jk

I thought this last year, too, but UND matches up poorly with UAA. They are big up front and can skate, but they aren't very creative or fancy offensively. They play a simple game, win the race or wrestling match for the puck and try to get it to the net. With Greene, Jones, Smaby and Schneider, I like our chances against that type of team. Less with Marto, Genoway and LaPoint (and Miller). With the bruisers a few years ago, the Sioux were perhaps short on blueline skill. Now they're short on muscle, especially with Finley out. Next year, Blood, Fienhage and McWilliam should get regular shifts, and the balance should be better. Then it will be up to Genoway, Marto, LaPoint and Gleason to be effective offensively.

You make some good points, but I have a few comments. Every college team is filled with former scoring stars, most of whom go on to score very little in college. If all the goal per game guys in junior continued that pace in college, the college game scores would be 19-18. The real measure of the offense is how it compares to other college teams, and I believe the Sioux offense is consistently near the top of the league, and usually ranked pretty well nationally. No doubt it's nowhere near there so far this year, but check back at the end. UND's PP has actually looked like a PP since Eades took it over. I loved the Blais teams too (how could you not), but the PP was terrible then. I wanted to decline penalties because UND never scored, and the two-minute break just robbed the team of the great 5-on-5 momentum.

Sioux played with more energy tonight, but the difference between the two nights was who got the bounces. UAA had many more good chances tonight, and Eidsness played very well. Miller's shot from the point sure did get blocked often this weekend. Marto was good all weekend, and sometimes very good. Vandevelde had a much better night Saturday; the play died off his stick quite a few times Friday. Duncan is the best player on the team by a lot; he's a complete player who makes the right play with the puck nearly all the time. Oh to have seen Zach Parise playing with this level of rule enforcement; he would have drawn a penalty or scored on nearly every shift.

Thanks. Now there are two of us who saw the Sioux outchance them. Even with the disappointing effort, you will usually win games when you outchance your opponent like that.

For as bad as everyone thinks the game was, this one was much worse: http://www.uscho.com/box/?date=20080126&am...nd&gender=m The total domination that everyone thinks they saw tonight was actually present that night. Tonight's result was just payback for that unjust ending.

I am keeping the faith.

OK, it's understandable to be PO'd right now, but there are a few things to point out. First, about UAA's goals, two are point shots that made their way through bodies into the net. They count, but they are the kind of thing that happen once every five games or so. Not really Walski's fault, just good fortune for UAA. The 2-on-1, the pass was bouncing and the shooter golfed it up. How often is someone able to put a bouncing puck where he wants to? Part great play, part good luck. Second, UND's shots on goal are embarrassingly low, but I'd love to see the shot attempts by the two teams. I'll bet the Sioux have attempted almost twice as many. Kozek alone has shot about six high or wide. I'm not happy with Kozek tonight, because he has one job, and he's been set up pretty well tonight to do it. Also, although Miller's been OK overall, he personally wasted the 5-on-3, losing the puck 3 times (although one was on a hot pass). Toews looks pretty good and will get a bigger role as the year goes on. Ultimately none of this matters if you lose, but the fact is the team has been terrible some nights and won (like last year against UAA), and I don't think they've been terrible tonight. Just not good enough to overcome some bounces for UAA.

I think the Sioux are playing pretty well. Five or six really nice chances, just inches away. They're getting the puck right down by the goalie, and when you do that, eventually they'll start to go in. UAA deserves credit, as they are big and can skate. They're good at using their size legally, which is tricky. Last year UAA skated circles around the Sioux at REA, and this year the Sioux seem quicker. This year it's size against speed.

I think this year's Sioux team might ultimately be better for not having the NHL star type elite player. Sometimes I wondered if the team did some standing around waiting for Oshie to save the day last year. This year the lines are so balanced that I think you might actually have a chance to see the Sioux roll four dangerous lines in a nod to the Blais days. We'll see how it goes, but this might turn into more of a "team." (Nothing against UND's recent stars, who I really enjoyed wearing the Sioux jersey.)

By most accounts the guys played hard and pretty well tonight. They were not satisfied with the Friday win, but came out intending to get the extra two points. I came into the season expecting Finley, Genoway and Jones to get a ton of ice time this year, and tonight the team was without two of them, and apparently Jones, Blood and LaPoint were nicked up during the weekend as well. Given that situation, and some of the strange bounces, I have to give the guys a pass on this one. Just be thankful some of these odd occurrences happened in November instead of March or April. I think the team is coming along.

Mike Forney had a hattie in about 2.5 minutes of the third period to bring his team back from a 3-6 deficit to a tie game. After two long years off, he finally gets to play hockey again.

Out-attempting the opponent 31-8 in a period is not a lousy effort, especially when the opponent had 2 PPs. Usually when that happens, it will show up on the scoreboard.

You have five chronological years to complete your four years of eligibility. If Forney successfully received a medical redshirt for last year, his career could look like this: Year 1: Freshman Year 2: Medical Redshirt Year 3: Sophomore Year 4: Junior Year 5: Senior However, if he goes to the USHL, he would come back with just two years left on the chronological clock. That would make the question of the medical redshirt irrelevant: Year 1: Freshman Year 2: Medical Redshirt Year 3: USHL Year 4: Sophomore Year 5: Junior Year 6: Sorry there is no year 6; you're done after 5.

As for who will be coming to UND in the fall, this should be your starting point, a Herald article from April. Eidsness, Gregoire, Hextall, Toews, Lamoureux and Blood will be here. Others might, depending on early departures. I'm guessing Brad doesn't compile a list like this in a vaccuum. He likely gets input from "very good sources." http://www.undsportszone.com/articles/?id=74207 "But a large part to next season

Gerbe's gone. Thank goodness. http://wgr550.com/Sabres-Sign-Gerbe/2136906

But he's a junior in high school, and they don't let you into college until you've graduated.

Congrats to Danny Kristo, who captained the US U-18 team to a bronze medal. Kristo had 1-1-2 in the bronze medal 6-3 win against Sweden. Also, Hextall added an ENG to finish the 3-0 win over Camrose, getting Penticton back in the series. Hextall is also the captain of his team.

Just addressing history here: Blais won one title with the 4-line speed team - 1997. He had very similar teams in 1998 and 1999, but they didn't manage to win. 2000 was a very different team - two good offensive lines (Goren/Ulmer and Panzer/Lundbohm) and the rest of the guys playing roles. 2001 was even less deep - five elite players (Panzer, Lundbohm, Bayda, Roche, KG) and a bunch of guys who played roles (some of them, like Spee and Notermann, brilliantly). It seems obvious to me that Hak likes to build a team with guys recruited to play specific roles. That's why they have brought in players like Porter, Fabian, Kaip, Watkins and Malone. It's why this year's class will have scorers (Gregoire, Toews, maybe Cichy) and grittier players (Mario, Hextall). It's why the defensemen in the pipeline include little skaters (Gleason, Mattson) and big bruisers (Blood, McWilliam, Finehage). I like the balance. It lets you play the game any way the opponent wants to. It also helps you survive the WCHA. The liberties some of the older teams in the bottom half would take with a team without grit would be frightening. Also, bigger, grittier guys can have an important effect on games. Down the stretch in 2005, the Canady, Massen, Fabian line changed the momentum of a playoff game countless times. They simply moved the puck smartly up ice, gained the zone and kept it there for the entire shift. The game changed each time, and by the end the opponents were worn out. I don't think this team's finish should damn the concept of a balanced team. For whatever reason, this team was just not playing well down the stretch. Was it injuries, the flu, the WJC , coaching, drinking? Sometimes it's just the way it is. JPL kept the team afloat through most of the lethargy, but when he crumbled, it was over. I look forward to next year's balanced team.

Classified ad: Italian rifle for sale. Never fired and only dropped once.

I don't think the whole team stunk. I don't think they came out flat. I thought they played better than they did in either regional game. (Princeton dominated the Sioux for much of that game, but the Sioux sniped a few and JPL played great.) In this game, the Sioux played them pretty even in the first, but the Sioux shot wide on their best chances, and everything BC put on net went in. It was a goalie's nightmare, similar to the one Sauer had against UND last year. But after 4-0, they lost their composure. The PP that was so impressive early couldn't get anything going beginning in the second. Part of that was due to Chorney's absence. I also thought BC dominated play (territorially and in chances) much more in the second period last year than they did at any time this year. Basically, they just scored on nearly all of their good chances this year. I also don't think the team stinks, or is overloaded with non-skill players. They have a pretty good balance of grit and skill overall. I was happy the team didn't goon it up out of frustration. Just play hard. The team is going to be a lot younger next year, and Sioux fans will probably get to save a little money in April 2009 that they usually spend on Frozen Four trips. No fingers pointed at anyone, but I wonder what effect Brad Berry's absence has had on the team.

That photo is still the wallpaper on my work PC. You wouldn't know it from the picture (you would if you follow TJ), but he was the puck carrier on this play, and the Russian was the one lining up to throw the check. Welcome to TJ's world.

I think Cornell is in GF over Thanksgiving, as noted above, and Harvard might be the very next weekend, at Harvard.

Although Toews is listed on the roster, SSM has scored 16 goals in its first two games, and he doesn't yet have a point. I'm guessing he's not playing.

I like it and that's how I would have it, although I would consider switching Zajac and Martens. Zajac was on that third line in the third period Sunday, and I think he's played well lately.

The good news is, at least they aren't on a big roll right now, and might cool off with the extended break before the FF. Wow, they really only played one good period of hockey all weekend and managed to win twice. BC looked like their usual dynamic selves this weekend, and I think they will be awfully hard to handle again this year. Hopefully the rest lets the Sioux recharge their batteries a bit, and they can have a little jump in their skates.