jk

I hate it when the board turns into calling out players and coaches for not trying and not caring and all that stuff, because I think they do care, but for whatever reason it's just not working right now. I just want to know, is this rock bottom?

Boy the Sioux sure are intense in the last two minutes of these home losses.

I'm going to leave to put some kids to bed; maybe something good will happen. Right now the Sioux are just not as good as MTU. Lammy has kept it close.

It sounds like the guys are playing hard and reasonably well, but I miss the days when they occasionally scored a goal.

I saw the Blais interview and I have to say that it was heartwarming to see him. I don't know him or anything, but it was just very reassuring to see him there. He seemed well, and relaxed, and it did seem that he missed being behind the bench and actually coaching. They just talked briefly about this year's Sioux team, and he commended Hak and noted how difficult it is to play defense in the league as an underclassman. Don't blame me for the youth excuse, I'm just reporting (actually loosely paraphrasing, in a sudo sudo-reporting way) what he said. (And I did know him once, when he was my ninth-grade PE teacher at Minot High.)

I know people think INCH stinks, but they do talk to people.

Here are excerpts from the Edmonton game thread on HF: What a way to score your first NHL goal!!! ---------------- MATT GREENE!!! Huge Goal. YEAH BABIES!!!!! ------------------------ Screw Fernandez, I want Greene's urine sample. That was hilarious. --------------------------- Greeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee eeeeeeeeeeneee!!!!!!!!!!! ---------------------------- Nice Goal By Greene! Holy Crap I Just About Spilled Water Everywhere! ----------------------------- ahhaaha MATT GREENE = BOBBY ORR!!!! i'm laughing so hard right now.. i love this kid ------------------------------ Matt Greene, the mean Greene sniper!!! ------------------------------ Alright Matt Orr, time for another goal. ===================== And a few comments from Greene: "It's good to finally get it over with and to have that done," said Greene, who was glad the game ended in regulation. "I think I'm number 20 on the shootout list. I don't even get to play in overtime let alone a shootout." Matt Greene on his goal - "I blacked out for 5 seconds."

If we're talking about this weekend, then Kozek's the man because he loves scoring against Michigan Tech. Career against MTU: 5-0-5 in 4 games. Career against everyone else: 5-9-14 in 58 games.

I believe that was about the time that signs were falling from the arena scoreboard. "And a sign fell from the sky, and smote the Seawolf."

OK now this just drives me crazy. Watkins is getting outproduced by Miller, and that's somehow a problem because Miller didn't play much last year. Miller didn't play much because he was coming off shoulder surgery and wasn't able to work out sufficiently in the summer preceding his freshman year. Now we're starting to see what he's capable of. Strength is still an issue for him, as he gets bounced along the boards quite a bit, but it is a real treat watching him carry the puck up the ice with a little room and create. How Miller rounding into form is somehow an indictment of Watkins escapes me. Watkins' production has increased nicely this year, and, no, the bar for Watkins wasn't set low last year. Those were decent numbers for a true freshman who is not in the all-universe category like a few others have been. As for how they compare to the BCHL, his BCHL numbers were solid, but were not spectacular by any means (they were about half of what Travis Zajac put up). One would not typically expect a player with Watkins' BCHL resume to come in and be an offensive star. Here's the kicker though. Anyone watching the games can see how good a player Watkins is, even when he's not on the scoreboard. I love what Miller is doing offensively, but there are a ton of other hockey things that Watkins does better - he wins races, he wins battles. In two years, when Toews and Oshie are rightfully being lauded in the former players thread, and when Duncan and Miller may be leading the team in scoring, Watkins will be the heart and soul of the team.

Watkins 2005-06 5-4-9 in 46 games 2006-07 5-3-8 in 16 games Looks like a sophomore slump. He scored 1 more point last year.

Congrats to Minot's Jordan Willert, who is going to Nebraska-Omaha, according to Heisenberg. He's a real nice kid.

Not a sparkling first 7:15 for the Sioux.

I think Wisconsin is going to play very well this weekend, and if the Sioux are to win they will have to be at the top of their game, from the goaltending on out through the whole roster. As noted above, Wisconsin is finally healthy, and their game started to come together two weeks ago against the Michigans. Now they've had two weeks to rest, practice, and stew about how lousy their record was when they were hurt. They will be desperate. If the Sioux bring the same desperate intensity, they'll be fine. If not, siouxsports.com will not be a very nice play to be next week.

There's a little rumor on the high school board that Jordy Murray committed to Wisconsin. He's on Shattuck's top line with Stepan and Montpetit, both of whom will also be Badgers.

Your point is that #9 picks are supposed to become NHL stars, and as one of your examples you choose a guy who hasn't played in the NHL yet. As for where Lee ranks in the list of current UND defensemen, thanks for the chuckle.

A kind Badger fan posted this on USCHO. I pass it on here as a public service: ---------------------- If anybody is interested, Kerry Eades and John Newberry will be on the Badger Hockey Hour on WIBA radio tonight. Of course, they will be recalling the famous "Water Bottle Incident" (WI v ND) from the early 80's that set off the best fight I have ever seen in my life. I can remember it like it was yesterday..... Sioux fans, WIBA has live streaming. The show is at 7 PM tonight.

The thing that may tend to keep Chorney a bit longer than otherwise is that he's an Edmonton property, and Edmonton: 1) Still doesn't have an AHL affiliate and doesn't have enywhere to send its signees, and 2) Likes UND's player development. If he's not ready for the NHL, this is one case where they may really prefer him to be in college rather than in their "system."

2008 will need a lot of defensemen. Radke, Bina, Lee, Chorney and Finley will all likely be gone. Forget how ready they may be and remember their draft positions. 2009 will need a lot of forwards. This big sophomore class will be graduating.

I'm generally big on respecting opponents, and in this case I know the success the U18 team has had against good college teams, but really, UND should kick these 17-year olds all over the ice. I know the toddlers must be quite good to have had the results they've had, so I don't really expect UND to dominate them, but really ... they should.

Lives-to... 's presence and posts bring up a philosophical question about the board. Is it only about agreeing with the members of the club, or should someone be allowed to be open with their opinions, even if they're negative? Personally, I'm in favor of people presenting dissenting viewpoints, although I sometimes withhold my negative thoughts in light of the fact that the players on the team are generally good kids in an extremely demanding environment, trying their best. So I don't mind Lives-to... posting here. I do, however, think some of his/her opinions are completely wrong. He/she lost me when a discussion of Finley included a comment about the coaches likely helping Smaby pack his bags because he was such a liability. Now that's a laugh. With the possible exception of Parise, Smaby was this team's biggest offseason loss. He f'in killed people every game, and that presence does not exist this year. I learned then to take Lives-to... with a grain of salt.

Just wanted to address the impact of the WJC on the Sioux schedule. December 8-9 UND, with a full squad, hosts Wisconsin. December 10 Canadian Junior Camp opens; Toews trades his Sioux logo for the Maple Leaf. December 15-16 UND, without Toews, hosts MTU. Will UND's presumed US Junior Team members be available? I think so, but am not sure when the players report. December ?? US players report to the US team. Chorney and Lee will likely be on the team. December 26 WJC begins in Sweden. December 29-30 Dartmouth tournament; Sioux without Toews, Lee and Chorney. January 5 WJC gold medal game January 5-6 UND, still without Toews, Lee and Chorney, visits CC. January 12-13 UAA visits a fully-equipped UND team. --------------------------------- Assuming Lee and Chorney make the US team, and Toews the Canadian team, what will the Sioux look like in their absence? Defense: Radke, Bina, Jones, Finley, Foyt, Genoway Forwards: If Genoway moves to defense, then you need to replace Toews and Genoway from their line, leaving only Duncan. I assume you pair Oshie and Duncan, and let the rest fall into place after that.

Kermit, I believe that's ROI's write-up on the commitment. It's a fun read.

Brett Bruneteau had a big 1-3-4 night for Omaha, and Derrick LaPoint had another ho-hum 2 assists for Green Bay tonight. Malone and Marto were scoreless.

I'm going to interrupt the substance abuse for a second and play devil's advocate. I've spent years here talking people off the ledge at times like this, but I want to point out a genuine concern. The early-season records posted by the Sicatoka to lead off this thread are similar to this year, but both of the preceding years had UND staring into the abyss in early or mid-March. Had the Sioux lost to MSUM last year in the first round of the WCHA playoffs, the season was probably over. (Obviously) no Final Five, but also likely no NCAA tournament invitation. They have played with fire going into the last week or two of the last two years on the NCAA bubble, and it's entirely possible that they could have an unhappy ending one of these years if it continues to happen - one of those games where they show up and play well but don't get the bounces or get outgoaltended. I personally have seen enough to think that the team could be very good again down the stretch, so I'm not worried terribly. Just a little. edit: mksioux beat me to it.