Kermit

Looking ahead to '07 now that Christian and Kantola are off the board.. Forwards Mario Lamoureax is accumulating more fights than goals this season. Aaron Marvin has not been burning it up for Warroad HS, but he is #48 in the CSB rankings. Unranked by McKeen's, but he got a good review in an article on their "hot list" (subscription). Jordan Willert The NHL CSB has him at #78 among North American skaters in the mid-term rankings for the 2006 draft. I've heard that his dream is to play for the Sioux, and that he intends to play another year in the USHL. Taylor Matson, Academy of Holy Angels, may be the next Gopher target. Ben Winnett is having an excellent rookie season with Salmon Arm. Lucas Bloodoff is a 6'1" 200 lb '89 who is a rookie with the Trail Smoke Eaters of the BCHL. Colin Wilson, David Toews, Kelsey Tessier, Jordy Murray, and Kelly Zajac are names that have been mentioned here who are potential 2008 recruits. Defensemen Derrick LaPoint, Eau Claire North HS, has visited UND. He's ranked #96 by the CSB. McKeen's says: "Passed up an offer to play in the USHL to finish out his high school career, and is being recruited by several colleges. Possesses the size (6-3/180), skating, and puckmoving skills to dominate at this level. Also mean and punishing in his own end. Will likely need a year of junior first." Minnesota, St. Cloud, and others are also in the picture. Ben Blood is a 6'3" 200 lb. junior defenseman at Shattuck St. Mary's. Goaltenders Brad Thiessen was scheduled to visit UND this week. He could be an '06 recruit.

WDAY did report this.

Kelsey Tessier.

True enough, but the trade was only announced on Jan 10 and Thiessen has only played 2 games (first was a shutout and Thiessen was first star) with his new team. Maybe he doesn't have a Merritt jacket yet..

We know Thiessen is supposed to be visiting this weekend. We know he played for a team with a blue maple leaf logo, and we know he is a goalie (30 is definitely a goaltender's number). Maybe a picture can clinch it: Brad Thiessen is on the right in this photo.

The Herald reported earlier that goaltender Brad Thiessen would be visiting this weekend. Thiessen played in the BCHL All-Star game a couple of days ago. He was recently traded by Prince George to the Merritt Centennials. Last year, he spent part of the season with the Penticton Vees, who happen to have a blue maple leaf in their logo.

Chris VandeVelde is the USHL Offensive Player of the Week. Congrats Chris!

I agree, Dagies. Jones is developing nicely. It is also reassuring that he will probably be a four-year player for the Sioux.

Christian is a junior. I expect Jordy will consider playing in the USHL next year, but Moorhead will have an outstanding senior-dominated team. It may be a difficult choice.

Yes, Marvin will be eligible after his 11th grade season ala RJ Anderson, Blake Wheeler, and others. Here's an interesting factoid: Sioux freshman Jonathan Toews (4/29/88), high school senior Michael Forney (5/14/88), and high school junior Aaron Marvin (5/27/88) were all born within a month of each other. With Zajac, VandeVelde, Forney, and Trupp in the pipeline and only one senior among the current forwards, I think the Sioux already have potential replacements for a couple of early departures.

Yup, I saw Hak too, and he witnessed quite a show. Jordy Christian is making great progress in his development. Last season, he often looked like a talented player who didn't know how to use his linemates. Tonight he showed great playmaking skills to go along with his speed and stick handling. His 14 penalty minutes consisted of a check from behind in the 1st period which earned him a 2 minute minor plus a 10 minute misconduct and a trip later. Hakstol seemed to be enjoying Christian's play. I'm now a true believer. Sign the kid up. Christian == Jeff Panzer?? Mike Forney had a goal and 2 assists for TRF. His goal came on a play where he crashed the net HARD. He received a pass virtually in the crease just as he was being checked. A defenseman and the goalie were both taken out in a tremendous 3-way collision while Forney kept his skates and the puck was in the net. I can't see Forney spending a year in the USHL next year. He'll probably be a pro in 3 years.

You seem to be compulsed to find the one negative word/phrase in a scouting report.. Well, according to this roster: Travis Zajac 6'2" 210 Erik Fabian 6'2" 210 Chris Porter 6'2" 205 Drew Stafford 6'2" 204 Next year will bring: Mike Forney 6'2" 185 Chris VandeVelde 6'2" 180

Kai Kantola of the F-M Jets has committed to Bowling Green per Heisenberg. McKeen's (pay site) has some comments on Warroad HS's Aaron Marvin: "Stands out on the ice and looks to have nice upside. Fast skater who can handle the puck at top speed, soft hands and touch. Also a fine playmaker who sees the ice and plays a physical game. Can be inconsistent though."

I don't know where the name came from, but I doubt that it is a compliment. Personally, I hate it when fans of other teams refer to UND as the Sue. Therefore, I will personally not refer to our competitors as the Land Cows, Rodents, Jan Brady State, etc.

For fans in the F-M area, Thief River and Michael Forney will play the Spuds at the Moorhead Sports Center tomorrow (Tuesday) night. Unfortunately, Warroad (Aaron Marvin) doesn't visit the F-M area this season, but we'll have an opportunity to watch Roseau at Warroad on FSN January 31.

The NHL Central Scouting Bureau has released their mid-season rankings. The easiest place to view them may be this post on USCHO. Forney (43), Marvin (48), Willert (78), and Kantola (80) are all in the top 80. The d-men we missed are at #33 (Sneep) and #50 (Gryba). Other services have Forney higher and I still think he'll go in the first round. Some of the still available defensemen include Derrick LaPoint (96) and Kyle Medvec (84). Medvec is a 6'5" 200 lb. senior at Apple Valley HS where he plays with Gopher recruit David Fischer (25). Edit: The full list is on TSN.ca

Thanks, Jim. I usually go directly to the forum and forget to check the other pages. You do an incredible job with this site and I can't thank you enough.

http://www.startribune.com/512/story/180704.html Article from yesterday's paper. If this was mentioned elsewhere, I missed it and apologize.

The internet scuttlebutt is that Hardwick is being recruited by a number of Ivy League schools and Michigan Tech. He doesn't seem to be drawing much interest from the upper echelon WCHA programs.

Toews and Forney will probably go in the first round of the NHL draft this spring. If so, that would make 5 Sioux in 2 years and 8 in four years. That's a lot of "blue chippers." While it's true that there was no room for Gryba in '06, the reason is largely because the coaching staff brought in Lee (1st round), Finley (1st round), Chorney (2nd round), and Jones (may be drafted in the spring) this year. If it turned out that they couldn't bring in Gryba because of scholarship money committed to Jake Marto, I might have some reservations--but I doubt that is the case.

Scott Foyt will also be gone. If Zajac, Toews, and Oshie all leave before then (not unlikely), the current forwards remaining will be: Spirko Kozek Watkins Duncan Kaip Miller Martens If about 15 forwards on the roster is optimal, after the addition of Zajac, VandeVelde, Trupp, and Forney the Sioux may still have room for as many as four additional forwards. Some of the possible forward prospects from our region include: Mario Lamoureaux, Grand Forks/Tri-City USHL (reportedly a scholarship offer was on the table last summer) Aaron Marvin, Warroad HS '07 Jordy Christian, Moorhead HS '07 (would almost certainly need to play in the USHL first) Jordan Willert, Minot HS/Tri-City USHL ?Paul Weisgarber, Fargo South HS '06/?USHL ?Kai Kantola, F-M NAHL (I'm sure he'll have offers for '06) I really like Taylor Matson of Holy Angels, but there is no speculation that he becomes Minnesota's next target after Gagner pick the Badgers. I'd like to see Aaron Marvin in the fold. I'm sure there are many good prospects in western Canada and elsewhere that the coaching staff has an eye on. For a little fun, I'll try to make some comparisons between incoming Sioux recruits and current/past Sioux players (bear in mind I've never even seen Zajac or Trupp play): Darcy Zajac == Mike Prpich Chris VandeVelde == Chris Porter Mike Forney == Drew Stafford Evan Trupp == Rastislav Spirko

Scott Foyt will also be gone. If Zajac, Toews, and Oshie all leave before then (not unlikely), the current forwards remaining will be: Spirko Kozek Watkins Duncan Kaip Miller Martens If about 15 forwards on the roster is optimal, after the addition of Zajac, VandeVelde, Trupp, and Forney the Sioux may still have room for as many as four additional forwards. Some of the possible forward prospects from our region include: Mario Lamoureaux, Grand Forks/Tri-City USHL (offer on the table?) Aaron Marvin, Warroad HS '07 Jordy Christian, Moorhead HS '07 (would almost certainly need to play in the USHL first) Jordan Willert, Minot HS/Tri-City USHL ?Paul Weisgarber, Fargo South HS '06/?USHL ?Kai Kantola, F-M NAHL (I'm sure he'll have offers for '06) I really like Taylor Matson of Holy Angels, but there is speculation that he will become Minnesota's next target after Gagner picked the Badgers. Aaron Marvin would be at the top of my list. I tend to think that Lamoureaux will be a good grinder, but not a top line scorer. I'm sure there are many good prospects in western Canada and elsewhere that the coaching staff has an eye on.

I'm not sure why you haven't heard about him, but he has been getting lots of press. He is widely considered one of the best forwards in his age group in North America. He may be the top forward recruit in the NCAA for 2007. I'm sure the Sioux knew all about him, but he narrowed his choices to Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan, and BU some time ago. From USHR yesterday: "Gagner is a difference-maker, a character kid who has what it takes to someday soon win the Hobey Baker Award. An outstanding playmaker, what sets him apart from his peers, and made him so sought-after, is his outstanding ability to think the game at a high level."

Hennessy emphasized that Parise told him that it was a hip flexor injury. I got the distinct impression that Hennessy didn't believe him. He also said that Parise had not given UND permission to disclose any information about his injury, which is his right by HIPAA. For whatever reason, it seems that Parise doesn't want the public to know.

I'm a UND fan and alum who sees both the Bison and Sioux play on a regular basis. Anyone who doesn't think there is a significant difference between D-IAA and D-II football is kidding themselves. That isn't to say that the Sioux wouldn't immediately do well in D-IAA--I think they would.