jk

Or how about #47, D. Blais? Flin Flon? Now, that's Canada. I forget the story, but the town may have some link to a fictional character named Flintabatty Flonatin, or something like that. Do you think they always schedule team picture day the morning after team party night?

I posted this on PrideonIce: "I went also. Good game. The fans got pretty excited when BSM tied it up with 2.5 minutes left in the third. SSM was the better team by a lot, but that's why the play the game. My amateur opinion is that Parise and Murray seemed to be smoother and faster skaters than Hirsch. Hirsch, on the other hand, took the puck straight to the net every chance he got, resulting in a bunch of chances. SSM's first goal was Hirsch from P and M, but the goal was all Hirsch's. He got the puck on the side boards and headed for the slot, deking first the D-man then the goalie. I didn't hear the announcement of Parise's goal, but I think it was unassisted. He just got the puck at the blue line, skated to the top of the circle and blasted a slapper. I was standing right behind the goal and appeared on the game highlights on WCCO last night. (I was the one with the Sioux sweatshirt.) I'm famous! The OT goal was Parise catching up to a puck across the blue line, separating with his speed, moving wide to the left (drawing the D with him), and making a nice pass to Hirsch cruising down the slot all by himself. He made a nice R-L-R and tuck it behind the goalie move. This goal was equal parts nice plays by P and H. What I wouldn't pay to see SSM and Greenway slug it out this year. I've only seen Guyer in last year's tourney on TV, but he and Parise seem to be similar caliber players." I'll add a bit. I got in a few minutes into the first, so I missed introductions, and SSM doesn't have names on their jerseys. It took exactly one shift for me to figure out which one was ZP. When he moves through neutral ice with the puck, he is instantly afforded space by opponents, as he looks very dynamic moving with the puck. You can see the opponents thinking, "oh shoot, back up! back up! back up!" He'll be noticed right away in the WCHA, and eventually be a star. He will be surprised next year at how quickly time and space disappear, and this will take some adjustment time. His WCHA opponents will be surprised at how dynamic he is. His linemates will be surprised that the puck is on their stick in the slot a lot. ZP might not be the fastest player on SSM, though. That would be Murray.

The USHL site says: "Cable viewers in Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin and Iowa will be able to watch the 2002 USHL Prospects / All-Star Game on Fox Sports Net North again this year. Viewers outside Wisconsin can tune in at 2 p.m. on Feb. 9 to catch the action. Wisconsin viewers will see the broadcast at 5 p.m. on Feb. 9. Familiar hockey voices Wally Shaver and Doug Johnson will be calling the game." Sioux recruit Matt Greene and returning player Quinn Fylling will be playing in this game, as well as recruits for nearly every top program. I'm excited about Fylling's return next year. He skated a regular shift all year his freshman year and showed flashes of real skill. I think he'll be able to step in and be a mature player right away, and hopefully he won't seem as physically overmatched as in the past. Most of all, I'm glad he brings the team speed up a bit, as he is a fine skater. Plus he has a cool name for a fast guy. Plus he's a native North Dakotan. I'm not sure where he fits into the lineup, but that will be Blais's problem next fall. The competition for PT will be even more intense next year.

Might as well get this one started, even though it's a bit away. When the Sioux take the ice against the Gophers on February 8, it will have been something like 104 days since their last home win against Wisconsin in late October. It's time to put a stop to that. I think the Sioux can do well against MN. Even though MN controlled play for a lot of the time in Mariucci, there are a few reasons to like UND's chances. First, a lot of the edge in play occurred on the PP, where MN is excellent. Second, the big rink suits MN's game, especially on the PP, where they can just play their positions. It also limits UND's cycling. Third, the Sioux are going to get a home ice advantage going one of these days - the Gophers could be just what the Sioux need to get going at home. In the Gophers favor, they will have Dan Welch fully up to speed and may have retired Hauser by then. I like how the Sioux forwards match up with the Gophers, all the way down to line 4. The big difference between these teams continues to be puck-handling defensemen. I was encouraged last weekend to hear several rushes that sounded like: Sioux D get control of the puck in own zone, quickly ahead to F in neutral zone, quickly ahead to F crossing the blue line. It was that quick transition game that more than anything has been the hallmark of Sioux hockey under Dean Blais. I'm looking forward to seeing how those talented Gopher D-men like being cycled down low. They may do just fine, but perhaps they will feel forechecking pressure they're not used to. I'm optimistic, but I guess the Gophers are really good this year, so perhaps I should calm down. It was Michigan Tech, after all.

Posted by me on Friday: .What I'd like to see this weekend (not predicting, just wishing): 4-2, 7-3 sweep, no suspensions, no injuries. Sweep, total goals 10-4; not bad. No suspensions - good. I was wondering if Schneider was going to get the gate with his 5 in the third. Injuries - rats. I hope Siembida, Connelly and Fournier are OK. They are all important in their own ways. Keep it up Sioux. Now let's play the high-energy game against MInny.

I think UND is at the point where Bayda, Skarperud and someone can compete with any other first line in the league, save perhaps Hartigan, Dicasmirro and someone. But I think the key to success down the stretch is to get Spiewak, Notermann and Lundbohm going. They were together down the stretch last year and were very dangerous. I like them back together now and they had four? points between them last night. Then you can throw out some exciting talent and energy for the third and fourth lines and I like it.

OK, let's go Sioux, have a good weekend. One nice thing about playing out East is that I can get to bed a little earlier. The CC games ended 11:00 or 11:30, then you have a little while to check the message boards to get some feedback, and it's after midnight. And you college students keep your thoughts to yourselves about my bedtime. Another nice thing... I obtained a ticket to the Saturday Sioux-Gopher game. What I'd like to see this weekend (not predicting, just wishing): 4-2, 7-3 sweep, no suspensions, no injuries.

When I think of this weekend from MTU's perspective, you know they are absolutely licking their chops to get a piece of this "weak" Sioux team. I hope the Sioux realize this going in and play with passion. When they do, they have really been able to rattle some good teams. It's time to earn points in the conference standings. I'd like to see the Josh/Jake show again this weekend in goal; I'm not sure which night for who, though. As usual, any input from the coach's show would be appreciated.

Thanks, Scott, for the consideration. Your thoughts on the event's proximity are mine as well.

For any Metro-area fans looking to take in SSM's game with Benilde, here is what I have found: According to the SSM site, the game is Wednesday, Jan. 30, at 7:15 p.m. A receptionist I spoke to at Benilde said they play their home games at the St. Louis Park Ice Arena. She gave me these directions: Coming from the North on Hwy 100, take the 36th (St./Ave?) exit. Go East on 36th, back over Hwy 100, and through two lights. The rink is on the right-hand side just after the second light. She was not a good direction-giver so I think there may be a little searching required, but this should get you in the area. I have a commitment that evening (and I never have commitments) but I'm going to try to get over there if I can.

Scott, I may have interest. Please e-mail me at kellyjr@wellsfargo.com with info (number of tickets) and your e-mail address. I will do a little checking and get back to you. Thanks.

I have read somewhere that Lee Marvin of Lincoln will come to UND next year. Does anyone know if this is true, and if so, if it's a good thing? He's not listed in Heisenberg's USHL section, so I don't know if he's just coming in as a legacy or if he's considered a "real" recruit. If it's the former, I'm OK with that. Nurturing the program's history is valuable, with benefits you sometimes don't see for years. At the Lincoln site, he is listed as 6-1, 195, DOB 6-25-81. In 32 games, he's got 2-7-9 and 87 PIMs, which leads the team. Sioux hockey: You don't want to go into the corner with our defensemen.

Well, I've got to say that I find myself in agreement with you guys. Dropping two more is disappointing. But the real problem is not coming away from CC empty-handed, it was not taking care of UAA. It sounds to me like the Sioux came to play the last three games. In fact, the Friday UAA game sounds like the only one where the team really laid an egg since before Christmas. If Blais says the guys played hard but we just didn't get any points to show for it, I can handle that. The hockey gods are not smiling on the Sioux right now. If they get good goaltending, they can't score. When they're filling it up, they get average goaltending. Josh lost consecutive 2-1 games; that's gotta hurt for a goalie. And all the goalposts! But I think this year might be payback for last year. At the start of last year, I really didn't think the Sioux would be playing in OT in the national title game. Last year had more than a bit of magic attached to it, and I think this year we're suffering from an abnormally low amount of good fortune. These glimpses of dominance are encouraging though, and I am still expecting to ruin someone's season this year. So that'll be nice.

At www.gazette.com, Blais apparently said Siembida goes Friday, and Saturday will be either Brandt or Kollar. Without getting into a debate about whether he should or not, I had wondered if Blais might play Andy this series, as his best weekend of the year was against CC.

Great job, Heidisioux. Thanks for the hard work. I have a good friend at word named Heidi, but she's *gasp* a big Gopher fan. Let's just say it's been a good five years.

As usual, any insight from this week's coach's show would be much appreciated. Thanks.

On that note, SSM has updated its stats page. It currently shows (GP, G, A, Points) Parise 40 53-71-124 Murray 40 41-58-99 Hirsch 40 41-51-92 Whether it translates to the next level only time will tell, but those guys sure do dominate the Midgets.

Sic, I thought that too. I think either Palmiscno or Leinweber is number 19.

I've just been to the HOF Game myself, but have a few more games scheduled this year.

I've heard other reports of Bayda's strong play. The complaints about upperclass leadership are broad-brushed, but I can't think of a time when Blais has been critical of Bayda, Skarperud, Spiewak or Notermann. Regarding Bayda, check out these stats (Year, points, ppg): 1999 61 1.49 2000 41 1.08 2001 41 1.05 2002 49 2.33 Those are Darren Haydar's stats at UNH. What happened in 1999 and 2002? Jason Krog and Sean Collins, respectively. These are Bayda's: 2000 40 0.91 2001 59 1.28 2002 21 0.91 A lot of people thought Bayda would probably be gone after this year, and he still might. I'm not close to the situation, so I don't know. But as an outsider it appears that this might not be the best time to leave, after he struggled (statistically) and the team has had a rough time. I think Bayda could enjoy a similar senior bump next year (but not to 2.33 ppg) as his linemates get more experienced and blue-chip (if you know what I mean). In addition to looking forward to next year, I'm still hoping the Sioux make a bit of noise this year. It's great that you had a good time, dagies.

Earlier this year, I posted somewhere: "It's not about winning or losing right now, it's about getting better." This deep into the season, while improvement is still the main goal, I think it's OK that results begin to become more of a focus.

To update where everyone stands: (Team, GP, Pts) 3. MN 14 18 4. CC 16 17 5. Wis 14 15 5. AA 16 15 7. MSU 18 13 8. UND 16 12 When you see how close even third place is, those points lost to Wisconsin, Mankato and now UAA are even more painful. Just splits in those three league series (the last with each of those teams) would have left the Sioux one point out of third. There's a lot of hockey left to play and really not too many points needed to get in the top five, but the Sioux need to start picking up some points. CC's schedule: UND, Denver (hh), Wisconsin, at MN, at AA, Tech. WI: at MSUM, SCSU, AA, at CC, Denver, at MN, UMD. AA: MN, at UMD, at WI, MSUM, at SCSU, CC. MSUM: Wisconsin, Tech, at AA, UMD, at Tech. UND: at CC, at Tech, MN, Tech, at UMD, Denver Go Sioux.

Thanks, Doc. I think you're so right. The team just isn't ready to dominate at this point. I do think that as juniors and seniors, some of the players in this freshman class will be stars, not just good players. If you look through Sioux history and other WCHA teams as well, there have been many dominating upperclassmen who were hardly noticed as freshmen. Thanks for also pointing out that the defensive effort is better as well. Scoring droughts happen, but they end. As long as the defense and goaltending are there, the team will be in a position to win. I like to remember when the Sioux went 119 minutes in St. Cloud without scoring a goal, losing that weekend 3-0 and tying 1-1. That punchless team went on to beat BC in the finals. I'm not predicting that result for this team, but perspective is good. I haven't been there, so I shouldn't say, but I'm disappointed in the booing as well. Support the guys. It's a college team.

K, I don't want to join your b!tchfest, because you do such a good job of it yourself, but I will say that I was wondering tonight whether we should even want the Sioux to get home ice. And I mean that only partly in jest. Something needs to happen for the Sioux to claim this rink as their "home," but it hasn't happened yet. I'm sure it will, but it might not be this year.

I tried to see him when NJ played Philly last night, but I was busy so couldn't watch too closely. I finally heard, "Held in by Commodore," so he must be up. No idea how he's playing, but he's very young so to be up is impressive, IMO.