jk

I thought the last two periods were pretty even from a possession and chances standpoint. Then hockey happened, with the strange Driscoll whiff and some bounces. I don't mind Kleven defending the goalie, just cross-check him a little lower so it's two, not five. Given who these teams lost, this is how this was supposed to go. UND has just been a pleasant surprise, and MN has disappointed so far. But maybe things are leveling out.

I highly doubt it was as simple as them thinking Johnson was more ready than Morrow. They evaluate talent professionally, and are obviously very good at it. The latter had an interesting journey through juniors, with a few programs left hanging. It could be they and he just thought UND wasn't a good cultural fit any longer. If that's it, I respect their desire to protect the culture.

Actually evened out in the second. MN got a weird goalie play and a bounce that period.

As for hockey, that team is still loaded, but they just haven't put it all together yet. They have three defensemen from last year's US WJC team and added a top freshman forward. Oddly enough the biggest weakness has been their returning stud goalie. UND should benefit from having just seen a quick, tight-checking team like Duluth. They'll need to play like they did last Saturday. Given each team's off-season losses and additions, this was supposed to be the year MN turned the tables on UND. We'll see this weekend if that is the case, or if UND's recent diet of NCHC opponents has them prepared to put up a fight.

Didn't Penn State split with mn this weekend?

I have a feeling we're gonna hate the James/Biondi combo for a while.

Pretty good couple periods for UND. Not perfect, a couple rough shifts, but pretty even overall. Jandric seems to be taking a step. It is understandable that it took a while as he did not play last year. Caulfield also seems close to breaking out.

You can definitely tell which team brought back a bunch of seniors and which has 14 new guys. Outmatched pretty bad at times.

Biggest concern is someone running Sanderson. UMD has been known to do that. Although maybe they'll wait until the NCHC playoffs, as they did with Poolman. Think he might have helped against BU the next week?

Not sure this year's heavy line will be taking a back seat to any recent versions, all of which are lightweights compared to Canady, Massen and Fabian, who changed the momentum back in UND's favor repeatedly in every game down the stretch.

On the bright side UND dominated basically from start to finish, and didn't let up in the third. Need to clean some things up, but the team moves well and shares the puck well. The new guys, portal and freshmen both, look like they are on board with the style of play.

Well, they were in the national title game.

Maybe this was exactly the time and place for it.

Seriously, stfu. Not here.

It's a bummer because my uninformed understanding is that he wasn't ready to come in due to injuries, and he wasn't happy with that, so he left. And ended up arriving at Denver when he would have gotten here.

UND often struggles early even with more talent. It's just gonna take a while. I imagine the unexpected hole at 1C is having a big effect as well. (Not blaming him for the decision, but he was going to be leaned on a lot.)

Oh golly y'all are funny. Sanderson had a few moments that didn't work out today, but he touches the puck more in a game than anyone else, and he gets it right 99% of the time. He could step into a top 4 role in the NHL tomorrow.

After trailing 5 zip. All six goals even strength. Wow, must have been something.

They're also perhaps more willing to be ready to come in, even if it means waiting a year to get stronger and better.

I respectfully disagree that Kleven is physically ready. It takes big guys a while to grow into their bodies, and he still has that gangly colt look to him at times. I could see his path being junior year UND, senior year AHL, then breaking into the NHL. If he learns to use his length in the defensive zone and continues to get stronger, he could be a monster at 25.

That's really something, says a lot about him and UND. It's easy to see now that the conversation between SJ and him might have been quite a bit different in the fall than it was in the spring. Earlier, it may have been an offer to turn pro and see where you fit in the organization. After they saw him, it might have been: We think you can be our fourth line center. While it still leaves a hole in UND's lineup, it's hard to blame a late-round pick older player for moving on and cashing big game checks.

And, while it's instinct, dumb play by the goalie to stick his hand out. You want to miss most of the year with a broken hand?

Since the refs made the right call in letting them play on, smart play by Schmaltz to go high bare hand.

Man, Hastings knows how to run a program. The season has barely started and they've already taken a big PWR step to getting into the tournament.

After 15 minutes, I kinda liked the squad. Hard to comment on individuals since I spent the whole period looking up roster numbers. A little sloppy later.