jk

Nah, I feel like UND is right there with them all right now, just need to play a little better at the end.

I really liked last year's roster last off-season, because I had heard good things about Pyke and Zmolek. Once again, I think next year's team is going to be very good. (If Blake had returned, it was going to be in powerhouse territory.) Subtract some difference makers at forward, but add some as well, with the returners all hopefully stronger, faster and wiser. You can construct an awfully potent top nine with that list of players. There are three returning defenders that are already very solid, and the four new additions all sound ready to contribute. Goaltending seems at least solid. At least at forward, next year might be the last chance to contend for a little while. There are a bunch of important players playing out their eligibility, and a few younger guys who may get pro offers. It's a "win now" year.

Wasn't Schmaltz just on the fourth line? How is that no way? As for Senden and Hain, there were few options that year. There are now a plethora of better choices, and as demonstrated last year, the better choices end up higher in the lineup.

I know no one is saying this, but, hmmm, bringing in the next Boeser and Blake would be ok.

The edgy style is definitely gone, but it's tricky and I don't have the answer. The college game is called very tight now, and UND was one of the least penalized teams in the country. Considering how much special teams play determines who wins, having more PPs than the other guy is a great formula for success. And it worked, overall, this year. But I miss being hard to play against.

They played both these teams and kept up fine.

It seems like people have forgotten the recruiting landscape, which really hasn't changed much in many significant ways over decades. For the most part, MN has first choice on Minnesota kids. BC and BU fight over the best in the northeast. Michigan and MSU get their state and the national program. UND has its own sparsely populated area and is a player in western Canada, along with Denver, which also now has the west coast. There will always be exceptions, but generally it's going to be hard to steal kids from someone else's area. UND can pitch facilities, tradition, development, and competitiveness as well as anyone, no doubt. But those others can just as well. Depending on where and how they grew up, Grand Forks may not feel like a good fit for many kids. But it will for someone from Crookston or Alberta. Which is why UND's hit rate is higher on those players. Thankfully UND has hit on some non-traditional recruits like Pinto and Boisvert, but I expect that to always be a big ask. So when people see a shiny kid go elsewhere and wonder why UND didn't get him, it's probably because he can get most everything UND offers in a place he likes better than UND.

Maybe he's anxious to start his pro career. I can't blame him for doing what he thinks is best for him.

I hope he can make the whole "going this way, no the other way" thing work in the NHL, because he was a master of it here. He just has a level of deception I haven't seen much of over the years. A super exciting player. He would have just killed college hockey next year.

Different answers for different positions. At F, we haven't been. There were two portal forwards on the team this year, and none the year before. On D, they appear to have just missed on some guys, some who never made it to campus and some who did then left. That was a series of recruiting mistakes, but those were decisions made three to five years ago. I'd say the guys who came last year and those lined up look good, and that's what I mean by recruiting is looking up. Plus I think you have to give them credit for aggressively fixing what was a huge issue. It wasn't pretty to do it, but they did. You've got me on the goalie position. No idea why they had the gap between Scheel and Hobie. Especially frustrating since that's Karl's deal. I still really like the three classes: the Blake group up front, then the D group plus Perron and HH, and now a couple high impact F and more solid D. I'd also argue that you should use the portal if you can.

I think you're underselling UND's recruiting. This will be the third outstanding class in a row, with this year in the top handful in the country.

There are facts, and you can call them excuses if you want. Before that, though, it's a fact that they've lost almost all their NCAA games since 2016. Ultimately the final score dictates who moves on. But they have had the worst run of experiences in the tourney lately, kind of the opposite of the incredible fortune Duluth had in their run. They didn't allow a shot on goal in the entire fourth period against BU. Does that count as controlling? And the disallowed goal. Ugh. And Duluth taking Poolman out the game before. Covid wipes out the postseason of a great team. UND did not dominate against Duluth, in fact they looked like a team playing the second leg of a back to back against a rested team. How does that happen? Sanderson (I think) has a shot go post-goalline-post and out. You knew then it was cursed. UND did not dominate Notre Dame. That was not a great UND team, nor a very good ND team. It was evenly played, and kinda boring. We'll never know, but I suspect having the country's best player play 30 minutes that game may have changed the outcome. UND did not dominate MI, who is also very good. But UND did carry the play for maybe 35-40 minutes. It's not like they didn't show up. Pointing to Pyke is an excuse if you want to call it that, but he was probably the team's best all-around defenseman and it is an unquestionable fact that he got injured in the game before the tournament and didn't play. Do those five outcomes, with their odd circumstances, define the program?

Weird to look at the chart and know for sure all the seniors will be done. Like the old days.

Usually.

Lose three regulars, add three in Emery, Strathmann and McDonald. Then Benoit, Komzak and Jubenvill are in reserve for the inevitable injuries.

But, hey, looks like we landed a defender.

Regarding Blake, there are two things that up the angst. First, as I mentioned earlier, the TV guy said he'd stay. Second, MN got its legacy back (three years for a first-round pick!). On the other, more rational side, whatever the weaknesses in his build and game, the guy is a Hobey finalist. He set the conference record for points in a season. Heck, he scored almost twice as many points as the aforementioned first-rounder. If he wants to move on, it's his call. I only wish he would have weighed my feelings more heavily when deciding.

If Blake goes, my primary hard feelings will be for Jake Brandt, who didn't have to tell us he'd be back.

The younger hasn't even been drafted yet. It seems pretty likely to me that he'll be back next year, as very few players, let alone dmen, move up in their D+1 year.

Numbers-wise, the goal totals for the other guys will probably make a difference, but still a great performance for him this season.

Keep your facts out of this discussion.

I think it's more going to the portal because the junior player needs another year of development.

That Sandelin interview was something. This is not portal related, but it's my understanding that the MI super teams of the last few years were largely advisor assembled, or at least got a boost from advisor relationships. So when it seems like the high profile guys always end up in the same couple places, that may have a lot to do with it. Sounds like the portal is more of the same. And I say that understanding that UND has been more of a beneficiary there.

I'd say he does some things better than any of the three. But he's physically much less ready than any of them for playing against guys who are made of stone. He's most similar in build to Caggiula, but younger and not filled out yet. The other two had sturdy NHL frames, which he'll never have.

Thanks again for compiling that all season.