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From http://www.usacollegehockey.com/ Along with a new arena, Dean

Good idea, Scott. I think I'll be there for Thursday's games, but I don't know the "X" very well, so I couldn't suggest a meeting place. I'll follow this thread, though, and show up at a designated site, if possible.

A few years ago, this league had some titans in the nets in Goehring, Meyer and Melanson. Not titans in stature but in their play. Even though Dubie and a few others had fine seasons, I don't think the level of play at that position is back to where it was. Denver: If Dubie's back, best in the league. If not, Berkoel is still among the best. However, how he reacts to being "the man" remains to be seen. SCSU: The Weasel is gone. Moreland is back, and he will probably be fine. Helping him will be a big group of experienced defensemen. MN: Subtract one headcase. Return two talented sophomores, neither of whom stepped up to claim the job this year when it was available. Big question mark that may turn out fine. CC: Sanger is gone. McIlhenny returns. He was highly touted, but is still a question mark at this point. Wisconsin: Kabatoff and Bruckler both return. This tandem will be near the top of the league in quality, and the Badgers will need that. MSU: Return Pateman, Volp and Jensen, all of whom are at least decent. Not as big a question as most league teams have. UAA: Return Reiter and King. Whether that's a good thing remains to be seen. UMD and MTU: I'm too tired of typing to look into it. UND: Kollar leaves, which is too bad since he seems to have found his game. Both Siembida and Brandt showed flashes of fine play, but faded down the stretch, especially Siembida. The Siembida that started the season, so confident and solid, seemed gone by the end of the year. Even though MN looked awesome in Siembida's last game, he still was absent from the net on a few of those goals. I hope an offseason of work, practicing with the team from the start of the season, and a little better team in front of him will help him be the good goaltender I think he can be. Brandt looked pretty good to me in the second half of the year, but he must be doing something wrong because he can't seem to get into the lineup. I have seen differing reports on whether Sedevie is coming in 2002 or 2003. All in all, no other team in the league has a more uncertain goaltending situation than the Sioux. Someone may step up, and things would be fine. But it could turn into another tough year as well.

It's quiet and I'm frustrated watching *other* teams in the postseason, so I thought I'd start a thread to bring together some of the discussions about the defense scattered on other threads. Is it fair to consider Schneider and Fuher the most "offensive" of the top four defensemen? If so, then perhaps they are in different pairs: Hale, Schneider Jones, Fuher Leinweber, Greene Marvin Most everyone seems appropriately worried about a lack of offensive skill at the defense, but an even more important issue for me is how the defense handles the puck in its own zone. Moving the puck to the right man and out of the zone with control is crucial to success. On this point, I think we saw pretty good progress toward the end of the year. The own-zone puck movement that we saw in the last two periods of the last game of the year was excellent. If they can build on that, the team could really blossom this year. One thing that can be said about this group: there are a bunch of tough SOBs back there. None of them individually will be as physically dominant as Commie, but as a group, they will be more punishing than any I can remember in the Blais era. Hale and Schneider are both very tough. I hope they save their fighting DQs for a league game. I didn't expect to see the physical play the Sioux got from Jones, but I thought it was very impressive, especially for such a young guy. By reputation, both Greene and Marvin like to make their presence known to opposing forwards. The Sioux will miss the experience of Mazurak and Schneekloth, but their play seemed to slip a bit from their junior to senior years, I think mainly because of injuries. Even though the top two pairs will be junior, soph, soph, soph, at least they are all very experienced, having played basically every game last year.

Likewise, though, jumping from midgets to the WCHA is even harder. I can't see that Parise would have any easier adjustment to this level than Vanek. In fact, I hope people don't get on Parise's case if he performs like a freshman in his freshman year. It seems like our expectations for him are pretty high. I would settle for consistent effort and flashes of brilliance, and I think we'll get at least that.

One other thing. He's third on the team in PIMs with 113. Good. Getting tougher was a big part of this move, I would think.

This is hardly real data, but I thought I'd pass it on. There is a discussion on the SF Stampede board about their team awards for the year. For most valuable player for the year, the votes are as follows: M. Sertich 0.3 Corey 1.0 Pierzep... 2.3 Fylling 2.3 One fan who voted for someone else for MVP chose Fylling for most determined. I guess a player who played forty NCAA games the previous year should do well, but it's nice to see that his team's fans have developed affection for his game. Vanek was voted outstanding offensive player by everyone. I suspect we may find him very offensive as well.

I am far from an expert so someone is welcome to chime in with real facts, but it seems to me that Colby put up the numbers in bantams. At SSM, I know that Parise plays with the Midget AAA team. SSM also has teams that play Midget AA, Midget A, Bantam AA, and Bantam B. So I'm guessing Genoway didn't put those numbers up at a similar level of hockey. Not that I will object in any way to his being a fine player.

HKNTSMN - That's hilarious. I bet his mom thinks he's going to be good, too. Let's hope he's right. It must just kill these guys to have to sit out a year, after playing every day of every winter for as long as they can remember. The great part about it, though, is they have the year to adjust to college life and classwork. So when they finally do start playing, they are only adjusting to college hockey, not college life. And since they have been practicing for a year, even the adjustment to the speed of the game should be easier.

Thought I'd roll this one back to the top now that we're officially looking forward to next year. How are we supposed to put hippity-hoppety lines together for next year if we don't know if Genoway can play? Someone must have an idea now whether we should expect an inconsistent third or fourth-liner or someone who will be competing for time on the top lines. Anyone?

Very nice, non-homer, analysis. I can't seem to keep the green glasses off when I look forward. Considering their losses, I see SCSU and CC in a big group behind the top teams, fighting with UND, Mankato and maybe Duluth to finish third and stay out of the play-in game. Denver: Head-to-head, the Sioux seemed to match up fine with Denver, but the Sioux now lose more from this year than they do. When you look at the year they had, though, and the players leaving and arriving, it's hard not to like their chances. SCSU: They could have the kind of year the Sioux had this year - UND lost Goren, Ulmer and Commie and surprised people by contending. Then they lost "the rest" of their stars, Panzer, Luhdbohm, Roche and Goehring, and slid pretty far. Well, SCSU lost Arnason, Westcott and Meyer and surprised (me anyway) by contending. Next year they lose the rest, Hartigan and DiCas. Plus the jury's not out on Dahl. MN: I think Taffe leaves. If Vanek arrives, MN should be very good. If he bolts, I think MN falls into the mass of mid-level competetive teams. CC: Good talent, but lose a lot. How they adjust to the loss of their best players just isn't known. The jury's still out on Owens. Wisconsin: Eaves will be good for them, but the biggest problem for Sconny is Sauer left a year too late. This is their year for a big recruiting class, and it's probably not what it could be had a promising new coach been reeling them in. I would be shocked by an upper division finish. Mankato: I don't know why they don't stink. Brose/Jutting must know how to coach. UAA: I think they fade, as they lose much more than they bring in. UND: Suddenly lose a lot. They really need the sophomore bump across-the-board. Duluth: Despite their losses, they are getting a taste of success. I think they'll continue to come on. Tech: What dan said.

Verrry interesting. In some ways it's like a mirror image of this season: home from mid-November to mid-January instead of away for all that time, and finish with three of four weekends away. Things I like: Only three weekends off all year - Oct 18-19, Dec 20-21, Jan 17-18. Four if you count the week between the regionals and the Frozen Four. No three-month road trip - It's still not balanced (three straight road series followed by six straight home weekends), but it's better. Things I don't like: Very weak non-conference opponents - It is good for college hockey to schedule these guys, but they won't do much to prepare the team and the RPI is already begging for mercy. I wish we could get all the schedule abuse from some of our opposing fans out of the way now. Since UND has the extra games from the UAA trip this year, I guess you could consider the Canisius series in mid-December as two extra games instead of having the weekend off. SCSU in the first half - Once again we aren't able to participate in the Husky Swoon, as all of our SCSU games are done by December 7.

Ouch. Best wishes to Ryan. As for leadership, there will be three fourth-year players on the team, all good character guys - Spiewak, Notermann and Ryan Hale. I'm not so worried about the leadership. It's the production I'm worried about. Its going to take more than one person stepping up to replace Bayda's offensive impact. One of the guys in the group above needs to have a Skarp-like breakout year. A few members of the big class need to move into the 30 to 40 point range. One other implication is that another scholarship has probably been opened up. Does Porter now come this year? Or does Blais have someone else in mind? Even without Bayda, strictly by the numbers there are plenty of forwards for next year.

Ryan Bayda, thanks for your great contributions to the Sioux's success from 1999-2001, and for helping to teach the new guys what Sioux hockey is all about. You will be missed. Good luck. For that matter, thanks also to Chad Mazurak, Aaron Schneekloth, Tim Skarperud and Andy Kollar, who all played significant roles in the Sioux competing for the national title in two consecutive years. Things didn't end the way everyone would have liked, but I'll remember the contributions during the great years.

We'd love him if he chose the Sioux. I can't complain about nothing being called on the jersey play because that was the way the OT was called - and I loved it. End-to-end, great chances, great saves - a bit of hooking and holding along the way, but that was due to the utter desperation on both sides. I can still picture Bayda floating in front of Hauser with the puck, all alone, waiting for an opening. Alas, he tried to move it over to Skarp, and it bounced around instead.

From Sunday's Herald: "As far as I know, Ryan will be back," Blais said. "But you never know when any player you have who has been drafted by the NHL might sign a pro contract." -------------------------------------- I am reasonably encouraged by this. It's been said by many, but it really is miserable to not have the Sioux playing now, especially when they're just as good as many of the teams still playing.

In 28 games for each: Skarp 18-19-37 Cullen 10-24-34 Cullen does win a ton of faceoffs, though.

Congrats to Bayda and Bochenski. Timmy Skarperud got shafted big-time. Fourth in WCHA scoring, second in goals, and not among the top nine forwards in the league. Huh? Behind him in scoring, but ahead on the All-WCHA teams: 1st: Cullen, 2nd: Medak, DiCas 3rd: James, Sejna, Taffe Ah, well, great job anyway, Tim. Congrats on a fine season.

Did they have a coach's show last night? If they did, I assume it was the last one of the year. Will anyone who heard it please pass along the highlights? Thanks.

I track +/- for every shift of every game and you guys come on here and question my numbers? Just kidding. I got them here: http://www.fightingsioux.com/admin....EAM.IND I have no idea why they don't add up. There must be an element of truth to them, though.

You see Nick Fuher?

If Taffe and Vanek are at MN next year, they are the instant favorites. Even when he was an inconsistent frosh, Taffe always had his best games against the Sioux. He has dynamite skills. I understand Vanek is likewise blessed with stunning talent. With neither Taffe nor Vanek, I think MN slides a bit. Koalska, Riddle and Tallackson are all maturing nicely into impact players, so they won't stink, but it would be hard to adjust to the absence of Taffe in addition to Pohl and Leo. With either Taffe or Vanek, I think MN contends. (I've never seen Vanek, so I'm going strictly on reputation). Guyer is supposed to be roughly of the same quality as Parise, and I think Gopher fans like Erickson and expect him to be a fixture in the lineup. How the Sioux compare will depend on whether Bayda returns and how this year's frosh grow. I think the youngsters should progress well enough to make the Sioux forwards basically a push with MN's, and give the Sioux the edge if MN is without Taffe and Vanek. (Gopher fans, of course you have to expect me to like our forwards here.)

HKNTSM, I know you really got frosted this year when Blais was talking about winning in two years. I've always hoped he meant sometime in the next two years, like next year included, because if things go right the Sioux could contend nationally next year. The biggest thing the team would have going for it next year, and what would be absent the following year, would be a big group of fourth-year forwards, all of whom are strong character guys who have played big roles in the national playoffs in multiple years. What would have to go right? The frosh make the jump to productive sophomores, the young D grow offensively, one of the goalies steps up, and they get a few bounces. Goodness knows they have a few coming from this year. I predict Notermann and Spiewak have the top point years of their Sioux careers next year.

Goon, Tell us what you really think.

Interesting, dagies. Thanks for the info. I had e-mailed Chris Heisenberg with the same question, but haven't heard back from him yet. It should be interesting to see how he does at Lincoln next year. Regarding Parise's effect on recruiting, I'm hoping some slick defenseman from the Canadian prairie sees what the forward lines look like for the next few years and wants to pad his assist stats a bit. There must be one out there somewhere.