jk

An article from NHL.com. Pretty interesting, with a few insights into recruiting, moving on to the next level, and Zach's background. http://www.nhl.com/intheslot/read/college/index.html

Does anyone know or care to say if there is a particular area where the Sioux parents sit at games? Since I will be in attendance, I might like to stop up and meet some of my cyber-acquaintances, if I get a chance. If you'd rather not post that publicly here, you could just e-mail me at kellyjr@wellsfargo.com. Thanks.

This speaks to me of the important role that Spiewak, Notermann, Hale and Leinweber are playing in the continuity of the program. They are bridging the gap from the Blake/Panzer/Goren era to the Parise/Bochenski/Murray(?) era, teaching the next generation what it means to wear the sweater. As the wise one in St. Cloud said, talent can only take you so far. He actually was right. The seniors have won a ring, they know what it takes, and they are trying to build a committed team of their own. I'm glad that Blais isn't talking about contending for a national title this year, but I'll bet he'd like to see the team take a shot at putting together a four-game winning streak to end the year. Just make it to the last sixteen teams, and play that tight-checking transition game and see what happens. And while I don't think the Sioux are a Top 5 team right now, it's interesting to see BC and UND in the one and four spots. Deja vu all over again.

Favoring UND: - Better players. - Revenge factor. Revenge may be too strong a word. Trying to atone for last year might be closer. - Home ice. - Lots of freshmen on UAA, which is adjusting to the graduation of senior leaders. Favoring UAA: - They are desperate for a WCHA win. - They played CC tough last week, leading Saturday after two. - Confidence after doing well at REA last year. - Sioux goaltending will remain a question until someone plays well consistently. Favoring me: - My first trip to GF this year, and my first look at the team live. Really, really looking forward to it. If the Sioux want to contend this year, this is the kind of series they need to sweep.

Here are some updates: Murray 23 gp, 12-30-42. Tied for third in BCHL scoring. Just had a 1-5-6 game in a 7-6 win. Missed one game with a slight concussion. Stafford 19 gp, 9-19-28. Last I heard he was not playing on Crosby's line, which makes his numbers more impressive, to me. Crosby, BTW, is 20-31-51 in 19 gp. Porter 17gp, 2-6-8. Seems to be having trouble adjusting to the USHL, at least based on the stats. Ugly -7 so far. Fabian 13 gp, 5-2-7. Smaby 18 gp, 2-7-9. 31 PIMs. Lamoreaux 5-3, 2.805 GAA, .906 Sedevie 5-3-2, 2.535 GAA, .900 As for their teams: Salmon Arm (Murray) is 16-8 and in second place in its division. SSM (Stafford, Smaby) is 15-4. Lincoln (Porter, Lamoreaux) is 12-4-1, the best record in the USHL. Topeka (Fabian, Sedevie) is 6-5-2, which puts them last in the USHL's West Division, but would be good enough for second in the East.

http://www.collegehockeystats.com/0203/box...es/mndkprn1.n01 If this link works, it looks to me like there were two Sioux players in the box, and one Princeton player, when Bochenski scored his last goal against Princeton. So it should be a SHG.

Since this has turned into a referendum on Coach Dahl, I can chip in with my opinion that I have no problem with the guy. I think I have probably said just about the same thing before - the junior-senior league thing. I also think it's pretty amazing that the SC program is where it is; there's really no reason it should be any more successful than Ferris, Miami, Western Michigan, UAA, Michigan Tech or any non-major school. But they are pretty consistently near the top now. I also think it's safe to like him there, in much the same way I didn't mind Woog staying at MN. But that's just my opinion.

Big win for the Sioux. It's just the second league game of the season, and on the road, but you just have to collect points when you can, and the Sioux played well enough to earn points this weekend. Like in the Michigan game, it seemed just about over until Parise made a great play in last five minutes to tie it up. With five minutes left, the game had slowed to a crawl, with hardly a chance by either team, and it seemed like the Sioux were going to go home swept. So great effort by the team to get points, first one, and then the second one, tonight. Tim and Berry very complimentary of Notermann's work in the OT. Berry thinks he has really stepped his game up this year. Also fantastic job shutting SC down for almost the whole game. When SC's big line did have a few great chances late in the second, Josh made the big saves and kept the team in the game.

This was my first look at the team this year, and I can tell now why people think the team looks better than last year. They do simply move the puck better up front, and the defense does not yield the zone nearly as easily as it did last year. They made mistakes, and SC made them pay for every one of them, but they played well enough to win. After Friday night last year in SC, I felt like the team had been run over by a truck and was not nearly as good as SC. Getting pounded 7-3 bites, but I don't feel the despair that I did after last year. Actually, I am anguished over one thing. As a hint, let me just say that the first thing I checked on the internet after the game was how Sedevie did tonight for Topeka. (Topeka won 3-2 in a shootout; Sioux recruit Fabian scored 2 of Topeka's 3 goals in the shootout; Sedevie saved something like 10 of 12 shootout attempts.) It must just be killing the coaches to see that they have put together what could be a stunning team, in time, that looks to be undone by goaltending. I would hate to have to bring in another goalie mid-season, but one of the guys currently on the roster has got to step up soon. Let's see: SOG 43-25. Score 7-3. Sounds about right ... oh, 3-7. Something's wrong here. Not that SOG is necessarily the end-all of statistics, but the Sioux definitely carried the play for at least a lot of the first two periods. It's not like they were going to go undefeated or anything, so there's no point in overreacting to a bad loss in November. I saw a lot of things to like. Massen seems to be getting a lot more comfortable. Lundbohm and Notermann played well. Parise's line seemed quiet, and I think a lot of that was because they seemed to spend many shifts in their own zone. They just had trouble getting into the offensive zone. Connelly is faster than I remember, and Canady was a presence at times. I was hoping for more from Genoway; he seemed to really nonchalant it on a first-period power play. He obviously is taking time getting adjusted. I didn't think Marvin looked out of place at all, but Prpich didn't do much for me. Even though there were encouraging signs, this isn't last year - there aren't moral victories. The Sioux need to get points this weekend, so they're going to have to get them tomorrow. What did Blais have to say afterward?

Agreed. We can all be thankful that Matt wasn't badly injured. The picture is chilling, with the angle of his impact into the boards and his helmet visible elsewhere.

I was glancing at recent WCHA scoring statistics and thought it notable that for at least the last four years (all that I could easily check) UND has had at least two of the WCHA's top five scorers. Considering how college teams turn over, that's pretty amazing. 98-99: Blake, Jay Panzer, CC, Denver, Goren/Panzer/Williamson (tie) 99-00: Panzer, MN, Wisc., Goren, Wisc. 00-01: Panzer, CC, Lundbohm, CC, Wisc./SC 01-02: SC, MN, Bayda, Skarperud, CC Has this been the result of great offensive players, Blais's philosophies, or both? The Sioux haven't played any WCHA games yet, so it's hard to say whether it will continue. It seems to be a reasonable possibility, though.

Just a few stats to start with: Quinn Fylling: 2000/01 42 games 4-3-7 2002/03 6 games 3-7-10 Team SHG: 2001/02 37 games 4 SHG 2002/03 6 games 5 SHG (I think) I don't think anyone is "on a pace" for anything, but I do like the comparisons above. I'll have a few more thoughts later.

My post from this afternoon looks silly now, and I'm glad of it. Seven Sioux goals, and none from Parise or Bochenski. (Not that I have a problem with them scoring.) Notes, Spiewak and Lundblom (c. DW) seem to be really stepping it up this year. It mus be tough to be a parent and have to listen to a player down on the ice, potentially injured. It sure was great that Jones was able to play later. One of the unexpected bonuses of the schedule this year was going to be catching SC shorthanded early in the year. Now I guess it's a push. I guess Marvin goes back to D and you have six defensemen. Then you have 11 forwards: P, F, Bochenski Notes, Lundblom, Massen Genoway, Canady, Connelly Palmo, Prpich Obviously losing four guys for a game stinks, but if it is the result of the captain sticking up for one of his guys that he felt got mistreated, then I'm glad he did it. It's just like Greene giving the Tiger a slash after he ran Parise. The guys are taking care of each other. I'm sure the first team that really runs the goalie is going to get the treatment, as well. It's good team-building. It sounded to me like Siembida had a good weekend, and has earned the start next Friday.

You guys are right in my area of concern, and I can say that my concern is growing as we wrap up the "preseason." It's not just that the lower lines aren't scoring, it's that they're not scoring against cupcakes. I can give a hall pass to the second line for last night, because they've pretty consistently applied pressure so far this year. But the lower lines haven't scored at all. And despite Blais's opinion of Niagara (I fully recognize my opinion is nothing compared to his), our depth lines should completely dominate their depth lines. Wayne State and Alabama were picked to win the CHA, with Niagara in the middle of the pack. Niagara lost at home last night to Air Force. I feel like a home game with Niagara should be double digits, not tied in the third. UND beats Niagara 6-4, 5-3, and MN beats a supposedly better Alabama team 12-1. This is not a good omen. This is a pretty negative post, but I think we may be in for a bit of a rude awakening when the games against good teams start. I hope I'm wrong. On the other hand, the object is to score more goals than the team you're playing that night. Maybe whatever the opponents happen to do at other times in the season just isn't relevant. Hopefully the Sioux take it to Yale tonight.

Sorry I jumped the gun on the goalie thing. Thanks again for the radio updates. The Sicatoka, very interesting about the goalies. Could Ranfranz (also known throughout cyberspace as LaFranz, LaFrench, Dennis Franz and whatever else people can come up with) actually play this year? Also, great news about Canady. The team has been good, but a boost of energy is never a bad thing. Speaking of which: Sockeye, how was your trip? Does Brian elbow for position watching a game from the stands? It must have been frustrating for him to want to be involved. I can't wait to see this team. I'll see one of the SC games on TV and then I'll be in the palace to see UAA.

I don't mean to be critical, but I just don't understand the goaltending situation. JB had a weak outing against Niagara on Friday, then got sent out again Saturday. Then he got pulled on Saturday, so he gets the nod for the next game? This seems like the time of year when rotating goalies makes sense, so I'm surprised to see JS on the bench again. For most of the second half of last year, it seemed that JB was in the doghouse, not playing even when JS had begun to struggle. Is JS now similarly in the doghouse? Or is it just as simple as one guy looking better in practice so he plays?

Part 1, of course, was a thread with a few Blais comments about the Gophers that ended up on another board. Turnabout is fair play, so I thought I'd highlight the following Lucia comments from the WCHA preview column on USCHO a few weeks ago. Gee, I wonder which unnamed team he's referring to. ----------------------------------------------------- "We have enough good players where we don't have to rely on one freshman to carry the mail," Gophers coach Don Lucia said. "We don't need a freshman to come in and be our No. 1 center or quarterback our power play. We have guys returning that can do those jobs." ----------------------------------------------------- Gophers forward scoring through 5 games: Riddle 5-3-8 Guyer 5-1-6 Vanek 3-2-5 Hirsch 1-4-5 Looks like the freshmen are carrying the mail for the Gophers. Guyer leads the team in PP goals with 3, and has been the team's best player. Where are the returning guys who are supposed to be doing those jobs? (I know the Gophers have some injuries.) If Parise played for MN, who do you think would be centering their number one line? Disclaimer: I still think MN's going to be very good this year. I just think the shot from Lucia shouldn't go unnoticed.

I'm looking for scoring from Canady, Connelly, Massen, McMahon, Genoway and Hale... say, about four goals on the weekend for the group. Considering they have combined for one so far, it sounds like a lot, but considering their abilities, it doesn't seem too far-fetched.

I only got to hear pieces of the game, as I was busy parenting this evening, but I was pleased to hear that the upperclassmen stepped up - 3 goals between Spee and Notermann. Two shorties on the same PK shift, when you started the PK down two goals - that's senior leadership. (It's too bad NU scored later in the PP, or it would have been perfect.) I should "not listen" more often. I stepped away down 0-2 and came back to 2-3, then I left just after NU made it 4-4, and came back to 6-4. I would enjoy reading people's impressions of players, including Genoway, Massen, Connelly, Fylling, Prpich and whoever made an impression on you. Thanks.

If Canady's pre-game interview at the Ralph was broadcast on the big-screens there, that must have been fun for his parents. I too would love to see Ryan Connelly have a nice year here, so the positive reviews on his performance are encouraging. After all the shots he took on this board last year, I've been kind of pulling for him. He seemed to be just figuring things out last year when he got hurt. After playing on the third line for a lot of last season, he should be ready to contribute. The reviews for Connelly and Fylling also make me think about team speed. In the last game of the year last year (granted, just one game), the Sioux played well against MN. Forwards in the line-up now (or soon) who did not play in that game are Parise, Fylling, Genoway, Connelly and Canady. Guess what? They can all skate! Well, Parise, Fylling and Connelly obviously, Genoway by reputation (how did his skating look, BTW?), and I was surprised by how much Canady buzzed about when I saw them live last year. I had not expected him to be that fast, since he was more of a banger by reputation. Anyway, my point is that I think the team is a lot quicker this year.

PCM, I heard from someone in Anchorage that journalism school might help you keep your facts straight. Thanks to all for the game information. More than the score and the statistics, it's nice to hear that they look good.

In best Emily Littella voice: What's this I hear about Viagra at North Dakota? Is it so cold there that "things" don't work properly? And why will Viagra be there for only one weekend - won't that just be torture, to have one warm weekend before all those cold months ahead? Apologies to those too young to have heard Ms. Littella's editorials.

I'd love to stop by to say hello, but I'll be home, which unfortunately is 300 miles away. I think I'll be in town to watch the UAA series in a month, so I'm pretty excited about that. Hope you have a great trip.

Someone who claims SSM connections noted on another board that Stafford centers his own line, separate from Crosby. Of course everything you read on the internet is true.

We report on the bad as well as the good. Salmon Arm took its 10-game winning streak on the road this weekend and came home with a 3-game losing streak. Murray was 1-1-2 in the three games.