I'm a die hard Sioux hockey fan but I do believe this season Minn, on paper, is a bit better & deeper. That being said, it doesn't necessarily mean UND can't beat them though (heck, with just a little puck luck we had them beat Sat in OT hitting two pipes) if we meet them down the line later this season. But even if you believe the two teams are even/real close, the Sioux would be hard pressed to finish ahead of the Goofers this season in the WCHA and rankings. Two points:
1. Currently, the top 5 teams points-wise in the WCHA are Minn, St. Cloud, UND, Omaha & Denver.
The Goofers play ONLY 2 games on the road vs just 1 (St. Cloud) of these 4 teams this season. Meanwhile, The Sioux play 8 games on the road against ALL 4 of these teams. Granted, conf scheduling & unpredictability year to year is out of their control, but that's a nice conf schedule break for Minn this season.
2. To date, Minn has played 8 games against teams currently in the top 20 Pairwise rankings. Of those 8 games, ONLY 1 game has been on the road (Mankato). That's a great opportunity for pretty good home cooking for the Goofers. Meanwhile, the Sioux have played 11 games against teams currently in the top 20 Pairwise rankings. Of those 11 games, 7 have been on the road. Makes for a much tougher schedule so far. Hopefully, it makes them stronger for a playoff run.