jk

I am so sick of hearing: and Abel shoots it down the ice... on the Sioux PP. Why do other team's PPs spend all day in the Sioux zone and the Sioux can't even get it set up? I'm just frustrated.

Hammy, there have probably been 200 posts on POI this season that have been dispairaging (sp) in one way or another towards UND (and that's just from smitty), but I don't respond to them because it's POI and they don't need to have me argue with them about UND on their board. Sure there were a few Sioux newbies who made a mess over there, but for the most part we exercise discretion. Rubbing in the "reversal of fortunes" after a tough loss would be maybe something that falls into the discretion category. I don't mind at all that you post here, but don't think you need to chime in to defend MN just because someone said something about them you disagree with. I bite my tongue on POI all the time. JMO.

I agree with Taz. All is not lost, and the most important time to keep the faith is when things look their worst. Good things can still happen, but they need to go out and make them happen. I think any chance at third place is gone if the Sioux lose tomorrow. They would be seven points behind Mankato, which would require the Sioux to run the table and Mankato to go pointless against CC. The way MN is playing, even with their tougher schedule, making up their three point lead seems tough to do now. Running the table seems laughable, though, since they haven't even had a lead in the last four games. Not to bag on Zach, because he always plays hard and gets his chances, but I think now Vanek is probably ROY. The guy scored the third and fifth goals in a big game for MN tonight, and seems to be coming on, while Zach is in a bit of a slump. I haven't looked at WCHA stats to see where they stand. Heck, you could make arguments for Reichsmuth, Sterling and Stuart as well. Who would have thought Ranfranz would come in and allow four goals on about 60 shots over two road games, and people would be on here thinking the season is over? It's interesting that so many top teams are struggling now. Maine can't seem to pull it together, BU and BC each go on runs, then surprisingly drop a couple. Two of the hottest teams seem to be Providence and Michigan State. No top team seems as cold as UND, though. Enough rambling. Go Sioux.

This is just depressing. It was miserable listening to the third period tick away with not a lot of pressure by the Sioux. I can accept that you're not going to outplay a good team for the entire game, but that just makes it so much more important to score when you're controlling play, which they seemed to do for the first two periods. Another solid goaltending performance wasted. It's got to end sometime, doesn't it?

From USCHO's weekly report: "We're still fine. There's no time for panic," Blais said. "The big thing is with this time of year is being healthy and not playing bad. It's different if you're playing bad, but we're playing really well. You're going to win some of those and lose some. -------------------------- This might be a little too nonchalant an attitude, but it basically is why I am not panicking. The key is turning the good play into points. If that happens this weekend, I think things will be fine. If it doesn't, then the comfort of "playing well" starts to sound too much like claiming moral victories. I'm pleased for Mankato that they are developing some passion in town for the program, but I hope the Sioux are playing the third period before a half-empty rink tonight.

Regarding transfer rules, it is my understanding that a player cannot transfer from one Division I school to another without sitting a year. He could go to a Division III school and play the next year, but not Division I. There may be an exception that allows the player to skip the year on the shelf if the school gets hit with NCAA sanctions, but I'm not sure about that. For this reason, I never understood the discussion of Blais granting a release to Fournier. As far as I know, Blais could have "granted him a release", co-signed his mortgage and legally adopted him and Fournier would still not have been eligible to play for UAA this year. Perhaps someone could help with the transfer rules.

http://www.madison.com/wisconsinstatejourn...ports/43054.php Yikes. The Leavitt/Eaves confrontation in GF was apparently more serious than the initial reports. If only Alex had stuck with his initial lean and chosen UND, his life would be a lot more pleasant now. I hope they get things squared away down there (after UND beats them) because it's not good for the league to have Wisco so down.

Considering what the Mavs PP did to the Sioux earler this year, I'm guessing the word has been given to the players to stay out of the box. No stupid penalties. If you have to take a good one, fine, sometimes you're beat and it's the best option. But no penalties 200 feet from your goalie. I have a feeling that Prpich or McMahon will score this weekend, and I also think that Canady or Connelly will score this weekend. The time has come. If you take out the Michigan Tech blowout, Bochenski has 4 points in the last 6 games. In the same stretch, Parise also has 4 points. Even more shocking is that Parise has 1 assist in the last 6 games, and 3 assists in the last 9 games (and that includes the MTU blowout). Either they're coming back to earth, or they're DUE, in a big way.

What has gotten out of hand on this thread? I wish it had gone away a long time ago when it was discussing the initial topic, but the latest bump of it was a very good public service announcement: Don't try to go to POI because you'll get directed to an inappropriate site. And the subsequent discussion has been tame. My current question: Is it safe to go back to POI? I don't want to try at work.

Following is a great article on Ryan's debut. Credit jen (THE jen) for posting the link on USCHO. http://www.caneshockey.com/custom/rad0A383.asp "I really liked his game, because there's an intelligence to it," said Hurricanes head coach Paul Maurice. "He gets the puck down low in our end of the ice. He's not giving it up. He made two or three great plays defensively and offensively and we kept using him. He played a very good game."

When he got called up, maybe partly because it was to Carolina, which isn't exactly dripping with tradition, it didn't quite seem like he was in the NHL. But his first game was against Jagr, he just scored on Eddie (on a rebound of his own shot), he got called for tripping Mogilny, and his goal was assisted by Ron Francis. Those are names I recognize. I guess he is in the NHL! That's so cool. I hope he makes a good impression and soon becomes an NHL regular.

1-4-1 in the last six has been bad, to be sure. But 22-6-4 counts for something.

I didn't see the games this weekend; I only listened. Getting only one point out of Denver and 1-4-1 in the last six bites, to be sure. Based on what I heard, the Sioux earned at least two points this weekend, and probably three. They were undone perhaps by their own goaltending a little bit on Friday, and by an outstanding opposing goaltender on Saturday. On Friday, it sounded like UND played a strong first period, followed by a lousy second, their worst of the weekend, and an outstanding third and OT. Saturday they had some excellent chances in the first, were pretty even in the second, and had again a very good third period. My optimistic viewpoint right now is the team is playing well. If they continue to play well, they will win more of these games than they lose. They also got a nice goaltending performance Saturday. The pessimistic view is that not only is a top three finish in jeopardy, but home ice is now in question. "Playing well" is encouraging, but wins and points earn favorable playoff seeds and NCAA tournament berths. This doesn't seem like last year's team to me. They move the puck a lot better, and the defense stands people up at the blue line. The results have been familiar for a few weeks now, though. At Mankato? Two points are now a necessity, but anything more than that would be in the realm of hope rather than expectation. Hosting Duluth? The way Sandelin has them playing, a sweep doesn't seem very likely. At home, with the proper motivation, a sweep should be do-able though. At Wisconsin? I fear a miracle by a motivated Badger squad, but this should be four points. Most likely result down the stretch:4-2 Next most likely: 5-1 Next most likely: 3-3 Eight more points puts them at 36. Everyone can run their own what-ifs to see where that puts them, but it must get home ice.

Heard? Did you read it out loud?

Pretty nice game last night for Brady Murray: VERNON VIPERS 2 at SALMON ARM SILVERBACKS 4 VE- 1) Chad Murray(Han, Claffey), 2) Bryan McGregor(Reaney, Kisio). SA- 1) Brady Murray(Nikiforuk), 2) Murray(Nikiforuk, Veideman), 3) SHG/WG- Murray(Nikiforuk, Kestell), 4) PPG-Alex Nikiforuk(Murray, Veideman).

Although Spee was with Parise for a shift in the OT, I think the third period was Parise, Bochenski, Notes and then Lundbohm, Massen, Spiewak - these would be the lines we're most used to, IMO. Yep, this experiment lasted about a period longer than the last one, which had Parise with Massen (I think). Blais doesn't hesitate to pull the plug on his own ideas, if he doesn't think they're working.

Bayda is held off the scoresheet in a 3-1 win. He played a lot though, and even got a little PP time. Lost in last year's disaster was how good he was. Congrats, Ryan, on advancing your dream one step further by playing in the NHL.

Hey, I didn't know you guys were over here! Parise must have had about five excellent chances that were all either saved or near misses. I predict that both Parise and Bochenski find the net tomorrow. Whether it will be enough to win, I don't know. How about Connelly getting robbed in the first by Berkoel? He just can't buy a goal. And so nice to hear Canady playing. Good job, Sioux. I really thought they were going to pop one in in the OT.

All the Ranfranz longing reminds me of the love affair that Vikings fans typically have with backup quarterbacks.

The Sioux also seem to have a little bit of the Friday/Saturday thing going on: CC: UND leads on Friday, with CC getting the tie with 5 minutes left. Saturday CC plays well, deserving a win probably, but UND gets the borderline miracle finish to tie. MN: UND plays great in a Friday win. Saturday they lose. AA: UND kills em Friday, and wins only 3-0 Saturday. CC: Taking the Friday/Saturday thing to an extreme, UND plays great for only the first period, then gets into the Saturday slide early. MT: UND kills em Friday, and loses Saturday. Recent records: Friday 3-1-1 Saturday 1-3-1 Recent GF/GA: Friday 30-13 Saturday 13-19

If he starts tonight, maybe they want him to have an easy time of it, since there will not be an opponent on the ice. It looks like Carolina plays Washington on Valentine's Day. Wow. Bayda called up! How cool is that?

This is pasted from the Topeka press release. Since it's a press release, I assume there's less of a problem with copyright issues. If I'm wrong there, I apologize. After an injury-filled season last year and a bit of a slow start this year, Layne had really come on for a good Topeka team. Hopefully, he can recover fully. LINCOLN, Neb. -- Topeka ScareCrows netminder Layne Sedevie was lost for the season after suffering a rotary subluxation in the first two cervical vertebras during Tuesday night's 5-2 loss to the Lincoln Stars in the Ice Box in Lincoln, Neb. The incident occurred in the second period, when Stars forward Ryan Potulny came in on the right side on a partial breakaway. Potulny collided with Sedevie, knocking the netminder into the goalpost. Sedevie remained face down on the ice for about 15 minutes, before being taken off the ice on a stretcher and transported to a local hospital. According to ScareCrows trainer Michael Muir, "Layne complained of neck pain and anytime there is a possibility of a spinal injury, standard operating procedure is to put the individual on a spinal board and transport him to a nearby hospital. "We were fortunate to have Dr. Robert Vande Guchte, who is with the Lincoln Orthopedic Center, on hand for the assessment and transport of Layne. Layne is currently under the direct supervision of Dr. Vande Guchte." Muir continued, "That night Layne underwent a CAT scan and an X-ray, which confirmed the aforementioned diagnosis. Layne also underwent an MRI today, which was negative. Tests confirmed that the damage was done to the ligaments in the neck region and not to the spinal cord." ScareCrows Executive Vice President Steve Pona, who was with Sedevie at the hospital, said, "Layne is a very brave young man. He will be severely missed, but I am confident the team and the fans will rally around him." Pona was also very complimentary of the Lincoln Stars and the fans of Topeka. "I would also like to thank the Lincoln Stars organization for all their assistance in this serious matter and the fans of Topeka for their phone calls and genuine concern for our injured goaltender." Sedevie remains in Lincoln and the decision will be made in the next 48 hours on his transport and treatment. With the season ending injury to Sedevie the Crows are left with one netminder, rookie Michael Zacharias. "Michael is a top end goaltender and our team will rally around him," Head Coach Tom Rudrud said. "As far as a backup to Michael is concerned, we will add a goaltender to our roster by this weekend." Cards and letters for Layne can be sent to the following address: Topeka ScareCrows Attn: Layne Sedevie, 1800 Exoduster Blvd., Topeka, Kansas 66612 Crows will be back in action for a weekend series in Cedar Rapids on Saturday and Sunday.

I miss Adam Calder. I guess Notes has pretty much been in that role for a while now. I think Prpich is Notes's heir. Tough, plays big but isn't, good offensive ability but it comes in flashes... did I mention tough? Spiewak, Notes and the Hale boys have earned a special place in Sioux history for bridging the gap between eras. If only Ryan Hale could finish.

I think I can remember back to Friday now and post a few other observations from a non-expert fan: On Friday, Parise had the best game I've seen him have (I haven't seen as many games as most of you have), and not because he scored twice. In the third period, he made three really beautiful passes to the "extra" guy for scoring chances. None of them went in, but they were Roche, Panzer, Hrkac vision passes, that really catch the defense and goaltenders off-guard. One of them was to Schneider cruising down from the blueline, and it got me thinking about the freshman adjustment factor and one distortion of it this year. In addition to Zach having to adjust to the NCAA, his teammates are still learning how to play with him. Now, when Schneider sees Zach head to the corner in pursuit of a loose puck, he sees an opening down the middle and heads for it, guessing that Zach will not only win the puck in the corner but get it to him. Earlier this year, I don't think he would have done it. I also noticed this weekend that Zach, while quicker than heck in short races to the puck, does not yet have the breakaway speed up and down the rink. Knowing his reputation for hard work, I'm guessing he'll get faster as his career progresses. Although he had a few gaffes on Saturday, Schneider really is turning into a fine, fine player. He seems more aggressive offensively all the time, is tough to beat defensively, and still lays the smack down all the time. I love it when an opponent's offensive rush ends with the puck carrier getting intimate with the glass on the side boards. Speaking of which, Matt Jones absolutely demolished two Huskies right in front of me, about ten seconds apart, in the second period Saturday. They were clean bodychecks that should be in the video dictionary next to the term. Spee had more blinding speed rushes this weekend, and Notes pulled another spin-o-rama in the offensive zone. People love to look ahead to national contending teams for the next few years, but this team is going to miss those guys next year. If Ryan Hale could only finish... He didn't do much Saturday, but Prpich showed again on Friday that he has a real presence on the ice and could be a special player. While his line was cycling relentlessly on Friday, Prpich seemed to take it upon himself to GO TO THE NET with the puck, several times. He got several good shots off, but didn't score. It reminded me of, of all things, Tyler Hirsch last year in a SSM game. The Parise line was dominating possession in the zone with precision passing, and a few times Hirsch just seemed to say, "screw this pretty stuff, I'm goin' to the net." Not that Prpich needs to aspire to be Tyler Hirsch, it was just deja vu for me. How about Connelly's move from the blue line to the net in Saturday's first period? It was like he was doing a skating drill around cones. If only he could have finished! Does Fylling idolize Bochenski? I feel like he sometimes shoots when he should pass. He's a good passer, but at least once a game I think, "shoulda passed." I don't want to take anyone out of the lineup to get him back in there, but I think the team needs Canady back to shake things up a bit. Who knows what a big hit could have done to the momentum of Saturday's game?

sagard, Thanks for posting. You are welcome here. Of course, you may not want to any longer, now that you have been revealed to be not a real Sioux fan. I think I would think the same thing about CC and UND if I were in your shoes. As a Sioux fan, I think UND's chances are best at any of the small ice sites, as I like their game better there. Of course, I'd get to watch them if they were at Mariucci, but that's just selfish on my part. Hopper, Thanks for posting also. Please lighten up just a touch. A Gopher fan should be able to come here and call his team the Gophs.