1-7 by Haks in the Frozen 4 ain't good." Fair, I'll give you the benefit of the doubt. But in my opinion, it's horrendous. 3. "that in itself doesn't necessarily say anything about well he (sic) coached to get his team there." This is incorrect, too. The number immediately following each coach's name in the post indicates the number of frozen fours each coach has attended. For example, in Hakstol's case, the unequivocal reference to his all-time North Dakota record 7 frozen four appearances speaks volumes of his ability to succeed at the regional level. 4. "how many games (less) there were in the NCAA tourney back in the day". This is a good point, and one I often consider. However, this fact aids competing arguments and is a double edged sword for anyone who tries to use this argument to his or her advantage. Prior to 1977, the NCAA selected 4 teams to play in the NCAA tournament. So while there were less teams in the 1970s than there are today, if your team was not one of the arbitrary 4 to get selected, you didn't even get a chance to compete for a title. From 1977-1980 only 5-6 teams made the NCAA tournament. From 1981-1987, only 8 teams made the NCAA tournament. So similarly, while there were less opponents a team needed to defeat to make it to the frozen four, there were a lot less opportunities for teams to even make the NCAA tournament in the first place. For example, for anyone old enough to remember, think about UND hockey in 1983. UND was 21-13-2 and the frozen four was in Grand Forks. UND was infamously snubbed from the NCAA tournament. Interestingly, UND's winning percentage that year was equal to or better than 3 of Hakstol's 11 teams, all of which made the NCAA tournament due to the benefit of an expanded field. 5. "should some of those coaches have coached better and been in the frozen four more often?". Again, see above. UND followed up their 1982 NCAA title with a 21-13-2 record, which is better than or equal to 3 of Hakstol's NCAA tournament teams, and UND still missed the NCAA tournament in 1982 due to limited spots. Likewise, UND had a better winning percentage in 1969 than 5 of Hakstol's 11 teams, and again missed the NCAA tournament completely. Also, 1990 was the very first time UND played in the NCAA tournament without making the frozen four. That's right, 1990. So every time UND made the NCAA tournament prior to 1990, UND played in the frozen four. 6. "A lot unsaid". No, the post is factually accurate, indisputable, and not misleading.

Spot on. When I saw the numbers Czarnick (14-26-40), Barber (15-24-39), and Caito (5-16-21) put up three years ago as a sophomore and two freshman, respectively, along with McKay's (1.38 GAA .946 SV%) and Williams' (1.94 GAA .924 SV%) goalie numbers as freshman, and not to mention Coleman and Kurarly, I figured that Miami would steamroll the NCHC its first two seasons. It's a shock that Miami did even win an NCAA playoff game in the past two seasons. Fire Blasi!

I think you mean "imply"; fs4l inferred that you were offended. I don't want to speak on behalf of everyone, but the fact that a person takes the time to post on a message board about, well anything, strongly implies that the person probably has some semblance of enjoyment when talking about that subject.

Indeed, there is. Right next to the Frozen Four banner.

I am not exactly sure. If I had to guess, I would tend to think the melt down had to do with two things. First, it was the first time UND lost back-to-back games in well over a year. Second, UND looked awful against Denver, which was the final game before the NCAA tournament. So I think the meltdown had more to do with UND not looking ready for the NCAA playoffs than it had to with not winning a conference playoff championship. As for me, personally, I was not too concerned because I knew UND was going to be a number 1 seed in Fargo regardless of their performance in Minneapolis. That Denver game didn't mean much, if anything, for UND. And correct, Engelstad Arena does not need "fan" banners like that 12th man nonsense.

Yup. But his car was in his garage so I couldn't get to his tires. I can drop off your basketball arena photograph montage at his house tomorrow morning, too, and let him know that MafiaMan wants banners up at Engelstad for every achievement, large and small, in UND hockey history. Make no mistake; I don't want Hakstol fired. I am, however, disappointed in the ability of his teams to capitalize at the end of the season.

Except that Dave Hakstol, himself, has said that UND "does not hang second place banners". So you may be better served showing your endless series of college basketball arena photographs to Coach Hakstol if you desire Engelstad Arena to start hanging regional title banners or NCAA tournament participation banners. I don't think anyone on this forum has ever said that other schools do not hang second place (and below) banners. Indeed, Mariucci Arena has been the focal point of these discussions for some time on this message board.

Fire Bucci!

NORTH DAKOTA REGIONAL TITLE BANNERS: Dave Hakstol: 7 Dean Blais: 3 Gino Gasparini: 3* *No regionals. 8 team playoff with four winners advancing to frozen four (82', 84', and 87'). Prior to 1982, NCAA selected the four participants in the frozen four, which was essentially the entire NCAA playoffs).

I'd love to say "yes", but the answer is "no". Eichel and Boeser are the same age. Eichel accelerated his education, entered college early, scored 71 points, and won the Hobey Baker while Boeser stayed in the USHL like most other high school kids. I do not see Boeser scoring anywhere close to 71 points even if he stays through his junior season at UND.

NORTH DAKOTA FROZEN FOUR COACHING RECORDS: Gino Gasparini (5): 8-2 Dean Blais (3): 5-1 Bob May (2): 3-1 Barry Thorndycraft (1): 2-0 Bob Peters (1): 1-1 Bill Selman (2): 1-3 Dave Hakstol (7): 1-7 _____________________________ 21-15

Completely disagree. Scholarships are one-year deals. Brock fulfilled his obligation to UND when he played hockey for the only two years he was on scholarship. The focus should really be on universities that drop players' scholarships for injuries, underperforming, better recruits coming in, etc.

I swear I also heard Zane referred to as "Zack McIntyre" and "Zane McIntosh" on two different occasions. It's one thing to generally not know the name of a college hockey player off the top of your head. It's another when you're broadcasting the frozen four and can't correctly pronounce the names of one team's leading goal scorer (Cajulia) and their hobey hat trick finalist and richter award winning goalie. That's the kind of Busch league announcing one would expect when listening to an AM radio broadcast of a local high school basketball game. Mal-prose, I mean, Melrose, is a joke.

Sandelin and Mark Osiecki in 1997; Sandelin, Jeff Bowen, and Lee Davidson in 2000. Hakstol has never been associated with a UND team that has won a national championship either as a player, assistant coach, or head coach.

I think its also important to note that the only head coach Zach Parise played for at UND was Dean Blais. I'm not sure why he always seems to get lumped into the group of Hakstol players. But then again, Hak was an assistant/associate coach from 2001-2004. Perhaps his presence prevented Parise and UND from winning the national title during those years, too. Stafford was also a Blais recruit who played under Blais in his first season.

Between 1950 and 2000, Boston College went to 14 frozen fours and won 0 national championships. Yikes! At least we're only at 8 in a row!

This is too funny! Who would have thought that an arithmetic theory dictated college hockey champions? Hey, Colorado College hasn't won any titles since the 1950s, I suppose they're due for a stretch run of titles just like Boston College, right!? UND should at least fire Hak to save on his salary. Coaching does not matter in a game like hockey, which is instead determined by the "Central Limit Theorem"!

And the entire NCAA field had "puck luck" this year when Minnesota State went down in round 1 and ensured everyone an easier route to the NCAA title!

Let's all be honest. Isn't the idea of "puck luck" really more of an excuse than reality? As for 2001, the Sioux hit a post. But I also remember the Sioux being down 2-0 with a couple minutes left and relying on two miraculous extra attacker goals in the waning seconds of the game in order to even reach overtime. Hell of game that was, and if it exists, "puck luck" goes both ways. That's a rather broad view of "puck luck" in 2008. A team has puck luck because some higher seeded team lost to some other team in the same tournament? So the Sioux got a little bit of puck luck in Fargo because they played St. Cloud? You conceded that 2010 had nothing to do with puck luck. Neither did 2012. Boston College was the number 1 overall seed and steamrolled to its 4th title in 15 years by winning its tournament games 2-0, 4-0, 6-1, and 4-1. A lower ranked Union team would have suffered the same fate as Ferris State. Let's all be honest again. Boston College is in a class of its own, at least over the last 15 years.

Exactly. May, Thorndycraft, Gasparini, Blais, and a few others were winning every other frozen four that UND went to; i.e, tradition and expectations. Hakstol's record does not equal the tradition and expectations set by his predecessors.

No kidding. The biggest folly with the regression to the mean argument is that it applies both ways; Hakstol should have won at least 25% of UND's 7 most recent frozen fours. Put another way, Hakstol should have at least one, if not two, titles by now.

But this is exactly the basis for the "Fire Hak" brigade's animosity. May, Thorndycraft, Gasparini, and Blais would win the national title every other time UND made the frozen four. Save his first, Hakstol simply has been unable to win a game.